Day 2 ACM 2011 Friday
Dr. Milton Chen
Importance of education in informal learning environments, what we need to change
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Synopsis (see usable ideas below):
Wow. Really inspiring. I give it an A + (I would only add more time to his presentation). I think he should do a documentary. Best news – his actual presentation will be available to ACM members on the ACM site (as will all the keynote speakers). I think it is a must see!
When I saw Dr. Chen worked for Lucas – all I could think about was Star Wars. The woman who introduced him even came out as darth vador. Forgive me Allen – I forgot all about Star wars once he started his presentation. He’s definitely got “street cred” with his many years behind educational programming – sesame street, 3-2-1 contact, and working with the mother of all technology – Lucas!
His presentation was about putting children’s education first, why children’s education is so critical for our nation and for the children. And my favorite part – what can we do about it. It is so hard to hear about the bad state of things when no solution is provided.
Set the stage with this quote - “If you ever have anything to do with their food, healthcare, education … listen to the children…think of them children first.” Fred Rogers
Dr. Chen started – of course - with statistics to set the stage and create an understanding of where we are (statistics are always alarming – a high school student drops out every 60 seconds). If we closed the gap in education that we have – it could contribute 2 TRILLION dollars per year to our GDP. He spoke about where we are technology wise – how far we’ve come – put it in perspective – in such a short time. Google is only 13 years old (that’s the same age as my step daughter!)! Youtube is only six years old.
The point is that our world has changed dramatically in the last decade (can you remember the time before the internet – for some children they don’t have that)and our education needs to reflect that change. Children need to see the connection of the real world in their education at school and see what they are learning in school in their real world. He compared school to sitting in airplane – sit in the same small uncomfortable chair, face forward, don’t move. We educate kids from neck up – we forgot we all have a body.
The new education needs to involve - Documenting, telling stories, teach value activities and space, get into communities, activates all those different howard gardner intelligences, gardner offers better learning – hands and minds on, bring friends, all learning. This was another great quote from him – “kids vote with their feet.” Meaning you see when they are passionate – running into school, a movie, to play. You can see when their feet and bodies are dragging – fighting the learning.
Making learning exciting – inspiring their passion – is what needs to happen – it can and does. We then got hear about the exciting programs that are “the change”. Technology is a powerful tool and we should be using it for education to teach 21st century skills - the creative problem solving skills for jobs that are not yet created with technology we don’t yet have.
He broke down how the system can change with a series of “edges” – key points necessary (Margaret will cover in her blog).
Some of the wonderful projects he covered which I think we can implement in our programming right away (the caveat being of course – staff, time, money, resources)! I can see family Saturdays, discovery clubs, back to basics, teen programming, and even our tech department (possibly) offering more classes. I could seen building on amazing teen program Linda did with GIS (she’s cutting edge!).
The bottom line is – if our resources only provide us the opportunity for one program – how much do we want to make it count towards helping our children for the future. If I get one program – I want to make it count if I can.
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Useable progams:
Examples of great programs:
- DC /FS -Google art – kids can take virtual tours of the world’s art museums, can create their own mini exhibition with youtube
- Back to Basics / school outreach - “Opening Minds, Opening Hearts – Phoenix” – Bring in singers, actors, create “language rich environment” where kids can act out words – help literacy. Teach through the body
- Have kids become teachers – teach technology and teach each other. Generation yes (genyes.org) – teach teachers to teach technology. Create web content.
- Tech (tween/teen) - Technologies East – East labs (environmental and special technology – little rock Arkansas) – Margaret explaining in her blog. We could use laptops in programs, maybe do in place of a tech class once a month. Give kids the opportunity to create a project for the community (ex. Of what students did – create a bird sanctuary for the school, create a football stadium for the school – they have to figure out where funding will come from, design and plan).
- Local History: Arkansas Forgotten – Japanese internment camps. Like Linda’s teen program - Kids using gps went out to track the locations of the forgotten camps.Want to record so never happen again. Created a memorial garden at school. (Riverside city museum has a wonderful exhibition on this) – The point is to get kids into the community, interacting, making an impact. We could use with local history.
- DC / Family Saturday – Science / technology - Watershed project – kids doing scientific measurements- temp, water quality. Many children had not experienced nature (never felt my shoes off concrete, I didn’t know birds made sound). We would have to bring nature indoors – partner with local organizations to bring in (encourage family visits and awareness for off time)
- Outreach – what do schools need / lack – bring highschool and younger schools together – ex. Elementary school supposed to visit caves (?) on a field trip – due to funding could not go. High school students documented for kids (cave visits) so they could visit virtually..
- DC/ FS/Teen/Tech/Outreach – ex. Hirsshorn museum held a workshop where students needed to be the teacher and create a scavenger hunt using the museum art pieces and cell phones. This scavenger hunt was supposed to be for kids their age and excite them about coming to the museum – the kids loved it! They created a story , filmed it, and the whole hunt. We could do this with the library, local history sites, get GIS involved and do a geocache project. It was *REALLY* amazing to watch and I think a very exciting way to connect all the pieces.
I could go on and on, but I’m going to wrap up. I hope we can work towards integrating whatever we can into our programming and be a part of the change.
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Notes (long version of what's above):
Goals for ACM
Grow and demonstrate the impact, leverage collective power, promote the value, achieve sustainability, ensure a strong association.
