TED Review - Logan Laplante on Hack Schooling





Logan Laplante is a 13 year old boy whose mother withdrew him from mainstream school when he was 9, against the recommendations of her peers; his story is a truly inspiring outlook on modern education.

The key principles of Logan's talk is that when kids grow up we shouldn't be concerned per say with what they will do for a job, we should be focusing our children's education to focus on happiness and healthiness as if we can get these things right then they will surely follow the right career path for them and most importantly will have a happy, healthy life.

Logan has been studying the science of happiness and health and from this, the classes he takes in his 'school envirnoment' can be broken down into 8 key areas.

 

What he is saying is that creativity is one of the most important skills a person can have, from creativity and interest in something will innovate ways of learning.  Children will find ways to learn, if they link the learning to their passions and interests.  Within his home school environment he still studies the things that children in mainstream school learn, but in a way that interests him; as he states in the clip, rather than writing a short story about butterflies in English class, he is instead writing creatively about his passion; skiing. 

 

Logan has developed this further into a theory called 'Hack Schooling'.  This is not a school that teaches people to hack computers, well, not if that is not what they want to do.  The theory is there is always a way to 'hack' education; find a better easier way to complete a task, find a short cut, add one way of doing things to another way creating a mash up of methods and thus creating a simpler, better way of doing things.  It is about always taking advantage of opportunities to learn and moulding this situations to your personality so you gain more from the experience.

 

 

 

I would suggest that we remember the name Logan Laplante as I believe we will be hearing more from him in the future with his innovative Hack Schooling theory.

My return to education...

In September 2013, after years of making excuses, I made the decision to return to full time education.  Following the birth of my son I found that the previous jobs I had held were not stimulating me and the future career prospects were dismal.  The most recent job that I held was as a Store Trainer in Sainsbury's, teaching hundreds of adults key skills for their jobs on a daily basis, although I thoroughly enjoyed the training element of my role, I found that the people I was training believed that the content was irrelevant and they did not need the skills to enable them to simply 'stack shelves in supermarket'.  I found this frustrating and wanted a career that focused on teaching young children a Primary Education that I would gain greater enjoyment from.  There is nothing worse than trying to teach someone who simply refuses to learn.  As well as the daily frustrations of the role, I also found myself working dramatic hours for a low wage.  Although I understand that I will never be a millionaire as a teacher, I will however be more financially stable.

I chose this course particularly as I felt that the content of the individual modules would benefit in my future career, the university is also close to my home and my sons nursery making the experience possible.

So has my education journey so far been what I expected?  On the whole, yes.  I attend lectures, seminars, workshops and I learn a wealth of interesting information.  Although it may surprise some, I have also enjoyed writing assignment, in the various different formats, as well as the recent exams. The last time I completed an exam was in 2003 for my GCSEs so I am taking each experience with the view that I can learn from then and improve.

One of the struggles that I have faced as a 'mature' student is that I am surrounded mainly by people of a different mind set than myself and I have to remind myself that they are young and they are looking to gain a different student experience than myself.  My idea of a good Wednesday night is curling up with a cup of tea and a film, not Student night on Wind Street.  This has caused some friction when it comes to group work, although I try to motivate others instead of letting it frustrate me.

I am enjoying this course immensely despite some of the struggles I face and I am looking forward to completing the degree and following it with the PGCE before embarking on my career as a primary school teacher.

Referencing 21/11/2013

I found the Visual Communication: Culture and Creativity session on Thursday extremely insightful.  I learnt how to use the referencing tool on Windows 7.  It is a fantastic tool that will inevitably save me time when writing assignments in the future.  By being able to create a database of readings, that with one click on completion of the assignment turns into the bibliography / References section, I will save a great deal of time and prevent error when compiling the list.

Although I have used MS Office throughout my professional career, my educational career is revealing my shortfalls with the programmes as the aspects we are required to use are very different.  With this in mind Mandy's sessions have become invaluable to me as I am learning vast amounts about programmes that I would have previously deemed myself experienced in, it turns out I actually am not as versed in the programmes as I thought.

