Teaching is an ongoing challenge. What worked for my class last year, does not necessarily work for my class this year. Year after year I find myself changing the focus to address common needs for my new class. I often compare my school and the school system from when I was growing up with the school I work for now. It seems very interesting to see, not only how things have changed, but also how many things have become obsolete for today’s learning. That is what Seth Godin explains in his speech Stop Stealing Dreams. He talks about the eight things that need to be changed in education. It is true that teachers should serve more as facilitators and mentors to show students how to use and apply knowledge. Schools should focus more on individual needs rather than creating massive patterns for teaching and learning. In education, “One size fits all” has never worked and should not continue to exist. The inclusion of collaboration is a most have tool that will benefit students of new generations.
The one area that I am not in complete agreement with Seth Godin is when he addressed the open book concept. To a certain extent I agree that there is no need to memorize every single piece of information there is. However, it does not seem right to encourage people to become dependent of a device for reference all the time and for every subject. In my personal experience, it has always been a plus to memorize basic knowledge and recall it whenever needed.
Seth Godin at TEDxYouth@BFS. (2012, October 16). Stop Stealing Dreams. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXpbONjV1Jc
The one area that I am not in complete agreement with Seth Godin is when he addressed the open book concept. To a certain extent I agree that there is no need to memorize every single piece of information there is. However, it does not seem right to encourage people to become dependent of a device for reference all the time and for every subject. In my personal experience, it has always been a plus to memorize basic knowledge and recall it whenever needed.
Seth Godin at TEDxYouth@BFS. (2012, October 16). Stop Stealing Dreams. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXpbONjV1Jc