Why is alternative education important? Is it even effective? Let’s look at the relevance of alternative learning movements in our modern world.
Advantages of Alternative Education
Alternative education movements are an alternative option to the traditional way of learning. This in itself is an advantage as it offers a different way of thinking about how children learn.
Alternative education movements don’t take the one-size-fits-all approach to learning. Instead, they attempt to take into account our changing world, and the flexible curricula aims to adapt learning to suit the needs of children better.
Alternative education usually looks at learning holistically. Often child-centered, alternative learning aims to help students personalize their educational journey and learn in a way that best suits them. Many of these alternative models value collaboration, imagination, and creativity. This approach to learning aims to create independent and autonomous thinkers who are self-aware while valuing community participation and global citizenship.
If anything, alternative education movements act as a foil for traditional systems and allow policymakers and institutions to change and adapt traditional methods to suit modern students.
Disadvantages of Alternative Education
There are some disadvantages of alternative forms of education. Many are cost-prohibitive, which makes them exclusionary. They often require specialized equipment, training, and facilities which naturally increases costs compared with traditional schools. Many fringe educational schools are private with high tuition. This makes them less accessible to minority and previously disadvantaged groups.
Children educated in an alternative system may struggle to integrate into areas of society as adults. It’s possible they will lack the normative experiences the majority of traditionally educated children have, and they may find it harder to relate to peers.
Although many alternative education movements call for diversity and inclusion, the small schools and cost of access mean that these principles are difficult to live up to.
Alternative ways of learning don’t follow traditional schools’ structured curriculum-based system, which can lead to knowledge gaps. When children are left to direct their learning, they may fail to learn important basic concepts. Some forms of alternative education are less regulated than mainstream schooling, which means children’s rights are not protected and upheld.
Current trends in global education
Education has remained almost unchanged for the last 100 years, except for a few alternative education fringe movements. But 2019 shook up the world of education with sporadic school closures, inequitable access, and distance and online learning. The challenges traditional schools have faced recently brought to light some changes that may need to be considered in global education moving forward.
The Brookings Institution’s Center for Universal Education says that a trend moving forward is strengthening the global education system. It involves innovative financing for education and re-examining how we prioritize learning in and out of schools.
There will be an emphasis on skills development and digital technology’s role in the classroom. The current trend in global education is working towards collaboration, communication, and critical thinking. There is a shift towards educating the ‘whole child’ rather than emphasizing academics.
Impact of technology on education
The classroom teaching methods haven’t changed much, but technology certainly has. Textbooks, overhead projectors, and chalkboards are less common in modern classrooms. Instead, you may see smart boards, iPads, and sophisticated technology centers.
Technology, in many cases, has expanded access to education through the online world. It has opened up opportunities for communication and collaboration. Many students not only have access to other students worldwide but can also engage in multi-disciplinary learning. For example, students studying the Arctic could follow a scientific expedition, read their blogs, view photos, and even email the scientists’ questions.
In many cases, technology has changed teachers’ roles in the classroom setting. Alison King says there is a shift from the ‘sage on the stage’ to a ‘guide on the side’ approach to teaching. Many teachers are spending less time transmitting information to students and more time working as a facilitator while students engage more actively with the learning material. Technology has enabled many students to take more responsibility for their learning.
But it has also shown disparities in school resources, which may disadvantage students with limited access. There is also a rise in low-tech schools that value human interaction and engagement, particularly in the early years.
Criticisms of the traditional education system
If you looked at pictures of classrooms from around the world, they would show a similar situation, a teacher at the front of the class providing students with information. The traditional school system and its teach-to-test philosophy have not changed much. The one-size-fits-all approach may not work for all students or deliver material in a way that suits different learning styles.
The current school system has a transmission approach to learning rather than a skills-based approach through experiences and discovery. With a rigid structure and curricula, traditional schools may not require critical thinking, independence, or autonomy from their students. Our world is changing rapidly, so it may be worth considering an approach to education that aims to help students be more flexible and develop the skills they need to compete in a diverse and technological world.
Re-imagining education for our modern world
Education is a contentious issue, but it is also vital for children’s success as they grow. So what will education need to look like moving forward?
There is a definite drive to personalize education with flexible curricula that is culturally relevant. Students may need to be collaborative, creative, innovative, and tech-savvy to compete and thrive in a modern job market. In our ever-evolving world, there is a move towards project-based learning that aims to develop skills and entrepreneurial spirit through critical thinking and multi-dimensional learning.
The school system is well established, but it is starting to integrate modern subjects from which future learners will benefit. Topics such as coding, design, sustainability, and financial literacy are essential to incorporate into modern schools.
In an interconnected world, schools can re-imagine their learning spaces. They have the opportunity to design educational spaces that nurture and challenge students.
