Last night I had the great pleasure of attending the inaugural 6 Degrees of Invitation event organized by Idea Fairies. The purpose of the event was to create a space where ideas can happen. A diverse group was brought together to engage in conversation. The topic of last evening's conversation was education and learning. Attendees were invited by chain invitation. Invite 1 interesting person, who invites 1 interesting person who invites 1 interesting person who ... You get the idea. The interesting person could be from any field. We ended up with about 24 people who were indeed, interesting. It truly was an opportunity to meet with people whose paths do not normally intersect with mine.
There were 4 separate chains and each chain was responsible for contributing to one course for dinner: appetizers, salads, main course, dessert. For each course we were asked to sit at a new table, introduce ourselves and discuss one of two suggested topics. Topics ranged from discuss a favourite teacher, to describe your own ignorance, to what is the most innovative practice currently occurring in education. There was no obligation though, to remain on topic. By the end of the evening I had met and engaged in rich, meaningful conversation with every attendee. The food was good. It was fun.
So who was there? Who did I get to meet with? A neuroscientist/yoga teacher planning to open her own university, a policy developer/financial analyst from the Ministry of Education who was eager to hear about what is happening at the frontlines in education, a Montessori private school educator, a career strategist, a biochemist, a mechanical engineer, an artist who brings project-based creative learning to the instruction of math and science, a Design Thinking instructor, an economist/teacher who works on short-term contracts in schools to develop financial literacy using project-based learning and meaningful life values and many more. Throughout the evening we delved deeply into our own experiences of education, traditional "school" and others ways of learning.
The evening was not just about conversation and ideas, though, it was also about creating the physical space and structure where ideas can happen, where creativity is freed, where openness is valued. The event took place at The Center for Social Innovation. The Centre is located in a converted warehouse and has been designed for flow. I had read previously about shared workspaces, but this was my first experience and I have to say, I liked what I saw. Our event took place in the first floor common area. It was a large open flexible space with comfortable seating areas, work tables, a shared kitchen and large windows. Other groups were there as were individual entrepreneurs. The atmosphere was one of relaxed industriousness. There was a sense of freedom and of purpose in the room. This atmosphere and space certainly contributed to the success of the evening. I was left wanting more and am looking forward to the next Idea Fairy event.
At the end of the evening I had two key take aways.
1. Teachers need to get out more. Part of our inability to move forward in education at a pace that is in keeping with the innovations occurring outside of schools, is due to our limited interactions. We are interacting, discussing, planning and learning from those who think like we do. We are not exposing ourselves to diversity. Innovative, social, world-changing enterprise is occurring all around us and we remain for the most part, oblivious. The tragedy in this is that by limiting ourselves we are ultimately limiting our students.
2. Schools are urgently in need of redesign. The way we've chosen to create and use space is evidence of a hidden curriculum. It is a curriculum that privileges hierarchy, isolation, silos and limited innovative thinking. I strongly believe that if we change our space, we will change our thinking.
Take a peek into some innovative learning spaces. This came via Royan Lee. http://pinterest.com/melaniek/learning-spaces/
There were 4 separate chains and each chain was responsible for contributing to one course for dinner: appetizers, salads, main course, dessert. For each course we were asked to sit at a new table, introduce ourselves and discuss one of two suggested topics. Topics ranged from discuss a favourite teacher, to describe your own ignorance, to what is the most innovative practice currently occurring in education. There was no obligation though, to remain on topic. By the end of the evening I had met and engaged in rich, meaningful conversation with every attendee. The food was good. It was fun.
So who was there? Who did I get to meet with? A neuroscientist/yoga teacher planning to open her own university, a policy developer/financial analyst from the Ministry of Education who was eager to hear about what is happening at the frontlines in education, a Montessori private school educator, a career strategist, a biochemist, a mechanical engineer, an artist who brings project-based creative learning to the instruction of math and science, a Design Thinking instructor, an economist/teacher who works on short-term contracts in schools to develop financial literacy using project-based learning and meaningful life values and many more. Throughout the evening we delved deeply into our own experiences of education, traditional "school" and others ways of learning.
The evening was not just about conversation and ideas, though, it was also about creating the physical space and structure where ideas can happen, where creativity is freed, where openness is valued. The event took place at The Center for Social Innovation. The Centre is located in a converted warehouse and has been designed for flow. I had read previously about shared workspaces, but this was my first experience and I have to say, I liked what I saw. Our event took place in the first floor common area. It was a large open flexible space with comfortable seating areas, work tables, a shared kitchen and large windows. Other groups were there as were individual entrepreneurs. The atmosphere was one of relaxed industriousness. There was a sense of freedom and of purpose in the room. This atmosphere and space certainly contributed to the success of the evening. I was left wanting more and am looking forward to the next Idea Fairy event.
At the end of the evening I had two key take aways.
1. Teachers need to get out more. Part of our inability to move forward in education at a pace that is in keeping with the innovations occurring outside of schools, is due to our limited interactions. We are interacting, discussing, planning and learning from those who think like we do. We are not exposing ourselves to diversity. Innovative, social, world-changing enterprise is occurring all around us and we remain for the most part, oblivious. The tragedy in this is that by limiting ourselves we are ultimately limiting our students.
2. Schools are urgently in need of redesign. The way we've chosen to create and use space is evidence of a hidden curriculum. It is a curriculum that privileges hierarchy, isolation, silos and limited innovative thinking. I strongly believe that if we change our space, we will change our thinking.
Take a peek into some innovative learning spaces. This came via Royan Lee. http://pinterest.com/melaniek/learning-spaces/
No comments:
Post a Comment
Heidi invites you to comment on your attempts to transform your teaching practice.