The Changing Face of Education

In the 70's schools became uncontrollable, students knew that what they were learning at school was irrelevant. Social consciousness knew it was time to change the structure and values of learning. The Adelaide Declaration of National Goals for Schooling in the 21st Century (MCEETYA) 1999, was convened. This generated the trend towards Outcomes Based Education (OBE). This document is very idealistic and unprejudiced. All states separated and needed to grapple with their understanding of the document and how to implement these changes. Some states have not been able to implement the changes effectively. Politicians tend to go back to a past structure to please and win elections, this does not have a positive effect on schooling. The new approach needs to reflect that children need to be active participants in their learning and how to take children from the dross thinking of the chalk n talk era to problem based learning, higher order thinking and deep understanding. The way to achieve this is through critical reflection.