We must reengage students in the learning process invite them back into the learning process and make them the center of learning, not the receivers of information. If we are going to teach students to ‘Learn how to Learn’ then we must at times push them to do so and get out of their way so they can.
One of my students in our teentek.com class came up to me yesterday and said:“What do you do here MR. U? I mean you never teach us anything.”
Exactly!
I am trying to encourage teachers to create the rubric that demonstrates what they want students to learn, but allow the students to decide what that learning looks like to them. It is EASIER to assign everyone to create a power point or a digital storytelling or a wiki or whatever and often times that is what the kids want too--they want to know exactly what is expected of them....exactly what they need to do to get an "A" or to be "proficient". As the teacher becomes the guide rather than the all knowing giver of information, the teacher needs to turn control of the whole learning process over to the students. Only then are we truly preparing them for the world they are entering.
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Thank you for directing me to the thinking stick. It proved that teachers are up against a system of their own making that drains creativity.
ReplyDeleteI am glad to be part of a movement that rekindles the spirit of learning for our students, but it sure is a time-consuming and, at times, depressing task.
I mean, after giving students choice, imagine how deflating it can be to hear, "Can't we just have a scantron test?"
One day at time, right?
Or should I say, one wiki at a time?
That's corny.