One of the ten trends for 2018 as identified by Core Education is STEM, programmes targeting Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. The intention behind this initiative is for those four areas to be taught in an integrated way with the skills taught leading to real life problem-solving and innovation. However, in many schools STEM is taken as being the promotion of those four areas, to the expense of all else.
After reading the article by the US National Intelligence Council (2017) “Global trends: The Paradox of Progress”, I felt quite depressed and slightly anxious about the future of our planet. I felt a sense of doom and disaster being laid out in front of us, and I am concerned about our collective ability to cope with what seems likely to happen.
I think there is a danger in embracing trends just for the sake of change without ensuring the bigger picture is taken into account. Scientists have identified areas of concern affecting our planet which will necessitate huge changes in the behaviour of many people. But if the next generation are not educated in the humanities they won’t have the skills required to negotiate these changes.
The OECD (2016) article on Trends Shaping Education emphasised the importance of globalisation now and for the future, and stated that education needs to provide the skills to cope with the changing economic and social climate as well as environmental issues now arising. I am concerned that initiatives like STEM will steam ahead while the Arts, Humanities and Languages are left behind in the dust. To create global citizens it is vital that our children are educated in a variety of disciplines to enable them to understand the future consequences of their actions.
“Innovation is built on the successes and failures of the past, and of the potential impact on society into the future — thus requiring knowledge of history and development of citizenship.” Core Education (2018) Ten Trends.
As a teacher of Languages, creating Global Citizens is a crucial aspect of my programme. Understanding why others feel and act the way they do and being willing and able to communicate with people is an important first step. As school and government policies and priorities continue to promote science over humanities subjects we risk producing citizens with a narrow world view.
The US National Intelligence Council (2017) article warns of the likelihood of increased conflict within and between societies, with more accessible technology creating more destructive weapons on a greater scale than ever before. If the focus of our young people’s education is on how they can build bigger and better technology rather than why they should, the consequences could be catastrophic.
I hope that current and future leaders in Education within New Zealand and overseas will fully consider the implications of these and any other trends they promote. No one wants to be eaten alive by their own creation.
References
OECD. (2016) Trends Shaping Education 2016, OECD Publishing, Paris. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/trends_edu-2016-en
CORE Education (2018) Ten Trends https://www.core-ed.org/research-and-innovation/ten-trends/2018
National Intelligence Council. (2017). Global trends: The Paradox of Progress. National Intelligence Council: US. Retrieved from https://www.dni.gov/files/images/globalTrends/documents/GT-Main-Report.pdf
Image: University of Utah, Humanities Department
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ReplyDeleteA very thought provoking read Jo. I agree with you that trends in education can have a huge impact on our children. If we take National’s policy of National Standards, the impact of words like ‘Below’ and “Well Below” have had long-lasting effects on many children. What was their purpose – for teachers to identify children that needed extra support. Teachers were already doing that, with no extra support, and nothing more came in. Now with a Labour Government and the removal of National Standards and the Ministry focus on opening up the New Zealand Curriculum, it will be very interesting to see what and where this will be headed. While reading your blog, I was doing some research and came across a website by Curt Rice – Science in Balance and he identified 9 reasons why humanities are matter
ReplyDelete1. The humanities help us understand others through their languages, histories and cultures.
2. They foster social justice and equality.
3. And they reveal how people have tried to make moral, spiritual and intellectual sense of the world.
4. The humanities teach empathy.
5. They teach us to deal critically and logically with subjective, complex, imperfect information.
6. And they teach us to weigh evidence skeptically and consider more than one side of every question.
7. Humanities students build skills in writing and critical reading.
8. The humanities encourage us to think creatively. They teach us to reason about being human and to ask questions about our world.
9. The humanities develop informed and critical citizens. Without the humanities, democracy could not flourish.”
I also included an inforgraphic called The Humanities Matter! which has some information facts and information in it.
Rice, C. Here are 9 reasons why humanities matter. What’s your number 10? Retrieved from http://curt-rice.com/2014/02/25/here-are-9-reasons-why-humanities-matter-whats-your-number-10/
Inforgraphic - http://4humanities.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/humanitiesmatter300.pdf
I feel the same way Lauren. It seems bleak which is why it is even more important for us to foster well adjusted, socially mature and environmentally conscious young people. They will be the ones who will be responsible for fixing the problems created by our generation. But they have the technology and resources to affect change.
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