Something to Think About

December 14, 2012

The following guest blog post was written by PJ Caposey, author of Building a Culture of Support: Strategies for School Leaders. PJ is the principal of Oregon High School, an adjunct professor in the educational leadership department for Aurora University, and he is currently pursuing his Doctoral degree through Western Illinois University. He can be found on Twitter @principalpc, and he is a guest blogger for many websites such as ASCD, Edutopia, and Test Soup.

I received an email from one of my faculty members last month that simply read:

Something to think about: What is school for if it is no longer the place to go to acquire knowledge?

I left the email in my inbox for a couple of days and each time I would scroll over it I would feel compelled to try and articulate a succinct, yet complete answer. The more I thought about the question the more I appreciated the prompt. In one brief sentence this prompt commands a paradigm shift for many educators and community members and forces visionary thinking in order to answer the question. Each time I would ponder the question I would be consumed with positive, proactive thoughts about education as I worked toward my personal answer.

That process of struggling through creating a complete and concise answer was such a healthy experience—it is one that I, along with Eye On Education, would like to share with you. Hence, we are posting a call for blogs.

We are looking for responses to the prompt: ‘What is school for if it is no longer the place to go to acquire knowledge?’ that are approximately 200 words in length to consider for publishing on the Eye On Education website. By completing this activity, not only will you be undertaking a process of critical thought healthy for all educators, but also will be contributing positively to the field at-large by sharing your visions for the future of education with your colleagues. Not to mention—you have the opportunity to have your work posted on a frequently visited and well-respected education website.

Blog entries and/or questions should be emailed directly to PJ Caposey here. In addition to the blog response, a short personal biography (200 characters or less) should be included in your submission. For consideration for your blog to be posted in January, please submit a Microsoft Word copy by January 7th.

Category: Teaching & Learning

Tagged: PJ Caposey

Comments

# Mark

December 16, 2012 5:38 AM

A very interesting question. I would like to give it some thought and possibly submit a post.

# Shirley

December 19, 2012 6:37 AM

When I think about my happiest memories at school I think of how the teachers of my favourite subjects showed me how to love learning - about the creative process of learning. My art teacher used to say - 'Look again, tell the truth on the paper ' and I still think about those words.. My geography teacher showed me how our physical environment informs us about the history of the place and spoke of her love of travel - these were the qualities inspired me and helped me to think creatively and enjoy the beauty of our world, the beauty of words and sharing experiences... to notice things for myself... and I have always to this day enjoyed learning. It was the 'qualities' I acquired through caring and supportive staff that mattered I think. How the teachers taught and who they were seemed to be more important to me that what they taught me.
My English teacher sometimes read my stories out to the class which gave me my first sense of achievement.... those were the things that 'grew' me... I learned the joy of learning through the kindness and supportive environment provided in my secondary education. I guess I learned how working towards something you like is a satisfying journey. It wasn't about passing exams...... well it wasn't for me....

# Bill Horniak

December 19, 2012 6:40 AM

Schools today must undergo a paradigm shift. Today's schools represent a gathering place. School is and should be both a venue and forum where students grow and mature through the processes of collaboration, inquiry and investigation. Through this process, and through assessment and coaching by educators or facilitators, knowledge will ultimately be acquired and attained. By facilitating the use of 21st century tools and resources by teachers who themselves are well professed and experts in the use and strategic implementation of these resources, students can be directed and guided as to the appropriate measures as to how to use these tools productively to create portfolios, self assessments and digital footprints in which will assist them in being technologically literate and successful citizens in our ever-changing society.