The Classroom Revolution: Rethinking Education

Walk into many classrooms in England today, and you might be forgiven for thinking you've stepped back in time. Rows of desks, a teacher at the front, textbooks open – it's a scene that would be familiar to our grandparents. Yet the world outside these walls has changed beyond recognition. We're preparing children for a future we can scarcely imagine, using methods from the past. 

I got the privilege of going to a school open evening recently where the headteacher waltzed in his black cape, rolled through his PowerPoint presentation we had seen three years earlier when our eldest daughter was visiting schools, and then proudly announced something which made me squirm in my seat: 

“We are proud to announce that we have banned mobile phones for nine years. They are a scourge on society and although we can’t control what children do outside of school, we can control what they do inside it.”

I. Kid. You. Not.

It's time for a classroom revolution.

Our current educational system, born in the crucible of the Industrial Revolution, is woefully ill-equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century. We're still mass-producing students as if they were widgets on an assembly line, when what we need are creative thinkers, problem-solvers, and lifelong learners.

But let's be clear: this isn't about throwing the baby out with the bathwater. It's about taking a hard look at what works, what doesn't, and why. It's about challenging our assumptions and asking difficult questions. 

What if everything we thought we knew about education was wrong?

In this piece today, my aim is to explore my philosophy of education – one that puts the learner at the centre, that recognises the diversity of human potential, and that prepares our children not just for exams, but for life. I think it might be a multi-parter but to be fair, I will do my best just to give an oversight today. Wish me luck!

We'll look into the psychology of learning, drawing on cutting-edge research to inform our approach. We'll examine innovative practices from across the UK and beyond. And we'll ask some fundamental questions: What if we truly believed that every child matters? What if we designed our educational system around how children actually learn, rather than how we think they should be taught?

Throughout this, we'll touch on several key themes:

1. The genuine inclusion of every child

2. The distinction between learning and teaching

3. The purpose and practice of assessment

4. The potential of personalised, on-demand education

5. The cultivation of creativity and curiosity

6. The creation of truly inclusive learning environments

7. The place of technology

These aren't just academic considerations. They're the building blocks of our society's future. As we grapple with unprecedented global challenges – from climate change to artificial intelligence – the quality of our education system has never been more critical.

It sounds trite but I think we will go on a bit of a journey of educational reimagining together. It won't be comfortable. It will challenge our preconceptions and perhaps ruffle a few feathers. But if we get it right, we might just revolutionise the way we prepare the next generation for the world they'll inherit.

More Than Lip Service: The Psychology of Meeting Needs

"Every child matters." It's a mantra we've heard ad nauseam in British schools for nearly two decades. But in practice, it's often more slogan than substance. The gap between rhetoric and reality in our education system is not something I’m proud of. 

So, what would it look like if we genuinely believed – and acted as if – every child actually mattered?

1. Meeting Basic Needs First

To answer this, we might first consider Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. He asserted that before individuals can reach their full potential, their basic physiological and safety needs must be met. In the context of education, this means addressing issues like hunger, sleep deprivation, and feelings of insecurity that many British children face daily.

Consider this: the latest data reports that 2.4 million (17%) children in the UK were living in food-insecure households and a further 10% were living in homes with marginal food security. How can we expect these children to focus on quadratic equations or Shakespeare when their most basic needs aren't being met? 

Real safeguarding starts with ensuring every child has a full belly and feels safe. This might mean expanding free school meal programmes, providing before and after-school care, or offering mental health support. It's not just about being kind; it's about creating the conditions necessary for learning to occur. The ECM agenda, as it was called when it came out in 2003 after the horrendous case of Victoria Climbie, which I remember vividly, is probably more necessary now than even back then. 

2. Cultivating a Growth Mindset

Once basic needs are met, we can turn our attention to the psychological environment we're creating in our schools. This is where Carol Dweck's research on growth mindset becomes crucial. I mention her pretty much every week in this newsletter but it is probably ost poignant in this one!

Dweck's work demonstrates that students who believe their abilities can be developed (a growth mindset) outperform those who believe their abilities are fixed. Yet, our current system often reinforces a fixed mindset through practices like ability grouping and high-stakes testing. It’s exacerbated by OfSTED grades and forced academisation that labels schools as failures and the subsequent repercussions for those at the heart of those schools: students. 

