Shift Happens – Karl Fisch and Scott McLeod

First off, I would have to say that this video was fascinating to watch, and I really got a lot out of it.
Worcester Academy in the year 2028 in mind looks very different than it does today. The first thing that I would say that would be different would be the student. Every year the students that come through Worcester Academy are slightly different, but I would predict that they, the students would be drastically different than those that are attending the academy presently. Additionally, the whole entire school would be computer integrated. What I mean by this is not just computers in use and doing cool things with computers, as we are doing today. What I mean is that everything that we do, every action that one might take is monitored and controlled in some way by a computer. For example, an entire class will be done on computers and people won’t even need to talk because there will be total automation and connection throughout the computers.
Another big difference in my mind would be all the buildings at WA. As Kingsley has just been redone, imagine if you will all the buildings on campus remodeled and with even better technology than Kingsley as it stands now. As well as these remodeled and renovated buildings will come a new breed of students. These students will think, react, and behave differently than the students on the hilltop today. In addition to their behaviors and such, these students will be training themselves in different fields and for different jobs. Hopefully, the school still stands in the year 2028, as well as the many traditions that are associated with it.

Today we watched a very fascinating video that displayed many different facts about how society has grown or “shifted” in a matter of nearly ten years. I was extremely captivated by the information and it really got me thinking what the world will be like in twenty years or even five years from now because technology has grown so far that it is said in the video that a computer will soon be capable of functioning better than a human brain. That thought is pretty scary, which leaves me with mixed feelings about what Worcester Academy will be like in the year 2028. To begin, I believe that the entire neighborhood around WA will change as a community. Also, I believe that the school itself will keep the facilities that stand on campus now, unless they are in need of renovation, just to maintain the tradition of the school since opening in 1834. However, I do believe that the school will also remain obtaining new technology that comes out annually. Technology will never stop growing, which is why it is extremely hard to predict what the school’s campus will look like in the year 2028 never mind how it functions because the future is way to hard to predict. Throughout my years at WA I have learned many things that I have used after learning the material. Finally, to leave on this thought I personally believe that preparation is everything and better preparing our youth from mistakes made in the past is the only way the world will be able to keep up with what is ahead in the future.

To start, I would agree with Chris saying that the video was truly fascinating to watch. The statistics in the video are something that I would never have thought.
Now the question at hand is really hard to answer is really hard to because we have no idea what the future will hold and we don’t know what advances in technology will be made. With the information provided in the movie, it is a safe to say that every kid in the school will have a laptop and access to the internet. One advancement that is very possible is advancement in transportation. Everyone knows how much of a pain it is to walk from the top floor of Walker, to the top floor of Kingsly. Well, I believe that it is truly possible that we could get something like small carts or buses to transport people from building to building. Now on a more realistic sense, everyone knows that Kingsly was just re-done and that a new sports facility is going to be built at the location the Worcester academy just acquired. Now I believe in the not to distant future, Worcester Academy, one building at a time will start renovating all of the other buildings on the campus to push them in the 21st century just like Kingsly.

Worcester Academy in the year 2028 will look very different from what it looks like today. After the renovation of Kingsley, Dexter Morse will renovate all the other buildings on campus making them future proof. Hallways will all be watched over with discreet video cameras because the lack of privacy will only increase in 20 years. Each student will have their own “iPhone” like devices. These devices will be used for homework, web-browsing, music, and for texting. The “hilltoper cards” will track students as they commute around the campus that will stretch from the current campus down to Gaskill Fields. With the exponential growth of the school, by the year 2028 there will be roughly 3000 students on campus and of course new facilities will be made. Students will adhere to strict dress codes including sport coats for men and women. Teachers will stream their lectures to the classroom because most teachers will live in foreign countries. The lectures will be projected using holograms onto the board and there is no need to worry about unruly classes because the security cameras will watch every student. The meals in the lunchroom will continuous decline in quality until the only food served will be in the form of nutrient pills that provide students with only the essentials. The students will all be in perfect physical condition because of the abolishment of candy and soda on campus. Also, the health and wellness classes will be replaced with workout sessions for all grades, six through twelve. Lines of windmills will line Providence Street and provide the whole neighborhood and academy with power. Flying cars will have their appropriate parking lots on the roofs of dormitories and academic buildings. And of course, because of developments in modern medicine, Dexter Morse will still be the headmaster of the academy and Mr. Delaney will still teach math.

