TECHNOLOGY, CURRICULUM,

AND THE FUTURE

Merlene Gilb

Kathy Wood

JOE’S NON-NETBOOK

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WHAT ARE SCHOOLS DOING? HOW IS TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATED INTO YOUR CURRICULUM?

WHAT ARE SCHOOLS DOING? HOW IS TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATED INTO YOUR CURRICULUM?

PARADIGM SHIFT

Paradigm is a shared set of assumptions that explain the world to us and help us predict the future

Educators are clinging to a set of concepts that are quickly loosing all value

The notion that knowledge is education is far from the truth and can no longer serve as an organizer for curriculum

WHAT DOES IT MEAN• Work in the future will be more with our heads

than our hands – technical knowledge will be the basis

• An educated person is one who has learned how to learn (Carl Rogers)

• Learning will not be linear but convergent – putting together existing knowledge for personal and impermanent reasons

• Focus on the characteristics of new technology and ask “What can we do with this that we could not do before?” and “If there were no schools, how would learning occur?”

• Rush of technology has left us feeling powerless

WHAT DOES IT MEAN Several professional organizations and

agencies have put together lists (p287-288) of needs for world citizens in the future that are remarkably similar –

Problem solver Collaboration skills Social skills and connectivity to community Technical literacy Global outlook/environment Cultural awareness

GETTING STARTED

• Effective planning starts with the end in mind (Stephen Covey)

• Must prepare students for an unknown destination that will be technological and different from today

• Adaptation will be a lifelong theme• Focus on the use of technology not the

equipment• Nothing should be included in curriculum

unless it is justified in terms of the future

GETTING STARTED

Tasks for converting to 21st Century (Wiles & Lundt, 2004)

Design new avenues for learning and communicating Deemphasize standardization of curriculum Acknowledge human differences and capabilities Envision and construct new types of facilities Provide startup capital for technology Invest in and allocate resources for teacher training Recruit and reward learning leaders Allow students and teachers to network Value knowledge for its application rather than acquisition

WHAT ARE SCHOOLS DOING? HOW IS TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATED INTO YOUR CURRICULUM?

WHAT ARE SCHOOLS DOING

Regularly reported items on various studies:

Email Gathering data from internet for project Using websites to expand on subject of study Monitoring an online project or trip Reading works of other students Taking a virtual field trip

WHAT ARE SCHOOLS DOING

New strategies reported by advanced schools:

Digital textbooks – allows quick searches Text to speech software – converts digital text to

speech Talking word processors – teaches editing skills

to student writers Search engines – unlock data from billions of

webpages Blogging – facilitates specialty information

exchange around study topics Twitter/Facebook

PROJECTIONS

• Four A’s – access, analyze, authenticate and apply

• Valued skills – systems thinking, collaboration, technical learning, contracting, and technical fluency

• Unlearning and relearning will be vital skills• What is worth knowing will still be the central

focus of any change

PROJECTIONS Major factors that might shape curriculum

decision making for next generation of workers

Basic issues of defining, controlling, delivering and assessing curriculum remain unchanged

Homeschooling movement Schools must break free from the one place one

pace learning model Interactive technology creates virtual learning

environment with no boundaries – students and teachers are partners in culture of learning

PROJECTIONS

Trends in learning for next several decades Greater learning communities in & beyond the

school Totally wireless access to all knowledge sources Greater miniaturization for transport of knowledge

(iPad) Shift to problem solving and application of

knowledge De-emphasis on standardization and testing New emphasis on certification and experience

• Changing composition of student population• Challenges in finding qualified staff• Government micromanagement

DECLINE, ATTACK, DEFECTIONFour Positions illustrating range of

dissatisfaction with public schools

1. Liberal critics who claim schools are oppressive places doing a disservice to children and actually damaging them (John Gatto)

2. School reformers who don’t think schools can transition to the 21st century and call for the design of a new system with PLCs and mentors to guide the application of knowledge (Wiles & Lundt)

DECLINE, ATTACK, DEFECTIONFour Positions illustrating range of

dissatisfaction with public schools

3. Right wing entrepreneurs using existing political process to shift allocation of resources - the 65% solution (Patrick Byrne)

4. Far right - those who feel schools should be reformed or privatized due to low performance – motivation is not education but economics

HOW PUBLIC EDUCATION IS RESPONDING

Not very well – need to address 3 critical areas:

Education labor force Relationship with parents Acknowledge new technologies and use them to

enhance teaching

DEFINING THE ROLE OF EDUCATION IN OUR SOCIETY

• What directions seem most promising to pursue in planning education?

• Where and how do educators begin to assess educational alternatives?

• Can the future be influenced by our actions or is it largely predetermined?

• Where do we as planners gain the value structure to plan for the future?

• How can we effectively involve others in society in planning for the future

VIEWS OF EDUCATION

• Traditional• Progressive• Radical/Postmodern

• Spicynodes

FINAL CHALLENGE . . . “As we transition into a new era and a time

of hope, we look for increased competition among those interested in

curriculum in schools. Curriculum developers, although sometimes pressed

into the role of referee, must acknowledge a basic truth about the

field: Curriculum is a value-laden area of education. Neutrality, or simply burying

professional activity in curriculum development processes, may not be

possible in the years to come.”(p. 305)