Imagine a classroom where every child, regardless of their current ability level, is encouraged to embrace challenges and see failures as opportunities for growth. This isn't about lowering standards; it's about raising expectations for every student's potential.

On a note here, by the way, tools that help learners develop understanding at their own pace, and low-stakes testing or quizzing with apps like Quizizz or Google Classroom Practice Sets, genuinely can help in this ‘learning from failure’ approach. 

3. Personalised Learning Pathways

True support recognises that children learn at different paces and in different ways. One-size-fits-all education is, paradoxically, exclusionary by nature. It’s what Todd Rose calls “the same as everyone else but different”.

The challenge lies in creating personalised learning pathways within the constraints of our current system. This might involve:

- Flexible timetabling to allow students to progress at their own pace

- Project-based learning that allows students to explore topics in depth

- Regular formative assessments to identify areas for improvement and tailor instruction

- AI tutors that meet students where they are at

4. Redefining 'Achievement'

Our narrow definition of academic success often excludes children whose talents lie outside traditional academic subjects. We need to broaden our conception of 'achievement' to include skills like creativity, emotional intelligence, and problem-solving.

The Durham Commission on Creativity and Education (2019) highlighted the importance of creativity in schools, yet many children still don't have access to a broad and balanced curriculum that nurtures these skills.

5. Cultural Responsiveness

In our increasingly diverse society, genuine inclusion must also mean cultural responsiveness. This goes beyond token multiculturalism to truly valuing and incorporating diverse perspectives into our curriculum and teaching practices.

Research by the Runnymede Trust has shown that many British students from minority ethnic backgrounds feel their cultures and histories are not adequately represented in the curriculum. Addressing this isn't just about fairness; it's about preparing all students for life in a diverse, globalised world.

It is not a destination but a path. It requires constant reflection, adaptation, and a willingness to challenge our own biases and assumptions. It means creating an education system flexible enough to meet the needs of every child, while maintaining high expectations for all.

The question we must ask ourselves is this: Are we willing to move beyond lip service and do the hard work of creating truly open schools? 

Beyond the Buzzwords: Inclusion That Ticks More Than Boxes

1. Beyond Physical Integration

Many UK schools pride themselves on being 'inclusive', pointing to their diverse student bodies as evidence. However, physical presence does not equate to genuine inclusion. A recent-ish report by the Education Policy Institute found that Black Caribbean students in England are nearly three times more likely to be permanently excluded from school than their White British peers. Clearly, there's a gulf between the rhetoric of inclusion and the reality many students experience.

It’s also not just about having lifts and hearing loops, important as these are. It’s about building and rebuilding environments that allow everyone to thrive, regardless of need. 

2. The Insidious Impact of Stereotype Threat

Claude Steele's groundbreaking work on stereotype threat offers crucial insights into why some groups of students consistently underperform. Stereotype threat occurs when individuals are at risk of confirming negative stereotypes about their social group.

For instance, research has shown that when female students are reminded of the stereotype that women are bad at maths before taking a maths test, their performance suffers. Similarly, Black students' academic performance can be negatively impacted when their race is made salient before a test.

3. Creating Identity-Safe Classrooms

To combat stereotype threat, we need to create what Steele calls "identity-safe" environments. These are spaces where students feel that their social identities are an asset rather than a barrier to success. Strategies might include:

- Diverse representation in curriculum materials and among teaching staff

- Explicit discussions about stereotypes and their impact

- Emphasis on growth mindset and the malleability of intelligence

4. The Power of Cooperative Learning

Research by David and Roger Johnson has consistently shown that cooperative learning methods can improve academic achievement, social skills, and intergroup relations. Yet many UK classrooms still rely heavily on individual, competitive learning structures. A meta-analysis of 168 studies found that cooperative learning methods produced greater achievement than competitive or individualistic approaches across all age groups, subject areas, and tasks.

5. Rethinking Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Support

While the UK has made strides in SEND provision, many students with additional needs still find themselves marginalised. There are significant disparities in SEND support across different areas of England. It’s almost a postcode lottery. 

True inclusion means moving beyond the model of 'special' provision towards universal design for learning (UDL) - creating flexible learning environments that can accommodate diverse learning needs without stigmatisation or segregation.

