​

As a teacher, I often think about my personal education experiences as a young student. Some of the incidents are positive, and some or negative. However, when I think of the positive experiences, one incident that stands out is when my sixth-grade math teacher allowed me to do my math project on a topic I was interested in: the stock market and diversification. She allowed me to create a project using pie charts which also connect with the subject of percentages. This is what education should look like in the classroom. People today often describe schools as "broken." This usually means that schools are failing as machines. (Brown & Thomas, 2011, 36)  Based on a mechanistic view of education that views education as a series of steps to be mastered. (Brown & Thomas, 2011, 35)

However, as a middle school social studies teacher of U.S. History, it is sometimes very challenging to engage middle school students in content about the past that can seem monotonous and out of touch with their current reality. The common question I get every year is, "why do we need to know this? We can google this event." Initially, when I would get this question, it was sometimes unnerving because, in some cases, it was true. This was also true because my view of education was a traditional view where the teacher transferred information to the student (Brown & Thomas, 2011, 39) However, in moving from a learning culture that is teacher-focused to a learning-centered environment, I believe that we can create significant learning environments where the students don't just memorize key dates and facts, but one where they will continue to ask themselves questions even once the class or course has ended. I will create a learning environment based on inquiry, passion, and play by creating significant learning environments. 

 

Establishing Significant Learning Environments

My innovation proposal involves using e-portfolios in the middle school Social Studies and Financial Literacy classes. To do this effectively, I plan to implement inquiry-based learning, passion, and play into my e-portfolios. Inquiry-based learning "creates a motivation to learn and provides a set of constraints that make the learning meaningful." (Brown & Thomas, 2011, 83) It also forces us to use our prior knowledge but also forces us to ask " what don't we know"  or more importantly, the "where (Brown & Thomas, 2011, 92) ."This style of questioning forces the user to dig deeper into their questioning versus only focusing on what they already know. Inquiry-based learning also encourages a safe environment where students can take risks in their assignments and experience "the power of yet," while praising the process of learning as discussed in “Mindset.” (Dweck, 2007, 181)   

 

Identifying the passion of our students will allow our students to take on more complex questions creating rigor naturally because of the student's interest in the topic (Brown & Thomas, 2011, 80). Identifying a passion can be challenging to uncover even as an adult, so I will simplify the concept for my students and focus on their interest. In the new learning culture, students can explore their interests or passions with some constraints.

 

Integrating play into the learning environment on continuous bases in the form of interactive games is another way to keep students engaged in the content. Using games in the classroom can be used in two ways: online games like Kahoot or Quizzes, where students answer multiple-choice questions. Secondly, in the form of having the students create games within their assignment or project. 

 

Challenges With Implementation

There are several challenges with the implementation of a new learning environment. The primary challenge involves the current education structure based on teaching standards, pacing calendars, standardized testing, and teacher evaluations. In addition, the systems designed to ensure transparency and uniformity in education also create challenges when making significant changes. The second set of challenges deals with the limitations in technology and the technical know-how to navigate various computer functions. For many campuses, this involves the campus having laptops or tablets for every student. So, we must ensure that the school has internet access for easy transition between applications before distributing  devices. For example, students should quickly move from a google doc to a YouTube video without any extended delay. The lack of reliable and fast internet connections could be counterproductive without planning for good connectivity on campus and at home.

 

Impact

The positive effect on educators as they engage in activities that the teacher and students are interested in while having fewer classroom disruptions due to boredom. Creating significant learning environments will also have a positive impact on a student by the student learning and making connections with ideas and thoughts that they are interested in

 

Conclusion

In the video with Sir Ken Robinson titled “Bring on the learning revolution” he presents the idea of the need for a revolution in education versus reforming our current system (Robinson, 2010). Education needs a revolution of thoughts and ideas that will elevate our student's thinking while promoting inward reflection and the identification of our passions. But, achieving this goal will take a great deal of courage and vision to see our current education system's true potential and not just be satisfied with the current status quo.

 

References

​

Brown, J. S., & Thomas, D. (2011). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.

​

Dweck, C. S. (2007). Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Random House Publishing Group.

Robinson, K. (2010, May 24). Bring on the learning revolution! |

 

Sir Ken Robinson. YouTube. Retrieved January 31, 2023, from https://youtu.be/r9LelXa3U_I

​