Week 30 - PRACTICE- The Broader Professional Context
Using Rolfes model of reflection I am going to address and reflect upon certain parts of my teaching practise that are defined as contemporary and global trends in education.
Step 1 - What?
Daggett (2014) points out the fact that we are operating in a digital environment that is fluid within the context of a global economy that is always changing. Indeed, the National Intelligence Council (2017) comments that the way we communicate, work and spend our social time is changing as information and technology develop. As educators we are starting to come to the realisation that Blended Learning is a way to help equip our students prepare for a world where technology is always transitioning. My classroom experience is similar to what Daggett (2014) points out as a ‘hybrid’ system, that is, combining traditional and blended learning. I’m trying to achieve an environment where my students are invited to embrace digital literacy and computational thinking experiences within an existing traditional structure as I’ve realised this is how they live their lives beyond the classroom...navigating both worlds.
Step 2 - So What?
Digital learning is a global trend as “education has a role to play in providing the skills and competencies needed to operate in this new world” (OECD., 2016, p18) and technology is adapting and improving daily as is the use of it. Its is increasingly becoming more accessible and more entrenched in our day to day living. Daggett (2014) believes there has been a 44% increase in technology use for communication between 2008 and 2014 in the US. We can only assume that these figures are a reflection of what is occurring globally and therefore New Zealand. Certainly by 2020 the Ministry of Education (2018) intends to fully integrate the curriculum to reflect these changes. This provokes some thought for our Teaching Practice; that is, how can we keep up with a trend that is changing and evolving so quickly? The OECD (2016) discusses how some trends are slow moving and therefore easier to manipulate and design while others are dynamic and move at a pace that is fast moving and changing. It seems being flexible and responsive, two suggestions by OECD (2016), seems to be a sound suggestion. It would seem that being flexible and responsive in this time of ‘disruption’ is the only way that schools “will flourish in this new environment” (Daggett, 2014, p5). This impacts on my teaching because it requires a leap into the unknown within a very fast paced, ever evolving global trend. and as CORE education (2018)
Step 3 - Now What?
I count myself to be very fortunate that I am within a school that nurtures the cultural of embracing technology. We have a strong CoP within our school that focuses on initiating and supporting change. In fact when we look at the new Digital Curriculum it is clear that we have been engaging in many of the practices for some time. They realised that when you add new technology it changes everything “because technological change is not additive, it is ecological” (CORE, 2018, p4). With this mindset incorporating things like BYOD, embracing social media, virtual reality platforms and the suite of applications all combine to create a very exciting environment.
REFERENCES
CORE Education 2018 Ten Trends document. (n.d.). Retrieved from
Daggett, B. (2014). Addressing Current and Future Challenges in Education. Retrieved from http://www.leadered.com/pdf/2014MSC_AddressingCurrentandFutureChallenges.pdf
National Intelligence Council. (2017). Global trends: The Paradox of Progress. National Intelligence Council: US. Retrieved from https://www.dni.gov/files/images/globalTrends/documents/GT-Main-Report.pdf
OECD. (2016) Trends Shaping Education 2016, OECD Publishing, Paris. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/trends_edu-2016-enDaggett, B. (2014). Addressing Current and Future Challenges in Education. Retrieved from http://www.leadered.com/pdf/2014MSC_AddressingCurrentandFutureChallenges.pdf
Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., Jasper, M. (2001) Critical reflection in nursing and the helping professions: a user’s guide. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Creating experiences where students develop computational thinking skills and are encouraged to embrace digital literacy is an essential component of contemporary education. It is important that we as educators recognise the significant impact of these global trends and keep ourselves up to date with them, integrating them into our classroom practice.
ReplyDeleteI agree that being flexible and responsive enables us to keep up with the fast pace in which digital technology is evolving and we are modelling these skills to our students which helps to prepare them for their future. It is both exciting and challenging being part of this 'disruption' of traditional ways of thinking and being part of Postgraduate studies at Mindlab has helped us relate to and be part of the changes that are occurring.