6. Tackling Unconscious Bias

Even well-intentioned educators can harbour unconscious biases that impact their interactions with students. A 2017 study by the University College London Institute of Education found that teachers' unconscious biases significantly influenced their assessments of students' abilities.

Addressing these biases requires ongoing professional development and self-reflection. Some schools have implemented unconscious bias training for staff, but this needs to be part of a broader, sustained effort to create truly inclusive environments.

7. The Role of Student Voice

To be fair, we are talking about including students which probably means not just providing for diverse students, but actively involving them in shaping their educational experience. The concept of 'student voice' - giving students a say in decisions that affect their learning - is gaining traction in some schools, but it's far from universal.

8. Beyond the Classroom

True inclusion extends beyond the classroom. It involves creating school cultures where all families feel welcome and valued, where extracurricular activities are accessible to all, and where the broader community is engaged in supporting diverse learners.

Creating truly inclusive educational environments is not just a matter of social justice - it's essential for preparing all students for life in a diverse, globalised world. It requires us to challenge our assumptions, confront our biases, and reimagine our educational practices.

The question we must ask ourselves is this: Are we willing to move beyond tokenistic approaches to inclusion and do the hard work of creating genuinely inclusive learning environments? 

From Lecturer to Learning Facilitator: Rethinking the Teacher's Role

The image of a teacher lecturing at the front of a classroom whilst pupils passively absorb information is deeply ingrained in our collective understanding of education. It's a model that's persisted for centuries, but mounting evidence suggests it's fundamentally misaligned with how learning actually occurs.

At its core, effective education isn't about the transfer of information from teacher to student. It's about creating environments and experiences that enable students to construct their own understanding. This shift in perspective has profound implications for how we approach teaching and learning.

Lev Vygotsky's concept of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) offers valuable insights here. The ZPD represents the gap between what a learner can do without help and what they can achieve with guidance. It's within this zone that learning is most effective. However, in a typical British secondary school classroom of 28 pupils, hitting this sweet spot for each individual simultaneously is nigh on impossible.

To truly embrace Vygotsky's insights, we need to reimagine our classrooms. This might involve more flexible grouping, peer tutoring programmes, and the judicious use of adaptive learning technologies.

John Hattie's Visible Learning research further underscores the need to focus on learning rather than teaching. Hattie's synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses found that some of the most effective educational interventions involve making the learning process visible to students. For instance, self-reported grades - where students predict their own performance - had an effect size of 1.33, making it one of the most impactful interventions studied.

Yet, how many British schools actively encourage students to reflect on and predict their own learning? Implementing Visible Learning principles could involve regular self-assessment opportunities, clear learning objectives, and feedback focused on process rather than just outcomes.

This shift requires us to rethink the role of the teacher. Rather than being the primary source of information, teachers need to become facilitators of learning. This has significant implications for teacher training and professional development. Our current system, with its focus on subject knowledge and classroom management, often fails to equip teachers with the skills needed to facilitate learning effectively.

Cognitive science tells us that learning is an active process of construction, not passive absorption. A study by Freeman et al. (2014) found that active learning approaches in STEM subjects increased student performance by half a grade on average. Despite this evidence, lecture-style teaching still dominates in many British classrooms. I’m not averse to direct instruction but as the only method of teaching, it cannot be the way forward. 

Perhaps the most crucial shift we need to make is towards teaching students how to learn, not just what to learn. Metacognition - thinking about thinking - is a powerful tool for enhancing learning. The Education Endowment Foundation has identified metacognition as one of the most cost-effective interventions, with an average impact of +7 months additional progress. Yet explicit instruction in metacognitive strategies remains rare in many British schools. Learn to Learn was a programme we rolled out at the school I spent most of my career in. It was groundbreaking, modelled on work by Cramlington Learning Village and Guy Claxton but it fell all too short as it stayed just in Year 7!

The distinction between teaching and learning isn't mere academic quibbling. It's a fundamental shift in how we approach education. By focusing on how students learn, rather than how teachers teach, we can create educational environments that are more effective, more engaging, and more equitable.

Are we prepared to challenge our assumptions about what education should look like? The evidence seems clear. The real question is whether we have the collective will to act on it.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Testing Times: The Paradox of Modern Educational Evaluation

The British education system's obsession with testing has reached fever pitch. From SATs to GCSEs, A-levels to university exams, our students are among the most tested in the world. Yet, paradoxically, this fixation on measurement may be hindering rather than helping genuine learning.

