Re-imagine Learning

Never before have parents and stakeholders in the education and skilling industries been faced with the task of preparing students for “jobs that have not yet been created, for technologies that have not yet been invented, to solve problems that have not yet been anticipated.

Standing in present day, the challenge facing families and the education and skilling industries is real: How do we prepare students with the skills to navigate and thrive in an uncertain future?

In this context, OECD’s “The Future of Education and Skills 2030” project raised two crucial questions:

1. WHAT knowledge, skills, attitudes and values will today’s students need to thrive and shape their world?

2. HOW can instructional systems develop these knowledge, skills, attitudes and values effectively?

To answer the first question, it is clear that disciplinary knowledge of core subjects will continue to be important. However what will potentially be more relevant is students’ competency in applying their knowledge and creating new knowledge as circumstances and contexts evolve.

OECD postulates …

  • • cognitive and meta-cognitive skills such as critical thinking, creative thinking, learning to learn and self-regulation;
  • • social and emotional skills such as empathy, self-efficacy and collaboration; and
  • • practical and physical skills such as using new information and communication technology devices.

The use of this broader range of knowledge and skills will need to be mediated by attitudes and values such as imagination, curiosity, motivation, trust, and respect for diversity and virtue.

Equipped with this knowledge, these skills, attitudes and values, students will be better equipped to creatively problem solve, cope with failure and rejection, find ways to constructively move forward in the face of adversity, work collaboratively with others, and care for the well-being of their communities, the environment and the planet.

How might instructional systems develop these knowledge, skills, attitudes and values effectively? To answer this second question, it is clear that learning processes in the whole pipeline of instructional systems (from the design of textbooks, curricula, lesson plans to the delivery of curricula) need to be re-imagined.

Learning processes need to:

  • • Be highly engaging, contextually relevant, student-centered, authentic and connected to students’ lives, their communities, and environment
  • • Provide opportunities for inquiry and discovery-based learning
  • • Provide opportunities for deeper learning
  • • Understand and solve for the gaps between intent of the curriculum and student learning outcomes

CSEL aims to contribute to mainstreaming such learning processes in educational institutions. We do this by asking the right questions about what would best serve children and teachers, connecting the dots between research, curriculum, pedagogy, assessments and their implementation, and creating rigorous learning processes that will make a difference.

Contact us to know more