Stratosphere: Integrating Technology, Pedagogy, and Change Knowledge (2013) by Michael Fullan

Fullan suggests a framework for approaching education in the 21 st century.Stratosphere exists at the intersection of three elements: technology, pedagogy, and change knowledge.In the text, Fullan provides a detailed description of the Stratosphere's complex nature and interconnected components.Stratosphere is Fullan's response to the static state of schooling and the disconnect between educational practices and the ever-changing needs of society.Fullan expresses discouragement with today's educational system.He writes that current educational reforms have fallen short of making progress and that they focus on the wrong part of learning.Educational reforms are concentrated on standards and assessment and neglect to teach students how to learn or to foster love for learning.This leads to diminished enthusiasm and engagement.In early childhood, students are naturally excited and interested in learning but by the time they reach high school, this drive is almost gone.Fullan contends that both students and teachers are bored, and instructional practices are limited by the larger structure of schools.This is the impetus for Stratosphere, which focuses on creating highly engaging, technologically driven, and learner-centered environments.In contrast to current educational trends that stress testing and content, Stratosphere is driven by pedagogy.The pedagogical approach in Stratosphere emphasizes student engagement, strong teacher-student relationships, and teaching that is tied to constructivist theory.Students determine their own passions, address real-life problems, work collaboratively to find solutions, and push through challenges with the aid of constructive feedback.This pedagogy is closely tied to learner-centered instruction (Weimer, 2013).Learner-centered instruction deliberately includes students in the process of creating their knowledge and empowers the students with control over their learning.It embraces creativity and encourages the development of a classroom community through collaborative learning experiences.Fullan writes that "the magic of Stratosphere is that students and teachers are conjointly stimulated to engage in the pursuit of deeper learning: it is fueled by their passions and purposes.Both students and their teachers are turned on" (p.22, emphasis in original).In Stratosphere, teachers and students search for knowledge together.The teacher is no longer the distributor of information but a facilitator of learning.In this setting, curriculum shifts away from focusing on set answers and tasks involving lower levels of cognitive demands.Instead, learning becomes an intricate journey or a "complicated conversation" (Reeder, 2005, p. 248) with teachers and