Essential Question: What does the way you play have to do with embracing change and how does this impact you as a professional?
Play is a part of life. We start out with play being the sole way we learn, but we are quickly transferred to the way of learning in school. I'm not convinced that schools in America have the right idea about education. From everything I have read American test scores have consistently been mid pack compared to other counties, and our scores seem to be dropping. I'm not sure testing is the best form of evaluation, but this still points out that the U.S. might need to change the way we look at education. So much has changed in our history yet education is relatively the same. "Traditional approaches to learning are no longer capable of coping with a constantly changing world. They have yet to find a balance between the structure that educational institutions provide and the freedom afforded by the new media’s almost unlimited resources, without losing a sense of purpose and direction" (Thomas & Brown, 2011)
While looking into the topic of adapting to change and play I came across a couple of great examples from U.S. schools as well as Finland's approach to education. High Tech High, a charter school in the U.S., works from the ground up. In other words they work with teachers, parents, and students to create change rather than starting with administration. "There are no bells, class periods, or single subjects. Subjects are integrated. Teachers are hired on one-year contracts, with the payoff of being able to teach whatever they want to teach. And over and over again, we see and hear that one of the great things about this place is how teachers teach to their passions and, with their students, are the designers." Their test scores are 10% above the state average and they have a 98% college entrance rate (Phillips, 2015). The other example I found is called MHS Unplugged where students have a 15-minute recess period every day. "Recess includes activities that are student- or teacher-led, like yoga, meditation, Frisbee, basketball, jam band, and art projects. Students unplug from the curriculum, from stress, and from electronics during these 15 minutes. The short break provides them an opportunity to connect with one another and teachers in a new way, and as a result, students feel more productive and more connected to the school community...True to the program's name, activities do not include anything computer- or electronics-based. 'Unplugged' really does mean unplugged...Teachers and students are also able to build a relationship outside of class, which helps to strengthen what happens in class. There's a connection made when teachers and students get to know one another better, and there's a sense of caring and community in the school." ("Recess for High School Students", 2015). I have been very fascinated by what Finland is doing with their educational system, and to be honest I am jealous. This week seemed like a great excuse to spend more time reading about their system. I found so many articles I couldn't choose which ones I wanted to use so I just used all of them. Finland really has a great way of mixing play with learning. I believe this is what Thomas & Seely (2013) are talking about when they say "the challenge is to find a way to marry structure and freedom to create something altogether new." In Finland they believe that "carefully organized play helps develop qualities such as attention span, perseverance, concentration and problem solving, which at the age of four are stronger predictors of academic success than the age at which a child learns to read" (Butler, 2016). In the U.S. public-school teachers are bound by so many regulations. We are not in charge of selecting our textbooks or content because that is already dictated to us. (Walker, 2016) In Finland teachers are given a lot of autonomy. "Teachers are well paid, well-trained (they must complete a five-year specialist degree), respected by parents and valued and trusted by politicians. There is no Ofsted-style inspection of schools and teachers, but a system of self-assessment. Educational policy and teaching is heavily research-based" (Butler, 2016). Doyle (2016) resonates the same observations where Finland's teachers "are encouraged to constantly experiment with new approaches to improve learning." Strauss (2013) makes a prediction, based on interviews with Finnish teachers who have left Finland to teach in America, that American teachers would excel in Finland because they would have the "freedom to teach without the constraints of standardized curricula and the pressure of standardized testing; strong leadership from principals who know the classroom from years of experience as teachers; a professional culture of collaboration; and support from homes unchallenged by poverty." Finland just has a completely different notion about the way education should be and they are seeing some great successes. "In a world of near-constant flux, play becomes a strategy for embracing change, rather than a way for growing out of it"(Thomas & Brown, 2011). I believe it boils down to the idea that kids need time to be kids. We all need to take time for our passions and incorporate these passion into our daily lives just as this 63 year old man has done.
Sources
Butler, P. (2016, September 20). No grammar schools, lots of play: the secrets of Europe's top education system. Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.theguardian.com/education/2016/sep/20/grammar-schools-play-europe-top-education-system-finland-daycare Doyle, W. (2016, December 06). How Finland broke every rule - and created a top school system. Retrieved February 08, 2017, from http://hechingerreport.org/how-finland-broke-every-rule-and-created-a-top-school-system/ Phillips, M. (2015, December 17). The Problems and Promise of Educational Change. Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/problems-promise-educational-change-mark-phillips Recess for High School Students. (2015, February 03). Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/practice/recess-high-school-students Strauss, V. (2013, May 15). What if Finland’s great teachers taught in U.S. schools? Retrieved February 10, 2017, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2013/05/15/what-if-finlands-great-teachers-taught-in-u-s-schools-not-what-you-think/?utm_term=.104b61038634 Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change [Kindle]. Walker, T. D. (2016, November 28). When Finnish Teachers Work in America’s Public Schools. Retrieved February 08, 2017, from http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/11/when-finnish-teachers-work-in-americas-public-schools/508685/
2 Comments
2/11/2017 06:08:45 pm
Amazing video! I’m not that old, but I still try to have fun like that. Weekly, I participate in drop-in soccer and it’s great. It’s probably why I like to do things that are out of the ordinary. I learned how to ride a unicycle at a “young” age of 19, but have kept up with riding over the years. In fact, I showed my daughter my passion and interest, and after some time, she has learned how to ride a unicycle as well! She learned when she was 12. She has told me her goal is to ride with me during school assemblies. :-) It’s interesting to note that she wanted a larger size unicycle (she had 16in wheel unicycle, and wanted a 20 in. size) for Christmas instead of an adult size bicycle. She is adorable. It’s frustrating to view other countries’ success in education (well comparing standardized scores) and I wonder how they do it, but I think one of our fallacies is believing that anyone can succeed. As much as I want to believe it, I know that there will be students that don’t care about education and they are unfortunately the ones that “bring us down” in scores. We test EVERYONE. That doesn’t help our case for a good education system. It’s like saying (which I used to believe) anyone can ride a unicycle. We need a better measure of educational success than standardized testing. I don’t know what it could be.
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Sara Lucas
2/12/2017 11:06:00 am
I totally agree that testing is not the best method to show success. But even so High Tech High, a charter school where 50% are low income, has found a way to improve test scores and they are not teaching to the test. I think their success lies in the structure that allows teachers to teach what they are passionate about. I think this goes back to our first book, Teach Like a Pirate, where if we are excited our passions can transfer to the students. When someone is passionate we are drawn in and want to listen. Just think about how your daughter has fallen in love with the unicycle. Would she have chosen the unicycle if you weren't passionate about it? I know this would be hard to come up with an answer for that can be proven, so just think about it. I know things that my parents were passionate about transferred to me: running has been a part of my life for over 10 years and I still love it. So now this goes back to change. If we could change the system would we see better results in students?
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