Module 1 Part #2 Chapter Questions

Characteristics of today's learners, as defined in the billets on page 15, seem very different than the learners of yesteryear, but are they really? The points early on in Chapter 2 talk about the educational system of the nineteenth century which was designed for assimilation into the workforce (which was changing at a much slower place than that of today). Which when you really begin the assess the agrarian society we used to be (which influenced and still influences the school term calendar) where 50% of the people worked in Ag (farming) related businesses; to now where large population centers exist and fewer than 3% of the work force is engaged in fulltime agrarian jobs. This leads to what I think is the goal of education, which has always been to teach the next generation some basic core principles, so they can become contributing members of society. Because change occurred at a much slower pace the educational system seemed to adequately prepare each generation, but then twentieth century technology boom hit. Changes, began to change at exponential rates and the change out paced the educational system. The changes also have had a dramatic effect on what types of learners are entering the educational system. I grew up in an era where if you wanted to know the answer to a question (you didn't know) you had very limited choices on how to find that answer.... you could ask a teacher, ask an expert, ask a parent, ask a classmate, or search print media in the library (school or public maybe both). Being the creatures we generally are we want to take the easiest approach, so we ask the nearest person we think has the answer (with no way to verify the answer it was the wikipedia of the 1960's and 1970's [sarcasm intended]) before we were left with researching (often for hours) encyclopedias or card files. Many times the need to really know answer is reduced or at least directly related the amount of work needed to find the answer. This leads to the "New Learner" that has No recollection of that struggle and has always had a variety of technology tools available to answer these questions. The "New Learner" also seems to be willing to Not just be satisfied with learning the content, but also learning how to manage multiple tasks at the same time. Because my unique classroom parameters allow me, a different perspective, I have noticed many students can (if you allow them) attend to multiple things at the same time. Very few times in my everyday life do I have a single thought in my head at one time; it's usually several things that I give varying amounts of time to (usually enough to accomplish the task at hand), while shifting from thought to thought. It seems logical to me, that many of my students are doing the same thing, which is why they want the information faster, concise, relevant, authentic, and in varying multimedia formats. Come to think of it So Do I! I like reading books, but I also like movies. I like reading poetry, but I also love music. I find that, I too, am just like many of these "New Learners" and maybe that's because I graduated high school in 1982 and college in 2013 or maybe learners really aren't that different after all.

Because teachers are tasked with preparing students with those basic principles and possibly jobs that do Not exist yet; change in the educational system is not optional it's essential. As I was reading Chapter 2 I remember the missed opportunity I had as a student in the 1970's, my elementary school was being replaced with a "New School." I would finish the fourth grade in one school and start the fifth in a brand new school with a brand new idea ... "Open Concept"... No Walls...  with the idea that teachers would have learning groups, not classes, we would seamlessly shift from subject to subject sitting on the floor or group tables, self-paced math, and work stations. I remember being very excited to have a sort of freedom for learning and at my pace, but somebody forgot to explain the concept to the majority of the elementary teachers (Except Mrs. Michael the fourth grade teacher that explained what our "New School" was going to be like) because when I arrived the first day all the fifth grade teachers used whatever they could to build barricades and mark their territory. We all had desks (facing forward) and the promise of freedom was replaced with yet more rigid teacher paced learning. I don't know if the "Open Concept" would have been successful, but neither does anyone else in that school system because they never gave it a chance. This is the same problem many teachers have today they seem unwilling to try to integrate technology or develop Problem Based Learning (PBL) for many reasons, but whatever the reasons I, too, agree with the author, "The Time For Excuses Is Over!" All of this leads to what Principals need to do as the instructional leaders of their schools:  they need to support the early adopter and risk takers as well as providing appropriate professional development only then does success have a chance, whether it's technology or some other systemic change.