Will Richardson

Að ímynda sér ómótstæðilega framtíð fyrir skóla

Í fyrirlestri sínum ræðir Will um hvernig kerfi allt í kringum okkur eru að hristast og hrynja. Menntakerfið er eitt þeirra kerfa sem við þurfum að endurskilgreina í ljósi samfélagsbreytinga. En til að breyta þurfum við að geta ímyndað okkur ómótstæðilega framtíð fyrir skólastarf og menntun. Will tekur okkur í ferðalag fram í tímann  og ræðir um sameiginlega sýn á menntun, hvaða skilyrði þurfa að vera fyrir djúpu og öflugu námi og hvernig við getum sagt sögur af framtíðinni til að hjálpa okkur að komast þangað sem við viljum fara.

"The future requires that all of us have the skills, literacies, and dispositions to learn our way through the world."

— Will Richardson

Spurningar og svör frá Sli.Do

Q1:  School is a system in itself that sometimes resists the future. Is the inner battle within the system itself more important than the battle between the school system and other systems, such as politics?

A1: I think as with any change initiative, it’s important to make sure the “system” has the capacity to understand why change is necessary, to understand the current contexts that are driving us into the future, and the courage to state and act on its beliefs. What do you as a school community believe about the purpose of education? About the state of the world? About the future? And, as a school community, have you developed shared language around those responses? Are they front and center in your decision making. I think it would be great for every school to publish a “manifesto” type document which clearly articulates what the “system” stands for and why.

While politics and economics and religion and other “systems” certainly play a role, schools must be focused on one thing: developing children as learners with the skills, literacies, and dispositions to navigate complexity. Most schools, however, have yet to define what those are and put them front and center in their decision making and practice. 

Q2:  How can we stay positive for our future if we are constantly reading, watching or listening to the terrible things that happen all around the world, like wars, hunger and things like that all the time? Should we avoid these things in school?

A2: The world is facing a difficult moment when our concept of “progress” is becoming less and less sustainable on a planet with finite resources and energy to “feed the beast” so to speak. The wars, hunger, environmental challenges, et.al, that we are now seeing are all symptoms of the “one narrative” of modernity breaking down. I don’t see how we can avoid talking about these things in school, with one another, with students in age-appropriate ways, and with parents. But first we have to understand it for ourselves. Obviously, this is not easy. But to not “go there” will only leave our children less prepared and less equipped to, as I said above, navigate the future that is coming at them. I urge you to read Hospicing Modernity by Vanessa Andreotti, or Zach Stein’s Education in a Time Between Worlds, or Dougald Hine’s At Work in the Ruins, or Daniel Schmachtenberger’s Development in Progress. All of these are very challenging texts, but they offer starting points for these conversations. 

That said, there is still lots of beauty and goodness in the world. We need to remind ourselves of that and make sure to develop practices around that for ourselves and our students as well. 

Q3: Is it possible that if we focus more on now, the moment and relationship with our students, we might do a better job of educating for the future?

A3: The path forward is all about relationships, so yes, making sure they feel supported, loved, cared for, etc. is paramount. But we also have to develop relationship with nature, with all living things. We have become too separated from each other and from nature in many parts of the Global North and the developed world. We have lost that deep sense of community and family that has supported cultures for generations. It’s crucial to rebuild those things, and school can play a powerful role in that. 

Hver er Will Richardson?

Will Richardson er rithöfundur, fyrirlesari og kennari sem leggur áherslu á að hjálpa skólafólki að átta sig á flókinni nútíð og ímynda sér betri framtíð fyrir skólasamfélagið sitt.