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Could be a good read –> “Tyranny of the textbook: An insider exposes how educational materials undermine reforms”

On 02/06/2012, in curriculum, dangers of the status quo, digital textbooks, education reform, K-12 related, leadership, legislatures / government / legal, publishing, strategy, textbooks, by Daniel Christian

Tyrrany-of-the-textbook----Jobrack- 2011.

Book Description
Publication Date: December 16, 2011 | ISBN-10: 1442211415 | ISBN-13: 978-1442211414

Excerpt:

Educational reforms and standards have been a topic of public debate for decades, with the latest go-round being the State Common Core Curriculum Standards. But time and again those reforms have failed, and each set of standards, no matter how new and different, has had little impact on improving student achievement. Why? The textbooks. Textbooks sell based on design and superficial features, not because they are based on the latest research on how children learn and how well they promote student achievement. In Tyranny of the Textbook, Beverlee Jobrack, retired from educational publishing, sheds light on why this happens. She gives an engaging and fascinating look behind-the-scenes of how K-12 textbooks are developed, written, adopted, and sold. And, perhaps most importantly, she clearly spells out how the system can change so that reforms and standards have a shot at finally being effective.

Did you Know?

  • Reform efforts have focused on writing and rewriting standards and tests, but these rarely have any effect on the core curriculum that is published.
  • School districts and states don’t use effectiveness as a criterion for evaluating and purchasing textbooks.
  • Publishers don’t offer textbooks with better content or the latest teaching methods because teachers don’t want textbooks that require them to change their practices.
  • Teachers report that they don’t rely on a textbook in their class, but research shows that they do.
  • Three companies publish 75 percent of the K-12 educational materials.
  • Those three companies are producing similar programs with the same instructional strategies, none of which require teachers to change their practices significantly.
  • Publishers write textbooks for California and Texas. All the other markets have to make do with books only superficially adjusted for their states.

From DSC:
I originally saw this at:

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WorldFuture 2012 Master Courses — these are the types of courses that colleges and universities need to be offering!

On 02/02/2012, in curriculum, Daniel S. Christian, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, trends, by Daniel Christian

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From “WorldFuture 2012 Master Courses”

Why take a master course?

  • Become better equipped to choose from various methods when facing a particular challenge.
  • Learn about primary and secondary research methodologies, examine classical futuring techniques, including scenario planning, trend and product forecasting, crisis preparedness, and transformation and hyper-change sensitivity.
  • Develop critical thinking, listening, and observational skills.
  • Increase your ability to enhance planning today to better anticipate obstacles and opportunities in the future.

WorldFuture 2012 Master Courses

  • C-1 Introduction to Futures Studies
  • C-2 Foresight Educators Boot Camp
  • C-3 Wiser Futures: Using Futures Tools to Better Understand and Create the Future
  • C-4 Society 3.0: Technology Transformations in Society, Work, and Higher Education
  • C-5 The Human Dynamics of Creation to Effect Change
  • C-6 Identifying and Exploring Security’s Futures and What Can Be Done to Prepare
  • C-7 An Insider’s Guide to Foresight Consulting: A Case Study Approach
  • C-8 Futurist Writers’ Workshop
  • C-9 Scenario Planning: How to Build and Use Scenarios
  • C-10 Weak Signals and Minitrends: Foundations for Truly Innovative Organizations
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From DSC:
When the world is moving at 180 miles per hour, we can’t be looking 5-10 feet ahead of the race car.  The necessity of peering out into the horizon is key. Students need to develop the ability to pulse-check a variety of factors and landscapes.  They need to develop an appreciation for developing potential future scenarios and then figuring out their responses/plans to these scenarios. This also applies to those of us working in higher education…especially these days!
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The pace has changed significantly and quickly
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Media smarts: Kids learn how to navigate the multimedia world [Edutopia.org]

On 01/13/2012, in 21st century, A/V -- audio/visual, communications, curriculum, digital audio, digital video, education technology, K-12 related, media/film, multimedia, new media literacies, by Daniel Christian

Media smarts: Kids learn how to navigate the multimedia world -- from Edutopia.org Jan 2012

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Innovation’s breakneck speed — what does this mean for higher education?

