TOOLS TO SOLVE REAL-WORLD PROBLEMS



We looked at several model education systems in countries consistently at the top of international rankings of learning assessments such as PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) regarding reading, mathematics, and science literacy, and found they had built high-quality education system for their children in primary and secondary education by rethinking teaching and learning. The process included drastically changing traditional education methods to introduce a curriculum based around "teaching by topic", or phenomenon learning, where core subjects such as Geography and History are replaced by project-based learning applying a multidisciplinary lens. Here, students are taught complex topics such as climactic change, sustainability and economic trading zones within the core curricula as a way to support skills development. This achieve the ultimate goal of improving learning outcomes, enhancing employability and equipping learners with skills in demand by rapidly-changing labor market skills development also prepares learners to confront the growing complexity of societal challenges, tackle seemingly unsolvable problems, and understand the interconnectedness and inter-related nature of real world issues, challenges and problems.

This same process can be applied to adult learning in diverse learning environments.

Consider innovation - rarely the result of a solo act. Indeed, innovation-led organisations

are increasingly employing multidisciplinary teams in order to address the most intractable problems. A multidisciplinary lens influences both an individual's learning journeys as well

as their impact on team success regardless the main theme from which innovation emerges.
The LLN Design Studio was created to foster a learning community among students, teachers, researchers and experts in various fields, that can engage participants in creative work with phenomenon learning - i.e. learning around themes. Methodologies include small group collaborative learning where teachers, instructors and trainers serve as learning facilitators, mentors and coaches as they rotate among the clusters of learners engaged in dialogue around the subject matter they are studying, a problem they are trying to solve or a challenge being address. This leads to the development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills to propose solutions to real-world problems. Collaborative group work improves interpersonal domains such as communication skills to prepare, present and defend work, as well as intrapersonal competencies such as “learning how to learn” and acquiring a growth mindset.



Applying a multi-disciplinary lens
for problem solving



Turning Problems Into Solutions
From the classroom to the boardroom



We provide the tools for designing

learning and teaching to align with

UNESCO's ICT CFT -

Information & Communications Technologies

competency framework for teaching

to promote

- technology literacy

- knowledge creation

- knowledge building

in educational and

professional development contexts


programming is aimed at supporting

the engagement of learners of

all kinds and levels

in formal and non-formal learning environments

to acquire problem-solving skills they can apply

to real-world situation.


WE collaborate closely with schools and other organizations for AN APPLICATION TO both formal and non-formal learning environments,

with PUBLIC BODIES RESPONSIBLE FOR WORKFORCE preparedness,

with entrepreneurship ecosystems for transforming big ideas into products and services that meet a market niche, and with innovation and research centers for technology advancements



View Problem-Solving Methodologies at our sister site
Global Education Innovative Learning Environments
www.GlobalEdIles.com

SAMPLE PROJECTS





Learning to learn -
THE PROBLEM-SOLVING PROCESS



Phenomenon-based learning is a multi-faceted holistic approach to education where students learn through topics and themes rather than subject areas by applying a multidisciplinary lens to problem solving. It is a rejection of the dominant silo-based approach to learning where subjects are taught in isolation.


Methodologies include small group collaborative learning where teachers, instructors and trainers serve as learning facilitators, mentors and coaches as they rotate among the clusters of learners engaged in dialogue around the subject matter they are studying, a problem they are trying to solve or a challenge being address. This leads to the development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills to propose solutions to real-world problems. Collaborative group work improves interpersonal domains such as communication skills to prepare, present and defend work, as well as intrapersonal competencies such as “learning how to learn” and acquiring a growth mindset. Take a look at some examples of phenomenon learning:





Phenomena Learning



Changing the Vocabulary of Education





In Phenomenon Based Learning, teachers and instructors are referred to as facilitators of learning, mentors and coaches, teaching is the creation of learning opportunities, schools are learning environments, students – either children or adults – are learners, and the field of education is lifelong learning #teachingandlearning





cULTIVATING CAPACITY FOR PLANTING SEEDS



Blue Anew is a framework for teaching and learning about the sustainability of our planet. Its overarching objective is to guide learners through the most essential knowledge and acquire skills needed to address the complexity of challenges faced by our communities in an increasingly digital and interconnected world this includes climate change action that involves a cross-section of sectors in collaborative actions of improving life across the globe.





