Trends that are shaping the Future of K-12 Education

Things evolve with time. What was probably a ‘norm’ in the last decade might probably not even be an option today. Seeing education through the new lens is gaining faster recognition and is bringing positive impact on the learners, the current and also the future generation. The schools today have started to see education in different light, as not just as a medium of learning, but also the source from which he/she gains maximum significant take-aways. This new vision has paved way for an entirely new model of educational system that is headed to change the educational landscape of the country. The best international schools are focussed to direct this to building a better tomorrow, that will start with enlightening the young minds; through education

Trends shaping the future: The five keys to it

Here are the five keys that are shaping the future of K-12 education. Take a look at how the CBSE schools in Vizag are making the shift. 

Shift in focus: A focus on the real-world needs has become the main motto. Whether focus on problem solving, community building, technological awareness, these areas were practically given zero attention. The traditional schooling system was never adequate to prepare the child for a challenging world tomorrow. With this shift in focus, there is going to be a betterment for the child.

E-learning: With the rate of online learning alternatives that are in existence today, learning has never been so accessible to all, and by all. This trend has gained a momentum with the higher education and professional development and acts more like an opportunity in the new K-12 education.

Community involvement: Communities today believe that a better learning is facilitated among children when parents involve with their children’s learning. This trend focuses on the child as a whole, and not just on his/her educational needs, unlike the past. Parents are today finding niches to see where their child will fit in. This trend is totally in line with the overall development of the child, in meting out help to prepare him/her for a future tomorrow. They also work together to ensure the child maximum attention and help.

Alternate communities: Alternate communities of learning like a larger network for charter and online school is a new trend today. This, today, is not merely a small community today and is treated in par with the public and private sector schools. Monetary assistance and moral support are some of the help these alternate communities receive today and the government also keeps a close watch on the other alternate communities that might crop in the future.

Hands on the mission and vision: One big advantage of the alternate community is the transparency of the mission, goals and practices. In these transparent spaces, there is ample opportunity for you as a parent to involve and make suggest changes to match the mission and goals. Charter schools are evolving and will provide an opportunity for the parents and teachers to see what isn’t working and make changes along the way.

The road ahead

The road ahead of this trend is a straight one, one that offers the maximum view and a picture of what your child’s future would look like. One of the good that is arising out this trend is individualized learning. Moving away from the traditional models of learning and allowing the child to foster in their blessed talent is something this trend is preparing the children for. With this, there is more focus on what each child is capable of, and analysing how this can be fine tuned assumes importance. Small classrooms and smaller group will ensure the child does not get frustrated and will flourish with their capacity in terms of focus and daily learning. Focusing on what works and what will not, needs attention today. These methods of training have proven beneficial for a lot many families and children in particular. The results are hard to deny.

Real-world learning begins here

When we say ‘real-world learning’, what does it actually mean? How do we learn from the world around us? A real-world learning is a learning that mostly happens outside the classroom as learning and information, is available everywhere around us. Oakridge, as one of the CBSE Schools in Vizag focuses on higher order thinking, which includes experience, analyze, evaluate and create. With its IB Way of learning, the school aims to do more than other curricula by developing inquiring, knowledgeable and young caring people who are motivated to succeed hence offers students the experiential learning. An experiential learning is essentially learning from experience which supports students to apply their knowledge and understanding to the real-world issues, lastly, the instructor facilitates learning. When students are given opportunities to learn in an authentic situation, the learning becomes significantly more powerful and motivate students to illustrate complex concepts. Undoubtedly, such a thing helps develop their knowledge, skills, and attitudes important for critical thinking, risk-taking, and problem-solving techniques, hence Oakridge offers multiple national and international trips, student exchange programs and expeditions throughout the year for students. Through experiential learning, they develop their skills through practice, deepen their knowledge and support the construction of new learning's.

For students, a real-world is a playground, however, it is much more than this and that’s how they learn while having fun. Real-life examples make information easier for students to understand than the content of a book. Substantially, the existing knowledge of the kids that they get from the content forms the foundation for incorporating new information into more complex and sophisticated schema's. In this scenario, real-world learning works as a meaningful way to connect with the previous information which helps understanding things more clearly and easily. With respect to the students’ achievement, the real-world learning is made up of several components such as connecting with like-minded individuals, learning by doing, real world connections, student voice and choice technology interaction, etc. In line with this, Oakridge, other than the field trips and expeditions offers students opportunities to take part in making connections with the real-life examples through various other ways like Skype session, puppet show, guest lectures, problem-based studies, guided inquiry, simulations, experiments, art projects, and alike. The prestigious Oakridge International School aims to build a community of leaders empowering them with a global and local perspective accordingly teaches students competencies that they need for success and to get future-ready. Therefore, the inspiration to real-world learning begins here.