In her previous article, Novadene Miller explained why events such as World Children’s Day are an unmissable opportunity for educators. This follow up article will focus on how these events can build skills beyond the classroom and go beyond the gaze of students being spectators of global perspectives to being skilled engaged, informed practitioners in and beyond the classroom
Schools need to integrate peer workshop learning in the curriculum that develops approaches to teaching and learning (ATL) skills, in a way that develops critical thinking skills of students at various levels of learning relevant to today. Educators play a fundamental role in shaping the perspectives of students, cultivating tools to navigate the changing global environments and creating bridges to understand and impact the local, national and international environments we engage in. Let’s begin with a follow-up on an event linked to World Children's Day mentioned in my previous article for an example.
In my pervious article, I mentioned a guest expert was invited to speak on child security online in our school. The guest expert was an Child Online Protection Specialist from the International Telecommunication Union, a branch of the United Nations that specialized in communication. In our school, we encourage conferences with guest experts and have an auditorium at our disposal to foster this. The school also provides technical support to foster operations, this is also fundamental for educators to have a school culture that welcomes activities that enhance the academic curriculum. She was invited to a conference with the year 10 students of geography to present on the link between human rights and communication, thus Children Rights Online. This included an overview of the current global landscape, the gender digital divide, children’s rights in relation to the digital environment, the challenges to online safety, the risks online, knowing where to get information from, and how to meet online safety to mention a few topics covered.
Active learning enables students to participate in student peer workshop learning
I can say the conference provided fresh insight and challenges as an educator. Inviting guests provide a lens into the real world, as well as fosters an opportunity for students to dialogue, discourse and problem-solve real-world scenarios with time-sensitive answers and context, equipping them with tools to transfer in essay writing and conducting primary and secondary research. As an educator I am challenged to reconsider my approach to bridge the gap between our knowledge as educators, what we think we know, what we need to know and how we function as actors and shapers of thought within this field as educators.
This conference provided insight into not only what exists in child safety but a challenge as to why as an educator it is pivotal to know what international institutions are doing in relation to establishing frameworks for children that serve as a basis to support our role in education. Secondly, this highlighted the importance of our classrooms to shape this generation as world decision-makers, to foster informed exchange outside the classroom with policymakers, global experts on children-related topics and to also serve as a platform to provide a safe environment for students to engage in the thinking tanks that nurture the tools that regulate activity inside and outside of the classroom.
The activities done in our classroom play a role in the extent to which students will map solutions, engage with global leaders, engage in projects that require children’s input in the research phase and by extension how effective international institutions such as the United Nations are effective in protecting the environment for children. In a previous article, I mentioned the importance of Active learning. Active learning enables students to participate in student peer workshop learning, which enhances their capacity to engage in problem-solving, to find solutions and think in a way that produces results in parallel with the ever-changing environment we live in today with and among peers along with the guidance of a teacher in a structured way. This further builds the ATL skills needed both in and outside of the classroom.
As educators, we don’t exist in a vacuum and need to continue to educate ourselves
How does a conference build ATL skills? In my teaching approach, the students are prepared to do all the activities for the conference, and they also have an input in the dialogue for the conference during and after. This builds their ATL skill such as critical thinking, collaboration, self-management, reflection and organization. For example, the students had the role of chairman and secretariat (they coordinated the questions to be asked during and after the conference), they had the role of usher to collect the guest at the welcome office, accompany the guest to the school auditorium, to provide hospitality to the close of the event, to give the thank you, activities they all participated in with such passion, determination and even volunteered for requests I did not request, for example, two students in my year 10 class went to the cafeteria on their own initiative to get water for our guest, as they were the ushers for the event. These ATL skills will shape who they are in their future jobs and how they navigate university. The students were very happy to participate, and the conference was also more rewarding as the session was planned for and with them making it a very engaging experience.
As educators, we don’t exist in a vacuum and need to continue to educate ourselves on the role of international institutions, be engaged in panel discussions with global institution engagements that are tailored for students and act as actors for dialogue between international institutions of governance for children and the classroom, whether at a local, national or international level.
Have you engaged your classroom in a global initiative related to a specific United Nations Goal?
Have you considered what local, international and national panels your students could join relevant to their age group?
Educators and students can gain fresh insight into stakeholder perspectives, can acquire new variables of analysis on topics, that lead to comparative analysis that are more enriched with fresh perspectives. Both students and educators can transfer the skills learned in other disciplines and in their day to dialogue in discovering the world.
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