How do we create innovators among our students? As
I read Tony Wagner’s book, I am compelled not to wait until I finish it before
sharing. My initial thoughts about creating student innovators revolve around school
structure, curriculum, and instructional practices.
I
have long believed that the age-based placement of students is an archaic
throwback to the age of mass production industry. We place students in classes
by age knowing full well that students arrive in kindergarten with vastly different
experiences, skills, and readiness for formal education. We then spend the next
thirteen years trying to catch students up or having others wait while
implicitly (or explicitly) communicating that some students are not as good as
others. The system assumes that students should not be mixed by age even though
the differences in age within group approach 20% of student’s life at age five.
Instead
we should consider grouping students by age spans and have clear descriptors of
student skills, abilities, and knowledge at the end of such periods of time.
Roughly, I propose grouping students by ages 5-9, 10-14, and 15-18. That
coincides with grades K-3, 4-8, and 9-12. A personalized learning program would
be implemented that emphasizes student choice and self-assessment. Each grade
span would have an overall focus.
Ages 5-9 would focus on discovery, experimentation, and literacy
development. Ages 10-14 would focus on self-awareness, experimentation, and
early application. Finally, ages 15-18 would focus on application and
innovation. These are general emphases that are not mutually exclusive between
the age groups.
Curriculum
will be more integrated, problem-based, and experiential. Students will receive
regular formative assessment as they develop their self-assessment skills. The
personalized learning program would allow students to proceed from where they
currently are rather than wait for others. Students needing more time would
receive that differentiated support but expected to reach the exit outcomes for
their grade span. Every effort would be made for all children to be ready for
the next grade span.
Instruction
will emphasize student engagement. Just-in-time instruction would include short
lessons and plenty of time to interact with new information to assimilate new
learning. Formative assessments would commonly occur that would include the
student in evaluating progress.
To
be contiued as the incremental and disruptive innovations surface….
