How Should We Set-Up School Objectives?
Based on my experience of over two decades as an educator on three continents, I believe that macro-objectives over a multi-year period are the best way to benchmark students' learning. All too often national or state standards are set that are very specific, either to a particular skill or a distinct age, and school teachers find themselves with little room for creativity and limited flexibility to adapt to their students' distinct needs. Macro-objectives, however, act as guide posts along the educational journey, allowing for many different pathways to arrive at the same or similar destination.
Early Childhood Macro-Objectives - Children 2-8 years old should learn to:
• Care for yourself independently (hygiene, eating, dressing, taking care of your own things, etc.)
• Live in a community (share, take turns, be polite, apologize, tidy up, play fair, etc.)
• Work out problems with others through dialogue
• Express your emotions in healthy ways
• Read & Write
• Calculate & Think Mathematically
• Investigate Curiosity
• Speak a Second Language
• Express ideas artistically through drawing, visual arts, dance and music
• Swim and ride a bike
Middle Childhood Macro-Objectives - Children 9-15 years old should learn to:
• Frame and solve complex problems
• Develop multiple research methods
• Develop multiple design methods
• Engage in Socratic dialogues
• Plan extensive projects
• Communicate in multiple artistic languages
• Do field work
• Campaign, volunteer and community organize
• Develop healthy life practices
• Play an instrument
• Play a sport
Young Adult Macro-Objectives - Children 16-18 years old should learn to:
• Write a business plan and act upon it
• Serve the community through internships and volunteer work
• Civically engage
• Deal with young adult issues responsibly
• Deal with the demands of an independent adult life
• Invest in a specific passion
• Publish an original piece of academic work
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