Students from around the world have gotten together and are speaking out with their new network Students2.0. The Students 2.0 blog will feature content written by both staff writers and guest contributors. From Hawaii and Washington, from St. Louis and Chicago, from Vermont, New York, Scotland, Korea, and other points on the globe, these writings will be united in one central aspect: quality student writing, full-voiced and engaging, about education.
Why are they doing this...?
I think it best to use their own words...
Everywhere, we see changes: in how business operates, in how people interact and success is accomplished. That is, we see changes everywhere besides the closed bars of education. The system continues to “stay the course” upon a falling ship. Yet, the widgets within the machine are no longer content to grind away. Ideas are popping up everywhere, across the globe. Students are continually redefining their own lives and how they want to learn and interact.
Adults and teachers talk about education and students, but rarely invite students into these discussions. Fortunately, this blog plans to change that by offering an authentic student voice upon education. This is not a gimmick, there's no puppet master: we're intent upon confronting the issues of modern education, never backing down from a challenge. Students 2.0 is challenge for leaders and teachers alike: are you willing to listen to students
Pretty powerful considering it was these students drive alone that developed this idea. Do you know a student like this in your class...or 2 or 3...? How do you engage a student who is so driven? I know I will be tuning in to see what they have to say!
Students 2.0 Launch Teaser from Sean on Vimeo.
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So we have students that are blogging about things that matter to them. That's great! These students are beginning to embrace the 21st Century and are starting to make education their own.
ReplyDeleteBut who are these students? These are students who have motivated themselves to do what they feel needs to be done. But if you were to take a cross-section of your entire school, which students would be in the group contributing to this?
I imagine you will see the answer as being the cream of the crop, those that need something like thsi because NCLB has taken away so many opportunities from them. But what about those struggling students? You know, the ones that are being placed in extra math and English courses so that they can become "proficient" and "meet the standards?" Where do these students fit in?
I feel we are at an educational divide, and we have been there for well over a decade, where education cannot continue down the path we have been following for so long. We DO need to take a more individualized approach to each student's education. Do they all need the same things? No. My student who is going to become a mechanic will need different skills than my student who will become an engineer. The student who will become a teacher has a different path than the one that becomes a park ranger.
Why is it then that we have such a narrow path for them to follow while they are in high school?
I know they need to have a wide variety of offerings so they can discover themselves and get a broad knowledge base built. But where do we go from here?
Students2.0 is a wonderful thing. Students are finally beginning to see this divide and take action. I think that in the long run, it won't be the President or teachers or administrations or parents or the government or industry that determines what a student learns and how they learn it. It will come down to each individual student. They will step up and take that responsibility. It's just a matter over how long the rest of us hold onto the status quo that is restricting these students from achieving their true potential.