weblogg-ed

We argue that our testing-obsessed education system is failing to prepare kids for a complex future, and we propose an "UnCommon Core" of skills and understandings—from living lightly on the Earth to networked learning and democratic participation—that every child should develop, taught through rich, integrated, real-world contexts rather than test-driven, siloed curricula.

The biggest learning news in our house last week came from our 13-year-old daughter Tess, whose experiences with high jump and a trip to Washington DC raised powerful questions about what we really mean by "learning" and how rarely "productive learning" happens in schools.

Seventh/eighth grade teacher Clarence Fisher describes his “thin walled” classroom in Snow Lake, Manitoba, where students regularly use the Web to collaborate globally. His work illustrates how networked learning environments deepen critical thinking and problem solving, challenge traditional school structures built on scarcity of knowledge and teachers, and shift control of learning toward connected, social, online/offline experiences that mirror the real world students are entering.

Reflecting on what students describe as the benefits of online courses, we question whether this version of "online learning" is truly different from traditional content delivery, and argue for a model that leverages networks, inquiry, and learner-driven paths rather than simple digitized coursework.

We’re wondering what a “Basketball Math” curriculum might look like for our son Tucker, combining his love of the sport and his interest in math, and we’re asking for ideas on how to build a K-? curriculum around basketball that could also tap into online social learning spaces.

Yesterday, Alec Couros went “Back to School” to meet his first grade daughter’s teacher, sparking a Twitter conversation that captured the frustration many teacher-parents feel at traditional classroom expectations. We reflect on similar experiences with our own kids and share the strategies we use to navigate the gap between the schooling they get and the learning we want for them.

Many of us are calling for big changes in schools—new literacies, connected classrooms, and modern learning—but the conversations on front porches and in small-town coffee shops rarely touch any of that. Leading in education today means doing the work almost no one is asking for yet, while still meeting traditional expectations, and helping communities see why both matter for our kids’ futures.

We explore Erica McWilliam's vision of teaching as co-creating value in learning networks and Charles Leadbeater's idea of "useful ignorance," asking what it means for us, our students, and our children to unlearn traditional notions of teaching in a script-less, fluid world.