Students Speak Out! #6
Students Speak Out! #6
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Education in the 21st Century
Education in the 21st Century
Over the past years, students have been forced to move digitally to learn their subjects in school. Here, it still follows the traditional classroom method of having a teacher talk in front of dozens of students.
School systems such as these have existed centuries ago, and their methods have never changed, nor improved ever since. The curriculum of schools is based on tradition. Learning maths and sciences are still seen as more important than the rest.
Education in the 21st Century is a topic that is interesting for everybody to learn because it talks about the future.
As such, this topic challenges the audiences and speakers to spark their creativity and imagination on creating solutions for the future of Education. Answers were given to us by students and field professionals, but to you, how do you imagine schools 50 years from now?
Speakers:
Gio Almonte- BSMS Chemical Engineering undergraduate at De La Salle University, Philippines 🇵🇭
Sumati Sinha - 2nd-year Undergraduate at Jharkhand Raksha Shakti University (JRSU) 🇮🇳
Levyn John Purcil - Junior Architect (Graduated from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde) 🇵🇭
Rishav Kant - 8th Grade Middle School student at Visakha Valley School 🇮🇳
Mr. Gio Almonte discussed the importance of developing an adaptive education system that catered to the soft skills of the student. He emphasized the need of giving proper opportunities and a greater understanding of global trends as factors towards these goals.
In the question and answer, Mr. Gio was asked about what specific soft skills he wanted to promote. He answered by saying that digital design is important because everyone needs this skill for creating presentations, and it can come in handy when talking in front of a large group of people. He was also asked about how less privileged countries could obtain opportunities to hone their soft skills, and he answered by saying that there are many opportunities out there. He mentions that he himself comes from a developing country and that he maximizes the use of technology in order for him to hone his soft skills.
Ms. Sumati Sinha mainly talked about the importance of skill-based Education, and how it is more relevant today.
She mentioned that there should be more flexibility in classrooms and that the traditional way of only letting the students listen is ineffective. It would be much better, in her opinion, if students are given more chances of participation and practice so their learning is more well-rounded.
Towards the next speaker, Mr. Levyn Purcil is a Junior Architect in the Philippines and he talked about the role of architecture in modern education. In his talk, he provided some examples that could help students learn better because of the improvement in their environment. Immersing students to different spaces such as outdoor areas and nature is important in sharpening the students' intelligence. Lastly, he also presented some tips on how classrooms can be designed in a pandemic. He suggests ideas such as offering convertible spaces, proper ventilation, movable furniture, and many more. In the Q&A, Mr. Levyn was asked what he thinks classrooms should look like in the future. One answer from him is that change is constant and eventually, not only classrooms will change, but also other spaces. Today, many people are trying out alternative spaces as classrooms and he believes that it would only be time until four-cornered-wall classrooms would not be used as much as we do today. Lastly, he also mentions that architecture generally deals with space, when asked how he started with architecture making education better. He stated that architecture adapts to anything whether it be culture or education.
The last speaker, Mr. Rishav Kant started his speech by explaining the phrase “learning through doing”. Similar to Ms. Sinha’s presentation, it covers the topic of how students can learn more actively, and not through passive listening only. He further explains the role of technology in helping children think in ways they couldn’t have done. He ended his presentation by asking the speakers what are the ways to improve online classes. Mr. Gio responds by saying students could better learn online through playing interactive games which promotes more connection with classmates online. However, he also mentions that the best way to do online classes is by mixing them with in-person classes. The advantages of online and in-person could be balanced in this way.
Students Speak Out! Is definitely an event that everyone shouldn’t miss out on. It is a free learning platform for anyone to discuss their beliefs, culture, and ideas. Given our technology, it is very easy to connect with each other, but it is rare that an actual conversation about relevant topics are being discussed. That is why Students Speak Out! aims to empower the youth about how their voice can affect and move others.
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