A smart city isn’t just technology. It’s also made up of smart people. There are two ways to build a smart community. Cities can develop a high quality of life that attracts the smart people and the businesses that want to employ them. But they also need strong schools to develop the next generation for tomorrow’s jobs. Educating school students about Smart Cities will introduce them to concepts in science, technology and engineering with a focus on urban planning and sustainability.

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Here are four new ideas to help nurture that next generation of smart citizens:

 

Get kids active by keeping them online: Getting kids online usually makes them less active. If they’re glued to screens consuming content and playing video games, they aren’t moving around and getting exercise. The key is wide-ranging 4G wireless service. There’s no question that Internet in classrooms helps children learn by letting them tap into a wealth of research and interactive, multimedia resources. Pervasive 4G lets children get those benefits even when they’re away from the classroom, turning field trips into even richer learning experiences. Some teachers are even using GPS with the wireless data to encourage students to explore.

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Use games to help students see things in new ways: Kids like games, of course, but just because something is fun doesn’t mean it can’t be educational too. Case in point: Minecraft. The open-world game already teaches problem-solving skills, but a special Education Edition of the game from Council Lead Partner Microsoft helps make the learning more structured. Lesson topics include everything from developing strategies for population growth to digital citizenship. Each topic comes with learning objectives and tools to measure the students’ progress. Special features allow students to take pictures and document their work for class projects. And teachers can enter the game as a non-playing advisor to help guide students.

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Connect classrooms to give all students a chance: It’s no secret that students in bigger school districts typically have more opportunities. These districts typically have more resources – and more importantly, a wider variety of resources – as a result of their sheer size. But the digital world is closing some of that gap. Skype and other distance learning tools are allowing students even in remote locations to learn from experts in big cities. 

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Embrace new ideas to meet today’s demand: The world has changed dramatically within just the past few years and students need to be prepared with the skills needed to win not only today’s jobs, but tomorrow’s. Meeting that demand is challenging with an educational system that traditionally has been resistant to change.

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