On 12/12/2011, in 21st century, curriculum, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, education reform, engineering, future, student teaching/teacher education, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
The pace of innovation continues — what does this mean for our current engineering programs? For the future curriculum of engineering-related programs? How does this rapid change of pace affect our schools of education?  Should we be introducing more courses on pulse-checking/trend watching/courses in futurism? In robotics? Other?

Example:
Mitsubishi shows off what car interfaces will look like in 10 years — from dvice.com

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Image credit: DigInfo

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Overhauling Computer Science education [Barber]

On 12/06/2011, in computer science, curriculum, K-12 related, by Daniel Christian

Overhauling Computer Science education — from The Journal by D.A. Barber
Students from elementary school through college are learning on laptops and have access to smartphone apps for virtually everything imaginable, but they are not learning the basic computer-related technology that makes all those gadgets work. Some organizations are partnering with universities to change that.

Excerpt:

The ability to use a computer, its software, or computational thinking to solve problems are not core K-12 subjects taught under most state guidelines by certified teachers. In fact, schools often blur the lines between computer technology literacy with the ability to use computational thinking skills across disciplines. Today, computer science (CS) curriculum focuses on teaching how to use software but gives no insight into how it’s made or an aptitude for the technology to an entire generation whose everyday lives have become inextricably linked with computing technology.

While adopting best methods and practices in teaching computer science principles (CSP) is not standard procedure in most K-12 schools, some university projects are working toward that goal. The latest approaches pursue computer science education as far more than learning how to use a computer, building a spreadsheet, or even creating a Web page. It’s about problem solving, computational thinking, and abstract reasoning across a broad range of subjects. According to supporters, you can incorporate these concepts into your curriculum–no matter what subject you teach–and prepare students with the skills for success in the new knowledge economy.

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Dreaming: A look at Anastasis Academy [Tenkely; nice posting re: pedagogy, and learning spaces]

On 11/15/2011, in change, creativity, curriculum, education reform, education technology, engagement / engaging students, innovation, instructional design, K-12 related, learning spaces, smart classrooms, teachers, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

Dreaming: A look at Anastasis Academy — from ilearntechnology.com by Kelly Tenkely

Excerpt:

You will notice that we don’t have rows of desks.  No teacher’s desk either.  We have space that kids can move in. Corners to hide in, stages to act on, floors to spread out on, cars to read in.  We are learning how to learn together, learning how to respect other children’s space and needs, learning how to discipline ourselves when we need to, learning how to work collaboratively, we are learning to be the best us.

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Also see:

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Some items re: robotics (and employment)

On 10/03/2011, in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business, career development, change, curriculum, dangers of the status quo, disruption, global / globalization, reinvent, robotics, staying relevant, surviving, workplace, by Daniel Christian

How did the robot end up with my job? — from the New York Times by Thomas Friedman

Excerpt:

In the last decade, we have gone from a connected world (thanks to the end of the cold war, globalization and the Internet) to a hyperconnected world (thanks to those same forces expanding even faster). And it matters. The connected world was a challenge to blue-collar workers in the industrialized West. They had to compete with a bigger pool of cheap labor. The hyperconnected world is now a challenge to white-collar workers. They have to compete with a bigger pool of cheap geniuses — some of whom are people and some are now robots, microchips and software-guided machines.

…

The proper term, says Lamy, is “made in the world.” More products are designed everywhere, made everywhere and sold everywhere.

The term “outsourcing” is also out of date. There is no more “out” anymore. Firms can and will seek the best leaders and talent to achieve their goals anywhere in the world.

 

Robots mania — from WashingtonPost.com
Each year robots are getting more sophisticated and entertaining than ever before. Check out these captivating robots that can do almost anything — from reciting Shakespeare to serving shaved ice cream with a smile.

 

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What are the pros and cons of the Common Core Standards?

On 09/23/2011, in 21st century, curriculum, education, education reform, expectations, K-12 related, leadership, legislatures / government / legal, policy, strategy, teachers, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
I haven’t had the chance to research this much, but I wanted to post several items re: the Common Core Standards. The jury is still out with me as to what I think about them. My initial concerns center around the ideas/curriculums and course offerings/assessment tools involved with the word “standards” — with implementing things that result in clear, consistent expectations. 

I have become increasingly hesitant towards words like “standards” and “expectations” — at least as these words are currently being used in this context. I’m not saying that the Common Core Standards will try to further pound round pegs into square holes — though that type of thing captures my hesitation here — as not everyone has the same gifts, abilities, and passions.  Much of the current K-12 systems focus so much on STEM-related items — at the expense of so much more that’s out there in the world today.