I was amazed after watching this video because I thought it was intriguing and really got me wondering. I knew that technology was becoming important in society, but after watching the video, I came to the realization that it is growing exponentially. What really stood out to me in the video was that computers will be able to function better than the human brain. I was fascinated by that idea, but then thought if humans would have a purpose in the world if technology will be this advanced. I then thought what Worcester Academy would be like in the year 2028. First of all, I think the school’s campus would expand with more buildings. Recently, Kingsly was renovated completely with new state of the art computer labs. In twenty years I could imagine more buildings on the campus being renovated with new technology. An example is in Walker, which i could definitely see a set of escalators going to the top floor of the building to make it easier for people who are carrying books. I could also imagine every student required to have a laptop because of how important and useful they will become. Also every teacher will teach their lessons with technology using power points. If technology did completely change the school twenty years from now, I think that the students in the school would act differently than today, but it is difficult to predict anything that will happen because of the exponential growth of technology.

In the year 2028, Worcester Academy will have changed beyond another level and not in a good way. The dress code argument will have gotten out of hand and everyone will be required to wear the dress code before I went to school here, which is suits (including a blazer) and whatever it was for girls (probably the same because they do not really have one, still). The cost to get into the school will be at a record high. Why you ask? Just like Eric was talking about, all of the buildings will be redone and changed into these futuristic buildings. While the price to get in is skyrocketing beyond another level, and everyone is too busy making the school look good, the level of the student’s education to get in will go down. Finally, the sports teams will be above par, by a lot. This will be a direct result from the use of computers. Because humans will have made computers so advanced that they can do anything for anyone, generations of weak humans will be born that are physically unable to play sports.

In the year 2028 I see a bright future on the Hilltop. From my first day freshman year to the very moment I write this response, Worcester Academy has already gone through monumental changes. The reconstruction of Kingsley is the most prominent change the school has undergone in the past two years, however there have been numerous other revamping and reconstructing the school has undergone. As both Mr. Morse and Mr. Viva touched upon at assembly, Kingsley was once the home of a generation of state of the art technology. It was the original construction of Kingsley and today’s upgrade that we were able to reequip our school with the latest technology, which is why I see great things happening within the academy, specifically technology wise. As a school we have already taken a proactive step forward in integrating new technology into the classrooms. Between new science labs and Smart Boards, the students of today are first handedly experiencing knowledge via technology. I can’t even begin to imagine technology that ceases to exist. I feel confident in saying that not only the administration but also the alumni will do an extraordinary job creating a learning environment that is highly beneficial to the students but also the community. One thing I feel passionate about changing by the year 2028 is our schools relationship within the neighborhood community. Although students currently volunteer at Union Hill School and scholarships are being offered to neighborhood children, I don’t think that is enough to mend to obvious tension and differences between community and school. It may not be clear to some, but there is an obvious cry for help that I believe is being ignored. By the year 2028 I hope to not only go through a 49 minute class period, but quite possibly an entire school year without hearing a single siren echo through the classes and hallways.

Today in class we watched a truly captivating video called “Did you know?” It presented a bunch of facts that I have never thought about before and never imagined were true. The video opens your eyes to what has gone on in our world, what is going on, and what is to come as well. The video explains how technology but specifically the internet is becoming a bigger part of our life day by day. Who knows what Worcester Academy will be like by the year 2028. I don’t think that the basic layout of the school would be much different at all except for the small fact that instead of sidewalks there would be conveyor belts to take the kids to class but thats minor. The real innovations would be on the inside of the buildings. In 2028, I can imagine escalators and scrolling marques with the daily schedule to make it easier for the students. Every new technological advance that you can think of Worcester Academy will have it. It’s hard to know exactly what technological advances will be available by the year 2028 with how fast technology is growing these days. By then we could be teleporting, who knows! The video talks about what is a 21st century student and as I said before with all the development and growth in our society there is no way of knowing what kind of school environment our children will grow up in.

A lot can happen in a short amount of time. Even more can happen in a twenty -year span. I believe that is we were to turn time ahead to the year 2028, Worcester Academy would no longer be an educational learning community, but an intense training facility. Instead of admission being based on academics and character, it will be based solely on physical strength and endurance. Each applicant, boys and girls between the ages of sixteen and eighteen, will endure various tests of fitness, and if they pass, they will enter Worcester Academy for 180 days. The students will not need to be educated, because upon arrival, doctors on campus will implant a computer chip into everyone’s brain, giving them literally all the information available. Also at this time, students will lose the ability to think for themselves. This eliminates the possibility of retaliation. The next 180 days will be utilized for combat training, handling real life situations, and taking strategical classes. At the end of the 180 days, there will be a test of efficiency. If passed, students will be considered “super humans” and sent to different stations in different parts of the country to defend it and keep order.

