Day 24- @TeachThough 30 Day Reflective Teaching Challenge
Which learning trend captures your attention the most, and why? (Mobile learning, project-based learning, game-based learning, etc.)
Over the past couple of years being connected, many trends have appeared. All of them have their place in education, because our world is diverse, teachers need diverse resources and methods to reach ALL students. Not every method is for every teacher or students. Teachers need to find new methods that fit their interest, level of comfort and learning style. (Just like students.) No teacher should resort to ONE style mixing things up allows for students to show their learning in different ways.
One trend that has caught my attention is Genius Hour (Passion Projects, FedEx time, 20 Time). This method allows students to learn what they want, how they want and show their learning in a unique way. There are many ways for teachers to run Genius Hour, but they all start with the creation of driving questions, contain research and end with a presentation to a larger audience. Some teachers guide their students with driving questions based on curriculum others give students more freedom and allow for any “High Quality”, research based questions to be use. The key to Genius hour is giving students control of their learning. This is the future of education. When the students design the tasks, they take ownership, are engaged and learn the most.
For many teachers this can be hard idea to swallow, ALLOWING every student to take learning into their own hands and create something different! When I first gave it a shot in my classroom, I found it took planning and skill to manage every students learning. I had to trust them. I had to give them space and time to explore. I had to let some fail, but we discussed what they learned in the failing process. I discovered that learning happens best in the risks teachers take in the classroom.
Sweat to Inspire 