The New Classroom written by Cathy N. Davidson & Christina Katopodis is a book aimed at changing the way educators teach and the way students learn in the classroom. I had the privilege of seeing this wonderful book unveiled at the CUNY Graduate Center via zoom, and I must say as a student myself the points made by Cathy Davidson & Christina Katopodis were surprisingly refreshing and cutting edge.
The very first point that stood out to me during the presentation was the state of our American education system today, a key point highlighted was the fact that our education system has not really changed much since the 1800s. The current system is built around an industrial model and is not current or up to date with 21st-century methods. Indeed, as a student, I share similar sentiments as one of the main criticism of our current model is the lack of student-centric learning.
Student Centric Learning
So, what is student-centric learning? As Cathy Davidson & Christina Katopodis highlighted in their presentation at the CUNY Graduate Center, student-centric learning methodologies revolve around the idea of active learning. Actively allowing students to engage in course materials via small group discussions and problem-based learning. There is a lot of research that backs and supports this modality of teaching which ultimately places the emphasis on students being responsible for their own learning and educators creating a conducive atmosphere to facilitate excitement around learning.
Inciting Learning
Another amazing point highlighted during this presentation is that the learning process itself can be “incited” Audre Lorde once said that “the learning process is something you can incite, really incite, like a riot”. I found this statement to be very true and the book The New Classroom seeks to give educators the necessary tools to really ignite and spark the learning process. This would be huge as creating this spark in the learning process and catering to the various learning styles of students could really improve overall student performance and boast morale when it comes to pursuing higher education. The new classroom aims to not only change the classroom as we know it, but also aims to change the world as we know it
References
“The New College Classroom.” Harvard.edu, https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674248854. Accessed 26 Sept. 2022.
“Copy Right Free Student Clipart – Google Search.” Google.com, Accessed 26 Sept. 2022.
“Industrial Classroom vs Today – Búsqueda de Google.” Google.com, . Accessed 26 Sept. 2022.
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