Closing the Opportunity Gap in Deeper Learning
Linda Darling-Hammond, professor of education at Stanford University, made a strong case for “deeper learning” at a panel discussion last week in Washington, D.C., saying schools must move students beyond rote-oriented test-prep drills and mile-wide, inch-deep curriculum guides. “We can’t just tell (students) to memorize a bunch of information and go on with their lives,” she said.
Darling-Hammond warned, however, that a focus on high-stakes testing and budget cuts is cutting off low-income students’ access to a richer curriculum that can foster deeper learning.
“We need equitable access to deeper learning. Who is going to get access to a thinking curriculum? Poor kids? Right now, it is inequitably distributed.”
At the panel discussion, Darling-Hammond presented these and other findings from a new study she co-authored with Pedro Noguera of New York University and Diane Friedlaender of the Stanford University Center for Opportunity Policy in Education called “Equal Opportunity for Deeper Learning.” The study was published by Jobs For the Future, who co-sponsored the event with the Learning Policy Institute.
With deeper learning skills, students will be able to navigate the terrain of the future, Darling-Hammond said.
“They will be working in a world with knowledge that hasn’t been invented yet. We want them to have transferable knowledge and skills, … that they can apply and use.”
To develop deeper learning competencies, schools will need to initiate curriculum and assessment systems that provide opportunities for students to practice not only Closing the Opportunity Gap in Deeper Learning - NEA Today:
