Schome
Encyclopedia
Schome is a proposed education system
to meet the needs of society and individuals in the 21st century. The term schome was coined by Peter Twining in early 2005 (or possibly late 2004?) and is a synthesis of the words school and home - which explains the byline not school - not home - schome.
Schome proposes to value and support people in learning throughout their lives (cradle to grave). It will include flexible use of both physical and virtual spaces to support learning processes and enhance community.
environment to give people 'a lived experience' of radically different models of education.
Schome Park, an island in the Teen Grid of Second Life
world, is being used to collect evidence about approaches to supporting learners.
The educational models being used on Schome Park fit within the scope of the eSIR Reference Statement (Twining et al. 2006 Appendix 1) and draw upon a wide range of approaches to education evident in the educational systems in use in different countries and informed by prominent educational thinkers. Find out more about Schome Park.
system needs to change in order to meet the needs of society (e.g. Beare 2001; Hargreaves 2004). This is reflected in growing rates of disaffection in schools (Webb & Vulliamy 2004) as evidenced by: growing teenage truancy rates in schools e.g. see BBC News
and the growing migration of parents away from school and towards homeschooling (Curtis 2004).
Recognition of problems with the current school system underpins initiatives such as Building Schools for the Future
, which aims to rebuild or renew every secondary school
in England over a 10- to 15-year period (BSF 2006). However, it is clear that many of the fundamental assumptions upon which schools are based are the very factors that render schools ineffective in the Information Age (Cuban 2001). In addition, because of the constraints under which they have to operate, it is “very difficult for school communities to collectively analyse and redesign their practice” (Engeström et al. 2002 p. 211).
Schome acknowledges the problems inherent in our current education system and aims to overcome them by building upon evidence from a range of sources: learning theory
(particularly socio-cultural theory); socio-cultural activity theory
(CHAT); evidence from educational research
(including practitioner and action research
) in areas such as motivation, leadership, and the management of change
.
There are a couple of hundred registered users of the schome community wiki and a growing number of members of the schome community forum.
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
to meet the needs of society and individuals in the 21st century. The term schome was coined by Peter Twining in early 2005 (or possibly late 2004?) and is a synthesis of the words school and home - which explains the byline not school - not home - schome.
Schome proposes to value and support people in learning throughout their lives (cradle to grave). It will include flexible use of both physical and virtual spaces to support learning processes and enhance community.
Current state of play
The main focus of work on schome is currently on the use of a virtual worldVirtual world
A virtual world is an online community that takes the form of a computer-based simulated environment through which users can interact with one another and use and create objects. The term has become largely synonymous with interactive 3D virtual environments, where the users take the form of...
environment to give people 'a lived experience' of radically different models of education.
Schome Park, an island in the Teen Grid of Second Life
Second Life
Second Life is an online virtual world developed by Linden Lab. It was launched on June 23, 2003. A number of free client programs, or Viewers, enable Second Life users, called Residents, to interact with each other through avatars...
world, is being used to collect evidence about approaches to supporting learners.
The educational models being used on Schome Park fit within the scope of the eSIR Reference Statement (Twining et al. 2006 Appendix 1) and draw upon a wide range of approaches to education evident in the educational systems in use in different countries and informed by prominent educational thinkers. Find out more about Schome Park.
Why do we need schome?
There is a growing consensus of evidence from a range of different sources that suggests that our current compulsory educationCompulsory education
Compulsory education refers to a period of education that is required of all persons.-Antiquity to Medieval Era:Although Plato's The Republic is credited with having popularized the concept of compulsory education in Western intellectual thought, every parent in Judea since Moses's Covenant with...
system needs to change in order to meet the needs of society (e.g. Beare 2001; Hargreaves 2004). This is reflected in growing rates of disaffection in schools (Webb & Vulliamy 2004) as evidenced by: growing teenage truancy rates in schools e.g. see BBC News
BBC News
BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
and the growing migration of parents away from school and towards homeschooling (Curtis 2004).
Recognition of problems with the current school system underpins initiatives such as Building Schools for the Future
Building Schools for the Future
Building Schools for the Future is the name of the previous UK Government's investment programme in secondary school buildings in England. The program is very ambitious in its costs, timescales and objectives, with politicians from all English political parties supportive of the principle but...
, which aims to rebuild or renew every secondary school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
in England over a 10- to 15-year period (BSF 2006). However, it is clear that many of the fundamental assumptions upon which schools are based are the very factors that render schools ineffective in the Information Age (Cuban 2001). In addition, because of the constraints under which they have to operate, it is “very difficult for school communities to collectively analyse and redesign their practice” (Engeström et al. 2002 p. 211).
What is different about schome?
The schome community believe that trying to adapt our existing system is a flawed approach, which cannot deliver the optimum education system for the 21st Century. Our approach is radically different, and involves four steps:- Establish aims: we need to develop shared understandings of what we want our education system to provide for individuals and society within the 21st Century.
- Build a shared vision: we need to develop a shared vision of the ideal system to deliver the aims identified in Step 1, unconstrained by the existing education system, and taking into account our understandings of changes in society, how people learn, and evolving approaches, tools and techniques for supporting learners.
- Devise a strategy: we need to work out how to move from our current education system to the vision of schome created in Step 2.
- Implement schome.
Schome acknowledges the problems inherent in our current education system and aims to overcome them by building upon evidence from a range of sources: learning theory
Learning theory
Learning theory may refer to:* Learning theory , the process of how humans learn** Behaviorism** Cognitivism** Constructivism** Connectivism* Computational learning theory, a mathematical theory to analyze machine learning algorithms...
(particularly socio-cultural theory); socio-cultural activity theory
Activity theory
Activity theory is a psychological meta-theory, paradigm, or theoretical framework, with its roots in Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky's cultural-historical psychology. Its founders were Alexei N...
(CHAT); evidence from educational research
Educational research
Educational research refers to a variety of methods, in which individuals evaluate different aspects of education including but not limited to: “student learning, teaching methods, teacher training, and classroom dynamics”....
(including practitioner and action research
Action research
Action research or participatory action research – is a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individuals working with others in teams or as part of a "community of practice" to improve the way they address issues and solve problems. Action research is done simply by action,...
) in areas such as motivation, leadership, and the management of change
Change management
Change management is a structured approach to shifting/transitioning individuals, teams, and organizations from a current state to a desired future state. It is an organizational process aimed at helping employees to accept and embrace changes in their current business environment....
.
Who is involved in developing schome?
Underpinning the Schome approach is recognition of the importance of shared understandings. The schome community is developed through face to face meetings, publications, presentations, projects and a range of other media. The schome community is the powerhouse that will bring schome into existence. Schome is being created by children, parents, policy makers, academics, students, home educators, employers, teachers and other practitioners from around the world.There are a couple of hundred registered users of the schome community wiki and a growing number of members of the schome community forum.