Schmoker: '21st century education' is a fad?
Quoting Rotherham on 21st century education, Schmoker told the attendees that "history is not on the movement's side. … The tendency to run after every 'shiny new idea' often leads to faddishness. … American schools still are not delivering a content-rich curriculum for all students."
Success hinges on simplicity in priorities, Schmoker explained. And it doesn't even have to be done perfectly, just reasonably well. "Students need to be able to read something, talk to each other about it, and write about it," Schmoker stated. "This is mostly old stuff from the 19th and 20th centuries, not unique to the 21st century."
How can a high-quality education be achieved by all students? "Get rid of the silly stuff in pursuit of some new fad," Schmoker said. Instead, teach kids to read slowly, turn to one another to talk about it, and then write about it. Amazingly, Schmoker stated, only 25 percent of schools adhere to these seemingly mundane things.
3 comments
Students need to be able to read something, talk to each other about it, and write about it," Schmoker stated.
Sounds a lot like Diigo conversations or Twitter streams to me---only the conversations are bigger, instant, more diverse, and borderless! That's a fad I want to be a part of.
Bill
Schmoker is correct, the core objective is the same, "students need to be able to read something, talk to each other about it, and write about it." However, our time and place (i.e., the 21st Century) is the context and this core objective must be taught in proper context, not the context of the 18th, 19th, or 20th centuries.
I don't disagree that students need to be able to "read something, talk to each other about it, and write about it." but to suggest that both the forms and substance of this are not changing is naive.