Professional Documents
Culture Documents
From Quest to Learn in New York to the Liger Learning Center in Cambodia, Matthe
w Jenkin explores schools that use innovative teaching methods and curriculums
restad Gymnasium
restad Gymnasium, a school without classrooms, is designed to fit the ethos of 5
0% teacher-led learning and 50% independent student-centred learning. Photograph
: Mathias Eis Schultz
Sponsored by:
Zurich Municipal
Matthew Jenkin
Wednesday 11 February 2015 07.00 GMT
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On 21 October 2015, we will finally arrive at the point in time that Marty McFly
travels to in the 1989 sci-fi sequel, Back to the Future II. But if a teenager
today were to drive Doc Brown s DeLorean back to Hill Valley High, the film hero s f
ictional school, would he or she notice any difference?
Just as we are still waiting for someone to market hoverboards and self-tying sh
oelaces, we have yet to see a radical shift in teaching models, despite the ebb
and flow of education reforms. There are schools, however, that are breaking the
mould and daring to free teachers from the shackles of curriculum dictates. The
y are giving students and educators the power to become masters of their own lea
rning.
The Quest to Learn school in New York was founded in 2009 with a mission to make
schools fit for the 21st century, an era when advances in technology have creat
ed an increasingly global society. Teachers at the school, which is a collaborat
ion between non-profit organisation the Institute of Play and New York s departmen
t of education, believe using games to teach the curriculum increases pupil enga
gement and better prepares young people to navigate the complexities of the mode
rn world.
But we re not talking Twister or Super Mario. In Quest to Learn lessons, play invo
lves imaginative inquiry by students, ranging from group storytelling activities
that explain literary structures in English to an exercise imagining a microsco
pic doctor journeying through his patient s body to teach biology.
Co-director of the school, Arana Shapiro, says the best games are those that can
be used in multiple classrooms at all grade levels. The curriculum is taught us
ing the principles of a game, with the teacher starting a new school year by pre
senting an initial challenge. They then design lessons and activities that give
students the knowledge and tools to meet the challenge.
Shapiro explains that the games played during the year have to be adapted to sui
t the age of the students. The older they get, the less willing they are to buy
into some of the more fantastical and creative activities. Instead, the students
are challenged to design solutions to real-world problems, such as bullying.
A school, though, is only as good as its teachers and the vital role they play i
n education is often forgotten, says Shapiro. She adds: There is an emphasis on p
roducing curriculums which teachers can just follow. For us it has always been a
bout helping teachers become designers of the curriculum and empowering them to
create materials that will engage kids in learning and help them become 21st cen
tury citizens.
Providing students with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in the mod
ern world, such as being able to solve problems and work in teams, is also the c
oncern of Rob Riordan. He is president of High Tech High, a school-development o
rganisation based in San Diego, California, that includes a network of charter s
e teaching materials and claims to be 100% digital. Lessons are taught entirely
using computers and iPads with Google apps, and teachers walk around the learning
zones helping students .
There are many reasons for the use of ICT, explains Andersen. When you have an open
school like this, you have to develop new models of leading a lesson, because y
ou can t talk to the whole class at once. You can t yell at the students, so you hav
e to guide them in other ways. We structure our lessons in our virtual world, so
students log on and everything is described there.
The emphasis on digital learning is also one of the key pedagogical ideas of the
school, adds Andersen. Teachers want to nurture tech innovation among students
and transform them into producers of content, not just consumers .
This particular Danish model of learning is not without fault. Andersen admits t
hat it can favour the stronger, more independent students over those who require
hands-on teaching. They are therefore looking at ways to better meet the needs
of all pupils.
Digital technology has been one of the most powerful agents of change in how soc
ieties around the world work and live in the 21st century
from the way we do bus
iness and consume information to shopping, entertainment and socialising. The wa
y we learn must therefore adapt to ensure students are equipped with the skills
needed to thrive as adults now and in the future. Thankfully, many schools are r
ising to that challenge. But what impact will their examples of pedagogical inno
vation have on national and even global levels? Only time will tell.