When I think about it, we actually had a lot of advantages. For one, we didn’t have access to endless entertainment that kids enjoy today. We had only 3 channels, CBC, CTV and Global- and there was very little in the way of programming geared towards children so not a lot of distraction to be found there. Video games were in their infancy and although we played them as much as we could, most parents- mine included- wouldn’t let the children monopolize the only colour TV.
Another thing that I really appreciate about my high-school experience was the streaming. When I entered high-school in grade 9, I was put into advanced and enriched classes for students who would be attending university. Less than a third of my classmates from Grade 8 joined me. The bulk of the others went into the general program which was the “business” or “trades” track. A tiny number went into the basic program where they learned how to cook, make change and tell time- the skills they needed to live and be somewhat employable. Although I understand there are problems with this system, personally, I think everyone in the enriched program was better off for streaming. The environment was highly competitive by design and we were consistently challenged by our teachers to maintain level of academic excellence. I can’t say it was for everybody, but I thrived in the system and my teachers were always willing to accommodate us when we brought forward a good idea. I feel very grateful to all of my teachers and for the system that took a group of “severely disadvantaged” kids and turned them into skilled, professional adults.
Having said all that- that time and place no longer exists. And lots of opportunities that I had are nothing but a distant memory. For example, at my high-school there were 3 different Computer Science classes where you could learn 5 different programing languages. Can you imagine someone today with the expertise to teach 5 different computer languages willing to work for $86,000 a year instead of the $200,000 he could command anywhere else? Me neither.
I think however that online learning has the potential to restore some of the expertise that has moved away from the profession. I think the idea of the “professional teacher” is probably not going to survive beyond the elementary level for very much longer. There is simply too much quality content being added to the internet on a daily basis that far outstrips what any generalist can provide.
But coming back to the question at hand- what kind of learning environment would I design for myself if I were setting up a school in 2015 for 10 year old me. For starters, it isn’t going to look much like a school anymore. We would be spending a lot more time outdoors playing than we ever did when I was a kid- through the fall and spring lots of outdoor play during the day and in the winter, hockey and swimming. Studying would happen first thing in the morning and in the late afternoon and evening. Classes would be a lot smaller 12-16 students and our teachers would supplement their lessons with experts from various fields. There would be a lot more videos and a lot less reading. There would be a lot more time to pursue the topics that really interest me in depth- once the broad strokes had been covered. In short, the education I would design for my 10 year old self would look a lot like the studying that I do on my own every summer (minus all the “family time”) where I stumble across something the piques my interest and I spend a few days or weeks working on a project until I finish it or lose interest or get distracted by something even better. That’s what education looks like for me.