Comment:

The outcomes of learning.

Professor Kalantzis talked about learning where the outcome is expressed in a test. She said: “if we want people who are problem solvers, who are creative, who are lifelong learners, the doing is as important as the thinking that's represented in some kind of test”. She later asked: “So how do we capture doing”? This is the same question I have been asking myself until now. How will an educator rate the learners and what are the metrics?

Years ago, when I was teaching undergraduates, I almost always give essays that are situational and hypothetical in nature. My rationale is to assess their understanding of the lessons and how they can apply their knowledge in a given scenario. It was very challenging to read hundreds of essays at a given time, but it was both eye-opening and rewarding. Honestly, I was always skeptical about how I rated them individually. I was always concerned about whether I rated the individual without my preconceived biases and feelings at that time.

I am not in favor of standardized tests or board exams as a way to validate a person’s knowledge or skill because it cannot measure the intangibles. Test-takers who are good at rote memorization will almost always excel. However, I have yet to see alternatives to licensure examinations.

So far, the question of “how to capture doing” is not yet answered in this lecture.

Update:

What strikes me about this talk by the Education Secretary in 2016 is when she said that The Department of Education’s system is now learner-centered, contrary to the traditional (didactic pedagogy) teacher-centered or book-centered system. This is in reference to the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013 or the K-12. The problem that I see in this rhetoric is… it’s just rhetoric. It is a great, wonderful and perhaps, even a sincere statement. However, a generation of students is going through experiments that do not provide the expected result. In fact, 15-year-old learners rank last among 79 countries in reading comprehension and also end up in the low 70s in mathematics and science according to a report by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2018. In addition, students also ranked low in mathematics and science, with 353 points and 357 points respectively against a 489 OECD average for both categories. With the dismal result of the study, the Education Secretary said: “We FINALLY (emphasis is mine) need to respond to the biggest lingering challenge of basic education in the country – quality, particularly of our students’ learning outcomes”. This quote implies that the Department of Education did nothing to improve the educational system in the country since the K-12 was implemented in 2012. It only recognized the urgency that something needs to be done when the appalling result of the study was published. If learning through a learner-centered system (authentic pedagogy) yields a worse result, is it safe to assume it is not effective? Does it mean that when learners actively engage in their own learning, it doesn’t work? If so, then what shall we do?

I acknowledge that transitioning through change is not as smooth sailing as one would hope for. Shifting from the traditional or didactic pedagogy to authentic pedagogy would surprise learners because they are not used to it. Now, there is a new pedagogical approach called transformative, which would overwhelm educators who are new to the idea. However, when educators realize that they have been participating in a transformative pedagogical approach for a while now when they join forums or even social media groups, it would be easier for them to design an integrative approach to their teaching.

References:

Leonor Briones. Social Good Summit 2016: DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones on teaching tomorrow’s innovators. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OsVJuKkaQY

Republic Act No. 10533. https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/2013/05/15/republic-act-no-10533/

The Philippines ranks last among 79 countries in reading comprehension, and also ends up in the low 70s in mathematics and science. https://www.rappler.com/nation/philippines-ranking-reading-math-science-pisa-study-2018.