Jane Miller Pittsburgh – Darth Vader
“Education Nation” – Jane previous teacher.
“If you ever have anything to do with their food, healthcare … listen to the children…think of them children first.”
Milton Chen, Jedi Master, at his 50th birthday. Share thoughts about future of education. We are in the midst o redesigning American educational system. ACM leveraging collective power important. What do we need for an education nation – children first? Educating children first?Are nation’s strength depends on the education of our children – economy, etc.
Of 50 1st grade students behind – by 4th grade still behind
A high school student drops out every 60 seconds
CA students 1 year behind US average
Closing the gap could contribute 2 trillion per year to GDP
Text on the screen talk back to you and help you.
We need “gray” area of learning. Kids learn in school – but more leaning take place outside – museums, libraries, churches, parks, etc. “Ladder of Learning”. Edutopia (George Lucas Website) – ability to see film over internet caused tremendous growth. Over 500,000 people on website per month – half from other countries.
Innovation is the key to creating education nation. Don’t just say – oh that’s nice. Bugscope.org – see bus under microscope. Move to must do.
Internet still young – google 13 years old, you tube 6 years old. Look at how this decade has changed. Seeing images changes everything – promotes innovation. Every minute – 24 hours of new video on youtube. We are in the greatest expansion of human creativity. Kids can create in ways we have not imagined.
Schoollife = real life. No longer wasted material. Digital immigrant vs. digital idiot. Can you remember life before the internet? The key is having kids understand how school applies to daily life and how daily life applies inside of school.
6 Leading Edges of k-12
1. Thinking 2. Curriculum & assessment 3. Technology 4. Time/place 5. Co-tea ching 6. Youth
Compare school to sitting on airplane – sit don’t move for 2 hours
Google art project – world’s greatest art museums – bicycles ridden through the worlds greatest art museums. Kids can curate their own art exhibits.
Opening Minds, Opening Hearts – Phoenix – help kids get to 4th grade reading level. Surround kids with a language rich environment (feel words with body) act out.
Educate kids from neck up – forgot we have a body. Have kids become teachers – teach technology and teach each other. Generation yes (genyes.org) – teach teachers to teach technology. Create web content.
Technologies East – East labs (environmental and special technology – little rock Arkansas) – after school design buildings, make films. This is a problem solving class, not a computer class.150,000 needed to raise for teacher training.
Average teenager goes outside for only 20 minutes a day. Bird house, football stadium.
Arkansas Forgotten – Japanese internment camps. Kids using gps to track. Never happen again. Films. Memorial garden at school. Kids can make an impact.
Watershed project – kids doing scientific measurements- temp, water quality
EAST conference – 2000 attend, present projects, awards
21st century skills – communication, tolerance, ambiguity
Document, tell stories, - value activities and space, get into communities, activates all those different howard gardner intelligences, gardner offers better learning – hands and minds on, bring friends, all learning.
High school students documented for kids (cave visits).
Job description – not a solo practitioner, key to new education, collaboration between adults
Curriculum Edge
- Social/emotional learning, globalizing the curriculum, bilingual education for all, real work life: linked learning
- Castle.org (important intervention in schools, lift schools learning levels)/ Roger castle – this is the plate – the foundation of children’s ability to learn and work with other students
- connected California.org
- You can do STEM and global stem – kids in inner city Chicago learning Chinese (Chicago has largest Chinese program – teaching mandarin)
3. Technology edge
- Weapons of mass instruction one on one (250 dollars per year – 1 laptop) take textbook money and put into technology. We need to make this transition.
- Concert and pay for
- Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and skills (OAKS) – same standardized test, but online, students liked it better, answered more questions
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George Leonard (Education and Ecstasy - book)
If learning is pleasurable – students will learn in one third of the time.
Escondido – all students have Ipod touch. Kids engaged in learning (attach microphone to it). Microphone records he reading. Kids listening to themselves read (kids persist longer – do it more) Parents and teachers and other kids can hear them read.
Tesselation – 3rd graders know because of technology
Learning I snow 24-7-365.
Hirsshorn Museum – ask middleschool students to create an activity while other students there
Workshop – create scavenger hunt at museum (use cell phone for clues).
Game is to look closely at the art (Zoo keeper, find lost animals is there theme)
Mobile, play space learning, have with you all the time
How can the institution be in the center of the kids life?
Now a set of tools out there – free – makes assets accessible (one that wont come – too far, not part of culture)
Visual literacy – how to translate interpret, look at objects / interpretive skills / words to choose, how to write, empowered to follow a personal path, will feel more confident, will believe in creative process, believe that they can make a creative contribution to this world
Going from production to participation, peer base collaboration, both learning and teaching (discover what you don’t know)
4. The teaching edge: co teach
- Parents as coeducators
- Linking home, school, many places
- Experts as co-educator: librarian, museum educator, scientist, historian,
5. Greatest edge: today’s youth
– 95 % stakeholders
- Digital natives carrying change in pocket
- Generation yes
Eduoptia – Jaelyn from Chicago
Virginia – gave up facebook for lent, teaches internet safety to younger kids
What is definition of great learning environment (museum, school, afterschool0? Make it short – make it measurable
Great place walk in, kids engaged, learning .. (change to a sentence or two – how measure that)
Do they run in at the same rate they run out? Kids vote with their feet for your environment
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