Non-Cookie Cutter Kids In a Cookie-Cutter World: What is Education?

Wow! When I first thought about writing this post, it was long before COVID-19. I have now taught children over the last year in ways I would have never dreamed.

Where I live was in the direct path of Hurricane Dorian on September 1, 2019. Our students started school that year in makeshift locations and continued to move from place to place while still in the midst of clean-up and recovery from the hurricane damage.

Then came COVID-19. Our makeshift learning environment, now was shut down because of safety concerns. That ended school from March of 2020 until the "Virtual" reopening of school the following September/October 2020.

We are still trudging along in a virtual environment with great expectations of going back face-to-face sometime first of 2021. But, when we do...will it be right back into the very regimented sit-in-your-seat learning of the distant past? Maybe for different reasons, but are we doing a disservice to our children by forcing them to sit and not collaborate with their classmates and teachers?

Learning is far more than just sitting, opening a book, and regurgitating facts. I have plenty to say on this matter. I am very thankful for the forward move in technology to assist students, teachers, and parents to stay connected. I am thankful for the rich reservoir of resources that are now available free at a finger touch. I am thankful that we are destroying less trees because of electronic submission of work.

However, what I'm missing is the human contact and nurturing that occurs every day within a classroom. The transfer of kindness, courtesy, and compassion is much more difficult to convey through a Zoom screen. My passion for many years has been to ask the question, "What will the classroom of the future look like?" Maybe, we have arrived to the technology level I always hoped for, but I think we have forgotten to build in the human component that NO computer or electronic device can ever replace.

I look forward to this new challenge that lies before us. I can NEVER go back to the teacher I use to be. I believe electronic storage and retrieval is a great step forward. But, I want technology to enhance, not lead the direction of education as we move into the next phase of education. As stated in my Doctoral Graduation Speech, "The best is yet to come!"

#education #standardizedtesting #nochildleftbehind #teaching #teachers #emotionalintelligence #discrimination #inclusion