News from The Arthur Holt Library
“Without libraries what have we? We have no past and no future.” – Ray Bradbury
Where do libraries fit in today’s world? Some people view libraries as storage facilities for knowledge. Somewhere you might find books on shelves and a few desktop computers for timed use and a quiet moment but The Arthur Holt Library is much more than that.
Last Saturday, Ms Courtenay and Mrs O’Driscoll led a presentation on behalf of the School to address this very question at the 21st Century Learning Conference. Based in Hong Kong, the conference aimed to shine light on what kind of educational experiences belong in libraries and how they connect with the current educational context. What was presented challenged educators to see libraries as transdisciplinary spaces, perfectly situated for the explicit teaching of critical thinking skills.
Over a number of years The AHL has developed a teaching and learning model that places such skills at its core. This means that students are being taught to evaluate their metacognitive processes as they navigate tasks. As Dr Peter Ellerton explains, “One aspect of critical thinking that is often not explicit in the literature is that it begins with understanding our own thinking. He points out that by examining the way they think students can demonstrate greater clarity, precision, coherence and depth in the understanding they produce.
In the United States, “93% of employers believe a candidate’s demonstrated capacity to think critically, communicate clearly, and solve complex problems is more important than their undergraduate major”. In establishing itself as the home of skills based teaching and learning The AHL is preparing boys for the world that lies ahead.
“Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think” – Albert Einstein
