Formulating the Why
Start with the Why
When engaging in the shift from the traditional education system to one that puts learners at the center of their development, it is important to know WHY that shift needs to happen with and for learners. This page contains videos or other inspirational starting points for that conversation in your local context.
Don't forget to check out the College, Career, and Life Ready page to gather information on the shifting job market and ways to re-imagine the Portrait of a Graduate.
Introduction to Exemplar Resources
Per YouTube: "TEDx Puget Sound speaker - Simon Sinek - Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Action"
Per YouTube: "This RSA Animate was adapted from a talk given at the RSA by Sir Ken Robinson, world-renowned education and creativity expert and recipient of the RSA's Benjamin Franklin award."
"This audio has been edited from the original event by Becca Pyne. Series produced by Abi Stephenson, RSA."
Prince Ea: "This is a powerful video puts our school system on trial."
Rachel Wolfe: "A student-directed documentary about how an expectation for perfection and a status-driven definition of success undermines students’ love of learning and creativity, gets in the way of our ability to use high school as an opportunity to figure out what we love and who we are, and turns our intrinsic motivation extrinsic."
Per YouTube: "Would you choose to build a house on top of an unfinished foundation? Of course not. Why, then, do we rush students through education when they haven't always grasped the basics? Yes, it's complicated, but educator Sal Khan shares his plan to turn struggling students into scholars by helping them master concepts at their own pace."
Todd Rose explains why the bell curve does not fit measurements of human potential.
Todd Rose explains how we must end the tyranny of "average" in education.
White Papers and Research Base
Introduction to Exemplar Resources
forecast-5-future-learning.pdfLearning Re-Imagined
Click on the document on the left to see what the futurists at KnowledgeWorks see for the changing nature of learning and the implications those changes have on our educational system. Engaging discussion questions throughout the forecast provide access points for important conversations in your school and community.
Click the image to access the white paper.
Within the Guide for Practitioners: "A report from the National Research Council, Education for Life and Work: Developing Transferable Knowledge in the 21st Century, explores what research has found about these questions and this type of learning. The report clarifies the meaning of “deeper learning” and “21st century skills” and identifies teaching approaches that are effective in supporting deeper learning. The report represents the consensus of a panel of diverse experts in education, psychology, and economics. This booklet summarizes the key information in that report and describes effective teaching approaches. It analyzes deeper learning in the context of English language arts, mathematics, and science. And it identifies areas of convergence with the learning goals set for mathematics and English language arts by the new Common Core State Standards and for science as outlined in the National Research Council’s Framework for K-12 Science Education. It also outlines the kinds of changes needed in the overall educational system to give all students the opportunity to develop the competencies they need in today’s world. This booklet is intended to be a useful resource for state and district curriculum planners, educational administrators, and supervisors of English language arts, science, and mathematics instruction. Although it is not intended as a “how to” manual for the classroom, it may also be of interest to teachers as they plan student lessons."
Proficiency-based Learning News Articles and Op-Eds
Proficiency-based Learning (including SBAR and CBE) in the News
Opinion: Proficiency-Based Learning Beneficial for Students (Vermont)