In our final assignment for Foundations of Learning and Technologies, we were asked to predict the future of education, learning, and teaching in 2030. Here is my speculative future for K-12 education. Enjoy!
To predict the future, one must look to the past. In the near future, education continues to evolve and iterate around awareness of respectful design (Grandoit-Sutka, n.d.). Over time this concept grew into the dominant force shaping the future of K-12 education. The idea of respectful design was formed in response to various societal concerns that were present in the early 2000s-2020s. Using this timeframe as evidence, the future of teaching, learning, and education in the K-12 public education system will use respectful design in response to those decades’ societal concerns, specifically awareness of diverse perspectives and environmental awareness in teaching and learning (Grandoit-Sutka, n.d.). What is presented here is a potential glimpse into the not-so-distant future of 2030; a place where society has taken a critical look into its past and attempted to instill measures to promote positive change.
The term respectful design is not so much a definition as a way of being; it revolves around respect: respect for cultures, environment, gender, and abilities (Grandoit-Sutka, n.d.). Regarding design and education, respectful design reflects these varied perspectives (Grandoit-Sutka, n.d.). The classroom of 2030 promotes inclusivity by choosing technology tools that are diverse and equitable, promoting the ideals of respect for all (MacGilchrist et al., 2020). One technology tool in use in the 2030 classroom is open educational resources (OER). OER are free online materials used for educational purposes and are of varied mediums; they also follow the standards of retention, reuse, revision, remixing, and redistribution (Liao, 2018). Some examples of OER in the 2030 classroom are lesson plans, online textbooks, and videos (Liao, 2018). OER reflects respectful design in that it is available to everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status, and removes barriers to diverse perspectives, allowing an open platform for everyone (MacGilchrist et al., 2020). Not only does it allow for diverse content, but OER is customizable (Liao, 2018). Teachers in 2030 are adapting and choosing OER to suit their classes’ cultural and diverse makeup and abilities. Students now have access to more voices from varied backgrounds, leading to a more holistic worldview and different ways of thinking.
Another aspect of respectful design is illustrated in the 2030s use of technology usable for all, including differently-abled students. In the 2010s and 2020s, concerns were raised about technological barriers for students with diverse needs (Kaczorowski et al., 2022). Educators in the classroom of 2030 are assessing technology to ensure that it reflects many abilities. Teachers are required to take courses in respectful design, either during their initial introduction into education or as part of professional development opportunities. In these courses, they receive training in accessing and implementing frameworks that help reflect the current class culture, ensuring that all students are included. Furthermore, technology is evaluated consistently to ensure that it is culturally reflective, accessible to all abilities, and supported by pedagogy (Kaczorowski et al., 2022).
An example of a respectful design framework is seen in Figure 1 (see Appendix A). This framework illustrates a collaborative and respectful design approach when selecting representative technologies. For example, it is collaborative between teachers, parents and students, allowing multiple perspectives for integration. It also calls for a review of the technology itself, ensuring that no inherent biases or assumptions are present in the technologies’ design or functionality. This framework’s explore and alter stages ask educators to examine other options that may increase diverse perspectives. This can tie back to OER, which is also being used in the classrooms of 2030. Finally, advocating to publishers and designers about inclusivity and respectful design allows inclusivity and diversity to be at the forefront of organizations’ minds. Because of leaders advocating for change during the 2020s, OER and respectful design are now commonplace in the K-12 classrooms of the future.
Teaching and learning in 2030 reflect another societal concern of the early twenty-first century: environmental impact. Growing anxiety about extreme weather, limited natural resources, and climate change were at the forefront of peoples’ minds throughout this time (Government of Canada, 2022). Nevertheless, the 2000s-2020s neglected to see the harmful effects of digital technology on the environment. As Selwyn stated in the late 2010s, society had an “…entitled sense of digital abundance.” (Selwyn, 2021, p.501). There was little regard for the effects of consistently replacing technology and its associated hardware devices. This was to become more apparent in the mid to late 2020s, as costs continued to rise for raw materials and access to limited natural resources became problematic; the unsustainable pace of growth in technology became known (Selwyn, 2021). To mitigate the increasing demand on the environment, select school districts in British Columbia (BC), Canada, began pilot projects focusing on “computing within limits”; a mindset that focuses on technology supporting well-being while remaining within global environmental limits (Nardi et al., 2018).
Select BC classrooms in 2030 have instituted several measures that fit the “computing within limits” ideal (Nardi et al., 2018). Firstly, teachers now attend off-campus meetings or conferences online through remote video conferencing software. By meeting virtually instead of taking transit, there are decreased environmental costs, although not entirely negated (Nardi et al., 2018). Secondly, purchasing decisions on technology for classrooms and schools will focus on durability and quality, not necessarily following the current fad (Selwyn, 2021). This means that many technological tools are refurbished, helping to dispel the decades’ previous notion of limitless technology and putting less strain on our resources and reducing the amount of e-waste (Selwyn et al., 2020). Finally, when acquiring technology in 2030, school districts, administrators, and purchasers are working towards mandatory implementation of Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tools (EPEAT) to assess the impact of technology purchases on the environment (United Nations, n.d.). The continued development of the EPEAT ecolabel database provides comprehensive criteria for environmentally conscious technologies, while also listing technologies that have been allocated an EPEAT ecolabel certification (Global Electronics Council, n.d.). This allows school districts easy access to a multitude of verified products that meet environmentally sound criteria. By assessing the environmental impact of technologies, school districts can make greener choices to help alleviate the strain on our environment (Selwyn, 2021).