1. The High-Stakes Testing Treadmill

High-stakes testing has become the tail wagging the dog in UK schools. Research by Daniel Koretz, a testing expert at Harvard University, highlights how this approach can distort education. His work shows that when test scores become the primary measure of educational quality, schools often resort to practices that inflate scores without improving real learning.

Consider the phenomenon of 'teaching to the test'. A survey by the National Education Union found that 84% of teachers in England believed the SATs were detrimental to children's learning, with many reporting that they felt pressured to narrow the curriculum to focus on tested subjects. Lots of schools are being brave enough to vote with their feet on these and other high-stakes only methodologies.

2. The Limitations of Summative Assessment

Summative assessments, like end-of-year exams, provide a snapshot of student knowledge at a specific point in time. However, they often fail to capture the complexity of learning or provide actionable insights for improvement.

Moreover, these assessments can be anxiety-inducing for many students. A study by the University and College Union found that 80% of UK university students reported experiencing stress and anxiety over exams and assessments. And that is those that report it…

3. The Power of Formative Assessment

In contrast to high-stakes testing, formative assessment - ongoing evaluation that informs teaching and learning - has shown remarkable promise. The seminal work of Paul Black and Dylan Wiliam demonstrated that high-quality formative assessment can substantially improve student achievement.

Their research, involving more than 250 studies covering learners from 5-years-old to university students, found that formative assessment practices could boost learning with effect sizes between 0.4 and 0.7. In educational research, these are significant improvements. And this isn’t a product push but it’s why I love tools like Quizizz, which works to bring this into focus.

4. Reimagining Assessment

So how might we reimagine assessment to better serve learning? Here are some possibilities:

- Continuous Assessment: Replace or supplement high-stakes exams with ongoing evaluations that provide a more comprehensive picture of student progress.

- Authentic Assessment: Use real-world tasks to evaluate student learning, making assessment more relevant and engaging.

- Self and Peer Assessment: Involve students in the assessment process, fostering metacognitive skills and deeper understanding.

- Technology-Enhanced Assessment: Leverage digital tools to provide immediate feedback and personalised learning pathways.

5. Policy Implications

Shifting our assessment practices requires more than just classroom-level changes. It demands a fundamental rethink of educational policy. 

The Welsh government's decision to scrap SATs in favour of personalised assessments is an encouraging step in this direction. Similarly, Scotland's Curriculum for Excellence, with its emphasis on formative assessment, offers a model for a more balanced approach to evaluation.

In England, however, progress has been slower. Despite criticism from educators and researchers, the government has largely maintained its commitment to high-stakes testing.

To truly transform assessment, we need:

- A national conversation about the purpose of assessment in education

- Investment in teacher training to support effective formative assessment practices

- A review of school accountability measures to reduce the pressure of high-stakes testing

6. The Road Ahead

Changing our approach to assessment won't be easy. It challenges deeply ingrained practices and beliefs about education. However, if we're serious about improving learning outcomes and preparing students for the complexities of the 21st century, it's a challenge we must embrace. Assessment should inform learning, not just measure it. It should motivate students, not discourage them. It should provide insights for teachers, not just data for league tables.

The question we must ask ourselves is this: Are we willing to move beyond our testing obsession to create an assessment system that truly serves learning? The future of our education system - and the success of our students - depends on our answer.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Tailor-Made Learning: The Neuroscience of Personalisation

The one-size-fits-all approach to education is as outdated as the chalkboard - I have said it a million times. In a world where we can personalise everything from our news feeds to our trainers, why do we persist with a standardised approach to learning? Neuroscience provides compelling evidence for the potential of personalised, on-demand education. The concept of neuroplasticity - the brain's ability to reorganise itself by forming new neural connections - suggests that learning is a highly individual process, influenced by personal experiences and preferences.

1. The Adaptable Brain

Research from University College London has shown that the brain's structure changes as we learn. This neuroplasticity means that each learner's brain is uniquely wired, shaped by their individual experiences and learning journey. Yet our current education system largely ignores these individual differences, pushing all students through the same curriculum at the same pace. It's akin to expecting everyone to wear the same size shoe - uncomfortable for most and downright painful for some. It’s more about The End of Average, again!

