It’s what we’ve just entered.
Teachers, who span the spectrum of the 5 Cs, are grappling with this place in history. Unfortunately, we can’t pick our generation; our generation is thrust upon us. The biggest problem is the NTE came so quickly. Oftentimes, pedagogical methodologies take years, if not decades, to influence classrooms. Teachers have been hit with glaciers that formed and melted quickly–maybe too quickly for their liking. LMSs. Google Drive. 1:1. Apps. These things and everything else that builds the idea of “blended learning” are unparalleled throughout modern education. Converting measurements with students in Finland via Skype is a far cry from learning in a schoolhouse on an American prairie.
Of course, this change causes fear. Fear is natural but conquerable. What’s also conquerable–or better yet, tamable–is the NTE. The challenge must be met head-on, not by curling into the fetal position and waiting for the inevitable or hoping for retirement to arrive more quickly than changing our practice. We owe it to the present generation, those young minds marinating in so many technological platforms, to guide them and teach them to think clearly in a cluttered world.
RISE AND CONVERGE 