Face The Fight
Who wants to face problems in their life? Like really face them, sit down, assess the situation, examine the data, foresee the possible results and their effects. Nobody. If anything, we prefer to just have fun and live the life, apart from the times that the problem is too intriguing to be left at peace. And think not only of big time problems; deep clean the house, perfectly organize the upcoming week which looks like you’ll be carrying a cross on your back, make a very serious conversation with a person, not only about the superficial issues, but the ones that really matter, the hard ones. It’s a fuzz! Anybody in their right mind, just wants and needs everything to just be good, easygoing, and without needing to waste so much good time and energy, even if that is far, far away from reality.
Because it is. We’ve all cut corners while cleaning the house, and we all had to do it again, for a second time, the right way this time. We tried getting through a tough week without a plan, and it went bad, and probably, at some point in our lives, we have hidden matters under the blanket, instead of talking and resolving them, and boy, oh boy, did it go wrong.
Problems are problems, and for them to stop being a pain, we have to really dive in, with passion, no quick fixes, understand the situation, and fight to resolve it. Otherwise, the joke is on us.
Modern Problems, Modern Solutions
Considering that the structure of today’s education can give us a picture of the Future World, we can probably predict what is waiting for us around the corner. Let us not waste time. The news is good and bad. Good news first, so that we build some strength. Today’s Education is more modern than ever. Thankfully, the last generations did not perpetuate the “career madness”; not that going after a career is wrong, quite the opposite. But the focus is changing, towards a more holistic and inclusive educational approach; an Education that is pushing forward…but feels tied up.
And here we go with the bad news. The practices, methodologies, the ways and norms which shape Education, feel old and tired, kind of washed-up too, not allowing teaching and learning to shine in their full potential. Combining that, with the chaos the Covid era brought, and we are standing in front of a hit-hard Education, that was not ready for what had just arrived.
Surely, there were and are, serious steps being taken, in order to level things up. Digitalization of Educational practices is definitely the most important one. E-learning platforms, student forums, educational communication applications, digital classes, and on-line courses. On one hand, that is the future of Education, the whole world even; it seems however that it did not solve the problem.
Because, as already mentioned, for the problem to be solved, we skip the quick-fixes, and we procced with a deep, deep cleaning.
Reimagine Distance Learning
Nothing needs to be cleaned of course, as nothing is dirty. A euphemism it is, as in redefining the needs, and proceeding with developing the solution. Reimagine Distance Learning, was born on that exact concept. It does not solely focus on the digital arsenal, the tools developed and applied on educational practices, as the traditional methodologies often class with the mentioned tools. Instead, it focuses on developing a wider creative and digital educational culture, one that shall not only have the tools, but also the skills and competences, the know-how to design quality and engaging educational paths.
In really simple words, it is not enough for educators to learn how to use an online teaching platform, or deliver courses via an internet class. Certainly, it is of essence, especially now that the digital world is an integral part of Education. What is equally important however, is for educators to be able to adapt the educational material, to build their classes and teaching approaches on the new data, in order to not only maintain the quality of the process, but also to be able to develop innovative educational methodologies.
The Instructional Design Methodology
Instructional Design is a field that combines education, psychology, and communication methods, in order to develop the most effective and efficient curriculum for the respective group of students. An Instructional Design Method refers to the approach a designer takes when developing a new system of instruction. Surely, the approach may vary from case to case, however, the methods are usually similar on their fundamental nature, as, in order for them to be developed, the character and goals of the target audience are assessed.
This ensures that students acquire knowledge in a way that is specifically effective and meaningful to them, helping them better understand and connect with, the subjects and principles being taught.
Considering the above, we can state that Reimagine Distance Learning focuses not only on developing educators’ skills and competences on digital tools, but mainly on creating a digital educational culture, which will eventually lead towards innovative distant teaching and learning methodologies to be applied on the curriculum.
So It Begins
Reimagine Distance Learning is a part of the general attempt of redefining adult Education. We imagine the future, we imagine change, we imagine no limits. For a world to become a better place, Education is the first place to look at.
