Do We Still Need Teachers?

I feel the need to write a post to clear up some misinterpretations of my words. You see, nearly a month ago I was asked to speak to the staff at my school about how I am using iPads and technology in my classroom. I chose to talk about how I use Moodle to create a blended learning environment. I talked about how I record video lessons and share them using Moodle. I talked about how I create my own textbook using CK-12 and share it electronically using Moodle. I talked about how I am able to differentiate instruction for all the individual learners in my classroom. And, I talked about how I assess learning using electronic quizzes through the Moodle interface.

Although my presentation was limited to a very short amount of time (I could have talked for two or three days), I was happy to stir-up some conversation amongst the staff. Some teachers were open and ready to try new things with the technology in their classrooms, while others were hesitant and not ready for that kind of change. I'm not here to judge either side. I wasn't there to try to persuade teachers to try blended learning; I was there to share one story from inside one classroom in our high school.

However, recently I've heard some concerning conversations. I've heard teachers ("inspired" by my presentation) who are concerned about the future of education and the teaching profession. A few teachers are envisioning a classroom with a 100:1 student/teacher ratio. They are concerned that technology is replacing the need for a teacher.

I want to be very clear that I envision the teacher of the future to be valued MORE, and play a MORE important role in student learning!

Look, I understand the concern. The role of teachers is definitely changing! One-hundred years ago students HAD to come to school in order to learn. There were very few books, nearly no libraries, and limited newspapers and magazines. Teachers were the source of nearly all information. Teachers were the gate keeper to knowledge. 

However, technology has changed the educational landscape! Teachers are not the sole source of information now. Students have 24/7 access to unlimited amounts of information. Instead of relying on a teacher with limited training, students have access to industry experts who have devoted their entire life to studying very specific disciplines. The incredible knowledge that is available for FREE with a few clicks of the mouse (or finger) is mind blowing. It's impossible for me to wrap my brain around the ways our educational landscape has changed over the last 100 years! Yet, for the most part, the structure of our schools has remained nearly unchanged. It's no wonder our students are feeling let down, bored, and disengaged with school today. I can see how teachers could feel threatened. 

I hope my story can spread a message of hope to teachers feeling threatened. As I have integrated more and more technology into my classroom, I have never felt more valued and essential to my students' learning! Although I can share information with thousands of students simultaneously, skilled teachers are needed to draw meaning to that information; teachers will always be needed to bring that information to life for students. To borrow words from my friend Ginger Lewman, I have adapted the mindset that I am a resource, not THE source to my students. I push my students to search and discover information rather than passively receiving information. I want my students to find meaning in their life rather than me telling them what's important to them. I push my students to grow individually to reach their potential rather than push them collectively over an arbitrary hurdle. All of these roles are different, but FAR more important than the giver of information. These important roles need to happen on a one-to-one level; it cannot happen on a mass scale.  For this reason, I have a hopeful vision of the future of our teaching profession!

Our students no longer need teachers to feed them information, the information is at their fingertips. Instead our students need help making sence of information, help finding meaning, help making connections, and help digging deeper. Computers and technology will never be able to do this as effectively and magically as I can. The perfectly placed question, the balance between pushing hard but not breaking, the emotional connection, the stern look, and the deserved celebrations are all artistic touches that only a human can paint into a lesson. These are the pieces that engage students in learning. They are invaluable! 

Although technology could make it feasible for one teacher to manage 100 students; it will never happen. As long as our society values learning (which will be forever), the human teacher will be too valuable to spread across 100 students. 

WARNING: If you are a teacher, and you still believe that your only job is to feed students information, then you don't have to wait for the future; your job has already been replaced by technology. Sure, you may still receive a paycheck, but your days are numbered. I would urge you to loosen your grip on the control of the information, and encourage your students interact and engage with the information all around them.

We live in an exciting time of great innovation and technological advances. My mind cannot conceive the great technological advances we will see over the next hundred years, but my heart assures me that the future will be lead by great human teachers!

Hey, You Should Make Your Math Class Fun

When you're a math teacher, introductions can sometimes get awkward! After the handshakes, smiles, and usual small talk, the question is always asked. "So Justin, what do you do?" Once this question is asked, I can predict the next twenty minutes of dialogue. It never changes.

"Oh, wow, a math teacher eh? I hated math in school. I was never very good at it. Thank goodness I've never had to use it! Hey, you know what you should do? You should make your math class fun. My class was always so boring. Also, you should stop teaching them useless math like Algebra, and start teaching them math they'll actually need in real life. You know what I mean?"

Stop smiling. There's no smiling in Algebra class!!

I have never met a person who has said, "Oh, awesome! That sounds like a great job! I would love to teach Algebra to high school students! Do you know of any openings?"

The truth is I do have the greatest job on Earth, and I would never trade for another (except maybe an astronaut, but then that's not really a job "on" Earth). If they only knew... 

Their advice sounds so simple. Make math fun. It's like people actually believe that math teachers sit up at night asking themselves, "This lesson is okay, but how could I make this just a little more boring...?" Here's the truth: every math teacher I have ever met (and I've met a lot) is desperately searching, researching, clawing, and fighting for "fun" math lessons. And, they are out there; I've seen them. I'm working on adding more and more "fun" to my Algebra class, but it's a process, and it takes time, energy, and resources. Unfortunately, none of those are unlimited!

Please don't wear this shirt.

The other thing I hear (nearly everyday) is, "I never use Algebra, and I turned out fine." I have to bite my tongue. I want to say, "You drove your car here without running out of gas didn't you? You know how many bags of Cheetos you could buy with $10 don't you? You used a car loan to purchase that new truck didn't you? You're investing in your retirement aren't you? Heck, even the people who designed that funny little shirt you're wearing used Algebra to ensure their text was centered and the font size was optimized to ensure maximum readability." But, those arguments are best left unsaid because then the next line coming is, "Well, that's not really math..." But the truth is math is all around us and our brain is making constant calculations to keep us safe and happy. Most of those calculations are done unconsciously; not because it's not really math, but because you probably had math teachers who stayed up late at night wondering how they could exercise that mathematical portion of your brain the next morning.

Catapulting pennies onto targets

I have digressed. Here's my point: I was part of an amazing training today about Project Based Learning, and I am more excited than ever to put the fun in Algebra class! I have done "projects" in class, but I am a newbie to the whole PBL strategy. I think I have a plan to mesh my current blended classroom with a dynamic, exciting Project Based Learning classroom. I also think Ginger Lewman (an educational guru) has a similar message to all those strangers I have met. If I hook my students with a "tasty" project they are dying to get their hands on, I will be amazed at the lengths my students will go to in order to learn the skills necessary to make a totally rad project. Give them a reason to get excited and fall in love with math. Make it fun. 

Stay tuned to share in my mistakes, insights, and triumphs!