Let the blogging begin! (MX response)

While pondering the interwebs for an article, I turned to Fast Co. and found this article here. This article takes a look at how schools can implement the teaching and production methods of Google, IDEO, and Pixar. The article highlights High Tech High, a San Diego charter school practicing an educational system unlike any other.

First and foremost HTH has created an environment for its' students that promotes collaboration, spontaneity, and is just plain beautiful. In this school you won't find individual desks, narrow hall ways, or locker's stuffed with mirror's and Lisa Frank stickers like Bethany. You will find a spacious facility filled with glass, power tools, and students who aren't counting down the minutes to the end of class on their iPhones. The students at HTH want to be there. While the students study a broad range of subjects, they go about covering every subject on a project based learning (creating books, robots, games, animations, films). This simply means that rather than having courses on specified subjects their program places emphasis on the process, much like the principles of design. Instead of writing a book report, they can opt to create a book of their own, and share their process for feedback from teachers and fellow students.

It appears that an important characteristic of this school is the relationship between student and teacher. Respect amongst teacher and student is highly valued and practiced. Students are spoken to and treated like adults. The hierarchy in a learning environment has been leveled more so than a traditional high school, done so by sharing bathroom and cafeteria, in effect the students have proven to have less disciplinary problems and have a space that they enjoy coming to.

Ken Robinson spoke of planning for the future. We can predict what may happen, but can never truly be certain of what lies ahead. It seems that we have been out growing conventional teaching and learning facilities and methods. We have our own experiences with our education system and I'm sure we can agree it needs a little restructuring. Let us see what we can brew up, always more effictively collaboratively of course.