Education Innovation around the world.
Today I had the pleasure to moderate a session at the "Forum Bildung Digitalisierung" (Forum Education Digitalisation) in Berlin. The session was called "Around the world in 60 Minutes" and education innovation from 5 different countries where presented from speakers that had travelled there and explored the local context 🌎🤖💫🚀. I just briefly wanted to share some highlights and insights:
Viola traveled to Gambia to teach teachers how to use iPADs. In a country, where owning a pencil is a luxury. She described how everything in the schools is kept in the office of the headmaster - all the precious supplies. If a student filled his or her notebook, s/he has to go to the headmaster's office to show that s/he used every page properly and enquire a new notebook. Many schools finish before lunch time, because they can't provide drinking water to the students. And now she had to teach them how to use iPADs. Viola described though what an enormous power of change could lay in this technology. Real printed books for example are absolutely unaffordable in Gambia - but they can easily be loaded on the devices. Here you can read some more: https://www.forumbd.de/dialog/videointerview-mehr-gefuehl-dafuer-bekommen-was-schueler-koennen/
The country of dreams, when it comes to education innovation! Tanja and Marc-Alexander visited various schools and described the amazing infrastructure - there is LTE internet everywhere and it works! The opportunities are clearly in the focus, not the fear (like it is often the case in Germany...). Nationwide eKool is used - a platform where all information is shared with teachers, parents and students. Parents can log in and see if there kids arrived in school, if there are any important updates..even the school reports (Zeugnisse) are only handed out in digital form. Everything is digitised and everyone has to get on board with it - and people realise the benefits and how much easier it can make things.
#USA - Silicon Valley
Susanne and Martin visited various schools and education innovation labs in the Silicon Valley. In the San Francisco area one thing is clear - the future is digital and students have to learn coding and understand digital tools. Susanne and Martin were amazed by the spaces (everything is open, flexibel, students and teachers and design their spaces freely) and especially impressed by the MAKER SPACES (mix of classroom and workshop), where kids can learn and think with their hands. Read more about their journey here: https://fug-nerdl.blog/blog-reise-ins-tal-der-zukunft/
Our neighbours have much more autonomie in their schools - 2 levels of hierarchy instead of five (like in Germany), innovation can be much faster implemented. Read some more about Vincent's journey here: https://www.forumbd.de/dialog/bildungsreise-in-die-niederlande-ein-reisebericht/
Nancy, who is innovation media consultant at her school reported how important it is to have someone that is in charge of new technologies and innovation. Her position does of course not even exist in (most) German schools. She outlined how she helps to implement new tools and supports teachers when they are uncertain..This is often a problem - teachers are afraid to implement new technologies, not sure about how and what to use effectively..and afraid that the students, who are possibly even more tech savvy than themselves, laugh at them. She can guide and consult them, where to implement new technologies and how to make the most out of it. Here you can find some more info about Nancy's school in Singapore: https://www.gess.sg/de/
These were just some short flashlights I wanted to share. It was very interesting to see how much positivity can lay in new technologies and how naturally and self-evidently this is already lived in many countries. 🚀🌎💫
