Skills For Your Child’s Future
By: Tosca Killoran, Edd
Tags: Teaching, Future Of Work, Learning, Skills, Education

“Without urgent and targeted action today, to manage the near-term transition and build a workforce with future-proof skills, governments will have to cope with ever-growing unemployment and inequality, and businesses with a shrinking consumer base,” Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum.

As the global pandemic reshapes the future of jobs, how can we help prepare our youth for the unknown? In order to prepare young people for the jobs of the future we must deploy no-tech as well as hi-tech educational methods. We must reduce our focus on high-stakes exams and replace them with fairer forms of assessment. Young people must be empowered with adaptable skills and opportunities to develop ideas.

Enter the Approaches to Learning (ATLs)

Within the International Baccalaureate there are sets of skills that have been developed to future proof learners. The Approaches to learning (ATL) are skills designed to enable students to “learn how to learn.” They are intended to apply across curriculum requirements and provide a common language for teachers and students to use when reflecting on the process of learning. Implementation of the ATLs include the implicit and explicit embedding into day-to-day learning experiences so that students have opportunities to practice and incrementally develop a range of adaptable skills.

The main factors that allow for progression in the implementation of ATLs depends on whether they are explicitly integrated throughout the programme or not. Teachers who;

-embed ATLs into their unit planners,

-explicitly reflect upon them with students throughout lesson activities

-provide intentional opportunities for practice and development,

foster learners who are able to have more time on task, more innovative ideas, deeper compassion for others, better communication in groups, and more successful collaboration with peers.

Teaching ATL skills can also significantly benefit students with different learning styles and needs. Sometimes students suffer from inadequate preparation of a specific task or cannot organize their thoughts clearly. This is where ATL skills scaffold student driven management of their own learning. ATL skills can be used as a toolkit to help students learn in different ways based on their individual needs.

Grades

Despite the benefits of the ATLs in future proofing students, parents often ask one singular question:

Over the last 20 years of teaching I have facilitated countless student reflections and gathered data on those reflections to understand better how students feel about grade driven instruction. The word cloud below showcases actual student language used regarding grade driven assessment. It is clear from the words that the experience is decidedly negative or anxiety producing for many learners.

By contrast reflections gathered from students regarding ATL skill driven instruction and assessment were fed into a Wordle and produced a much more positive, self affirming word cloud. If we want to produce environments with reduced stress, focus on future-ready skills and develop resident value driven learners it is clear we must move beyond grade driven learning.

Does this mean we don’t teach content or give grades at all? No. The International Baccalaureate has clear proficiency scales and criterion we adhere to for reporting purposes. We design learning experiences from scope and sequences that are underpinned with deep learning of concepts and content. The difference is that before students ever see a grade we start with authentic timely feedback, self refection and goal setting. We scaffold that reflection and goal setting through the development of the ATLs. We work to develop students that are driven by a love of learning, a passion for inquiry, and a curiosity about the world around them- rather than simply by grade they acquire.

The ATLs and Higher Education

The benefits of an IB education are especially strong when it comes to higher education. Top universities from around the world have shown how they value the IB’s credentials by building special pathways for IB students; by granting credit or advanced standing for performance on IB exams; or by providing scholarships for IB students. Many university’s are changing the weight placed on components of applicants. The focus shifting to abilities beyond grades being highlighted and setting candidates apart.

Across different studies, researchers have found that:

Diploma Programme (DP) curriculum and assessment compares favourably to a variety of other respected qualifications

DP students tend to complete their undergraduate degrees at higher rates than their peers, and often in less time.

IB students can tend to make more contributions to campus life by participating in activities such as community service, tutoring, assisting faculty in research, study abroad, internships, and joining clubs and other student groups.

the IB goes to great lengths to ensure the validity and reliability of our assessments. IB assessments have been demonstrated as strong predictors of university performance.

Across the research, DP students have been cited as demonstrating the following skills:

Interest and experience in research

Time management and organizational skills

Critical thinking, inquiry and problem solving

Strong language and writing skills

International-mindedness and a sense of responsibility for the community.

It is clear that through the integration of ATL Skills development throughout the Primary, Middle and Diploma Programmes learners become the resilient, flexible future-ready candidates job markets desire. After all, our students are complex and entering an equally complex world in an unprecedented time.