2020 is approaching and with it a new decade in which education must be the first to evolve. That is why teachers must stay ahead of the curve with new trends that could improve their daily educational work. Here we present five of them:
- In-depth classroom redesign
The idea of redesigning the classroom is not new, in fact, it exists since the late 1960s under the premise of “open classrooms”, however, it has regained popularity under the idea of collaborative work spaces.
The redesign of the classroom offers infrastructure and amenities to make it a more open space for personalized learning.
Wheels on desks, armchairs, cushions, stools, long tables, bookcases or carpets appear within the new comforts of the classroom, all with the purpose of improving the learning environment and awakening creativity and collaborative relationships, such as co-living or co-working spaces.
- Virtual school trips
Visiting a place on a school trip is one of the favorite student experiences, however, you can’t always leave the classroom for a variety of reasons. Today, through virtual reality, children have the opportunity to visit faraway places, get to know different societies or see animals directly in their ecosystems.
The enthusiasm for virtual reality in the classroom is real, as institutions such as NASA or PBS are already involved in developing more academic content on various topics.
While it is true that virtual reality can be an expensive option, Google Maps and 360° galleries can be the ideal solution for the common classroom.
- “Unlocking” the school schedule
Regularly the common school has a schedule established by its subjects and among them a period or periods of pauses. Although functional, this method does not offer opportunities for improvement according to the needs of the students. One option to change this is to “unlock” the daily class schedule.
This refers to the best achievement or logical distribution of academic time. For example, in middle and high schools, modify the entry time to 8:30 or later in order to adjust to the teenage sleep cycle or offer more periods of elective subjects that students choose according to their interests.
Although the class schedules are tied to the conditions of the school, they are still an area of opportunity to improve school development. For rural schools, “unlocking” the class schedule can be a viable option for learning different skills, as they do in Finland and other countries.
- Educational video games
Educational video games in the classroom represent a very helpful tool when it comes to reinforcing topics seen in class, as well as providing a socialization activity and development of cognitive skills for the group, all while having fun. This means the beginning of school play. They are available for several subjects and since their content is strictly educational, there is no need to worry about content that is not appropriate for the youngest.
Our TAK-TAK-TAK video games are free and go according to the academic program of the SEP (Mexican ministry of education). We invite you to play!
- Plants in the classroom
More and more young people belonging to the millennial generation are joining the teaching profession and with them a new wave of classroom habits arrives to revitalize education. Such is the case of their unconditional love for plants, which besides being excellent for decoration, can also teach science and, above all, an approach of responsibility and care for life.
Since there are plants of various sizes and characteristics, the projects to take advantage of them can also vary. Each child can adopt a plant and take care of it, test their artistic skills by taking photos of it, or study its growth in the form of a long-term project involving the children’s own schooling.
Whether with play, classroom redesign or classroom plants, education in the new 20s is about to revolutionize the way children learn. What other strategy would you use to improve education in your classroom?
Sources and references:
4 Countries who are Championing Outdoor Learning (and why we should be doing the same) | Latest News. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2019, from https://www.edu-quip.co.uk/blog/4-countries-who-are-championing-outdoor-learning-and-why-we-should-be-doing-the-same
Conn, M. (2019, July 4). Virtual field trips bring students face-to-face with fragile ecosystems. Retrieved September 17, 2019, from The Hechinger Report website: https://hechingerreport.org/virtual-field-trips-bring-students-face-to-face-with-earths-most-fragile-ecosystems/
Iasevoli, B. (2019, June 22). Schools are rethinking classroom design to encourage collaboration, creativity. Retrieved September 17, 2019, from The Hechinger Report website: https://hechingerreport.org/schools-are-rethinking-classroom-design-to-encourage-collaboration-creativity/
Tolentino, J. (2019, April 18). The Leafy Love Affair Between Millennials and Houseplants. Retrieved from https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-leafy-love-affair-between-millennials-and-our-houseplants
