MeTEOR Education Survey Data Shows Schools Struggle to Modernize Classroom Practices
Gainesville, FL (PRWEB) January 11, 2017 -- New survey findings from learning experience design firm MeTEOR Education indicate that very traditional, scripted approaches to schooling are holding back more than one-half of all US teachers and their students.
The Schools of Hope survey, with more than 7,000 educators responding, surprised observers with its findings that one in four educators (25%) categorized their schools as “very traditional” and twenty-nine percent (29%) indicated their schools are just beginning to integrate project-based, real-world learning approaches.
The K-12 Mindshift cohort has just released a new book that takes aim at some of these specific challenges. Co-authors Rex Miller, Bill Latham, and Brian Cahill worked with a team of more than 60 career educators, a wide variety of specialists, NFP organizations, and business community leaders that led to Humanizing the Education Machine: How to Create Schools That Turn Disengaged Kids Into Inspired Learners.
According to Latham, “If the schools profiled in Humanizing the Education Machine taught us anything, we know that visionary leadership is both possible and effective. The principal’s leadership is critical for unlocking the creative expertise of the classroom teacher.”
The negative impact of scripted, rote, “machine-like” teaching and learning styles has most recently been illustrated by Latham, Miller and the efforts of the K-12 Mindshift. Scripted, “one size fits all” schooling characterized by testing and rote learning often led to disengaged students and demoralized teachers. Latham, an ardent proponent of education reform and an Accredited Learning Environment Planner, notes that “The surprise was the number of educators reporting a lack of significant progress towards modern practices.”
Traveling across the country to identify schools that have “broken-through” the barriers of poverty and failure, the authors and their K-12 Mindshift team found schools where failure had reached such painful levels that the restraints of traditional curriculum and instruction were finally discarded. New, and often simple strategies such as flexible scheduling and mastery-focused module-based learning empower students and account for different student needs. The “flex-mod” scheduling process at Legacy High School in North Dakota stands as a powerful example of schools that embrace “more personalized learning, greater relevance and increased student power.”
The survey also found that teachers agree with Miller and Latham’s findings as more than three quarters (75%) reported a dedicated effort to move towards a more relationship-based, student-centered approach. Actual progress lags intent, however, with fewer than 40 percent of educators reporting substantial efforts towards more flexible, project and collaborative-based learning approaches which engage and empower students.
“Saying the student is at the center of learning is much easier than actually designing learning experiences and learning spaces that significantly change the game,” notes Latham. “We found schools – poor, disenfranchised schools – that have done it. They are succeeding, and that means anyone can.”
Moving forward, school leaders will be watching closely as the new Trump administration begins to form, with a preference towards open choice and competition among schools. Old models of teaching and learning which result in student and teacher dissatisfaction are likely to drive highly traditional schools out of business.
MeTEOR Education, Bill Latham and Rex Miller will present their complete findings at the upcoming EdShift regional events in 2017.
About MeTEOR Education:
MeTEOR Education is a leading educational services partner working with education professionals to help them create High-impact Learning Experiences™. As one of the largest providers of learning spaces, including furnishings and interior design services, MeTEOR's focus is the integration of best practices for teaching and learning to drive inquiry-based instruction, effective use of modern classrooms, and increased student achievement. To learn more visit http://meteoreducation.com.
Charlotte Andrist, Nickel Communications, http://www.nickelcommpr.com, +1 (770) 310-5244, [email protected]
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