Most people agree that our current schools are severely outdated. Many instructional designs are still organized around the antiquated, inefficient and ineffective factory model.
School design doesn’t have to be that way, and some innovators are already creating visionary schools.
If you want to create the school of the future, you must incorporate these ten keys:
- Use tools, not programs. Edtech is a whole lot less about the program and more about the tech tools. Technology can give students access to experiences. Schools of the future, like the C.T. Academy in McKinney, Texas, give kids the access they need to tech tools. Designed as a learning center of the future, the Academy relies on more than edtech access alone. It uses edtech to build experiences.
- Take collaboration beyond walls. Students in a school of the future will capitalize on peer learning in new ways. Learning groups will go beyond classroom walls and the school building’s boundaries. Schools will be global learning networks.
- Focus on clicks, not bricks. Great schools were never about the building itself. They’ve always been about instruction design. Designers of future schools will optimize connectivity and minimize classroom space.
- Allow flexible hours. Students have peak learning times throughout the day. A flexible schedule allows students to be in school when they learn best, not necessarily when it’s best for the adults working with them.
- Permit remote learning. Students living in remote areas can have access to premier schools through remote learning capabilities.
- Offer self-paced learning. Students customize their education plans, and they move ahead at their own pace, similar to how the Steve Jobs School in Amsterdam facilitates instruction.
- Move beyond the status quo. Socioeconomic status or political platforms won’t hold students back.
- Create experiences. Authentic learning comes about as a result of hands-on experience. It’s holistic, like the internship projects at Big Picture Learning.
- Include more STEM activities. Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics instruction is hands-on learning, and STEM lessons engage students by using a variety of instructional modalities.
- Be open to change. Our collective knowledge is doubling every two years; that time frame will decrease to 12 months. Learning and unlearning must occur as we drop past practices that no longer serve.
There’s no way to be certain of everything the school of the future will include, but technology will be at the center.
It doesn’t matter whether you are researching for your first-ever college program or hunting for a practical advanced degree; there is one piece of advice that always rings true: Look for accreditation.
Accrediting agencies are private associations dedicated to the enhancement of education. While the standards they set and the types of institutions they accredit are their decision, they ultimately report to the Department of Education (DOE), which can choose to accept or reject their reviews. There is also a private, non-governmental organization, 
If you’re looking at enrolling in a higher education program in the coming months or years, it is important to consider a wide variety of factors. While many people really just look at the 
Something else that a lot of students don’t consider enough when deciding on a campus is the type, and amount, of career support provided by the facility. After all, you’re not just enrolling in a course for the fun of it, but rather to land a promotion, your dream job, or the kind of work experience that will help you to build a successful business. As such, choosing an education provider that is dedicated to helping students find work and build connections is of particular importance.
It isn’t difficult to find online articles casting doubts on MBAs. A typically American degree program designed to prepare the ambitious for careers in business leadership, the MBA has been a useful tool in securing high-profile jobs for more than a century. Yet, recently, the proliferation of the two-year business school degree amongst job applicants has convinced many so-called experts that employers simply aren’t wowed by MBAs any longer.
Though not a hard business skill, the ability of a business leader to see potential benefit in every relationship is a significant boon for employers. Hiring a worker with many business connections gives businesses greater access to high-quality resources, including funding, vendors, and even new talent. If nothing else, MBA programs are mills for tight-knit, exceedingly successful networks, and grads inevitably make links with peers, professors, and successful professionals, which they can take advantage of for future business success.
When online education began, students had access to precious few degree programs. Typically, only classes that required little communication and less hands-on training were candidates for digital classrooms. However, as education technology developed — and as interest in online education grew — students found more and more degrees available over the web.
On the opposite end of the education spectrum, engineering degrees require extensive applied instruction. Engineers study complex subjects like calculus and physics and must be able to apply theories to the real world. In universities, engineers are seen to build physical projects: catapults, miniature towers, better mousetraps, etc. Yet, many online schools are integrating engineering degree programs into their offerings.
Additional contributors to this article are University of Florida faculty Sean Adams, Marsha Bryant, Florin Curta, Mary Ann Eaverly, Bonnie Effros and Ken Sassaman, and Materials Research Society Outreach Coordinator Pamela Hupp.