I envision Worcester Academy to be very different in 2028. There will still be a campus, but based on the growth of the school I feel that the current campus will become the middle school campus and that Worcester Academy would have acquired a new plot of land for the Upper School. This new school will be environmentally friendly with items like rain catches, green roofs, as well as many other future innovations in order to make the school totally green.
The school will be online as much as possible, more than it is now. It will have all homework, announcements, extra help, and anything else that can be posted online. However, I do not believe that the school will have its classes online. I believe that nothing compares to being in a class with a teacher. You can only learn so much on your own without guidance and hands on activities. You also learn many non-educational things too in a classroom. How to behave, how to interact, how to be social are things you really cannot learn how to do online. I hope that Worcester Academy does not throw itself totally online. No matter the technological advances that will occur in the future, the classroom will always teach you just that bit more. It is hard to predict what Worcester Academy will be like, because the world is always changing.

In class today our class saw a video about how the world is permanently shifting. This video was very interesting to me and in my opinion had a lot of meaning behind it. But the real question is what about 20 years from now? In 20 years the places I know personally will be absolutely different for example Worcester Academy. Worcester Academy in 2028?? Heres a list of what I think will be changed:
the buildings would be sparkling mint condition
some history would be saved
buildings would be hurricane safe
recycling constantly
too many kids and faculty
technologically advanced in every way
very strict
extreme high expectations
minimum junk food
high security
expanded its grounds
and last but not least uniforms all the way

Being at Worcester Academy for about three weeks now, it is hard to imagine what it will be like in twenty years. However having two uncles who attended Worcester Academy in the seventies and seeing pictures of the differences is incredible. Who would have imagined there would have been a new gym?
In twenty years I envision Worcester Academy to be twice the size it is now and very prestigious. Worcester Academy will own much more land around the Worcester area and have many more state of the art buildings such as Kingsely today. I imagine the popularity of the school growing as well possibly as large as two thousand students. I can imagine Dexter Hall being pristine with possible kitchens in every room to go along with full bathrooms and possibly attached rooms. Walker Hall will be completely renovated with a brand new Admission office and College Counseling office. However most of this renovation will be useless considering everything will be done virtually and on computers. Some classes may even be optional to attend in person because class will be held on computers via videochats and other significant devices. The athletic program here at Worcester Academy in twenty years will be one of the most remarkable programs in the country. Between basketball and soccer alone college coaches will be all over Worcester Academy fields and courts. In 2028, Worcester Academy will be an internationally recognized school for academics as well as athletics.

Worcester Academy in 2028 is incomprehensible. My brain in incapable of predicting what WA will be like 4 years down the road, never mind 20. Any “prediction” that we might make about that far in the future are nothing more than a simple guess. For example, I could predict that WA would be a thriving institution, filled with the latest technologies (I don’t know what those would be), using the latest and most innovative teaching methods (not sure of those either), and doing its best to prepare its students for an unknown, but promising, future. However it’s also completely plausible for me to predict that the United States will suddenly collapse as a result of a surprise Chinese offensive in 2016, causing WA to be demolished to make room for the world largest airport construction project, General Gao’s International. But wait, maybe computers will finally take over the world in 2021, making a Grafton Hill a suburban neighborhood with growing social tension between Macs and PCs. The point is, my best guess as to what WA will be like in 2028 is useless, because I, nor anyone else, knows what anything will be like in 2028. So how can I imagine what I want out of WA twenty years from now when I’m not even sure what I need out of WA right now?
Which brings me to my next point: the video we watched today did not surprise me. The facts about today’s society were sometimes scary, but not surprising, and I took the predictions (guesses) with a grain of salt, as they say. What the video did accomplish was reminding me of the uncertainty about all things futuristic. This video mentions super computers by 2012. Well guess what, I’m scheduled to join the work force sometime around 2013, and this whole high school thing is supposed to be preparing me for that. But as of now, none of my teachers have suggested any sort of combat tactics in the upcoming human-computer super war. So never mind 2028, what do I want out of WA now? Give me my math, science, and English of course. But the most important thing that I need going into an unknown future is the ability to think freely, to question everything, and to draw my own conclusions. That way, whatever the future might throw at me, I’ll have the ability to evaluate it, analyze it, and ultimately figure out ways deal with it.

I thought the video, Shift Happens, was quite interesting to watch. I learned many things about my generation that i did not know, nor would I think about. Worcester Academy in 2028 is really hard to imagine. I am guessing that there will be drastic changes. There will be more students coming to the school. Technology will have made great advances, and the school will have the newest computers and laptops. Along with anything else they deem necessary to help a student learn and adapt better to their situations. There will probably not be a quad and new building will be built there to accommodate the larger number of students. I am sure the students would excel in their academics and athletics. But everything is too hard to predict. My mother and father went here, back when the pit was the detention center. My mother sang when Kingsley was finished being remodeled and was opening up to the students. Who would have known that twenty-six years later the building was going to change drastically again. It would be nice to know the future of the school but the closest anyone can come to knowing is guessing.

Mr. Rubino without question takes the prize for most creative, unique and humorous response! Well done guy!