Why do you ask? Here we are in Alberta, on (hopefully) the cusp of a brand new curriculum and ultimately a reform to Education in Alberta. The vision for Inspiring Education is for Education in Alberta to create engaged thinkers, ethical citizens and an entrepreneurial spirit all while maintaining the core values opportunity, fairness, citizenship, choice, diversity and excellence. Sounds exciting doesn't it?
The vision set forth is awesome, but what does it mean for us (teachers)? For some, it may mean retirement, or a prescription for eternal damnation where they will have to throw out their worksheets and tests and spend hours upon hours creating brand new work sheets and tests. For the rest of us it is a giant breath of fresh air and why 2016 is an exciting year for Education!
We are finding new ways to teach the same curriculum in a new and exciting way that is more than just regurgitating facts and filling out worksheets. Teacher's are finding ways to incorporate different technologies into the classroom (like Google Apps for Education, Kahoot, WeVideo, Voxer, Sphero...the list goes on) to engage students in learning. They are also redefining their instruction to a flipped classroom (students preview content on their own time before coming to class to enhance discussion and working time in the classroom), blended learning, using the workshop model to ensure more small group or one on one time with students, as well as Project Based Learning. All of these ways of teaching take the focus away from the teacher at the front being the bearer of all information and putting in the students hands (literally). Students are learning how to find, curate and create content to take control of their learning so they can be productive in the today's world and hopefully the world when they leave the formal education system.
Now as exciting as this is for me and for many of my fellow educators....it's not easy! It does take time to redefine your teaching, to learn, unlearn and relearn things, to learn what new technologies are available, how they work and how they can be integrated in the classroom, but I said it was an exciting year for education though....not an easy one!
So, fellow teachers, let's celebrate! Let's embrace the change and move forward to prepare our students, whom we care about, for the world in which they are going to enter, whether we know what that looks like or not!
