By Laura McClure on February 12, 2016 in TED-Ed Innovative Educators

What’s the future of education? How will students learn differently? What will the schools of the future look like? We asked TED-Ed Innovative Educators to share their ideas. Their answers are provocative, contradictory — and make for great conversation starters. Welcome to the “Choose Your Own Adventure” future of learning.

There will be more creativity in education.
“Because that’s what careers will require. Education will be not just taking in information and sharing it back, but also figuring out what to do with that information in the real world.” —Josefino Rivera, Jr., educator in Buenos Aires, Argentina

The classroom will be one big makerspace.
“Technology like Evernote, Google, and Siri will be standard and will change what teachers value and test for. Basically, if you can ask Siri to answer a question, then you will not be evaluated on that. Instead, learning will be project based. Students will be evaluated on critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. Literature and math will still be taught, but they will be taught differently. Math will be taught as a way of learning how to solve problems and puzzles. In literature, students will be asked what a story means to them. Instead of taking tests, students will show learning through creative projects. The role of teachers will be to guide students in the areas where they need guidance as innovators. How do you get kids to be innovative? You let them. You get out of their way.” —Nicholas Provenzano, educator in Michigan, United States

“How do you get kids to be innovative? You let them. You get out of their way.”

There will be no physical campus.
“Instead, students will learn in traveling classrooms, and the real world will be their campus. Students will live together and use city libraries and city laboratories to complete a project. Learning won’t be limited to a physical school. There’s already a model for this: Minerva Schools, a venture university.” —Hyuk Jang, educator in Busan, South Korea

Students will learn that nothing is impossible.
“Education will instill the idea that anything that is not possible now will be possible in the future. Let’s make that part of education.” —Kristine Sargsyan, educator in Yerevan, Armenia

Education will look nothing like it does now.
“Schools will be multidisciplinary, with a focus on social justice. You have to change the world to change the classroom, and right now, the difference between the poor and rich districts is huge.” —Eduardo Godoy, educator in Sao Paulo, Brazil

Will schools even exist in 2050?
“Is teaching a dying profession? If not, then the classroom will change a lot. I don’t think schools will exist in the same format, with desks and chairs. Instead, learning will incorporate virtual reality and multiple perspectives. Students will learn how to negotiate issues and exchange ideas.” —Sharon Hadar, educator in Raanana, Israel

So long as there is a workplace… there will be schools.
“The K-12 experience for students also provides societal infrastructure that allows for a working class. By 2050, the ‘World of Work’ will have little resemblance to what it is today. We should hope this to be the case for schools as well. If we begin by helping children to identify their strengths, interests and values — and then dedicate time in school to cultivating them towards exploring where each child’s unique place in the world might be — I think we’ll be on the right path regardless of what new technologies or advances in learning become available. — David Miyashiro, Superintendent, Cajon Valley Union School District, California, United States

School design will be very security oriented.
“Because of school shootings, there will be safe rooms. Climate change will lead to more extreme weather-related school closings, and as a result, schools will become a hub, a place where students go occasionally when they need it.” —Shannon Brake, educator in Kansas, United States

Alternately, school design won’t change much.
“The classroom hasn’t changed much in the past 50 years. Even the bell design is the same as it was 50 years ago.” —Vicki Albritton, educator in Georgia, United States

I can't speak for the rest of the world, but as a Canadian and as a teacher, I have seen how our education system has been failing our children and our communities. As an active committee member with the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario, I am witnessing and seeing first hand how our schools are not preparing our children for the world around them. I am learning from my mentees that the education system swings from one side to the other side when it comes to educating our youth. There doesn't seem to be a balance in between the two and because of that, the next generation suffers.

So I have taken up the fight to help support and bring change to our education system by researching the strategies that different countries/cultures, who are considered to have the best education practices, use worldwide! With this new knowledge, I hope to develop a curriculum that embodies these effective practices to be used in the future to change the direction of education in Ontario, Canada, Asgardian, and the World!. But I cannot do it alone.

Fellow Asgardians, please help me by sharing your thoughts and ideas about what makes education engaging to you! What would you like to see happen/changed in the classroom that would motivate others to strive for higher learning and achievement!

Every little idea, expression, and comment helps to paint a bigger picture of the needs that need to be met!

Let us work together to build the idea to make the reality.

H.M.

Greetings my Fellow Asgardians,

Welcome to my Q&A thread where you can ask me how I would represent you if I were a member of government! Education is an important matter to me! We are all lifelong learners who never stop learning! Let us embody this notion and build an education system that reaches beyond the cosmos.

Click on the 'Space Nation' subheading at the top of the page. In the drop down menu, click on 'Elections'. Once you have accepted the Asgardian Constitution, at the bottom of the page click on ' Apply to Run in the Elections' then 'Click on the 'VOTE' button. From there, you can search by my username, or scroll down the candidate list to find me. Thank you for your support! May we all come together to build a brighter future!

~Shoot for the Moon! Even if we miss we'll land amongst the stars!~

Fellow Asgardians, my name is Hasina Makivic and I am announcing my candidacy for a seat in Government! I am an Elementary/High School teacher who strives to educate the young to become innovative and creative thinkers.  Education is the key to success and growth in any community! I would like to contribute my knowledge and passion for teaching to help nurture our future! By electing me, we would ensure that there is a body in the government that is passionate about the education of its citizens young and old and who will strive to build an education system that takes pride in growing intellectual, creative and passionate citizens!

May you vote for me in the coming elections!

Thank you for your consideration and belief in me during this historic event!

H.M

Fellow Asgardians, my name is Hasina Makivic and I am announcing my candidacy for a seat in Government! I am an Elementary/High School teacher who strives to educate the young to become innovative and creative thinkers.  Education is the key to success and growth in any community! I would like to contribute my knowledge and passion for teaching to help nurture our future! By electing me, we would ensure that there is a body in the government that is passionate about the education of its citizens young and old and who will strive to build an education system that takes pride in growing intellectual, creative and passionate citizens!

I ask the community for support at this time. I am in need of two recommendations to make my candidacy a reality! Please express your interest in becoming one of my recommendations in the chat below.

Thank you for your consideration and belief in me during this historic event!

H.M