TLC #026: Mapping The Learning Crisis - The Role of The Learning Sciences (Part 1)
In this edition of the Learning Chronicle newsletter, we explore the concept of the global learning crisis and our belief in how the application of the learning sciences can help solve this problem.
Hi,
We are back from our two-week break, and we are better positioned to serve you!
Here is your weekly dose of “The Learning Chronicle Newsletter” weekly curated content that leverages the learning sciences, data, and evidence-based research to help K–12 educators, stakeholders, and learners optimize how learning happens while preparing learners for the future of work.
Welcome to all new subscribers. I am Omotayo Olorunfemi; a learning and development specialist. Check out the archive for previous editions using the first link above. Welcome!!! Once again.
One Learning Quote
“Going to school day after day and not understanding anything is a miserable experience.” - Karthik Muralidharan
One Article
Today’s generation of young people faces a radically changing world. Up to half of the world’s jobs—around 2 billion—are at high risk of disappearing due to automation in the coming decades. In contrast to the impact of innovation in previous generations, new technologies risk not creating new jobs at anything like the scale at which they are eradicating them. Due to shifts between industries and the changing nature of work within industries, demand for high-level skills will grow, and many low- and medium-skilled jobs will become obsolete. Jobs open to those without high-level skills will often be insecure and poorly paid. Only quality education for all children can generate the needed skills, prevent worsening inequality, and provide a prosperous future for all.
Young people in developing countries will face the greatest challenges in the years ahead. In the past, many developing economies achieved growth by moving farm workers into factories. In the future, new growth models will need to be found, but these will require higher levels of skills than many economies are currently set to offer. Demographics will exacerbate the challenge. The greatest population increases will occur in countries already lagging the furthest behind in education. Africa will be home to a billion young people by 2050.
The UN estimates that more than half of the projected increase in the global population between 2022 and 2050 will be concentrated in just eight countries: the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Tanzania. Half of these countries are in Africa, and unfortunately, Africa is the farthest continent in terms of development and quality education. At least 20.5 million children are reportedly out of school in Nigeria alone, many deliberately because of neglect.
Whereas there is a myriad of challenges bedevilling the global education system that is exacerbating the learning crisis, chief amongst these challenges is the problem of instruction, which is worsening due to an increase in the number of unqualified teachers as well as the mass exodus of qualified teachers from the teaching profession.
So, how can we mitigate this?
Introducing the learning sciences…
The term “learning sciences” refers to a multidisciplinary field of research that incorporates child neuroscience, psychology, sociology, behavioural development, and cognitive learning.
The learning sciences can also be defined as the study of how people learn and how different kinds of environments, circumstances, mindsets, and approaches impact learning experiences.
The learning sciences provide insights into how students learn, grow, and develop into whole individuals. This valuable knowledge can drive educators, education leaders, and policymakers to incorporate best practices and research-based evidence for designing schools and instruction to create optimal conditions for student learning.
The learning sciences field has long-standing commitments to addressing equity, empowering learners, and helping successful efforts scale.
The Learning Sciences concepts can be categorized as shown below based on their applicability, which can help foster effective, efficient, and engaging learning experiences.
Creating or improving the conditions for learning: Includes concepts such as understanding learners’ agency, cognitive capabilities, personalization and learner variability.
Helping learners understand new ideas: Includes concepts such as moving from concrete to abstract, feedback system, metacognition and metacognitive abilities and so on.
Helping learners retain knowledge: Includes concepts such as active learning, cognitive load, zone f proximal development etc.
Helping learners apply knowledge: Includes concepts such as understanding learners’ level of desirable difficulty, prior experience, learning transfer and so on.
Helping learners build expertise: Includes concepts such as understanding learners’ memory, and learning communities. Role of mentorship etc.
Motivating learners: Includes concepts such as understanding learners’ core drive, the hierarchy of needs, motivation types, etc.
Measuring learning and optimising feedback: Includes concepts such as feedback system, moving from novice to expert, productive failure, scaffolding etc.
We believe that if educators are effectively trained on how to apply these learning science concepts in their teaching and learning processes, the learning rate will increase, and we will have more learners actually learning in schools and other learning organizations.
REFERENCE
https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2023/03/02/learning-crisis-in-the-northeast/
https://aurora-institute.org/blog/key-terms-to-understand-the-learning-sciences/
Goodell, J. (2022). Learning Engineering Toolkit. [[VitalSource Bookshelf version]]. Routledge. Retrieved from vbk://9781000683257.
One Video
This four-minute-plus video below, posted by e-Literate TV on YouTube, aptly sums up the basic concept of the learning sciences.
One Learning Question
What is one important lesson for life that isn't taught in school, but that you want to teach your kids?
What We Are Reading
A.J. Juliani on 5 Ways to Rethink Curriculum in 2022 and Beyond
Cal Newport on My Thoughts on ChatGPT
Defined Learning on What is a Performance Task? (Part 1)
That’s it for this week.
What would you want me to write about? Tell me in the comment
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