It’s a known fact that our education system is broken. The key issues have been well articulated by visionaries like Sir Ken Robinson. To highlight a few issues:
- Our current system is geared towards education quantity & not quality of learning.
- The classrooms are way too disconnected from what is happening and needed in the real world.
- Our schools are too afraid to experiment and try new techniques and methods that we now come to understand actually work (e.g., here and here ).
The net effect is that students loose engagement or even worse drop out, our graduating class is armed with information that is out of touch with reality. In essence, we are ruining our future!
A lot has been said about what’s broken with the system – but not much on how we can actually fix it.
Let us imagine a world of education with:
- No curriculum: An education with no fixed curriculum. The student get to audit courses that interest him and completes them if they appeal to him.
- Individual mentor/coach: A mentor & coach who constantly works with individual student on helping them develop self awareness as well as guiding him to try courses that will both suit enable him a well rounded education
- Practitioner as a lead: Classes that are lead by practicing professionals and a mix of academics.
- Dynamic group learning: Class are not a series of lengthly lectures followed by homework. But, a series of directed group discussions, discussions generated via student question & hands on real projects. With students doing pre-work and preparation (either in the form of videos or other appropriate medium).
- No grades : What’s the point of a GPA when no one really cares about it in the real world? How many times has someone been denied a job as their GPA is a point low. Except the a Pass/Fail grade is given based on understanding of key principals/topics as well as applied thinking that the student has developer in the course.
- Connected peer group: Learning is a continuous process – it does not end when a course comes to an end. The student continue to develop insights, have questions, share tips after the course is done. Technology now enables us to connect and communicate with peer groups and leaders in an ongoing or as needed basis. And leveraging platform that connects peer groups during the class and continuing access after the courses enable a lifetime of growth and development.
Education is ready for reinvention and the time is now!