In a recent paper* we describe three education scenarios and ask youth to respond to them. Positioned in 2033, these futures represent three distinct possibilities for what education could look like in a decade. I’m curious what others think about them, and I’ll post one per day here, as my “back to school return to reviving this blog.” What are your reactions, thoughts, and feelings to this one? I’d love to know!
Future 2: The year is 2033. After a period of instability brought about by the disastrous effects of climate change, biodiversity loss, and global conflict, higher education has become totally focused on addressing these crises. Earlier efforts have been vastly scaled up to focus education resources on supporting climate justice for the most vulnerable people and places in the world. Universities have become hubs of local knowledge and places for community cultural and scientific development. In these spaces students develop climate and peoplefriendly trades and skills. They also develop their critical and creative thinking focused on decolonization and anti-racism. Learning happens through projects and through solving local problems, and learners of all ages join programs based on interest, curiosity, and community need.
The second future – the university for local community and local knowledge – pivots towards more regenerative forms of education, with a focus on systems-level solutions to imagined disasters of the next decade. With respect to anticipatory regimes, this future departs from the strict techno-utilitarian approach to embrace more relational modes of teaching and learning. Universities in this scenario have a mission grounded in justice and supporting knowledge for communities, with an emphasis on inter-generational learning relevant to specific places. This scenario is more utopian in its vision, even as it contends with a proposed future history of increasing climate and ecological catastrophe.
* published in the the inaugural issue of the Journal of Open, Distance, and Digital education (see a review by Tony Bates).
Derek Moore
Hello George.
So this scenario reminds me of the comment made by Edward O. Wilson, when asked whether humans would be able to solve the crises that would confront them over the next 100 years. He answered yes, smart people could work towards something. But he added that the problem was our humanity and our “Paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions and godlike technology.” I recently saw and participated in a model of education that addressed all these three issues. https://we-are-ols.org/ Code of conduct to make sure we were all on the same page. Mentorship and cohort meetings are held every week, with a capstone project at the end (much better than your average lecture). And then tech was not godlike at all. Our conversations took place on Zoom, but our interactions were took place on an etherpad and Slack was where we chatted informally. I liked this model.