PRAKASH NAIR tells SANGEETA YADAV that in order to be at par with the global shifts in education, it is imperative that teachers use newage technology to impart knowledge
How can we reinvent education and make it easy to learnIJ
By making it more student-centric. That means making lessons more interactive, having students collaborate more and work on interesting projects that they are passionate about as opposed to the dry, boring material in textbooks.
Tell us about the new and innovative school designsIJ
New and innovative school designs extend students’ learning experience beyond the four walls of a typical classroom. This includes opening up walls between two classrooms so that teachers can work collaboratively to create inter-disciplinary learning experiences. We also advocate that the walls between the classroom and the corridor be removed or at least opened up to create breakout spaces for small group learning. The same can be done between classroom walls and the outdoors to create outdoor learning areas. These changes can vastly improve student and teacher access.
What are some of the global shifts in educationIJ What should India do to embrace itIJ
The biggest change is the worldwide demand for creativity and problem solving in mostly interdisciplinary jobs. Traditional schooling is about rote learning and memorisation. These skills may help get good marks on the exam but will have little value in the workplace. .
Why has world class education become the need of the hourIJ
With the proliferation of the Internet, information itself, which was the primary commodity of the old education system, has little or no value. World class education today will focus, therefore, on important skills and competencies that will be essential for tomorrow’s workforce. If India wants to remain a global power and create vast opportunities for its citizens to succeed, it will move away quickly from the traditional model.
What are the skills that are lacking in today’s architectsIJ
Architect’s who design schools do not take the time to become experts in education and the vast changes that are sweeping across the education landscape. Therefore, they keep designing schools that look almost exactly like the schools from fifty years ago. Whereas every other building type has evolved to represent today’s and tomorrow’s needs, school buildings remain firmly stuck in the past.
What are some of the newage teaching techniquesIJ
Good teachers today will collaborate more with their peers. They will design lessons where most of the work is done by students, they will lecture less, they will encourage the use of technology, they will require students to do work in teams and do more research, they will increase the amount of hands-on problem solving work and reduce dependence on memorisation.
What is hampering the creativity of the studentsIJ
It is the old teaching methods. So, we need a broader assessment system that rewards creative work. The curriculum also needs to be revised to focus on problem solving, project work and interdisciplinary work.