OCTOBER 2011
The Henry Ford’s Innovation Education Incubator!
By Paula Gangopadhyay, Chief Learning Officer
Imagine a world of education where teachers teach less and yet … students learn more!
In this new world, the teacher avatar would be more of a facilitator of learning versus a deliverer of content. But why do we need to change the way we teach? Because the context of learning has changed dramatically, and we need to change with it.
With the explosion of information technology and communication, the world around us — and more importantly, the learners in it — have changed dramatically. The MacArthur study aptly summarizes the need for this change in education: “To stay relevant in the 21st century, education institutions need to keep pace with the rapid changes introduced by digital media. Youths’ participation in this networked world suggests new ways of thinking about the role of education …”
The old definition of education was rigor, which meant mastery of content. Today, rigor needs to be redefined to include not just mastery of content, but adaptation and application of the content learned.
In the new world of education, a teacher will "tell less" but "ask more." To inspire critical thinking and encourage students to solve problems for themselves, questions will need to be redefined as "probes." This means they will not be open-ended or multiple choice questions seeking black-and-white, one-dimensional answers, but questions that can spur the mind to push beyond boundaries, to think and to analyze.
Next, we have to educate ourselves and try to understand the traits of today’s learners, the iGeneration. They are intensely curious; they learn by unveiling or creating; they constantly multi-task; they like to stay socially or virtually connected all the time; they learn more from peers than from elders; they believe in instant gratification.
We cannot prepare students to succeed in today’s world if we don’t change our learning environments, our teaching methodologies, our examples, our tools of engagement and our mind-sets. The iGeneration needs new ways of engagement that are more contextual, experiential and challenging.
The Henry Ford® has embarked on the role of catalyst to make an impact on the American education system through the development of innovative teaching and learning tools like Innovation 101, Educator DigiKits and ExhibitBuilder. We believe that these new digital resources can be the key to changing the paradigm of how public, private and charter school teachers teach and how the current generation of students learns.
Take for example, Innovation 101, http://www.oninnovation.com/education/innovation-101.aspx. The unit is designed on the model of "teach less, learn more." The teacher is expected to be a facilitator. The methodology used in the curriculum engages the learner to think creatively and critically, debate and dialogue among peers, make personal connections, apply what he or she has learned to the real world and, in the end, be empowered with a can-do attitude. The teacher does not deliver the content, but like a guiding beacon pushes the student’s imagination, encourages teamwork and thinking beyond boundaries, and kindles an enthusiasm to learn and to keep learning more. Development of 21st-century skills is seamlessly woven into the teaching methodology.
As per Everett Rogers (1995), the ‘Adoption of Innovation’ is a theory of the way organizations and individuals adjust to new programs, projects, or technological implementations.”
Now The Henry Ford is poised to test the adoption and impact of these innovative teaching and learning tools through an Innovation Education Incubator project funded in part by Meritor Inc. Critical data from this pilot field testing project will allow us to improve our tools, meet true educational needs and eventually improve student engagement and success.
Here’s what some of the early adopters/teachers/students are saying about some of the resources we have created:
“Innovation 101 takes the mystery and fear out of the creative process, showing that it’s attainable for everyone.” — Keith Rosko, 2011 First Place Winner of the 2011 PBS Teachers Innovation Awards, Chenango Forks High School, Binghamton, N.Y.
“I was thrilled with the Innovation 101 resources—my students worked cooperatively on these lesson activities, which worked well for their age group and fit in nicely with the overall purpose of the project. … the best feature of these lessons is that all supporting resources (video clips, external resources) are linked to the lesson plans. A teacher literally has all of the resources at their fingertips!” — Susan Tate, Teacher, 8th-Grade Science and Technology, Whitehall Middle School, Whitehall, Mich.
“I can be more innovative and more focused on how to improve my innovation and creativity skills. It (Innovation 101) also kind of revamped my motivation to be innovative and creative and a world mover and shaker.”— Gregory Keogh, Graduate Student, St. Louis University,
Now it’s your turn. If you consider yourself an out-of-the-box teacher or someone who wants your students to become the next generation of innovators and problem solvers, become part of our Innovation Education Incubator or give us your feedback. Together we can make a difference.
Paula Gangopadhyay
Chief Learning Officer
Read more articles written by Paula Gangopadhyay on History Education and Museums
Paula contributes a monthly column to History Matters, the newsletter of the National Council for History Education
The Chronicle, Historical Society of Michigan