Deep learning – 2: Why should they learn?

“Deep Learning – Why should they learn?” is a thought-provoking publication that challenges educators to re-examine the fundamental aims of schooling in order to better prepare students for the rapidly changing world. Written by Professor David Hargreaves, the publication offers a comprehensive view on the moral purpose of schooling and why education practice must be redesigned to realise it. This can sometimes be a rather abstract, rhetorical appeal, not a clear statement about what it means and what it entails for the daily lives of teachers and students.

At the heart of moral purpose in education is the professional commitment to ensuring and further developing the well-being of every student. Hargreaves argues that well-being is essential to every person’s enjoyment of ‘the good life’ at school and beyond and that students must be given rich opportunities to be both creative and entrepreneurial to make them fit for a changing world.

The publication explores the notion of well-being from a range of perspectives: economic, psychological and philosophical. It shows that without the addition of social entrepreneurship and creativity, any delineation of well-being falls short of achieving moral purpose. A conclusion points to the reconfigured school practices needed to achieve what is offered as ‘the fifth deep’

Deep Learning – Why should they learn? is a must-read for educational practitioners at all levels. It challenges readers to think deeply about their professional commitment to ensuring and further developing the well-being of every student and to consider how social entrepreneurship and creativity can best be developed through project-based learning.