Testing Times in the Classroom: Challenges of 21st Century Education

Challenge the way you think about the key issues affecting education today

Are schools too focussed on assessments? Is education just about profit? Does the classroom affect children’s creativity? These are some of the questions that surround education in the present day.

On this course, you will discuss these questions in depth and understand some of the recent major changes in education. You will explore a range of key concepts, including how education might now be considered a business and the link between education and economic growth. You will reflect on your own schooling experiences as well as look at possible educational alternatives for the future.

This course is for anyone with an interest in education, including teachers, students, and parents. This course will also be of interest to an international audience. No prior qualifications in education are required.

• Reimagine education
• Welcome
• What does education look like where you are?
• What are the big issues?
• What next?
• What if?
• What is education for?
• What is education?
• Is Education the same as Schooling?
• Is schooling fit for purpose?
• What is education for?
• Markets, metrics and managers: The business of education?
• Key changes in education
• Reforming schools
• Where are we after 30 years of education reform?
• How fair are our schools?
• Equality and Diversity in Education
• Gender
• Social Class