EduCon 2020

While we have innovated the role of a teacher from the “sage on the stage” to a facilitator of learning, research in neuroscience and reports from the World Economic Forum point us to an even more exciting role for teachers today- teachers as activators and networkers. During this conversation, we will start with questions such as “How might we engage with experts in our communities to give students real-world feedback on projects based on real-world learning?” and “How might we incorporate expeditionary learning into projects to make learning more robust and contextual?” We believe that the most valuable coaching we can provide as facilitators is to support teachers in setting the conditions for learners to choose their pathways of learning. In order to model student-centered learning, we as presenters will prepare a series of questions and prompts that can be taken a multitude of ways by the learner. Modeling and using tools such as 4-Corners, Empathy Interviews, and User Map from Mount Vernon’s newest Design Thinking Field Guide, we will discover together what learners are curious and passionate about at all ages- from 0 to 99.

We will then work through how to do the same with our students, layering in our experiences with 21st-century habits of mind and preparing for competency-based learning. Finally, we will review case studies of real examples from early childhood/elementary, middle school, and high school to prime the pump for individualized next steps for each member of the group.