What's His Problem?

What's this boy's problem?

http://castle.eiu.edu/~scienced/philosophy/poor.html

If you answered, "nothing," then I agree with you! I don't think this boy has a problem. He conducts business with his uncle and farmers around his area. He can calculate mathematical figures, he can memorize information, he can read maps, he can build things, he can help people. He just cannot "do" school.

He isn’t slow; he is not mentally deficient. But he does need to have academic experiences that relate to his life. How are the names of the Presidents going to help this boy? In all reality, they probably aren’t going to be of any use to him. Just like a bookend or a broom holder would be of no use to his mother. He can’t name the imports or exports of Chile, but why would he want to? Why does he need to know how wide a highway is? How is knowing the Articles of Confederation going to make him a better citizen? And yet, these are the things he "needs" to learn. 

Interestingly, when this boy was actually engaged in something at school, the vacuum, his teacher rejected his application of it to his life. I think that this is the real problem: teachers misunderstand their students. Teachers need to understand that some kids just are not going to be interested in activities that have no bearing on their life. Some students don't care about "What a Daffodil Thinks of Spring." For those students, teachers need to create and facilitate learning of real, applicable activities - activities that require knowledge and creativity, but can be used when they leave school. For the boy in the story, maybe an experiment with a diesel engine, or a report on how they work. Or let him create a report about how he can save his uncle money with his business.

For those students who like to ponder about what flowers think of the different seasons, just let them keep doing what they are doing. 

Do learning styles exist?

A very interesting concept - do learning styles really exist (visual, verbal, hands-on, etc)? In an education system that teaches that all students learn differently, this theory could be quite controversial.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIv9rz2NTUk

Although I am not aware of the science behind the theory, I would say that I agree with Professor Willingham that students don't have different specific learning styles. It makes sense that some students pick up on visual instruction and others on auditory instruction, but that doesn't prove that a student learns a specific way. It just means that they understood a different method of teaching.

Take this example: You, a social studies teacher, lecture to your class for ten minutes about a battlefield during the Civil War. You explain its location  in relation to other areas of interest, run through the topography of the area, point out the benefits and disadvantages of such a location, and other interesting facts. One of your students raises his hand, commenting that he doesn't understand what you are lecturing about. You show him  physical and topographical maps of the battlefield and explain again why they would benefit or disadvantage the soldiers. Now he understands. What does this mean?

Well, it means that he understood what you were teaching when you presented it to him in a different way. Other students understood the lecture - he didn't. So, you found a way in which he understood. This doesn't mean that he ought to be categorized as a visual learner. There may be times when he does fine listening to a lecture. But it is all about making sure the student understands the material.

Whichever concept you believe to be true about the way students learn, does it necessarily make a difference? We are all concerned about the students' learning, including myself.

Teacher as Facilitator

When I think of a teacher, I most usually think of a person who stands at the front of the classroom giving out information and taking feedback from younger peoples, or students. There is a new idea in education, however, that puts the teacher of a classroom into a new position: the facilitator. A facilitator is one who helps others communicate or get something done. Instead of a lecturing format, the classroom in which the teacher is the facilitator becomes an area for open discussion - an area in which the students do the majority of the talking. This idea also reminds me of the teaching method called constructivism, a concept that allows students to "teach themselves" in a sense.

The goal in both constructivism and facilitating is to allow students more control over their learning - to make it direct and worthwhile at the maximum level. Isn't this many times a teacher's goal?

Students & Technology: What's wrong?

Question: Why are students not actively involved with the technology that is already in schools?

Often times, as you may remember from high school days, there are technologies in classrooms that go unused by teachers as well as students. Why? Here is one scenario: Imagine being a high school teacher and your school has just provided you with a brand new machine to help your students learn. Being unaware of this piece of equipment, however, you let it sit in the corner. It becomes a table for extra papers rather than a tool to assist your students. Without knowledge of how to use a tool you may not use it. Your students also never use it.

Technologies change so quickly that it is difficult to keep up with them no matter how much you may be used to computers. If schools are going to provide the latest equipment for teachers, they ought to also provide instruction for how to use the equipment.