2. The Power of 'Desirable Difficulties'

Cognitive psychologists have identified the concept of 'desirable difficulties' - challenges in learning that, while initially slowing progress, lead to deeper understanding and better long-term retention. However, what constitutes a 'desirable difficulty' varies from learner to learner. For instance, a study by Bjork and Bjork at UCLA found that introducing certain difficulties in learning can enhance long-term retention and transfer of knowledge. But the key is finding the right level of challenge for each individual learner - too easy, and engagement drops; too difficult, and frustration sets in.

3. Technology as an Enabler

This was a key theme in our Edufuturists Trends booklet this last year. 

Trends Booklet

Advances in educational technology are making personalised, on-demand learning increasingly feasible. Adaptive learning platforms, powered by artificial intelligence, can adjust content difficulty and pacing based on individual student performance. Tools like Khan Academy, Duolingo and Udacity allow for just that. The Open University, a pioneer in distance learning, has been at the forefront of personalised online education in the UK. Their use of learning analytics to tailor student support has shown promising results in improving retention and achievement.

4. Challenges and Considerations

While the potential of personalised learning is exciting, it's not without challenges:

- Equity: We must ensure that personalisation doesn't exacerbate existing educational inequalities.

- Data privacy: The use of personal data in adaptive learning raises important ethical questions.

- Teacher training: Educators need support to effectively implement personalised learning approaches.

5. Reimagining the School Day

Personalised, on-demand learning may require us to rethink the structure of the school day. The rigid timetable of most UK schools, with its fixed periods for different subjects, is ill-suited to a truly personalised approach. Some schools are already experimenting with more flexible models. This will not be easy and I am not 100% sure how we can make this happen but I do think it is worth putting on the table to find solutions for.

It's important to note that personalisation doesn't mean isolation. While learning should be tailored to individual needs, education also plays a crucial role in socialisation and developing collaborative skills. The challenge is to strike the right balance between personalisation and shared learning experiences. The neuroscience is clear: each brain is unique, and learning is a highly individual process. Our education system needs to evolve to reflect this reality. Personalised, on-demand learning isn't just a nice-to-have - it's a necessity if we're serious about maximising the potential of every learner.

The question is: are we ready to move beyond the comfort of standardisation to embrace the complexity of personalisation? The future of education - and the success of our learners - may well depend on our answer.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Curiosity Didn't Kill the Cat: It Made It Smarter

I feel like I get to talk a lot about how artificial intelligence can outperform humans in an increasing number of tasks, so our education system's focus on rote learning and standardised testing seems not just outdated, but potentially harmful. The skills that will set our children apart in the future are not memorisation or calculation, but creativity, curiosity, and critical thinking.

1. The Creativity Crisis

Despite the rhetoric about '21st-century skills', many UK schools are still creativity deserts. Opportunities for creative learning have been significantly reduced in many schools, particularly those serving disadvantaged communities. This is not just a matter of arts education. Creativity, as defined by psychologist Teresa Amabile, is the production of novel and useful ideas in any domain. It's as crucial in science and maths as it is in art and music. 

2. The Components of Creativity

Amabile's componential theory of creativity identifies three key elements:

- Domain-relevant skills: knowledge and expertise in the particular field.

- Creativity-relevant processes: cognitive styles and personality characteristics that are conducive to independence, risk-taking, and new perspectives on problems.

- Task motivation: the intrinsic motivation to engage in the activity out of interest, enjoyment, or a personal sense of challenge.

Our current education system tends to focus almost exclusively on the first component, often at the expense of the other two. We drill students in domain knowledge but fail to nurture the cognitive flexibility and intrinsic motivation that are equally crucial for creativity.

3. The Power of Play

Jean Piaget, the Swiss psychologist, emphasised the importance of play in cognitive development. Yet, in many UK primary schools, time for free play has been squeezed out in favour of more structured learning activities. And don’t get me started on secondary schools drilling students and removing the wider, hidden curriculum elements. 

Research from the LEGO Foundation has shown that playful learning approaches can enhance children's creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. Despite this evidence, many schools still view play as frivolous or unproductive.

4. Cultivating Curiosity

Curiosity - the desire to know, to learn, to understand - is the engine of learning. Yet our education system often seems designed to stifle rather than stimulate curiosity. A study by Susan Engel at Williams College found that children's questions in school decrease dramatically as they progress through the education system. By the time students reach secondary school, many have learned that asking questions is not valued or rewarded.

