Relevant Education Will Bridge the Gap...

Currently:
Teachers are buried and overwhelmed.
The mandates have become so strict, there is no room for the creativity required to effectively connect with human beings. Teachers feel incredible frustration because The System does not allow them to do what they –as warm-blooded, compassionate, and dedicated professionals—know needs to be done to best serve their students.

The Solution:
Relevance…towards students, freedom from mandates and bureaucracy.

Over the last 30 years, Finland has risen from the bottom to the top of the world, according to PISA test results. PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) has one goal… to determine student readiness for the real-world. So, what did Finland do? They first put faith in their teachers by significantly reducing content requirements and giving teachers the freedom to actually TEACH!

• See what Finland did…
  What Happens When You Outlaw Standardized Tests?

Relevance to… life-long learning skills.

There is an assumption that crops up within The System. It becomes apparent sometime in middle school and continues through the rest of a students’ educational career. That assumption is that the student has been taught how to learn.

In fact, this is not true. Elementary education teaches the three Rs: reading, writing, and arithmetic. Nowadays, they also teach character education, with a dash of science and social studies added for good measure.

Then, students hit middle school. Now, teachers are dedicated to specific subjects and they are under heavy pressure to cover a lot of content! These teachers have no time, nor proper training, to teach students how to learn. Understandably, they are frustrated!

There is actually some good news on this topic. Believe it or not, that good news lies within the Common Core.
Common Core Is Actually Quite Brilliant…If Implemented Carefully.
Despite all of the drama and controversy, Common Core is a step in the right direction. It is not perfect, but following Finland’s example, it is an improvement for two very specific reasons:

• Common Core reduces the volume of mandated content.
• Common Core was designed around the outcomes of college and career readiness.

Most, if not all, of the drama over the Common Core is about how states, districts, and/or schools are choosing toimplementthe Common Core. Common Core is nothing more than a list of goals. In order for Common Core –or any educational initiative– to be effective, the implementation must include the four critical elements of Complete Human Education (CHE):

• Provide Structure.
• Celebrate Originality.
• Build on natural Aptitudes.

and above all…

• Make it Relevant!

There is a gem of brilliance embedded in Common Core, waiting to be discovered. It is the Common Core Anchor Standards. These Anchor Standards describe the desired outcomes of Common Core. But, a natural law of the universe proves that these Anchor Standards are a path to simplicity and elegance never before imagined in education.

• 80/20 in the Classroom: How to Change the Way You Work
• How the 80/20 Principle Simplifies the Common Core

Relevance to… the human experience.
To make a statement of the obvious, teachers become teachers because they want to make an impact on other human beings. They have chosen to exchange the currency of their blood, sweat, and tears in exchange for “light bulb” moments and inspired hearts. The state of The System grinds away at the very reason they selected this cherished vocation. Some are quick to blame technology, but technology will be the very thing that corrects the course and rights the ship…

• Understanding the Needs of the 21st Century Learner