Symposium tackling 21st century teaching
The 21st century poses a unique set of challenges for present-day educators and students. In an era of “false news,” social confusion, societal turmoil and increasing internationalism, educators are tasked with moulding minds which can cope with the world’s hyper-complexity. How to do it? This is the central question of Medicine Hat College’s first ever “Teaching the 21st Century Citizen: Engagement across the Disciplines” symposium on April 26.
The all-day event will delve into today’s most pressing issues, such as terrorism, the ongoing economic crisis and the pitfalls of the information age. It will be open to the general public and free to attend.
Originally, MHC had a much more modest vision for the event, says Jason Openo, manager of MHC’s Centre for Innovation and Teaching Excellence, as an internal faculty seminar series, but the college has decided to open it up after receiving a great deal of public interest.
“Students today are facing a world of fuzzy/muzzy facts, and how do we as teachers teach those necessary critical thinking skills?” says Openo. “So many of us are still trying to figure out, for example, what the Trump election meant... The election has represented a very big shift into a post-truth world, a world of ‘alternative facts.’ So we are asking what do these things mean, and we are thinking about what digital literacy and critical thinking literacy mean.”
But the symposium doesn’t stop there; delving into diverse areas such as “Discussing Taboo Topics” in class, “Building Empathy in the 21st Century Student” and “Design Thinking for Wicked Problems,” just to name a few.
Openo gives an example of what design thinking theory would call a “Wicked Problem.”
“A ‘Wicked Problem’ is something which has multiple dimensions, is multifaceted, and is not easily solvable. Just recently, I was in Edmonton and had a chance to go to the Strategic Energy Secretariat, and they are trying to think about a new energy future for Alberta, which is a Wicked Problem. We are starting to see the effects of oil and gas industry meltdown and we are starting to realize just how long this could go on. So even the Strategic Energy Secretariat is using design thinking to solve this Wicked Problem.”
The keynote seminar of the symposium will be on “The International/Intercultural Interface.”
“Medicine Hat has been described as an isolated community, but the world is coming to Medicine Hat and Medicine Hat is going out into the world,” explains Openo. “It’s changing our lives. It’s changing the fabric of our community. And it’s changing our learning experiences.”
All seminars will be conducted by MHC’s own faculty and students. For information on how to register for the event and to download an agenda visit www.mhc.ab.ca/Symposium.
The public is invited to attend the entire day or just take in a few sessions of interest.