With that said, I like the idea of getting students prepared — as much as possible — for helping them hit the ground running later on in life when they will need to either go to college and/or get a job. I can see where if a student moves from one district/state to another, how it can be very helpful to have a shared foundation from which to develop the student’s current educational needs and plans.

Some items on this:

  • Common Core State Standards: A note to parents — from Core 4 All by Alan Matan
    By the way, I appreciate Alan’s statement in his posting that asserts:
    “The 21st century skills embedded in the Common Core will pave the way for students to think, reflect, analyze, influence, evaluate, and communicate.”
  • Implementing Common Core Standards — from Advancing the Teaching Profession by Susan Graham
  • CEP reports on progress of Common Core — from Educational Publishing
    Implementation of the Common Core Standards is proceeding with little resistance, but challenges remain in funding and guidance, according to a new study from the Center on Education Policy (CEP). CEP undertook the study to determine how far along each of the adopting states was in implementing the Common Core Standards and what their perceptions are of the standards.
  • CoreStandards.org

 

The Common Core Standards

 

From DSC:

What do you think? What are the pros and cons of implementing the Common Core Standards? From the teacher’s viewpoint? From the student’s viewpoint? From the administrator’s viewpoint? From the parent’s viewpoint?

I look forward to learning more about them and to hearing others’ perspectives on them.

 

 

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10 salient studies on the arts in education [onlinecolleges.net]

On 09/13/2011, in art, budgets, creativity, curriculum, drama/theater, education, K-12 related, music, by Daniel Christian

10 salient studies on the arts in education — from onlinecolleges.net

Excerpt:

A fine arts education — including music, theater, drawing, painting, or sculpture — whether in practice or theory, has been a part of any well-rounded curriculum for decades — but that may be changing.  Many schools today are cutting back or eliminating their art programs due to budget constraints.  It is estimated that by the end of this year, more than 25% of public high schools will have completely dismantled them.  These stats aren’t just bad news for teachers working in the arts.  Numerous studies done over the past decade have demonstrated the amazing benefits of such an integral education facet.  Students who don’t have access to art classes may not only miss out on a key creative outlet, but might also face greater difficulty mastering core subjects, higher dropout rates and more disciplinary problems.

You don’t have to take our word for it — you can read the studies yourself.  Here, we’ve listed some of the biggest on the arts in education conducted over the past decade.  Taken on by research organizations, college professors and school districts themselves, the studies reveal the power of art to inspire, motivate and educate today’s students.  And, of course, demonstrate what a disservice many schools are doing by undervaluing such an integral part of their education and development (emphasis DSC).

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Future work skills 2020

On 08/07/2011, in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business, career development, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, creativity, curriculum, design, future, higher education, multimedia, new media literacies, professional development, society, technology (general), training / L&D, web-based collaboration, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Future Work Skills 2020 -- As reported in 2011

 

Future Work Skills 2020 -- As reported in 2011

 

 

Also see:

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Math and science teachers join the call for stronger K-12 Computer Science education

On 08/06/2011, in 21st century, computer science, curriculum, K-12 related, by Daniel Christian

Math and science teachers join the call for stronger K-12 Computer Science education — ednetinsight.com

Excerpt:

Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) July 28, 2011 – Two of the most influential groups in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education community — National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) and National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) — have joined the Computing in the Core Coalition (CinC). This non-partisan advocacy coalition is working to ensure that the country’s K-12 education system provides students access to computer science education and the opportunities it provides. With the addition of these two leading organizations, CinC now works to represent the concerns of more than 160,000 teachers and looks forward to adding these important voices to the call for stronger K-12 computer science education.

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Common-Core writers craft curriculum criteria [Gewertz]

On 07/24/2011, in assessment, curriculum, K-12 related, legislatures / government / legal, United States, by Daniel Christian

Common-Core writers craft curriculum criteria — from edweek.org by Catherine Gewertz

Excerpt:

New guidelines on crafting curriculum materials for the common standards in English/language arts are reigniting debate about how to ensure a marketplace of good instructional materials for the new standards without crossing the line into telling teachers how to teach.

