Innovate, Inspire & Influence the Future of Public Ed
Board/Superintendent Regional Symposium sponsored by LHCSS, DCSBA, RCSBA, WPSBA
January 20, 2022
The fireside chat with Ted Dintersmith, venture capitalist turned education change agent, and Joseph Ricca, White Plains Superintendent, was a thoughtful and enlightening discussion of how children need to learn to be prepared for the world they will grow up, live and work in.
The event opened with a short video presentation of The Future of Work that asks the question, “Will our children be ready?”. The discussion opened with why schools need to be rethought and restructured, in an era when rote jobs are completed more efficiently and effectively by robots.
How do you initiate change in your school district?
- Help teachers see why they should change classroom practices to do their best for students, instead of dictating what they must do.
- Look for opportunities to demonstrate how students learn better through engaging, innovative teaching practices (or use data to demonstrate how ineffective current teaching methods are in developing long term recall).
- Set “moonshot” goals for students and teachers – e.g., a community exhibition at the end of the year that allows students to demonstrate mastery and gives each one a chance to shine.
How do you get college and test score-oriented parents and community members on board?
- Give context to your school community about what skills they want students to develop.
- Start small and demonstrate engagement so effective learning can happen in limited doses, before attempting large scale change.
- A child’s enthusiasm for school and learning will go a long way to getting parents excited about innovative teaching methods.
- The perceived downsides of teaching differently are mythical.
What can we do if our school cannot fund high-tech maker-spaces or robotics labs?
- Very few students will go on to work in the robotics field or need to learn coding.
- Focus on projects that allow students to develop hirable skills appropriate for the digital economy – e.g., making videos, podcasts, social media campaigns, building websites.
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We asked the question of participants: What is your district do to recognize innovative teaching and student success beyond test scores? See what a few districts in the region responded.
"Take small steps that lead to big change."
-Ted Dintersmith
To connect with practitioners (for free), go to www.whatschoolcouldbe.org. For additional information and videos, consider watching Most Likely to Succeed, the documentary film produced by Ted Dintersmith, and other items on the WPSBA event webpage. Registrants for the program will receive a link to the Regional Symposium recording and a copy of the book, What School Could Be by Ted Dintersmith.
