Wednesday 4 February 2009

Educating for the future – according to the experts.

Alvin Toffler

A very interesting article was published in the supplement of La Nación newspaper of 1 February in which Alvin Toffler, futurologist and expert in social and cultural trends, talked about the world which is coming. The author of Future Shock and the Third Wave, among other books, spoke about the underground tendencies that give direction to mankind and its future on this planet. He explained that we are in the middle of a shift on Earth from societies which evolved as a result of the Industrial Revolution, societies based on the production line, on the mass migration to big urban centres, to the rise of corporations and to the prevalence of bureaucracy. The change is towards a post-industrial model of society, which he calls “The Third Wave” and which he insists will not emerge in a linear or systematic fashion. Moreover, the fact that some present societies are still adjusting from the agrarian societies of the First Wave to the industrial ones means that having then to suddenly incorporate concepts from the new model will make the transition less than easy.

Throughout the article Toffler emphasises the role of education in society and says that countries will have to reform their education systems to prepare students for the changes in work and society that have already arrived and will be occuring with increasing speed. He says that the educational models in the world have been those which gave students the tools to work in factory-like conditions and were based on the assembly line technique. He states that this model is no longer applicable either to the sorts of work and roles humans will fulfil in the future or to the needs and interests of children whose access to the world has been exponentially widened with the advent of the Internet. Schools, he feels, will have to blend what students need to learn in school (such as basic tools for learning) with what they can pick up online. The focus will be on developing skills and abilities which will be at the forefront of demand from future employers. Among these skills are the ability to assimmilate information, adaptability to change and the skill of taking quick decisions.

He envisages schools that stay will open 24 hours a day and have curricula that span across different disciplines and meet both the needs of each student and the businesses or employers who will hire them once they finish their schooling. He says that not only teachers will teach the students but also there will be much more interaction with experts in different fields who will come into school and show the students what they do and how they work in their field.

Has this new system of schooling been introduced anywhere? Toffler says with some evident regret that it has not been adopted by any country. He says many of the developing countries are either too busy integrating into the industrialised world or have not come to grips with the new realities in the world. He also suggests that teachers’ organisations are resistant to many such changes for fear of losing their jobs. Meanwhile, the changes are accelerating and students are finding that more and more of the skills they need are currently to be found outside the educational system.

Toffler interview: http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1093953

Or http://yaerahoraenlaradio.blogspot.com/2009/02/el-profeta-del-manana-alvin-toffler.html


Howard Gardner’s latest book is on the “Five Minds of the Future”. In it he decribes the five cognitive skills that will be in greatest demand in coming years.
The first is the disciplined mind which needs to be learnt in school as you master the different academic disciplines. Then there is the synthesising mind which sorts out what is important from the information in a particular area, makes sense of it and can convey it to others. Third is the creative mind which helps us to innovate and make meaningful change.
The two other minds that will need nurturing in school are the respectful mind, which Gardner stresses goes beyond simply tolerating the other to cultivating respect, emotional and interpersonal intelligence to help us live in societies which contain a diversity of perspective and the ethical mind. This fifth mind is a more abstract and reflective mind which allows us to take a step back and assess our behavious in the light of our ethics and responsibilities.

More on Gardner’s latest work can be found at the following sites:

RSA lecture on the subject
http://www.teachers.tv/video/5452

Radio interview on subject http://wamu.org/programs/dr/07/07/19.php

Podcast
http://www.brr.com.au/event/1ACD/60122/27697/wmp/e39dcpuj7c

Howard Gardner (2007). Five minds for the future. Harvard Business School Press: Cambridge, MA.

Sunday 1 February 2009

February Courses - last places!

RT WEEK 2009

February 09 – 12

A rich selection of workshops to develop teaching and learning skills!

Workshop outlines

RT WEEK

2009

Monday 09 February

Tuesday 10

February

Wednesday11

February

Thursday 12

February

9 to 12

Upping the ante! -

more advanced language!

A brand new workshop on the latest in native speaker use.

Creating the person you want to be

From a basis of the ontology of language, we look at how we can achieve the results we want in our professional and personal life.

The secret to inner drive and stamina

How we can enhance the motivation and enthusiasm of our students.

Transforming authentic material

Using models and ideas from the media and internet as springboards for language acquisition and practice.

L u n c h

L u n c h

L u n c h

L u n c h

14 to 17

Neuroscience

in action!

Ways to maximise learning and the acquisition of language based on the discoveries of neuroscience research

Let’s take a swipe! Yet more advanced language

A knowledge of culture can help us to understand subtle differences in the meaning of familiar words and expressions.

Observer or Doer?

How to use some simple NLP techniques to start becoming the protagonist of

one’s dreams.

Boosting motivation and creativity through drama

An array of ideas that will inspire even the laziest and least artistic students.

Enrolment

Each workshop lasts three hours. AM: 9.00 - 12.00 PM: 14.00 - 17.00.