Also see:

 

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Reflections upon “MBA Curriculum Changes: Wharton, Yale, and Stanford Lead the Pack”

On 03/22/2011, in 21st century, business, corporate / business world, curriculum, Daniel S. Christian, future, innovation, leadership, learning agents, learning ecosystem, MBA, metacognition / metacognitive skills, strategy, technology (general), vision/possibilities, workplace, by Daniel Christian

MBA Curriculum Changes: Wharton, Yale, and Stanford Lead the Pack — from knewton.com by Christina Yu

Excerpt (citing article from a  U.S. News article):

“Rather than consider pre-digested summaries of company situations, students tackle ‘raw cases’ packed with original data. Instead of being presented with an income statement, for example, they must mine the considerably bulkier annual filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission for data. The raw cases ‘push us to understand,’ says second-year Yale student Jason Hill. ‘They purposely put in more material than you could ever look at, but you have to learn where to look.’” (emphasis DSC)

From DSC:
I found this to be a good, interesting post. I just had a couple of thoughts that I wanted to throw out there re: it.

In looking at trends from an 80,000-foot level, I’d vote for MBA programs integrating much more of the tech-know-how — and/or appreciation of what technologies can bring to the table — as well as teaching grad students about some of the tools/technologies that are emerging these days (and I’d bet that the leaders/schools mentioned in this article are already doing this) .

I remember an instructor years ago — at SFSU’s MSP Program — saying that bots and agents will be the key to making decisions in the future, as there will be too much information for a person to sift through. The streams of content need to be tapped — but in efficient ways. So perhaps the logical step here is for MBA students to learn what bots/agents are, how to use them, and what their applications might be in making business/strategic decisions.

The most successful organizations of the future will be well-versed in technologies and what the applications/benefits of these technologies are. My bet? If you don’t have a technologist at the power table of your organization, the outlook doesn’t look very bright for your organization in terms of surviving and thriving in the future. Organizations will also need to be willing to take risks and move forward without having a full cost-benefit analysis done — as many times these don’t work well or are not even possible when implementing tech-based endeavors/visions.

Also relevant here:

 

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Educated Citizen [Brian Kuhn, Canada]

On 03/21/2011, in curriculum, future, by Daniel Christian

Educated Citizen — from Brian Kuhn (Canada)

Also see:

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Common curriculum/content: Is this a step in the right direction or in the wrong direction?

On 03/07/2011, in curriculum, education reform, K-12 related, leadership, strategy, United States, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

Leaders Call for Shared Curriculum Guidelines — from edweek.org by Catherine Gewertz
Diverse group says framework needed for new common standards

Seventy-five respected leaders in education, business, and government issued a call this week to devise shared curriculum guidelines for the new common standards.

The move is notable for finding common ground on a sensitive topic among an ideologically diverse group of thinkers. Signatories include political liberals and conservatives, and those with varying views on controversial education issues such as charter schools, testing policy, and ways to evaluate and compensate teachers.

From the “A Call for Common Content” webpage:
To be clear, by “curriculum” we mean a coherent, sequential set of guidelines in the core academic disciplines, specifying the content knowledge and skills that all students are expected to learn, over time, in a thoughtful progression across the grades. We do not mean performance standards, textbook offerings, daily lesson plans, or rigid pedagogical prescriptions.

From DSC:
This concerns me…as such a call for common content would be more palatable to me if ALL academic disciplines were available and represented equally — not just STEM-related items. Also, does the common content represent the average citizen? (Come to think of it, who/what is the average citizen and what do they want to pursue?)
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I think that we need to move more towards an individualized/customized learning approach, where students can pursue their passions and God-given gifts. With dropout rates approaching 30%, is movement towards a common curriculum a step in the right direction? Will such a strategy decrease or increase the drop out rates? Will such a strategy end up creating a vanilla/cookie-cutter approach to K-12 education where you had better like STEM-related topics or else…oh well…better luck next time?
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Your thoughts on this? Am I off-base on this?

 

  • 40 million American adults did not complete high school.
  • The high school graduate, on average, earns $500,000 more in a lifetime as compared to an individual who did not complete high school.
  • Most high school dropouts (70%) have the intellectual ability to complete the courses needed for high school graduation.
  • Most high school dropouts do not feel a connection between high school courses and future employment.
  • 75% of high school dropouts stated that if they could relive the experience, they would have stayed in high school.
  • 81% of dropouts expressed a need for schooling that connected academics and employment.
Addendum on 3/23/11:
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