Inside the Classroom
SHAPING THE FUTURE
REFLECTIONS ON THE KEYNOTE ADDRESSES FROM
THE 2018 IB WORLD CONFERENCE IN VIENNA AUSTRIA
BY CHASSIE SELOUANE
College is no longer a guarantee to
success, and work as we know it is
now being redefined. We must build
relationships with our students to
encourage a foundation for a lifelong
curiosity and passion to drive learning
and develop new skills to handle the
ever-changing world. We all want to
have an impact on our students, but
how effective are we? Richardson then
left the crowd with a very thought-
provoking statement. He encouraged
schools to take notice of the impact
of truly articulating what they believe
living by it.
I
had the amazing opportunity
to attend the 2018 International
Baccalaureate Organization World
Conference in Vienna, Austria
October 4-6, 2018. The event’s theme
was Shaping the Future of education
and the key note speakers were a
dream team line up of innovators in
education.
Educational trailblazers
such as Dr. Heidi Hayes Jacobs, Will
Richardson and Lord David Puttnam
all had a chance to take the floor and
share their own unique paradigms of
what Shaping the Future of Education
would look like.
Lord David Puttnam award winning
producer and chair of Atticus
Education, opened the conference by
sharing that “In the past workers with
average skills doing an average job
could earn an average lifestyle.” He
talked about education of yesterday
being created to prepare workers for
this average lifestyle that centered
around the industrial revolution and
factories. He then shared pictures of
technology then and now. He went
on to elaborate that due to vast
technological development over
the past 100 years, the advances in
technology are simply astounding
“Today, Average is Over”. When
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comparing the photographs of
classrooms then and now, there has
been little change in how a classroom
looks today than they did in the past.
This should be disturbing to us as
educators.
Will Richardson, who is a leading
activist for fundamentally reimagining
the experience of all school children,
took the stage on day two. He
immediately stated that the goal for
his keynote, was for all of the educators
in the room to leave disturbed by
the inability of education to keep up
with the pace of technology. In order
to truly prepare our students for the
future we have to understand that new
contexts and definitions for learning,
apply for students of today and
tomorrow. “A modern school should
help our children find and explore
their passion(s)” Richardson spoke
of how rapidly the world is changing.
He challenged the audience to be
aware that, Information, people
and technologies are abundant.
Class Time
Dr. Heidi Hayes Jacobs the award-
winning author of over 13 books,
and who is world renowned for her
expertise in mapping and creating
engaging
meaningful
learning
experiences, was the keynote speaker
on the final day of the conference.
She concluded the keynotes with
a focus on the topic: Creating a
responsive environment for learners.
Dr. Hayes Jacobs built on the pervious
presentations of Lord Puttnam, and
Richardson. She challenged educators
to break the antiquated boundaries
that are associated with outdated
classroom practices. She challenged
us to think about the needs of
students as professional learners and
design a modern learning experience
that incorporates and acknowledges
that learners of today create, share
and gain knowledge differently than
previous generations.
Dr. Hayes
Jacobs encouraged us to redesign
our learning experiences, by getting
rid of outdated classical environments
and assessments and break away from
the tyranny of time, schedules and
standard graduation requirements.
Now it is up to us educators to go
forward and determine exactly how
we can prepare our learners to handle
the complexities of the world that we
now live in.
Dr. Chassie Selouane has multiple degrees with a focus on education and
specialties, including Theatre Education, ESL, Instructional Leadership. Dr.
Chassie is an Edmodo Ambassador & Certified Edmodo Trainer. She is an Apple
Designated Teacher with Swift Playground Recognition and an Ambassador for
the ASCD (American Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development).
Dr Chassie is a licensed Principal in the District of Columbia.