By implementing respectful design practices in K-12 classrooms in 2030, schools recognize the need to address and change the societal issues of the early 2000s-2020s, though these changes do not come without challenges. Even though OER and respectful design principles are being promoted and implemented in 2030s classrooms, not all teachers have bought in. Teachers may not take advantage of the professional development opportunities offered, and often state that there is not enough time to implement these new ideas, leading to inconsistent implementation (Delaney, 2011).
Another challenge faced by 2030s classrooms is the computing within limits ideal. Although schools are purchasing refurbished technology and focusing on sustainability with more durable, reliable products, these efforts make little impact on the environment (Selwyn, 2021). For significant changes to happen, a societal shift in our behaviours and actions must occur (Selwyn, 2021). These kinds of significant shifts in global communities could take generations to develop.
The future looks promising in the K-12 classrooms of 2030. This generation attempts to address the issues of the past by implementing core aspects of respectful design. K-12 classrooms use OER to reflect the diversity of their classrooms while promoting varied perspectives and removing barriers. Educators are ngaged in implementing respectful design frameworks that allow for varying abilities, perspectives, and class compositions. Finally, select future classrooms are involved in sustainable technology practices that are cognizant of the harmful effects of technology on our environment. Yet these future classrooms of 2030 are far from perfect. Challenges remain with teacher training and buy-in, and efforts to employ more sustainable technology have insignificant environmental effects. Despite these challenges, what remains optimistic about the 2030s is that they are willing to look critically at the past and take action to secure a better future.
References
Delaney, M. (2011, November 1). Training teachers to implement technology. EdTech Magazine. https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2011/11/training-teachers-integrate-technology
Global Electronics Council, (n.d.). Overview of the EPEAT ecolabel. https://www.epeat.net/about-epeat
Government of Canada, (2022, May 20). Climate change adaptation in Canada. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/climate-change-adapting-impacts-and-reducing-emissions/what-adaptation/10025
Grandoit-Sutka, A., (n.d.). Elizabeth (Dori) Tunstall on designing for respect. deem journal. https://www.deemjournal.com/stories/dori-tunstall
Kaczorowski, T., McMahon, D., Gardiner-Walsh, S., & Hollingshead, A. (2022). Designing an Inclusive Future: Including Diversity and Equity With Innovations in Special Education Technology. TEACHING Exceptional Children, 0(0), https://doi.org/10.1177/00400599221090506
Kaczorowski, T., McMahon, D., Gardiner-Walsh, S., & Hollingshead, A. (2022). Reflective cycle for selecting technologies representative of diverse learners [Infographic]. TEACHING Exceptional Children, 0(0), https://doi.org/10.1177/00400599221090506
Liao, Y. (2018). Open Educational Resources. In A. Ottenbreit-Leftwich & R. Kimmons, The K-12 Educational Technology Handbook. EdTech Books. Retrieved from https://edtechbooks.org/k12handbook/oer
Macgilchrist, F., Allert, H., & Bruch, A. (2020). Students and society in the 2020s. three future ‘histories’ of education and technology. Learning, Media and Technology, 45(1), 76–89. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439884.2019.1656235
Nardi, B., Tomlinson, B., Patterson, D.J., Chen, J., Pargman, D., Raghavan, B., & Penzenstadler, B., (2018). Computing within limits. Communications of the ACM, 61 (10), 86-93. https://doi.org/10.1145/3183582
Selwyn, N., Hillman, T., Eynon, R., Ferreira, G., Knox, J., Macgilchrist, F., & Sanch-Gil, J.M. (2020). What’s next for Ed-Tech? Critical hopes and concerns for the 2020s. Learning, Media and Technology 45 (1), https://doi.org/10.1080/17439884.2020.1694945
Selwyn, N. (2021). Ed-Tech Within Limits: Anticipating educational technology in times of environmental crisis. E-Learning and Digital Media, 18 (5), https://doi.org/10.1177/20427530211022951
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Sustainable Development, (n.d.). The electronic product environmental assessment tool. https://sdgs.un.org/partnerships/electronic-product-environmental-assessment-tool
Appendix A
Figure 1
Reflective cycle for selecting technologies representative of diverse learners
Note. This image was created to illustrate the process of selecting technology based on diverse perspectives and abilities. From “Designing an Inclusive Future: Including Diversity and Equity With Innovations in Special Education Technology”, by T. Kaczorowski, D. MacMahon, and A. Hollingshead, 2022, TEACHING Exceptional Children, 0(0), (https://doi.org/10.1177/00400599221090506).