Are we looking beyond traditional classrooms now?

 

Teaching with the pandemic tuned teachers to master learners.  Equipment's and technology are play things to experiment.  As we step out of the post-COVID era, we need to look at the possibilities of incorporating what was learned and adapted to during the COVID times. Preluding of the new learning strategy has been fast and without a preamble.  Erasing almost a year of online work and the process change is not worth neglecting. Adapting this into the new classrooms will be definitely wise.   

National's goal to a new education policy, NEP 2020, has been in discussion before, during and now after the pandemic.  Setting its goal with clear indication on 'skill development', which is very different from yesteryears, needs thinking and planning in new dimension. 

Ref: https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf

The clear focus on developing appropriate skills from the age 3 upwards is specific with the educational policy.  Narrowing down the funnel to the schools the ideology stands with the approach with which schools focus on building such an approach in their delivery of the curriculum.  Short term goals to long term goals change is to be incorporated into the learning philosophy.  Pandemic being a blessing in disguise has readied our teachers to approach the new curriculum with the Web 3.0 tools.  

The potential skill level to approach the curriculum stands with

• Creativity
• Critical thinking and problem solving
• Conflict resolution and
• Communication

Steering schools into this direction is where the look beyond traditional classrooms is required. Pandemic gave us the opportunity of working from homes.  Though converting homes to office spaces was quite a cumbersome task.  Looking beyond the walls with the open space of internet was well within our reach.  When schools reopen and regular work starts the repository of our experiences should enable build better classrooms using both physical as well as virtual spaces.  Skill building is not on a one time creativity but on repeating the same level at every juncture of learning and teaching. 

Clear and structured approach from schools through their implementation of their curriculum can develop skills for the future.  Traditional classrooms were set for the era of industrialization, however, today the look-out is for people who can think differently within short spans and come out with solution.  Covid vaccine is one such example, it is a race out there to develop within the set time frame.  Teaching and learning also needs to be converted to such scales to stump upon individual abilities which cater to upscaling inherent abilities and fostering new practices which are adaptable.  Curiosity spices up creativity. Nurturing such beautiful congenital abilities should become the prima facie of  post-COVID schools.