We've got a fantastic coffee mug at the Fordham office, gifted to us by the kind folks over at the Schwab Foundation. On it is printed a single cartoon image, two boys standing outside a classroom holding white pieces of paper. The caption on the bottom of the picture says: ?Big deal, an A in math. That would be a D in any other country.?
The recent PISA results shocked America into a heightened sense of global educational awareness. For the first time in a long time?since Sputnik some have argued?policymakers and pundits are now, en masse, peering into the bowels of education systems abroad. They're dissecting the teaching profession in Finland (it's true that the Finns only accept the top 10 percent of college graduates into teacher preparation programs) and ogling over the curriculum in Singapore.
But they're all missing key exemplars?and the point of the whole exercise to begin with. If America is to regain its prominence in the international arena, it must look to all nations for best practice notions. Focusing solely on those who fit into the top 5 percent of PISA scorers will ensure that we draw policies from the best, from those nations that have found their ideal education cocktail. But ignoring those below us will also ignore some key ingredients in our own magical education elixir.
The digital-learning sphere is a prime example of this close-mindedness. Nations across the developing world have been experimenting with online learning, blended learning, and even mobile learning, for decades. The trend is just beginning to catch on in the States. And we would do well to remove the blinders and take a long, hard look at what these nations have been doing.
In the developing world, education technology?on all fronts, from computers in the classroom to mobile learning via small networked laptops?is called ICT4E (information and communication technology for education). And it has been an integral component of education strategies in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and across Asia since the advent of the personal computer.
And, while America is still leaps and bounds above these ?least developed nations? in terms of access to technology, we'd be foolish not to see?and take note of?the lessons they can teach us.
We've got a shortage of foreign language teachers in America at present?at least of foreign language teachers with a French, German, Spanish, or even Chinese native tongue. To ameliorate this, we bring in Fulbright teachers. And, yes, we turn to Hanban to supply some as well. But what if we took a play from the Bangladeshi playbook?
In this poor neighbor of India, persons interested in learning English can text ?3000? and listen to hundreds of English-language lessons thanks to a group called BBC Janala. The cost? Two cents for every three minutes of lesson. Since the launch of BBC Janala in November of 2009, 3.1 million people have accessed the service.
In sub-Saharan Africa, programs like Virtual School Nigeria provide exam-prep materials and practice assessments via mobile phone. For the past six years, the E-Learning Africa summit has met annually to hash out conversations around open education resources (like those gaining prominence through the Khan Academy) and the links between curriculum and content. In the States, mobile-learning programs are just beginning to find their way into the education arena.
Of course there are lessons to be learned from Shanghai, from Singapore, and from Helsinki. But pulling best practices from these systems, without allowing ourselves to investigate those of others, is shortsighted at best and debilitative at worst. Instead of waiting for another country to supersede us in achievement?via brick-and-mortar or virtual means?we'd do well to stockpile appropriate and smart lessons from wherever they may present themselves.
?Daniela Fairchild
