Chris Lehmann discusses three biases in the introduction to his webinar Inquiry: The Very First Step In the Process of Learning. The second of which caught my attention the most. He stated that many people feel that school is there to provide a 21st century workforce, but he feels that schools should help students develop into the citizens needed for the 21st century. I could not agree more. Inquiry based learning hinges on teaching students to think for themselves in any situation. When I was in school, and even today, students were taught a set of curricula. They were expected to learn facts and figures and then use them in everyday life. Many students have difficulty in reasoning why and how school and the real world go together. Think about it. How many times have you heard a student ask - why do I need to learn this? I have asked this question many times myself. Fortunately I had parents and several teachers that pushed me into situations that lead me to learn the "why & how". In fact, my Mom was into Maker Spaces long before they became hip. She would supply me with gadgets and gizmos that helped me explore the world. I still use what I learned from those lessons with the students and adults I interact with.
My first years of teaching were spent showing third graders how to behave around other people. We worked hard to break the cycle of impulsivity that exploded from them at the slightest provocation. My students, for the most part, were responsible for raising themselves. This caused them to look out for the own needs and neglect or even trample the needs of others. Here is where my years of team sports, coaching and referring came into play like they did for Grant Wiggins in his article Great Teaching Means Letting Go. I used team related activities to help instill in them the values that they would need as they continued through school and into the workforce. The students discovered ways to relate to one another and solve problems with little intervention from me. This did not happen overnight. We spent weeks and months trying different approaches to learning and working together. The turning point came when we brought our lessons from the class to the fields outside our school. My students researched the game of soccer. They taught each other the rules and even devised a plan to mark the lines on the field. It was amazing watching them grow together in a real life situation. I still have students that visit me and reminisce about our days on the field. I do not believe we would have been as successful if it were not for me letting go and providing them the opportunity to apply their skills in the real world.
I agree completely with the idea that we are creating 21st century citizens. We are doing our students an injustice by focusing on tests and data instead of being independent thinkers.
ReplyDeleteWhat are your thoughts about the statement Chris Lehmann made about schools with a lack of technology and internet accessibility? The librarian in the webinar, I believe, asked the question poorly - but in in so many words asked "What do you do in a school when there is limited internet capacity and accessibility to computers/technology."
DeleteChris said that they're "fake schools" and "schools that are failing children." Are they though? I feel like students don't need technology to learn how to read, write, and collaborate. Am I discounting technology and it's importance in all of these - certainly not, because I agree that technology should be on the forefront of school curriculums. However, let's not forget that not all parts of the country can put together the SLA in Philly for a abundance of financial reasons. Many school districts are still recovering from the Great Recession and I think Chris offered a poor answer.
I was wondering what your thoughts were as it pertained to that of his webinar.
I do not believe that the schools with limited technology are fake schools at all. I am 42, and the first computers I used were in high school. The monitors were monotone and had very little processing power or memory. The point is that I did not grow up with computer, but I am still able to successfully use whatever technology I come across. I learned how to solve problems and how to troubleshoot my environment. If we can teach kids to do these two things, I believe that they can handle anything.
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