Walt Disney once said, “Crowded classrooms and half-day sessions are a tragic waste of our greatest natural resource - the minds of our children.” According to an ACT college entrance exam study, three-fourths of students who recently took the exam lacked the skills to succeed in entry-level, credit-bearing college courses in reading, math, social studies and science, even though they had taken a high school curriculum designed to prepare them for higher education. School systems need to reinvent the educational process just like Walt reinvented the amusement parks and created Disneyland. In this presentation, Bill Capodagli provides the framework for transforming the learning experience using Walt Disney’s credo for success…Dream, Believe, Dare, Do:

Dream – Walt Disney made a practice of envisioning the untried and impossible. School systems need to create a vision that motivates teachers, students and parents to succeed in a true learning environment.

Believe – Walt understood that success comes from an entire team sharing a unique set of values. Creating an organization where teachers, staff and students are motivated to achieve long-term goals in an environment of mutual respect and trust is paramount to reinventing the learning experience.

Dare – Walt did not follow in the footsteps of others, sit on the sidelines, or take the safe and unimaginative approach to providing “magical moments” for his guests. School systems must dare to make a difference by breaking out of the traditional “teacher-centered” classroom teaching and embrace “student-centric” learning experiences where the teacher serves as a facilitator.

Do – Walt was a master at creating plans that inspired an entire team to act. The result: a legendary organization with guests who return year after year to relive the magic that Disney created. School systems must also plan for long-term change. Let’s not waste, as Walt said, “our greatest natural resource…our children.”