With the rapidly growing infrastructure of EdTech in schools, it has led us to think more critically about the future of education and how play could be the answer in reshaping it.
The system of teaching has changed little in 150 years since it became lawful in 1880. Children are placed at desks in rows for 30 hours a week and practice their remembering. They are rarely encouraged to explore, question, or connect.
Digital whiteboards and learning management systems exacerbate the issue. With the dawn of AI, governments are now piloting models designed to reduce teacher workload and support more personalised learning. Whilst this poses some positive aspects from the teachers’ perspective, if managed incorrectly, children may become more insular than ever.
We believe it is absolutely paramount to balance this inevitable shift with a radical rethink of how we assess children’s progress in schools. We believe that creating environments that seed creativity and freedom of thought, build foundations for practical skills and problem-solving and should be be far more prevalent in the future.
One place to start is by rethinking outdoor spaces in schools and how they can be adapted for more than just break time and PE.
For many, the testing system in schools is outdated. The ability to memorise information for a multiple-choice test should not be the key skill required to succeed. It feels far removed from what it means to be human in the world, especially when AI can already do so much of that for us. While testing may drill information into children’s minds, it often feels disconnected from the direct experience life offers. Collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity do not need to be confined to a textbook, as we learn best by doing. There needs to be a shift from knowing to using.
How we think about play could be the key to unlocking further potential within our school system.
“Play is how we learn to be human, how we learn who we are, how we learn to fail, communicate, love, fight, rebel, desire, build, and survive. At its best, play is life-affirming, soul-sustaining, and mind-expanding.” – from Playful by Cas Holman
With play at the core, we can see a much brighter future for schools where success is measured not by how well a child can memorise information, but by how well they can think, create and collaborate. In addition to this, they can actually apply what they know, as it’s real practical knowledge, learned together, with others, with complementary skills and not an AI robot in sight.