5. Strategies for Fostering Creativity and Curiosity

So how can we nurture these crucial capacities? Here are some possibilities:

- Inquiry-based learning: Encourage students to ask questions and seek answers, rather than passively receiving information.

- Project-based learning: Provide opportunities for students to apply knowledge creatively to real-world problems.

- Interdisciplinary approaches: Break down subject silos to encourage creative connections across domains.

- Embracing failure: Create a classroom culture where mistakes are seen as learning opportunities, not disasters.

6. The Role of Technology

Digital tools can be powerful allies in fostering creativity and curiosity. Platforms like Scratch allow students to learn coding through creative projects. Virtual, extended and augmented reality technologies can spark curiosity by allowing students to explore environments and concepts in immersive ways.

One of the biggest obstacles to fostering creativity and curiosity is our aforementioned current assessment system. Standardised tests rarely measure these capacities effectively. We need to develop new forms of assessment that value and encourage creative thinking and curiosity.

The International Baccalaureate's approach, with its emphasis on inquiry and reflection, offers one model. Another is the Finnish education system, which uses no standardised tests until the end of secondary school, allowing more room for creative and curiosity-driven learning.

If we want our children to thrive in an uncertain future, we need to prioritise the development of creativity and curiosity. This doesn't mean abandoning academic rigour - quite the opposite. It means engaging students more deeply with knowledge by encouraging them to question, explore, and create. The challenge for our education system seems clear: how do we move from a model that values compliance and memorisation to one that nurtures creativity and curiosity? The future success of our children - and our society - may well depend on how we answer this question.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Chalk and Change: Viva La Revolution!

I feel like I’ve uncovered (or re-covered!) a pressing need for transformation in our approach to teaching and learning. Let's recap the key insights we've explored:

1. Genuine safeguarding requires more than lip service; it demands a holistic approach that addresses basic needs and fosters a growth mindset for every child.

2. Learning and teaching are distinct processes. We must shift from a transmission model of education to one that facilitates active, personalised learning.

3. Our obsession with high-stakes testing is often counterproductive. We need to embrace formative assessment practices that inform and improve learning, not just measure it.

4. Personalised, on-demand education isn't just a fancy notion - it's a necessity supported by neuroscience. We must leverage technology and flexible learning structures to cater to individual needs.

5. Creativity and curiosity are not just 'nice-to-haves', but essential skills for the future. Our education system must nurture these capacities alongside traditional academic knowledge.

6. True inclusion goes beyond physical integration. It requires creating identity-safe spaces, addressing unconscious biases, and actively involving diverse voices in shaping education.

7. Technology, while not a panacea, offers powerful tools for personalisation, creativity, and inclusion. We must harness its potential while being mindful of its limitations and ethical implications.

These insights point to a clear imperative: our education system needs a radical overhaul. But what does this mean in practice?

For educators, it means embracing a new role as facilitators of learning rather than mere transmitters of information. It means continually reflecting on and challenging our own biases and assumptions. It means being willing to experiment with new approaches and learn alongside our students.

For policymakers, it means moving beyond narrow metrics of school performance to consider the broader aims of education. It means investing in teacher training and professional development to support these new approaches. It means rethinking assessment and accountability measures to align with what we know about effective learning.

For all of us, it means engaging in a national conversation about the purpose of education in the 21st century. What kind of citizens, workers, and human beings do we want our education system to produce?

The challenges are significant, but so are the opportunities. Imagine a future where:

- Every child, regardless of background, feels valued and capable of success

- Learning is a joyful, lifelong pursuit, not a chore to be endured

- Schools are hubs of creativity and innovation, preparing students for jobs that don't yet exist

- Technology enhances human potential rather than replacing it

- Our education system is a source of national pride, envied and emulated around the world

This vision is within our grasp, but realising it will require courage, commitment, and collaboration. It will mean challenging deeply entrenched practices and beliefs. It will mean taking risks and learning from failures. The question is not whether we can afford to make these changes, but whether we can afford not to. Perhaps, the cost of educational stagnation or inaction is too high to bear.

So, let's pick up our chalk - or perhaps our tablets - and start sketching out the future of education. Our children, and our society, deserve nothing less.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​