A Review of “Most Likely to Succeed” (a film)

One of my first homework assignments in “Technology and Innovation in Education” (EDCI 336), a Year 2 course, was to watch the film “Most Likely to Succeed.” It was a wonderful way to get me thinking about the benefits and uses of technology in the classroom. Early in the film, a few statistics were shared about the growing unemployment trend in educated adults. It, also, discussed how computers and machines have taken many jobs. For example, it briefly flashed through the difference of farming years ago, with lots of men sweating and working hard in a field, to what farming looks like today, with one man driving a giant tractor accomplishing in hours what traditionally took days to achieve. This only showcased the changing economy and the types of skills that future employers will seek. So many jobs have become obsolete already, and so many more will become that way in the future, unless we learn to embrace technology. “Most Likely to Succeed” presented me with an alternate approach to learning that was more hands on and student lead, rather than instructor lead, that allowed students to be creative and use technology in an age-appropriate way. 

I can see many benefits to this alternate approach to learning.  It allows more freedom of choice for the students, as well as helps that see that what they are learning is useful in the real world.  I have a 13-year-old daughter who often mutters, “This is so stupid, I’ll never actually use this when I grow up.”  It would be nice if she was given opportunities today to use her new skills in a real way, rather than just theoretically in a textbook.  I, also, like that High Tech High, the school showcased in the film, didn’t use traditional “tests” to grade the students.  It is well known that some students don’t “test” well and can often be a misrepresentation of how well a student understands a concept.  The film gave me some great things to think about in terms of how I will operate my classroom and how I will assess student knowledge.

I can, also, see a few drawbacks to this alternate learning style.  First, I am a little unsure about the loss of content.  The film pointed out that students get a deeper understanding of the things taught, rather than a broad, albeit shallow, knowledge about many subjects/concepts.  Initially I was on board; however, after more reflection, I’m unsure if high school and middle school is where students should be “specializing.”  Isn’t this where children and youth are introduced to a large variety of subjects and concepts, and post-secondary is where you go to gain a deeper understanding of the things you love? Second, how does High Tech High afford all their technology?!  Where I come from, teachers are bagging the PAC for field trip money and scraping funds to create a Mother’s Day craft. If one teacher, like myself, wanted to emulate High Tech High, it would be almost impossible.  To be successful, the entire education system would need an overhaul.  It’s a great goal, but a little unrealistic for one teacher to take on.

All-in-all, I’m glad I watched “Most Likely to Succeed.” It gave me lots of great things to think about and consider.  One thing I am sure of is that, as a teacher, I need to embrace technology and help my students learn to embrace it as well because technology is clearly the key for the future, and the deciding factor on who will be the “most likely to succeed.”