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"There are a few terms that are often confused or used interchangeably—’learning,’ ‘education,’ ‘training,’ and ‘school’—but there are important differences between them. Learning is the process of acquiring new skills and understanding. Education is an organized system of learning. Training is a type of education that is focused on learning specific skills. A school is a community of learners: a group that comes together to learn with and from each other. It is vital that we differentiate these terms," according to the late Sir Ken Robinson, and Kate Robinson, his daughter, co-authors of the book, Imagine If… Creating a New Future for All of Us.

The Robinsons explore four aspects of the purpose of education: personal, cultural, economic and social. They argue, "The four purposes above suggest eight core competencies that, if properly integrated into education, will equip students who leave school to engage in the economic, cultural, social, and personal challenges they will inevitably face in their lives. These competencies are curiosity, creativity, criticism, communication, collaboration, compassion, composure, and citizenship. Rather than be triggered by age, they should be interwoven from the beginning of a student’s educational journey and nurtured throughout."

In their new book Complementary Curriculum Approach: Transform Your Practice Through Intentional Teaching, Lisa Porter Kuh and Iris Chin Ponte weave together four intentions for fostering the settled classroom, a place where the Robinsons’ eight core competencies can flourish. Porter Kuh and Chin Ponte write, "When children have opportunities to choose and the time to enjoy those choices, children and teachers have a sense of collaboration and mutual respect that creates a strong foundational learning experience for all."

Share your thoughts about learning, education, training and school, and your beliefs about the purpose of education in the comments below.

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