Tag: K12

Interdisciplinary collaboration for 21st century learning

“Within the busy, everyday lives of teachers, is it practical to overhaul the system while protecting the sanctity of their subject?”

Regardless of which level of education they work in, every teacher will have some form of specialism; be it early years, secondary mathematics, art or music. However, in an increasingly globalised and interconnected world, educators are waking up to the need for a new style of learning that is more transdisciplinary and focused on the skills and competencies needed for the 21st century workplace.

The traditional approach of narrow subject specialisms is obsolete, according to Reimers (2009), and teams of teachers from across the disciplines need to work together to create a more integrated, globally-minded approach to learning.

“In sub-Saharan Africa only 10% can read a simple sentence at the age of 10. Hundreds of millions of children are in school, but not learning”

Teaching is the most important job in the world. The quality of any nation’s education cannot exceed the quality of its educators.

Yet, in many low and middle income countries the profession is in a critical condition. UNESCO estimates a shortfall in teachers in sub-Saharan Africa alone of 15 million.

Worse, teachers struggling to help students have little or no support.

“Many teachers do not have access to quality training and continuous professional development,” says UNESCO.

Compounding this is the sad truth that many teachers themselves often struggle with the content they are teaching. Literacy and numeracy can be a challenge.

Nearly 90% of children around the world go to primary school. But only about 35% can read a simple sentence at the age of 10. In sub-Saharan Africa only 10% can. Hundreds of millions of children are in school, but not learning.

“A new generation of civically and scientifically minded environmental population and experts will need to address environmental issues”

California wildfires emitted more carbon dioxide last year than in any other summer in nearly two decades, devastating both animal habitats and human dwellings. With this year’s Earth Day taking place during the American Education Research Association annual meeting, it is important to reflect on how investing in environmental education can help to “Invest In Our Planet”.

“Have you not observed that opinions divorced from knowledge are ugly things? The best of them are blind,” observed Plato more than two millennia ago in The Republic. The same holds true today, for how can we discuss environmental issues without knowing the science behind them?

“Embracing language learning does not mean simply widening access to modern European languages”

In 2021, Ofsted published a report into the state of languages in UK schools. It begins with lofty ambition – the second line declares that learning a language is ‘a liberation from insularity and provides an opening to other cultures’ – but soon runs aground on the grim statistics of student disengagement, writes Barry Mansfield of Halcyon London International School, Marylebone.

Tag: K12

Interdisciplinary collaboration for 21st century learning

“Within the busy, everyday lives of teachers, is it practical to overhaul the system while protecting the sanctity of their subject?”

World Teachers’ Day more than a day to celebrate hardworking and dedicated teachers

“In sub-Saharan Africa only 10% can read a simple sentence at the age of 10. Hundreds of millions of children are in school, but not learning”

Environmental awareness, just like mathematics, can’t be learned in a day

“A new generation of civically and scientifically minded environmental population and experts will need to address environmental issues”

Why giving children exposure to a greater variety of languages in schools is crucial to problem solving

“Embracing language learning does not mean simply widening access to modern European languages”