Blogs

By Emily Porter and Ari Pinkus

In an interactive session, Sandy Speicher, associate partner of IDEO, challenged a room full of educators to consider five provocative, exciting statements and asked them to snap if they agreed or disagreed with them. Panelists April Goble from KIPP; Rolando Nuñez-Baza, innovation director of Innova Schools; Diane Tavenner, CEO of Summit Public Schools; and Max Ventilla, founder of Altschools, weighed in with thumbs up and thumbs down signs, a la Facebook.

#1: Designing schools around the learner changes everything.

The audience and panelists unanimously agreed with this statement.

This design encourages teachers to implement more thoughtful, differentiated instruction. Teachers gain the time and ability to lead and coach more purposeful small-group instruction, leverage technology for blended learning approaches while students work autonomously, go at their own pace, and learn knowledge and content through learning platforms.

Students learn and drive their own agency, and teachers lead students to mastery of skills through facilitating, coaching, and guiding.

When we measure and align everything around students’ satisfaction, like any other human being, they are happier. When they’re asked what they like and what they want to do, they take more ownership and are more engaged.

The changing world will demand that students drive their own experiences, and they’ll need to be competent to do this. Therefore, putting learners at the center from the early years through grade 12 provides plenty of opportunities to practice this very skill, so students are able to do it throughout their lives.  

#2 Being student-centered means that kids determine what happens in schools.

The audience and panelists had mixed views on this statement, but came to a similar conclusion once they discussed it.

When students have autonomy and are driving what happens with their learning, this doesn’t mean that they make every decision in schools. It means they have the opportunity to choose their preferences within a context of different paths, thoughtfully and rigorously planned for them by school leaders and teachers. When students make decisions, they learn to consider others and the greater good. Giving students choices allows them to practice responsibility, a much-needed life skill, and they see their voice being honored. 

#3 The needs of today’s learners are different than ever before.

There’s no question that every generation has had its own specific needs but the needs of today’s learners are truly unique.

The global world we live in today goes beyond geographic expansion. It means the whole world.

Access to information has always been scarce, but now it’s available 24/7.

The speed of change has increased rapidly. This speed affects how we connect to others and information. “Intragenerational” change has become the norm.

Combining these three changes with the changing demographics and economy implores schools to answer the questions: what are the needs of the learners today and how do we prepare them? They need skills that no other generation before them has needed.

#4 In our global world, skills matter more than content for the learner.

There was widespread agreement in the audience and among the panelists.

There’s no denying that certain knowledge is foundational and critical. However, a big challenge for schools now: in a world where knowledge is ubiquitous, choosing the key knowledge students need becomes more difficult. Which knowledge best serves the learners at a time when knowledge is rapidly changing and expanding?  

If teachers in schools are deliberate about the knowledge students are required to learn, it opens up time for learners to practice the critical skills to be employable and productive for this global and ever-changing future. When that is clear and precise, teachers can spend more time coaching and facilitating mastery of skills, both academic and those that promote character development.

#5 In order to truly innovate, we must connect parents, teachers, and schools to the innovations that are happening now.

Again, there was general agreement in the room on this point.

When making any kind of changes in schools, it’s critical that school leaders communicate with teachers and parents so that everyone understands the purpose of these decisions: putting students at the center improves the learning experience for everyone. 

The risk to not being open and communicative is alienating and disengaging parents and teachers because learning doesn’t just happen in the classroom.

Putting the learning at center creates a culture in which everyone learns and grows.