Technology Encourages a Rethink of the Goals and Purposes of Education

As I read the McArthur study, one question posed at the end struck me: "Rather than assuming that education is primarily about preparing for jobs and careers, what would it mean to think of it as a process guiding youths’ participation in public life more generally?"

With all the talk of College and Career Readiness, especially on the heels of the release of the Common Core Standards, I was glad to be asked to stop and think about the broader goals and purposes of our education system. Whether we term it character education, citizenship training or social-emotional development, the purpose of educating students has always included more than just acquiring content knowledge (regardless of where you sit on the political spectrum). In recent years, with an intensification of a narrowly defined system of accountability in the form of high-stakes standardized tests, we have seen a narrowing of the goals and purposes of education. Many public schools abandoned recess, the arts and gym as well as more experiential learning and group projects in order to focus on preparing their students for the tests. So rather than preparing students for an adult world where they will rely on their ability to be self-directed, work collaboratively on projects, and approach problems with resilience and a solutions-orientation, at best we are producing highly skilled test takers and at worst we are pushing students out of our schools because they see no connection between what they are doing in school and what they will do with their lives. All of that is to say, when we construct our curriculum and consider the pedagogy we use to deliver it (including the integration of technology), we would do well to consider the multiple and mutually reinforcing goals and purposes for education including not only teaching academic content in order to prepare students for college and careers, but also preparing students to be engaged citizens in our democracy as well as friends, family members and members of a global community. I guess I'll have to read beyond the executive summary to find the answers for how to do that. ;)