Synthesis Paper 4

As we advance in technology and education, teachers need to be better prepared to help students learn about the changing world.  Technology is advancing every second which aids in expanding the education field altogether.  With this expansion, teachers will need to adapt to a new way of teaching, development and advancement.  The teachers have a responsibility to expose the present and future trends of the global world; issues and conflicts of human society.  Teachers must aid the students in learning about themselves, the society and how they fit into this society.  The webquest is the learning tool to address technology and the ever-changing global conflicts.  Through the webquest, students are able to learn about a given topic with many more options. They can do cooperative and collaborative team projects, data rich research and a platform to show and display all their work.  The webquest aids in learning technology as it covers all or almost all the available advanced methods of learning using technology. 

The ideas in the webquest are closely related to social justice issues around the globe.  It covers topics from every continent and almost all the different regions of the world.  The webquest makes learning interactive as much as you want it to be or independent as much as you want it to be.  Using webquest, students have access to cross cultural resources as well as opportunities to explore at any idea they choose.  The topics in webquest will help students to be more aware and tolerant as they may encounter first-hand experiences with different cultures.  Students will truely be global learners in a global age.  

The webquest is a channel for many opportunities.  My webquest asks the students to analyze what would have happened if technology and science was not present during their chosen topic or if it was present.  They have to synthesize why or how science and technology has or has not impacted their human rights conflict and how it could have been different if it was the other way.  For example, in the Vietnam war, how did technology and science play a role in the victory of the Vietcongs or how would it have been different if science and technology had played a role in the war.  For this example, students must first assess if science and technology was a factor and analyze the process of war.  In the case of the Cambodian genocide, Khmer Rouge, science and technology may have played a bigger role.  

The students will develop awareness of the global world as they learn about the different human rights issues and conflicts around the world.  The webquest essentially has cut "distance" in everything including physical, mental and emotional.  This means that everything- learning about other countries and interacting with people from other countries have become easier.   In the future, the whole world may be one- one education system and program.  Education may not be limited to just its own county and country but it may become global, the way technology, science, communication, transportation and trade has become.  In the future, poverty, human rights, peace, conflict, and disease will not be a regional problem but a global problem that everyone will need to fight together.  And this may be more evident starting in the classrooms. 

Synthesis Paper #3

One of the biggest constraint in school reform or in education betterment is funding, amongst others.  If funding wasn't a problem, public secondary schooling can be elevated to a new level.  In 2025, as Draves puts it, cognitive learning will be the better way to manage learning.  Students will spend half of their time learning on the internet and half of the other time meeting in groups with other students to exchange information and interact with other students. This means the structure of education will change from a traditional classroom setting to an individual learning online plus cooperation meeting setting.  Teachers will take the role of a facilitator more than that of a lecturer.  Students will be able to self-evaluate and self assess their own comprehension and learn at their own pace. 

In 2025, it will be more important for students to develop the 5 minds for the future that Gardner pointed out in his book.  What we consider unique knowledge today may not be so unique in 2025.  One of the ideas to better improve curriculum in 2025 will be in-depth learning.  Students understand more and better when they are exposed to in-depth discussion or learning related to one thing rather than surface level knowledge on many topics.  Gardner also mentions expertise in a specific field.  We see many who succeed today- not because they know how to do everything but because they know how to do ONE thing really great.  We can really see real life examples of this-  Tiger Woods with golf, Kim Yuna with figure skating, and Mark Zuckerburg with facebook just to name a few.  The video clip also highlighted project based learning to help with in-depth studies.  One of the teachers who interviewed mentioned a real good point, "I don't remember what the lesson or the test was about but I remember the projects" and this is really true for many of us.  If we had more project based learning in school, we may be remembering so much more information.  The other one I liked was integrating emotional intelligence into the curriculum.  As the world turns more IT oriented, I worried about social/human relations weakening but it seems like emotional intelligence can cover the possible lacking of personal/social interactions. 

For pedagogy, as I mentioned earlier, teachers would have to take on the role of a facilitator rather than information provider.  Students will be able to get all the information and knowledge about any given topic and subject from the internet.  The teacher would play a bigger role as the mentor- guiding the student in the right direction and facilitating teaching.  Teachers would also be seeking for constant feedback and evaluation, as well as continued training and learning to keep up with the wealth of information available.  The video also suggested integrated studies.  In order for this to work, teachers will have to work with other teachers and make sure communication is effective in all channels. Teachers will need training to better deal with the new problems, including emotional intelligence. 



