Review: A Clear Vision Indeed
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 9, 2012
Why School?: How Education Must Change When Learning and Information Are Everywhere by Will Richardson"Why School?" is an inspirational plea to a new vision of education that incorporates tools of learning that are all around us.  The author's contention is that the current educational system does not adequately provide what our kids need to know and thus doing school "differently" is necessary.  Educator, blogger and author Will Richardson, provides the reader with a brief different vision of doing school.  This stimulating brief 51-page book is broken out into two main parts: Part I: Old School and Part II: New School.Positives:1. Brief and to the point.2. An important topic, a "different" education.3. A brief book that is intended to inspire and whet your appetite.  Mission accomplished.4. The impact of abundance of information and how it relates to education.5. A look at the old educational model and why it fails in preparing children for future success in a fast-changing world.6. A policy paper by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) that lists the new set of 21st-century literacies for all readers and writers.7. The contrast between the two very different visions for educational change. The first is about doing what we currently do "better".  The second requires a fundamental revision of the value of school and the roles of teachers and classrooms.8. Interesting and thought-provoking arguments, "What they don't tell you, by the way, is that we just looked at test results from U.S. kids living in high-income homes, we would be first in the world in just about every category. Our scores reflect our very deep issues with poverty, not inherent problems with schools."9. The importance of discovery over delivery in education.  "It's a kind schooling that prepares students for the world they live in, not the one in which most of us grew up."10. The objectives and goals of the new school approach.  The approach the steps to take.11. The problems with standardized tests.12.  The six unlearning/relearning ideas for educators.Negatives:1. No formal bibliography or links to websites or blogs to access from Kindle.In summary, this turned out to be quite an inspirational and compelling plea for a new approach in education.  The author does a wonderful job of providing compelling arguments for a new or "different" vision of education.  This brief book is quite quotable and the essence of it will stick with me.  "Don't teach my child science; instead, teach my child how to learn science..." If you are looking for an educational appetizer, this is a sweet treat indeed.  I highly recommend it!