Hi Jackson. Thank you so much. I appreciate your contribution. Yeah it is sad but that is the way to say it “developing countries may feel more reluctant to change foundational systems” and this is unfortunate as they really need changes to improve their people life .
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I completely agree with your assessment of the problems in US schools. Having seen them firsthand, I’m at a loss for how things can be improved overall, but job security is a huge concern for teachers and administrators, and in places with underserved populations, implicit bias is a looming problem that permeates every aspect of education, from the classroom to the meeting room of the school board. Have you watched “Waiting for Superman”? It’s an excellent film about what’s going on in education. I recommend it.
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Those are all very good questions, and honestly, I’m not sure of the answer. However, I do believe that the responsibility to find one’s purpose lies with more than just the student or the teacher.
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Yinlin,
Thanks for this well-articulated post. I think assessments are an important aspect in measuring learning outcomes, but I suppose, it can also be scaled negatively in some circumstances. For the most part, I share your thoughts that Dan Pink’s conclusion – that a better way to motivate students and improve learning outcomes and performance is to allow students to operate in an environment where there is a fair level of autonomy, mastery, and purpose. As future teachers, I believe it is our responsibility to help students develop and become entrepreneurially-minded problem-solvers. Particularly, learning the full breadth of skills, and what they need to thrive.
#TheMoreYouKnow
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I loved what you had to say about social learning theory. That was my exact experience in high school–my friends were very studious, so there was very strong social pressure to study during my free time, and while I am very grateful for the increase in my GPA, I was also wary of being excluded if I chose not to participate, so you have a real-life example!
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Amy, thank you for your feedback. You and Arash are in sync on finding and using the efficiencies gained from a renewed educational system. Your point about measuring quality, is critical. It’s not only students who we need to rethink quality measurement for, but professors and schools. If professors were rewarded for greater student improvement and deeper learning it would create space to try new things that would fundamentally benefit students. It also speaks to another blog this week (about how you get a job as a professor in the existing paradigm). Schools could also benefit from being able to communicate the quality, or value proposition, that their new approach to learning provides.
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Arash, thank you for your comment this week. I completely agree that there will be efficiencies from a changed system, which will balance some of the costs. Thinking about your point and the final paragraph of the blog, maybe one way to continue to support diverse student bodies is by putting that offset back into students that might otherwise not be able to afford the new paradigm or who need additional contact (Pink’s bottom performers).
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Seungbee, thank you for your comment. I wholeheartedly agree that more teachers are needed to better the system. And to your question about improving education while maintain what we have, I would say that those are almost mutually exclusive scenarios. Fundamentally improving the system will require significant change.
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Hi seungbee, thanks for your post. I would like to make a note to the second point you made: Grades create a preference for the easiest possible task. I think it would be unfair to say it is a right or wrong statement. I do not like the use of the word “easiest possible task” in Kohn’s statement. I believe, whether the students developing a preference for the easier or the more difficult task is dependent on how the course material and how the evaluation approach for the class is being determined.
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