UnlockED: Redesigning Education for Future Generations

By David Pham

What do I want to be when I grow up? What are my passions? How can I contribute to the world? 

These seemingly short, simple questions stump every person at least once in their lives. These questions are vital to character development, especiall

• Language: English
• Publisher: New Degree Press
• Release date: May 8, 2022
• ISBN: 9798885041782

Book preview

UnlockED

Redesigning Education for Future Generations

David Pham

New Degree Press

Copyright © 2022 David Pham

All rights reserved.

I have changed the names of some of the interviewees to protect the privacy of the individuals.

UnlockED

Redesigning Education for Future Generations

ISBN

979-8-88504-911-5 Paperback

979-8-88504-628-2 Kindle Ebook

979-8-88504-178-2 Ebook

To my beloved wife Mikki and my daughter Vanesa

for letting me follow my dream.

To you, readers of this book

for a better tomorrow!

Contents

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Introduction

PART I

Foundations

Chapter 1

Let Them Do It

Chapter 2

Be Stronger Together

Chapter 3

Teach Key Skills

Chapter 4

Trigger Curiosity and Hunger

Chapter 5

Include Sales and Financial Education

PART II

Methods of Learning

Chapter 6

Design a Better Experience

Chapter 7

Respect the Differences

Chapter 8

Shift to Mastery Learning

Chapter 9

Combine Forms of Learning

Chapter 10

Try Out Blended Learning

PART III

Application

Chapter 11

Implement Coaching

Chapter 12

Use EdTech

Chapter 13

Get Inspired

Conclusion

Resources

Acknowledgments

Appendix

About the Author

Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another.

G. K. Chesterton

Introduction

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Back in 2010, as I was volunteering in Brazil, I experienced public teaching for the first time while educating Brazilian youth about global issues in English. During that internship, I was introduced to various interactive teaching techniques and observed how to ensure all students in the class received the most out of a lesson. A couple of years later, I decided to complete a Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults (CELTA) to teach English as a second language. Then I worked as a teacher in one of the most reputable English centers in Vietnam for over three years. After having that variety of experiences, I realized no matter what a teacher does, it is always challenging to ensure all students stay interested enough to eventually master a lesson’s content. Ideally, the student would be able to thoroughly understand and use learned information effectively through a variety of life situations.

How can we ensure this synthetization of knowledge occurs?

Big Picture Learning

There is a framework called big picture learning. The goal of which is to make K–12 education more personalized, functional, and practical. Under the school’s curriculum, students not only learn the academics but also dedicate a significant amount of time to their passion projects. Each quarter, students spend time at school working on projects that have real-world value, allowing students to use acquired knowledge from the academics portion of the curriculum in a more authentic, individualized way (NEXT School, 2016).

Every student is different and requires a unique environment for interests to flourish. With big picture learning, students mold their character and critical thinking-driven experience into personalized real-life situations.

What Does Real-World Value Mean?

In traditional school systems, students often get a chance to work on something more creative, such as writing or drawing pieces. However, it usually serves the teacher’s purpose of having material to mark. Then, in the best scenario, these creative projects are hung on classroom walls (potentially, they are also sent to writing competitions, local or regional photo galleries, or submitted for scholarships). But in reality, they mostly end up in drawers or trash bins.

In contrast, when a project has real-world value, the results will serve more of a purpose to students than just a grade. For example, if a student is passionate about writing, then the student could write a book and publish it on Amazon. While writing a book, the student would be supported and mentored by a specialist from the field. Students slowly build up their portfolios of creative works. By the time they graduate, they will already have something tangible to present to the public. Everyone would see what students accomplished at school, and students would be ready to work in the field tailored to their strengths and interests. Students acquire years of research, experience, feedback, mentorship, and a proven track record in the area—something we value so much in the real world.

The K–12 student who found their passion at the age of ten in writing could have published several books, articles, and many other creative writing pieces by the age of eighteen. If a K–12 student is interested in woodworking or crafting, for instance, they might reach the age of eighteen, having already constructed and sold products on a site such as Etsy.

With this education model, most students may have an easier time finding out who they are and their place in the world.

