Be inspired by the classrooms of 21st century teachers and learners!

Be inspired by young 21st century learners. Universities watch out...these students are on their way.

Watch the three winning videos of the Mindshare 21st Century competition, posted at http://mindsharelearning.ca/videochallenge/ .

Be proud Canada! We are doing amazing work!

I was so touched and inspired by the way in which these teachers blended traditional learning with 21st century skills and tools. These classrooms use Smart Boards, smart phones, Web 2.0 tools, assistive technology, and numerous other technological tools. The students talk about how they look forward to coming to school, being engaged, and learning skills to problem solve and feel more competent and confident that they will be successful in their future.

One teacher discussed his “paradigm shift”. He admitted that initially, he did not even want a laptop, let alone a Smart Board in his classroom, but that he eventually realized that today’s students are so intertwined with technology that they require a whole new set of 21st century skills to survive. Thus, he shifted his views to believe that teachers needed to incorporate 21st century skills and tools into their classrooms. I was amazed at how these teachers found so many different ways to make learning meaningful, not just to the students, but also to society. Not only were the students in these 21st century classrooms engaged in many face-to-face collaborative, reflective, and critical thinking processes, something I was relieved to see, but they were also challenged to go one step further to share their learning digitally and to make a meaningful contributions to the world.

If this is what 21st century education is all about, our world will be transforming even more than I thought was possible before watching these videos. We are about to enter a whole new age filled with inspiring possibilities, involving students who can and will make significant differences in the world, even from a very early age. I am glad that I am still alive to see these inspiring transformational classrooms in action.

Importantly, I also want to thank Ron Owston and the students of EDUC5860 for exposing me to so much new learning. As a digital immigrant, I was unaware of how many new options there really were for our 21st century classrooms. Thanks to EDUC5860, my eyes have been open to a whole world of new possibilities.

I wonder...............................

Once our public school students are exposed to this kind of amazing, interactive and meaningful technology enhanced learning at a young age, I wonder how they will adapt to more traditional style university classrooms? Traditional higher education seems so boring in comparison. Importantly, however, it also hasn’t historically involved students in the many different ways that they can share their learning and make an immediate difference in their community.

Universities and colleges need to catch up in their thinking about how to engage 21st century students in meaningful higher education activities that not only will deepen student learning, but will also help students continue to make active and important differences in their communities. After watching the videos below, I realize there is so much more that institutions of higher education can do.  What do you think?  What do you think are the most effective ways to engage postsecondary students?

Go to: http://mindsharelearning.ca/videochallenge/ to see these inspiring videos of the top three winning 21st century classrooms. You may prefer to use the video links I have embedded below. Watch the videos below and be inspired and amazed! I know I was.

  West coast winner:



Central Winner:



East Coast Winner