Introduction to Contexts of Learning 'Reflective Blog'

This reflective blog will explore contexts of learning that have been studied by the Education Studies, first year students at Swansea Metropolitan University (SMU) between September and December 2013.  The four contexts that these reflective posts will focus on are the Montessori method pioneered by Maria Montessori in the early 1900's, Summerhill 'free' Schools established by A.S. Neill, Forest Schools which encourage outdoor learning in the Early Years and finally philosophical thinking in children.  Throughout this assignment the following labels have been used to guide the reader through the posts with ease: Assignment, Caroline, Contexts of Learning and Reflective Blog.
 

Summerhill School

Summerhill School, as documented in the YouTube clip above, is unlike any other school in the world.  In 1921, Suffolk England, A.S. Neill created a school where children are in charge of their own learning. Whether they want to play outside, attend a lesson, sit in the library and read or even write on the graffiti wall, it is their choice.  There are lessons available for pupils to attend should they so wish.  Likewise at school leavers age it is the pupils decision as to whether they sit final examinations.  Many students opt to take GCSEs at this point (Summerhill, 2012)

As pupil, James Friis-Lawrence said in the documentary; of course children want to play, however at some point they all realise that something is missing.  That missing element is learning, reading and writing, all of which can be just as exciting as playing outside.

Pupils of Summerhill live at the school during term times, they do not have anyone to tidy up after them, this is their responsibility, although they are not forced to do so (Neill, 1960).  Although it is a ‘free school’ it is not without rules; there are over 150 rules at the school derived collaboratively from what pupils, teachers and parents believe the school should look like (Summerhill, 2012).  Following the death of A.S. Neill in 1973 his daughter, Zoe Redhead became Principal of the school enabling her to continue her father’s work, started over 80 years ago.

Over the years the school has received its fair share of negative press for being ‘too free’ and for their non-conformation to the way society views education.  The most high profile incident taking place in 2000 when the Labour government and Ofsted fought for the closure of the school; the legal dispute was resolved in the schools favour following a High Court ruling (BBC News, 2000).

All things considered, Summerhill School clearly works as a context of learning.  Looking at the school’s alumni it is evident that they have produced a multitude of brilliant minds who have proved successful in their various fields over the years.  Professors, doctors, actresses, artists and authors are amongst the esteemed graduates.

References

Neill, A., 1960. Summerhill: A Radical Approach to Child Rearing. New York: Hart Publishing Co..

Summerhill. 2012. [Film] Directed by Arvind Gupta. s.l.: YouTube.

The Independent, 2011. Summerhill Alumni: 'What we learnt at the school for scandal'. [Online]
Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/schools/summerhill-alumni-what-we-learnt-at-the-school-for-scandal-2373066.html [Accessed 08 January 2014].

Google Images, 2014.  Rebecca De Mornay. [Online] Available at: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=rebecca+de+mornay&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=_cTPUpWkEMaRhQeP_4C4DA&sqi=2&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1366&bih=673#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=T2L9GcTZ2GmvyM%253A%3BAaKLPN7T1-qCpM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.palzoo.net%252Ffile%252Fpic%252Fuser%252FRebeccaDeMornay.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.palzoo.net%252FRebeccaDeMornay%3B399%3B610  [Accessed 10 January 2014]

Google Images, 2014.  Storm Thorgerson. [Online] Available at: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=rebecca+de+mornay&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=_cTPUpWkEMaRhQeP_4C4DA&sqi=2&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1366&bih=673#q=storm+thorgerson&tbm=isch&facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=rpDjsSa4eZcTDM%253A%3ByLYhSFQq3hNixM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fshockthebadger.co.uk%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2013%252F04%252FStorm-Thorgerson.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fshockthebadger.co.uk%252Fstorm-thorgerson-1944-2013%252F%3B470%3B312 [Accessed 10 January 2014]

