It has been a very long time...

It has been far too long since I've blogged. Getting back into writing has been a personal goal for quite some time. Yet, I have not made it a priority. I am finding more often, that even though I typically share a quiet presence, I have so much to say. When I began this blog, I was focused on helping educators grow their knowledge and skills for integrating technology and project-based learning into classrooms. This was primarily used as a model in my graduate classes for how writing and publishing could be integrated into teaching and learning.  At the time I started this forum, I truly thrived on taking a number of standards and weaving together a meaningful project for learners that crossed disciplinary areas. I loved nothing more than seeing learners engage in project work, collaborating, communicating, problem solving and applying technology to stretch their resources as well as creativity.

As much as I loved working with students, I found a great deal of joy (and still do) in working with educators and helping them navigate the challenge of facilitating learning projects, building authentic assessments and realizing the great reward that comes with watching students dig into a great learning opportunity.  Through a relevant problem, students persevered through the challenge with collaboration, creativity, and problem solving very evident.  All learners thrived because in the depth of a great project, differentiation is possible.  All. Learners. Thrived.

We are now 16 years into the 21st Century. This is my 19th year on the journey. We continue to talk about the need for 21st Century Skills in our learners.  When are we going to figure it out as an educational system?

We continue to teach in subject matter that is siloed rather than interconnected for relevance.

We continue to provide adult-driven learning structures and impose them on our learners.

We continue to allow the perpetuation of a 19th century educational system.

We continue to define what should be learned rather than letting our students biographies and interests help define what could be learned.

 In 1995, Deborah Meier wrote a wonderful book titled

The Power of Their Ideas

In the prologue to the book, she wrote something so simple and beautiful that it has caught my focus as I re-read her words. In recognizing the talent of one of her children as a "Natural teacher" she states "If, as I've discovered, teaching is mostly listening and learning is mostly telling." (1995, p.xi) I believe Meier captured something so incredibly simple yet powerful in moving our traditional views of education forward.

Shouldn't teaching be about listening? Shouldn't our learners be empowered to tell us their stories of growth, tell us who they are, tell us their dreams and aspirations? If we could listen more, could we help them reach higher goals rather than the goal of completing "3rd grade" as we define it?

The Power of Their Ideas

Shouldn't we continue to focus our instruction on empowering every learner to find relevance and deeper learning through environments that provide them a space and place for exploration and creation? If we as the educational leaders don't set out on a path for innovation and positive disruption of our long standing practices, then who will bring about sustainable, systemic change?

The challenge; If not you, then who?