Educators-As-Lifetime-Learners
September 30, 2019

Educators as Lifetime Learners

The more and more prominent that technology becomes in our daily lives, people have developed a misconception of how it affects us. In many ways, technology can reel people into danger and societal distractions. But in the same way, technology can also have lasting benefits and successful effects in relation to humanity and artificial intelligence. What will it take to shift people’s perspective on technology? In order for our students and future leaders to develop perceptive world views and a new sense of learning, current school directors and educators need to build on creativity and eagerness to explore other domains and encourage motivation in the classroom.

Exploring Education

When it comes to the education system, it can be a challenge to determine the most valuable and constructive approach for learning. More often than not, pressure is put on students to figure out how what they learn will affect their lives socially and academically. However, it is not only the students’ responsibility to evaluate favorable changes for education. Teachers and educators must be open to new possibilities and willing to explore various options.

“This requires educators to continuously become learners and to be willing to challenge long-held ideas of how to approach learning and assessment.”

Dr. Michelle Zimmerman

Desiring a change for the future, will require a desire to research and analyze new educational propositions. We think of learning and automatically resort to what’s most comfortable. What if you could uniquely educate and enlighten while, in turn, getting better results? Without shifting the way we think about education, young people and students will grow to view content in isolation and refuse to expand their perspectives. 

Replacing Machines with Thinking

There is a world of inspiration that is rooted in culture and influenced by emotion. Unlike machines and technology, humans have the unique ability to create information in extraordinary ways. As educators, mentors, influencers, and developers, we have the amazing opportunity to lead young people to obtain impartial understandings of the world, society, and who they are as people. While learning about machines’ ability to augment our own human capacity, we can also use that capacity to augment machines. It all goes hand in hand with creating an enhanced future. 

Exemplifying Humility For Students

Above all, educators need to step up and recognize that they are not able to obtain all the possible knowledge for students to learn. As they are in the position of teaching others, educators must also be susceptible and open to learning. It takes expanding our minds in order to reasonably educate others. In the process of teaching, there must naturally be a willingness to scrutinize what already exists with what could improve it. For example, machine learning. Technology as we know is constantly advancing. Rather than focusing on what machines can do, we should shift our attention on what machines cannot do. 

“We need to help young people look for multiple approaches to solutions and draw on inspiration from those who have gone before us. We need to train them to receive and apply critique – and more – learn how to ask for it.”

Dr. Michelle Zimmerman

Taking our weaknesses and failures into account will go a long way into molding the most enhanced version of ourselves. Acknowledging the characteristics we lack, can motivate us to achieve greater ambitions for the sake of our students.

Creative Solutions

There are only so many ways our students can access learning. Involving them in creatively finding solutions through design thinking will help to expand their knowledge. When students practice deep level processing, collaboration, knowledge creation, and communication, they can learn to work across multiple domains. The ability to acquire artificial intelligence and design thinking will transfer learning from the classroom to the community and beyond.

Inspiring Growth

If we as leaders and educators don’t take the initiative to challenge ourselves, there won’t be as much advancement in education as we would like to see. It is our responsibility to engage in modeling these behaviors and showing students and families what is possible. Renton Prep Christian School will always have a thriving passion for how we can serve others. Choosing the right tools that match the end goals for learning will help us to prepare students for the future. But in the process of helping create a vision, we must act on it. Rooted in passion, dedication, and zeal, we can work together in making education so much more than it currently is. Along with joining Renton Prep, comes being welcomed into our vision for the future. Contact us today to learn further.

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