Google Images, 2014.  John Burningham. [Online] Available at: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=John+Burningham%E3%80%80&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=McfPUqK0MJTB7AaB_oD4DA&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1366&bih=673#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=i2Eb3CfNkt4krM%253A%3B49ANa8jNPnkZDM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.walker.co.uk%252Fwalkerdam%252Fgetimage.aspx%25253Fclass%25253Dperson%252526id%25253D1656%252526size%25253Dpowerpoint%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.walker.co.uk%252Fcontributors%252FJohn-Burningham-1656.aspx%3B268%3B380 [Accessed 10 January 2014]

BBC News, 2000. Summerhill closure threat lifted. [Online] Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/688152.stm [Accessed 10 January 2014]

Philosophical Thinking in Children

Philosophical thinking in children is about enabling pupils to think for themselves, think about what they are being taught and the world around them and question it rather than blindly accepting it.  If we want our children to truly lean they must adapt the ability to explore deeper meaning.  By questioning what they learn they will gain a greater understanding of a subject. 

With regards to philosophy for children, it is not suggested that they study the life work of great philosophers; the focus is on questioning, reasoning, thinking for themselves and developing debating skills.

In the short clip below, Doctor Sara Goering explains that there are three key learning outcomes derived from philosophy in children:

• Cognitive Thinking enabling our children to think critically about a topic and build a valid argument for or against it.  Evaluate a situation using logic enabling pupils to respond articulately to objections of their peers by using creative counter examples.
• Behavioural Skills which enables children to hold conversations with fellow pupils by listening to others and responding either in agreement or disagreement without conflict.
• Philosophical Awareness.  Our children will understand what a philosophical question is and how to answer it.  Knowing they can work through the difficult philosophical questions and expand on them they are able to use this in other areas of their education enabling them to go into depth when it comes to answering exam questions.

Philosophy without doubt has a place in the education system, although I am unconvinced that Philosophy, as a subject, should justify space within the timetabled day.  The skills and thought process should be encouraged throughout the national curriculum.  Pupils should most definitely be taught to think for themselves rather than taking what they are being taught as gospel.  When answering questions in lessons all pupils should be asked to expand and explain why they believe that is the correct answer, allowing others to convey their counter arguments.

References

Cam, P., 1995.  Thinking Together: Philosophical Inquiry for the Classroom. Marrickville. Southwood Press Pty Limited.
Fisher, R., 2008.  Teaching Thinking: Philosophical Enquiry in the Classroom Third Edition.  London.  Continuum International Publishing Group.

Forest Schools

The following film gives an insight to Forest Schools, explaining the importance of outdoor learning for children in the Early Years.  There are many reasons why Surrey Council, as well as other areas throughout the world, believe that outdoor learning has such a huge importance to the development of young children.  It is suggested that Forest Schools provide pupils with a variety of life skills that they would not gain through a structured lesson in a classroom.  You will see in the short clip how children are given responsibilities beyond their years, for example using work tools like knives to whittle and hack saws to cut branches.  Tools that ordinarily, we may view as too dangerous for children of such a tender age; the difference is, these children are being taught the hazards of the tools whilst simultaneously learning how to safely use them within the environment and gaining life skills in the process; building fires, whittling, making camp etc.  These skills can be linked to the national curriculum where appropriate.  The teacher may ask the children what is need to fire to make the fire that they are building; heat, oxygen and fuel.



 

 

 

This style of learning encourages pupils to think for themselves, explore what is around them and use their initiative rather than being influenced in what they should learn.  The teachers and Forest School Leaders are there to support, encourage and supervise what the children are doing as well as demonstrating safe use of the tools and environment. 

 

 

If they are conducted in the correct manner there is definitely a place in Early Years education for Forest Schools, perhaps beyond.  In my opinion, the way Stroud School conduct their outdoor learning goes against the main principle of Forest School; the pupils are not using their initiatives, on the contrary, they are guided towards the way they should play.  This is evident in this video clip; they instruct the children to start a band using the natural materials around them. The main reason for removing children from a classroom is to enable them to structure their own learning, not to be set a lesson plan as they would in a conventional learning environment.  For Forest Schools to make an impact in the child's curriculum they must be encouraged to think for themselves and learn from their surroundings with minimal input from the teacher.