21st Century Learning has taken Seaholm by storm. Jumping into the curriculum with full force, this new learning structure has brought a great deal of inspiration to classrooms school-wide—but also some doubt.
However, this is what comes with the initiation of any new concept—especially to a structure as traditional as U.S. education.With its sudden arrival, some educators may feel threatened that there is a lack of confidence or efficacy in their craft when they are simply handed a new format and encouraged to use it.
Being a teacher means that giving your students everything possible in order for them to succeed.
In theory, there’s a lot to like with 21st CTL. Our world is constantly changing, driven by technology and the need to solve problems and work with other people. Getting students ready for this world is placing them in a position to succeed.
But in practice there are still a few kinks to be worked out.
Educators risk losing sight of the real craft of teaching and turning their classrooms into a place of bitter competition between students and less of a place for their personal growth.
21st Century flips the traditions of the classroom, letting students lead themselves with personal assistance from educators and peers. It allows students to explore interests and pick their own avenue to learning.
But we can see where this may cause a problem.
It gives more control to students, which teachers may see as an issue—which is a reasonable concern. 21st CTL assumes an automatic ability for students to self-motivate in their learning, when many students don’t really do that.
Plus, according to a survey, not all Seaholm students are in favor of its current approach at Seaholm.
What both staff and student need to understand is that 21st CTL is new. It hasn’t had time to be tested and tried. We are in the experimental phase right now.
If we are too quick to judge the concept we will never see its full effect, which on paper, seems like it’s worth a shot.