Reform Idea summary:  -upgraded technology in each school and for each student.  Equipment that enables all students to take online classes and learning.  Webcam and mic to interact with others in the classroom and possibly with peers in other countries.  A structured curriculum with online learning.  -Ongoing training for teachers (professional development) to become stronger facilitators and mentors for students.  -Project based learning materials and equipment.

Arguments:
-Online classes have more variety of subjects and topics that students can choose from.  It's healthy to give students a choice in what they want to learn and to do their own research in what they would like to learn about.  Students do not have to be compared to other students and they can move at their own pace. The effects of this will be similar to home schooled children except this will be the national/state structure for all future public schools.  According to a report finding, children who have been homeschooled all of their lives outperformed those in a traditional school environment (Homeschool).

-teachers who continue to receive training/education will better be equip to mentor/teach/facilitate students. We know from many studies and research that better trained teachers will better help improve test scores and learning.  If you want better students, it's a good idea to invest in the ones who will be leading them. 

-online classes are cheaper to maintain and manage.  Online classes can accommodate more students at a cheaper price for the state.  One reason we want to keep class sizes small is because we want to keep the student/teacher ratio low as possible for improved learning environment but with online learning, we get almost the one on one at the reduced rate.  It's a win-win solution for future schools. 

Synthesis Paper #2

 In 2025, the role of schooling may have changed dramatically.  One of the changes would be educating students with experts as experts.  Gardner mentions in his book, "Five minds for the Future" about each student having a specific discipline or expertise.  As more time goes on, I also notice this discipline becoming more important. Maybe at one point in time, it was good to be well rounded (in different talents) and be average to above average in a wide range of fields, however, that idea is changing-- to value talents in expertise in one specific field than many.  When we apply this concept to our present state, we see Tiger Woods in great success because he was a golf expert and we see Michael Phelps because he mastered one field or sport.  In 2025, we will see more of these individuals with specific expertise in many more fields.  Perhaps in some fields we may not know right now.  The responsibility of schooling will be to find these talents in each student and to nurture them to be the best at what they are good in.  

Another role of schooling will be to make these students into global beings that are able to think outside of the box.  One way to aid this training is to see different parts of the world and experience different cultures.  This will also help the students to be more "respectful" and "ethical" (Gardner).  Instead of just seeing these experiences on youtube or the TV, they will be able to be in that country of discussion to gain first hand knowledge.  In the future, distances will be shortened and there will be no place inaccessible.  We're not looking at just a longer type of field trip but a change in the learning paradigm.  

One of the authentic learning experiences that teachers can employ to engage all students in learning is to use thematic instruction (Beane, Kovalik).  This helps students by making connections to the individual student with real life experiences or things of the real world.  It seems like one of the questions we all had growing up as students was "why do we need to learn this"? "How does learning this help me in real life?"  If students were to be taught in a thematic instruction classroom, they would already know the answers to these questions.  This type of instruction if well planned can basically make a two-dimensional education to a three-dimensional learning.  Research shows that thematic instruction will help students make connections easier for the brain to integrate new information.  In the future, there will be ample amount of information, it'll be important for teachers to help students to take in the information they need the most.  

Other learning experiences teachers can employ to further engage students is using small groups, effective use of technology, getting out of the school setting and into the local areas, using multiple intelligences, real-world applications, and providing choices for students amongst others.  It's important to help make connections for the students. Each student has an interest, it'll be vital for the teacher to find out what that may be, especially for those students that might be otherwise left out and help establish some type of connection. 

Synthesis Paper #1

In 2025, content knowledge will have a broader and an in-depth role for students.  Content knowledge will be used as a primary source for decision making for core issues of society.  It will no longer be just something from the past or something that "will never be used" in society but rather vital information that can build upon what they already have and know.  Content knowledge will become more important as identities of self and entities and foundation for all information will need to be stronger.  Students will not stop in just knowing the content but understand the main points and reasons for what makes this day a day in digital age in a global world. 

Students will have to master our current core skills in addition to all the new skills that will be required of them in 2025.  They will have to exhibit mastery in the common skills such as typing, researching, and web browsing, amongst others as well as any new core skills that will become common.  Students will be faced with the need to be able to discern correct information in a digital/information age.  As more information can be found online and online learning become more common, students in 2025 will also have to learn social, communication, and teamwork skills as it may become a less natural way of interaction with others.