Most will agree that education needs to evolve to meet the needs of 21st century learners. Unfortunately, the education system is still primarily based on an industrial model designed to meet the needs of the 19th century. This model is based on the principle of mass production . It’s a one-size-fits-all approach that treats students as though they were all the same. It’s a system that’s designed to produce workers who are skilled in a specific trade. These skilled workers were not trained to think of better ways to complete tasks. They were only in a sense "dot collectors". These workers were trained to complete repetitive tasks that lack critical thinking skills.
The world has changed dramatically since the 19th century. The economy is now based on knowledge and innovation. The pace of change is accelerating. And, the skills needed to succeed in the 21st century are very different from those required in the past. Our world is now in high demand for workers who are innovators. However, the education system has yet to evolve to meet these changes to produce innovative workers or "dot connectors". As a result, it is failing to prepare our young people for the future.
So, why are we still, in the 21 century, spending time encouraging learners to collect and not connect the dots?
One reason may be that it's easier to measure progress when students are focused on collecting information. They can check off boxes and fill in blanks, and we can see how many "dots" they've gathered. However, connecting those dots requires a higher level of thinking, and it's not always easy to assess if students are making connections. Another reason may be that we simply don't know how to teach for meaningful learning. It's one thing to stand in front of a classroom and lecture about a topic, but it's another to create an environment where students are actively engaged in making connections between ideas. Nevertheless, if we want to encourage learning and promote making meaningful connections , we must to find ways to "connect the dots".
Great points! The education system does need to evolve to better prepare students for the future. I think one issue is that there are so many different types of learners, and it's difficult to address all learning styles in a traditional classroom setting. Another challenge is that teachers are often not given the resources they need to be innovative and create engaging lesson plans.