Yesterday, there was an ad on my FB feed for an automated poop scooper.

That is probably the best example of something that we need automation for. I mean, seriously, who likes to scoop poop? Especially if your dog weighs 120 lbs. like mine does. It’s a pretty shitty job. (Sorry, I really couldn’t help myself).  

I am writing a piece for submission to an education journal about re-designing high schools and I am spending a great deal of time thinking about what the future of education might look like. This concept of automation is an important one for education – are there parts of the process of learning that really need a human, interactive component? Does that interactive component need to be face to face?

Last year, I took an online course with Elephant Journal. The format used a mixture of online mediums to build a strong, vibrant learning community that was challenging and supportive. I went on to teach in the Elephant program and used opportunities within Facebook, Skype, Google, and Crowdcast to grow as a teacher and as a learner.

This brings up a very important question – is there such a thing as a “traditional education” in today’s world? If not, what is the role of “traditional schooling” – elementary, middle, high school, college – in the next decades? And finally, can we come to any consensus about what an effective public education will be for the future generations?

Big questions.

Let’s look to the past to see the thinking of past educators and see if that helps us grapple with these big questions.

“Whom do I call educated? First, those who manage well the circumstances they encounter day by day. Next, those who are decent and honorable in their intercourse with all men, bearing easily and good naturedly what is offensive in others and being as agreeable and reasonable to their associates as is humanly possible to be… those who hold their pleasures always under control and are not ultimately overcome by their misfortunes… those who are not spoiled by their successes, who do not desert their true selves but hold their ground steadfastly as wise and sober — minded men.” – Socrates

“The most effective kind of education is that a child should play amongst lovely things.” – Plato

“The world is moving at a tremendous rate. No one knows where. We must prepare our children not for the world of the past, not for our world, but for their world–the world of the future.” – John Dewey

“The future of the world is in my classroom today, a future with the potential for good or bad… Several future presidents are learning from me today; so are the great writers of the next decades, and so are all the so-called ordinary people who will make the decisions in a democracy. I must never forget these same young people could be the thieves and murderers of the future. Only a teacher? Thank God I have a calling to the greatest profession of all! I must be vigilant every day, lest I lose one fragile opportunity to improve tomorrow.”

― Ivan Welton Fitzwater

If the future of the world is in your classroom today, how will you reach and teach him or her? Will you use a worksheet or a packet? Will you use rich text and challenging questions? Will you engage in inquiry and debate and problem-solving? Will you celebrate failure as an opportunity?

I would love to hear from you. The process of redesigning high schools at the state level has begun. Your voice and your ideas are needed.

How will we educate the future?