Module 2

Enabling students to take the future in their hands

INTRODUCTION

Objectives of the Module

1.Find examples on how to foster visualisation of ideas, through scenario building techniques.

2. Evaluate the importance of the ability to carry out an idea by combining imagination/creativity and practical knowledge in visualising ideas.

3. Learn new techniques for boosting students’ skills in evaluating opportunities and disadvantages in an idea (individually and as part of a team).

4. Find ways to support students in assigning value to their ideas. Come up with classroom activities to highlight the importance of ideas with a social value, and sustainability considerations.

5. Discuss ways to foster students’ understanding of the meaning of ethical behaviour.

Looking into the Future

It is important to provoke curiosity about the future, and ask questions in order to develop students’ strategic thinking.

Visualisation techniques are suitable for activities with the whole class or in groups.

The teacher plays an important role as he or she should really guide the learning process and the team work!

2.1 Look(ing) into the future: Activity 1 - Option 1Ask your students to imagine their dream job. How do they imagine themselves as successful professionals? Would they work at all? Please tell them that they can be very innovative in their vision: maybe they wish to work 3 hours per day, or a few days a year. Ask them to think about work in different terms that nowadays. You can split your students in groups or have it as an individual activity. Share the feedback in the Padlet below. If the activity is individual, share the feedback from one of your students. If you split your class in groups, share the feedback from each group. As a third option, you can just share how the activity went and your impressions from it in a short summary.

2.1 Look(ing) into the future: Activity 1 - Option 2 If you can’t do this activity with your students, do it yourself! How does your dream job look like? Follow the same steps and come up with a profile, visual presentation, sketch of your dream job. Share in the Padlet below.

Seeing the Values of Ideas

Innovative minds are nurtured into appreciating the importance of an idea. They see potential and find ways to realise it.

Too often we have students who rely on not thinking and they just work by learning by heart.

We need to work in a new way but how many of our students are ready to " think" and " value " ideas?

MINDMAPPING

2.2 Seeing the value of ideas: Activity 2How would you introduce entrepreneurial learning in your classroom? How could you foster entrepreneurial competences in your students? How can entrepreneurship be part of your subject? Use pen and paper and make a mind map of your ideas and concrete steps, including examples of activities that come to your mind. Take a picture of your notes/sketch and share them in the Padlet below.

www.tesguide.eu/tool-method/mental-map.htm

Ethical and sustainable thinking

Enterprising teachers and students should work on analysing their ideas in ethical and sustainable terms, adapt ideas according to the situation or social needs, or take ethical and sustainable principles as a trigger for new ideas.

2.3 Ethical and sustainable thinking - Activity: Can you think of ethical questions/doubts that you can use in the classroom with your students, similar to the real life dilemmas? Share your ideas in the Padlet below.

RESOURCES

https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/entrecomp

http://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/bitstream/JRC101581/lfna27939enn.pdf

The issue presented in this module is really important as we have to face a lot of work which is based on ideas and brainstorming. I think that it is imoportant to work in this way but it might be difficult to do this in some schools. PBL is or might be the answer. With " Alternanza Scuola Lavoro" we are working on bringing the real world into the mind of our students but we will have to implement what we are doing!!