1. Everyone needs to be engaged



This section introduces the reader to the scope and depth of

Blue Anew as an innovative educational practice model for learners of all ages



Analyze Real-World Problems



A road map for people to address the complexity of societal challenges with a multi-disciplinary approach to problem solving that supports the critical thinking, collaboration, communication skills required to create solutions and engage in calls to action



Multidisciplinary Inquiry in Action



A four-step approach to problem solving results in problem-solving around ideas for solutions to real-world scenarios



Teachers become Mentors, Coaches



Phenomenon learning led by learning facilitators - i.e. teachers, instructors and trainers



The Technological Heart of Blue Anew



A digital platform hosts the different components of Blue Anew .





WATER



Life source for every living being on Earth





● An Earth Sciences class studied the Humboldt Current to learn how pollutants from an oil spill in North America reached the shores of the European continent.

● A Social Studies class focused on government’s responsibility for providing clean water to its citizens, expanding their learning with activity that could lead toward understanding the issues surround water conservation.

● A Mathematics class studied wave frequencies on an experimental water piano.

● A History class studied how civilizations were formed around water sources such as rivers and lakes, how conquests were made by sea, and how water has served as pivotal transportation routes for trade and exploration.





SUSTAINABILITY



The 3P Framework: People, Planet, Profits





Sustainability science is an academic discipline that emerged in response to threats to the sustainability of the global environment. Its purpose is to help build a sustainable society by developing solutions to climate change, the exhaustion of resources, ecological destruction and other environmental crises that threaten the future of humanity. Sustainability science seeks comprehensive, integrated solutions to complex problems and a restructuring of education and research that spans multiple disciplines. It demands the development of policies that protect the natural and cultural diversity of different regions and promotes the physical and economic health of their inhabitants. Projects that support approaches to the development of a transdisciplinary perspective of sustainability are being proposed by living labs throughout Europe to embrace natural, social, technological and human sciences in the quest for a sustainable society. These projects also strive for a global perspective while incorporating the wisdom and experience of local societies.





SMART CITIES



Enhancing the Quality of Life for All





Urban centers around the world are demanding 21st-Century solutions to accommodate their growing populations, ones that not only maintain the quality of life but also improve it in a culturally- sensitive manner as well as becoming resilient to social disruption. Much innovation is taking place to create or improve products and services that can be adopted and adapted to urban centers’ needs, producing real value in communities being able to embrace:

* Smart Environments, including green buildings, alternative energy and urban planning

* Smart Government, including transparency and open data, and E-government services

* Smart Living, including culturally vibrant, safe and healthy communities and inclusive societies

* Smart Mobility, including clean/mass transportation and integrated information and communication technologies

* Smart Economy, including entrepreneurship and innovation, productivity and global interconnections

* Smart People, embracing creativity, and re-imagining teaching and learning for the Knowledge Age





AGRICULTURE



Without Farming.....





● A Civics class looks into government control for quality, disease abatement, and interstate or inter- province and import/export commerce regulations for agricultural products

● An Economics class studies supply and demand of agricultural products and agrifoods

● A Chemistry class studies soil composition and the nutrients needed for healthy agricultural crops

● An Earth Science class studies how challenges around water impact agricultural practices and lead to alternative methods of crop production such as hydroponics

● A Biology class learns how the agricultural sector produces the many foods needed for healthy bodies, including discussing the pros and cons of GMOs and organics, as well as vermin control needed for healthy crops

● A Geography class sees how the local topology is suited or not suited for crop production and look to alternative solutions such as vertical gardens

● An Urban Environment class studies how cities are promoting the idea of citizen gardens for mini-crop production and understanding the “farm to table” social movement

● A History class studies how past agriculture practices have led to those infused with technology

● An Information Technology class studies systems needed to cultivate, harvest, transport and commercialize agricultural products for domestic consumption and export



living labs network


Where Collaborations Begin

The Social Responsibility Department of Global Skills Network


Email: info@LivingLabsNetwork.com