There are some days when my students surprise me in a way that make me want to run out and tell everyone how amazing they are and how much they are learning. Of course there are other days when I want to bang my head against a wall because I can't seem to get them beyond the basics of the lesson. I have so many students who are willing to just get by with their learning and it is so frustrating to me to constantly watch bright kids settle for so little.
It was after a particularly hard day of teaching or more like preaching about a concept in chemistry that I decided to stop in the middle of one class and ask them why they did care to reach beyond the basics. The response I got was one of those surprising moments, "because nobody cares if we do." Which I immediately knew was false and so I asked why my students felt that way and that answers was just as surprising,"because teachers move on to get through the material no matter what." I never really thought about it that way before, it was never because I did not care if the student undstood it is was more about my thinking they did not care so they blew me off.
While reading this book and that conversation I decided to take a new approach...talking more with my students than to my students. I do not accept the blank stares or the shrugs, I ask them to teach me the concepts and to try new projects that the students decide. I am more class led than teacher driven. Who knows if this will work but I figure it is better to try everything rather than to constantly fail and complain about students lack of learning.
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What a great step you've taken! It's amazing to see things through their eyes and to realize how you are coming through to them. Perspective is one of those things we teach kids early on, yet often we forget that our perspective is different than our students. I'm interested to hear how this turns out for you.
ReplyDeleteGreat, Kelly. This is another one of those themes that keeps cropping up every week in our reading—getting students involved. I mean, really involved. Not just asking whether they prefer multiple choice to essay exams...but to find out what their questions are, about themselves and about the world. And, as you said, really listening to them.
ReplyDeleteTed Sizer (ed reform guru who died recently), wrote a book a number of years ago called, Horace's Compromise. Horace was a fictional English teacher...but the compromise at the high school level was that he did not expect much from his students (just the usual stuff) and they in return concentrated more on pep rallies and snow days and did not give him a hard time. They did what Horace asked them to do, but didn't really engage with anything and didn't really consider their learning.
Your students' comments are telling.
I'll be anxious to hear more about this.