Escuela Nueva: the education of the future?

The New School was born in Europe, in the 20th century, as a criticism of the Authoritarian School traditional, which is still valid today, despite the continuous changes and educational reforms. He criticizes the traditional way of school, where the student is a passive being, who only receives information and non-creative repetitive reinforcements.

What the New School intends is focus on the interest of the child and develop their abilities, making the student an active being of the learning of it. It is about “learning by doing”. That the child has a direct experience, that stimulates her thinking and possesses the information through observations, obtaining solutions to said problem and putting them into practice. Therefore, it promotes active, cooperative, participatory and personalized learning, centered on the learner, through dialogue and participation.

• Related article: "Educational psychology: definition, concepts and theories"

Teaching methodology of the New School

It is a free and active teaching

in which the teacher takes into account the point of view of the student. The teacher limits himself to correcting errors and giving feedback to his students, letting them be the ones to ask the questions. The limitation of learning in a single classroom or schedules, where the student has to be seated and in silence, is also eliminated. The child can, and should, move throughout the environment that surrounds them, exploring the different places. And it involves their parents and environment (outside school) in learning.

The power-submission dynamic of teachers is eliminated making the tutor a figure of affection and help. Leaving all the power of self-government in children, making them understand that they need to develop a series of rules to improve their learning and development.

• You may be interested in: "The 14 keys to boost creativity"

Learning styles

Currently, we know that people do not have a unique way of learning, but rather, each person learns differently. Today, seven different learning styles are known, and the style that works for us is not necessarily good for someone else. The types of learning are the following:

1. visual learning

They learn through drawings, images... They have a more spatial vision. Colors and photographs help to learn better and visualize objects more easily. They usually use phrases like: "I can imagine it"

2. auditory learning

They prefer the use of sounds, rhythms or music to learn. They are people who are usually good at singing or playing an instrument. They tend to set a rhythm when making memorizations, so that a particular sound helps you memorize. They tend to use phrases like: "That sounds good"

3. Individual learning (intrapersonal)

They prefer to learn things alone or by themselves. They focus their objectives on topics that are of interest to them. He usually thinks how he would act to understand something. They trust their intention and self-analysis. They often use phrases like: "I need time to think."

4. Social (interpersonal) learning

They are people who like to work as a team. Share your findings with others. Perform listening behaviors that help them understand how to deal with others. You are sensitive to other people's motivations, feelings, and moods. They often use phrases like: "Two heads are better than one."

5. Verbal or linguistic learning

An attempt is made to involve writing and it is oral learning. Normally it is recorded speaking and then listened to, or read aloud. Plays with the sound of words using tongue twisters, rhymes, poems... He likes to look for the meaning of new terms and talk about them with others. They often use phrases like: “In other words…”

6. Physical or kinesthetic learning

They tend to use the body, hands or touch to learn. They focus on the physical sensations of the situation. They use physical objects for their learning. They like sports and exercise. They prefer to think while walking or running. And they usually use phrases like: "Let's get to work."

7. Logical-mathematical learning

To learn they usually use logic, reasoning and systems. It is about understanding everything in a contextualized reasoning. Schemas are often created. They enjoy numbers or shapes. They often use phrases like: "That's logical."

In the Traditional School, only logical-mathematical learning is reinforced, leaving aside all those students who have another way of learning and preventing them from improving their education, leading to student frustration. On the other hand, in Escuela Nueva, it allows them to improve their learning autonomously and by motivating the student to learn from her way of learning.

Definitely….

in the new school The aim is for the student to learn to learn, to create, to undertake, to take initiative, to think critically, lead processes and work as a team. Something that, today, is required for the vast majority of jobs, but that is not taught in the Traditional School.

In addition, the New School allows the student to get the most out of himself and choose his best way to learn, focusing on all the learning needs of each student. What allows the child to never lose interest in her education and eliminating the frustration of not moving forward. This school allows the child to be in continuous learning, both inside and outside the classroom, allowing parents to participate actively in their children's education.