8/11/2019 Week 6 Future Learning

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To move beyond plateaus that dominates

current educational thinking requires what

Heifetz and Linsky (2002) call tackling

adaptive challenges rather thantechnical solutions. The key difference

between the two is that knowledge

required for addressing technical

problems is currently available (it may still

be difficult to implement, but much is

known in relation to the problem), while

adaptive challenges go beyond our current

capacity or current way of operating. The

main properties of adaptive challenges

include:

the challenge consists of a gap between

aspiration and reality, demanding a

response beyond our current repertoire

adaptive work to narrow the gap

requires difficult learning

the people with the problem are the

problem, and they are the solution

adaptive work generates disequilibrium

and avoidance

adaptive work takes time

(Heifetz & Linsky, 2002)

These new challenges represent a golden

opportunity to rethink how we approach

reform drawing on the dos and donts

lessons of the past. For example, on theone hand we know that even the most

sophisticated centrally-driven reform

what has come to be called informed

prescription can only take us part way

toward the solution; on the other hand,

even highly supported decentralized

strategies which seek a thousand flowers

to bloom do not take us very far (not

enough flowers bloom; good flowers

do not get around or amount to critical

mass breakthroughs).

The solution we need must meet two

main criteria:

it must mobilise the ingenuity and

creative resources of a critical mass

of the whole system

it must foster a we-we or collective

commitment and identity with the

system as a whole, and its

transformation

Thus, the world of ideas and intellectual

power must marry the world of moral

purpose and collective identity

adapted from Michael Fullan (2004) :

Systems thinkers in action: Moving

The Future-focused learning in connected communitiesreport from the 21st Century Learning Reference Group was

released on Friday 30 May 2014.http://www.minedu.govt.nz/theMinistry/EducationInitiatives/UFBInSchools/FutureFocusedLearning.aspx

Ten strategic priorities for 21st century skills and digital competencies

The 21st Century Learning Reference Group suggests ten priorities for equipping learners with

21st century skills and digital competencies.

1. Commit to meeting the needs of 21st century learners

Prepare learners with the knowledge, skills and digital competencies to actively

participate in New Zealands rapidly changing 21st century economy and society.2. Achieve equitable access to digital devices for every learner

Ensure all learners have access to suitable digital technologies, regardless of

location, background, abilities or socio-economic status.

3. Invest in people and innovation

Build digital learning capability across the education system. Foster innovative

teaching and leadership. Support leaders to manage change and stimulate

innovation. Establish an Education Innovation Hub to nurture new and emerging

approaches to teaching and learning.

4. Create future-focused learning environments

Design vibrant, technology-rich, cyber-safe learning environments. Make these

environments flexible enough to serve multiple learning contexts, including one-to-

one, small groups, collaborative and community learning. Put learning at the heart

of the system.

5.

Invest in high-quality digital content and systems to make content easily accessible

Design systems and policies that make it easy for students and educators to access

online content, create and share knowledge, and collaborate across local and global

networks of educators and learners.

6. Build regional capability through collaboration

Invest in regional networks of educators to create, foster and spread innovative

practice. These networks could also include tertiary providers, local government,

communities and business.

7. Build a robust evidence base

Establish an ongoing programme of research and evaluation to promote innovation

and improvement across the whole education sector. Include exemplars of effective

teaching and learning withdigital technologies.

8. Implement a coordinated, system-wide effort to align curriculum, digital

technologies, property, infrastructure, funding and legislationIntegrate the core elements of digital learning with a relentless focus on promoting

learning in safe, future-focused environments. Integrate curriculum, effective

teaching and leadership practices, technologies, property and system infrastructure.

9. Design a coherent, flexible and robust funding structure to support 21st century

learning

Support with effective funding the new approaches to teaching and learning made

possible by digital technologies. Align initiatives, reprioritise existing resources,

establish public-private partnerships and create flexibility in funding policies.

10. Implement a comprehensive five-year plan from 2014

Work with educators, education agencies and community leaders on an

implementation plan for learning with digital technologies, with agreed goals and

progress measures. Use the expertise that exists nationally and internationally to

assist with implementation planning, oversight and evaluation.