While all of the above is realistic and achievable, the sector’s current state is very different. After more than twelve years spent in traditional schools, students generally only show a final Transcript of Records for their hard work—basically a list of names of isolated subjects and final test scores. Students may possess works from those isolated subjects, such as few marked essays from literature, posters from geography or history, or model projects from physics, biology, and chemistry. Still, they mostly cannot present one specialty they have built over the years.

As teachers are allocated based on subjects, students are not guaranteed mentors for the long term to help build the student’s branding. In addition, the system decides the fixed amount of content to be delivered to students each year. Therefore, schools do not have enough space to include passion projects into their weekly or daily schedules. Yet, to validate and nurture a passion, one must commit to working on it daily.

So how do we bridge the gap between standardized curriculum and personalized interests?

The Future Is Knocking

We first must address the reality: education needs to adapt to constant changes in technology as well as reflect the changing worldwide demographics.

Statistics tell us that by 2050, there will be around 9.7 billion inhabitants on Earth, compared to the current seven billion (UN DESA, 2019). By that year, the number of people aged sixty years and older will be around two billion, close to one-fifth of the total population (WHO, 2021). We will need young people to step into the workforce more quickly to keep the positive economic growth.

Additionally, what we must contend with on a global scale is the rise of automation. A study by consulting firm McKinsey & Company predicts that automation will overtake around twenty-two percent of jobs just in the next decade (Leprince-Ringuet, 2020). If we continue teaching manual skills such as memorization of facts in schools, then the system is sure to become irrelevant, as programmed algorithms will easily replace many routines.

To contend with the ever-changing job market, technology needs to be implemented more vastly in schools to remodel our education systems worldwide. Generation Y and Z have a high familiarity with digital technology. Together with the high speed of technological advancement, the possibilities are endless. Educators have already started using apps like Tailor-ED, to ease preparation and tailor instructions to different learning styles. Students, on the other hand, have begun accessing Khan Academy, a library of free video lectures for every subject in which they need more time to master the material.

And these generations Y and Z will have to continue adapting the system. Otherwise, humankind might get into huge trouble.

Why I Wrote This Book

At the time of writing this book, I have an eighteen-month-old daughter. My home base is in Vietnam, and I have started to think about her future as well as her generation’s future. Will the current education system be good enough for them? Will I be satisfied with sending my daughter to a public school, especially if we decide to stay in a developing country such as Vietnam?

A typical class in a public school in Vietnam consists of around fifty students. The students start their day before 8 a.m. and end their day after 5 p.m., after which the vast majority of students attend extra classes in the evening. After finishing additional classes, students have to complete the homework assigned throughout the day, and secondary school students even have classes on Saturdays. In light of dissatisfaction with local education, I have started wondering if there is a way to provide my daughter with an affordable world-class education suitable for the information age while still living in Hanoi, Vietnam. With the options laid out in front of me and the understanding of varying school frameworks, I was intrigued to research and better understand the future of education. This book is my passion project. It is a culmination of ideas, research, insight, and examples I hope will help aid future education decision-makers.

From Abnormal to New Normal

From time to time, we see a thirteen-year-old kid become a great entrepreneur, pitching in front of investors on television. Other times, we may see a fantastic teenage chef with many unique recipes. Those children seem to be unusual, as a typical student usually has no idea what they want to do. Even in the UK—perceived to be one of the best education systems globally—forty-four percent of university students admitted they didn’t know their direction after graduation (McKeown, 2015).

The mission of this book is to spread the word about the best practices in education that exist globally. To help everyone participating in education to be able to unlock each student’s potential. To have a world where early passions become careers. A world where every child can discover and build on their passions and strengths from an early age. A world where an eighteen-year-old can answer complex questions such as what am I good at?, which field do I truly want to be in? and even who am I? with confidence and conviction.

This book will be helpful to parents, teachers, and designers of educational systems worldwide. Parents can use the book as a guide when choosing a school for their children and can even push the school to implement innovative methods into their curriculum. Furthermore, with the help of this book, parents can have a big picture of the best ways to raise their children, so they are ready for the world ahead of them. Teachers can use this book as inspiration on how to improve and nurture their teaching styles. Finally, designers of the systems and