Venue: Gallardo 719, Versailles, Capital Federal.

Please enrol by phoning (005411) 4641-9068 or by e-mail: rtcourses@resourcefulteaching.com.ar

jamiearg@gmail.com or lauraszmuch@gmail.com

There are limited vacancies per workshop. Enrolment is only guaranteed by payment of fee.

Curso de Programación Neurolingüística

A cargo de: Resourceful Teaching

Directores: Laura Szmuch - Jamie Duncan

El curso intensivo comprenderá los módulos 1 a 6, y se dictará los días 9 a 14 de febrero de 2009. El curso equivale a los primeros seis módulos del curso Practitioner en PNL, para seguir siendo cursado durante el año, una vez por mes.

Módulos y temas a cubrir:

  1. Conociéndonos más y mejorando nuestra comunicación

  1. Canales sensoriales

  1. Lenguaje preciso

  1. Anclajes

  1. Descubriendo los recursos internos

  1. Concientizándonos de los mundos internos de nuestros alumnos y respondiendo a sus programas mentales.

Docentes a cargo del curso:

Laura Szmuch- Lilly Spillman- Jamie Duncan

¿Qué es la PNL?

La Programación Neurolingüística es una serie de principios, actitudes y técnicas que nos permiten lograr el máximo de nuestras potencialidades. La PNL describe la dinámica entre la mente (neuro), el lenguaje (lingüística) y cómo ellos influyen en nuestras decisiones y conductas. Comenzó en Estados Unidos en la década del 70 con Bandler y Grinder quienes exploraron cómo modelar excelencia en el campo terapéutico.

La PNL está siendo utilizada actualmente como entrenamiento de habilidades comunicativas en las empresas con maravillosos resultados. También en el campo del deporte y salud. Aplicada a la educación, es una herramienta espectacular para que el aprendizaje fluya en forma natural, y también en casos donde ciertos bloqueos emocionales o intelectuales impiden el normal desarrollo del proceso de aprendizaje. La utilización de las técnicas de PNL aceleran el logro de objetivos, ayudando a los alumnos a alcanzar metas que ellos mismos fijan en forma altamente eficaz.

Los resultados de la aplicación de la PNL a las clases son espectaculares, ya que combinan el trabajo del docente que sabe cómo aprende cada persona en particular y adapta su metodología de acuerdo a esto, con un alto nivel de motivación por parte del alumno. De esta manera se intensifica la capacidad innata que tenemos TODOS los seres humanos de aprender cosas nuevas, y, sobre todo,

¡disfrutar el proceso!

(adaptado del libro:Aprendiendo inglés y disfrutando el proceso de Laura Szmuch, Ed. Dunken)

Para más información: lauraszmuch@gmail.com

En febrero… ¡el curso que estabas buscando!

Curso de presentaciones eficaces

16-19 de febrero


En este intensivo de cuatro días para educadores, coaches, counsellors y todo aquel que habla en público, cubriremos tanto teoría como práctica para maximizar tu potencial como presentador efectivo.

Preparación de tu presentación - diferentes estilos y posibilidades.
Nutriendo la voz
Cómo redactor propuestas para congresos y otros eventos
Comunicándonos con diferentes tipos de audiencias
Conociendo y preparándote para un determinado tipo de público
Manejo de la tecnología
Cómo manejar situaciones inesperadas y situaciones temidas
Cómo optimizar tus estados internos
Movimientos y gestos
Uso del espacio
Uso del humor
Compartiendo el scenario
Entre otros…



Presentaciones eficaces

Temario



Objetivos de las presentaciones
Tipos de presentaciones (definición y distinciones)
El presentador efectivo y no efectivo
Aspectos de una buena presentación
Adquisición de recursos
Cómo escribir una biodata
Trabajo sobre la voz y la respiración
Llamados a ponencias
Propuestas para congresos
Material impreso para participantes
Preparación de la presentación: objetivos, selección de material, manejo de tiempos, pasos
Canales sensoriales, hemisferios derecho e izquierdo
Material durante la presentación: cuadernillos, powerpoint, etc
Presentaciones individuales o conjuntas
Diferentes tipos de audiencias
Trabajo interno sobre inseguridades en el escenario
Manejo del espacio, movimientos, gestos, contacto visual, lenguaje verbal y no verbal
Manejo de la tecnología
El uso del humor
Manejo de estados internos



El curso dura cuatro días. Tiene muchísima práctica, y, sobre todo, trabajo sobre uno mismo, percepciones, creencias, postura corporal, uso apropiado de la voz.

Ideal para docentes, coaches, counsellors, presentadores en congresos, talleristas, estudiantes, y todo aquel que en algún momento tiene que hablar delante de un público.
Fechas:
16-19 Febrero 9.00 – 17.00

Para más informes o para registrar:

cursospnl.laura@gmail.com

jamie@resourcefulteaching.com.ar