The COVID-19 pandemic stressed the central role that parents and caregivers play in the education of children. Virtual homeschooling forced these adults into the roles of informal teachers and task masters.
The rapid transformation of education (pedagogies, subject matter, teaching environments, technology, etc.) means that the formal school system is largely outdated and struggling to align itself with 21st century reality. No more so than preparing kids and teens for a world of constant technological innovation.
If they haven’t already, parents and caregivers need to start developing active strategies and action plans for their child(ren)’s learning experiences outside of school which include:
- listening to and observing their children to identify their passions and interests
- understanding their child’s learning style and finding experiences and activities which suit it
- choosing which technology to make available to their children and under what conditions
- identifying new types of learning experiences powered by technology that kids aren’t getting at school
- teaching kids attention literacy so they can self-manage their online activities and the time they spend on social media and tech devices
The most important thing that parents and caregivers can do is to lay the foundation to ultimately give their children agency as they get older and encourage them to take control of their learning process.
We are well past the era of relying on the formal school system alone to educate our kids and prepare them for the future.
NewTechKids encourage parents and caregivers to use summer 2021 to get started. We’ve compiled these two lists of free online activities aimed at helping kids develop digital skills and keep learning during the summer:
Have fun!
(Photo by August de Richelieu from Pexels.)