When most people think of change, they think of the breaking the unpleasant habits they have formed, the new initiative their employers have developed, or even adding Cesar dressing to a salad as opposed to ranch. At the root of all change in life you will find that it does not stem from a person per se, but a person’s heart. Heart is where change takes its roots. But do not ignore the mind, for it is equally as important in the holistic change process as well. For inside the mind, the sense of urgency and the need for change is heavily emphasized. The sense of urgency gives a sense of importance any amount of change that a person attempts to make in their life or in the lives of others.
Within education, a sense of urgency is placed upon educators just to get our grades in in a timely minor. As this feedback is necessary for students to know where they may improve as they progress through your course. But sometimes, this sense of urgency is misplaced, and the students are left with a longing for understanding of the greater goal or objective. So, where is the sense of urgency for our students and what they want to learn?
- Why: All students have innate potential that is capable of being awakened through project-based learning, where they can gain access to competitive skills in an ever-changing landscape.
- How: App development projects are geared towards individual students’ aspirations and academic needs to help promote their individual growth.
- What: Students develop life skills in the areas of computational thinking, collaboration, personal accountability, time management, and communication through a yearlong app-development coding initiative.
Student centered learning is advent to awakening the potential in young learners. More specifically however, learners want to feel that the things that they are learning have relevancy to their life and their future. This is how we keep young people on the right track towards successful career, college graduation, and further beyond. We lose more students because they feel that they are learning has no relevancy to them, which leads them down paths where education could have been the factor that changed their lives.
Why do our students need a greater focus on themselves in the classroom? To put it plainly, our educational system place is a value on a curriculum-based standard that does not adhere to the learners educational needs. Project-based learning is an educational methodology that will allow students to perform applicable research into an area that suits their interest. App development is a tool that unites both the student and the content area they are learning in a meaningful way that instills value into both the student and the lesson. Through programming, students can learn skills that translate beyond the classroom. Skills that can one day provide them employment and a meaningful career. But most of all, using project-based learning under the umbrella of app development instills value in a student’s dreams beyond the classroom and thereby bridging the gap that has left our students at times unmotivated and uninspired in the classroom.
References
Kotter, J. [Dr. John Kotter]. (2011, March 23). The heart of change [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NKti9MyAAw
Kotter, J. [Dr. John Kotter]. (2013, August 15). Leading change: Establish a sense of urgency [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Yfrj2Y9IlI
Sinek, S. [TEDx Talks]. (2009, September 28). Start with why: How great leaders inspire action [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4ZoJKF_VuA&t=164s
TEDxTalks. (2014, June 30). Why TED Talks don’t change people’s behaviors: Tom Asacker at TEDxCambridge 2014. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0jTZ-GP0N4&feature=youtu.be
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