The Problem: Students are rarely allowed time to learn about things they love that fall outside predetermined school curriculum.
Imagine being a student that struggles in school. You're not good at math. You're not good at reading. Your writing looks like chicken scratch. Your favorite hours in school are lunch and recess. But when you're at home, you love to build things. Now imagine you are given one hour a week during school to learn anything you want. You could spend that hour building things, something you're actually good at. Maybe that simple thing wouldn't change your outlook on school for the better. But what if it did?
What causes the problem?
One cause could be that "raising standards" in education almost always equates to adding more. Many teachers already feel it's difficult to cover everything that's required, which is only compounded by constantly adding more breadth (which usually equates to a sacrifice in depth).
Another cause could be the ever-increasing focus on "accountability" which nearly always correlates with standardized testing. These tests are adept at pointing out how badly schools are failing, which has created a mentality that doing more of the same is the answer. If schools are not performing well in reading and math, it must needs be that they spend more time on reading and math. This mentality has also created a fear among many educators that taking time to teach anything outside the bounds of curriculum will somehow disadvantage students.
What are people currently doing, or willing to do, to solve the problem?
While I was an educator, the thought had never occurred to me to allow students to follow their own interests. Even if it had, as first-year teacher short on time and energy, I wouldn't have been able to figure out how to do that on my own. This is a topic I've never heard addressed in educational discussions.
What are all of the current solutions to the problem?
Schools have recognized to some degree the need and desire of students to branch out in their learning. For example, some schools have gifted programs for students who are ready for more than what the current system provides. However, the focus of these programs is still limited to core subjects for the most part. Most middle and high schools allow students to choose electives to fill out their schedules, but this depends a great deal on the skill sets of teachers within the schools and is not student determined.
Another solution are private lessons and after school activities such as sports teams. However, these activities are limited at times for students due to parental budgets, geography, or program availability.
Why aren't the current solutions good enough?
For one, the current circumstances are what cause many of us to separate learning into two types: the kind we receive at school (boring in many students' estimations), and the kind we receive after school (fun because it's voluntary). Due to constraints, extracurricular learning is often least available to those who may need it most (the kind of student described in the beginning vignette).
How long has it been a problem?
I'm not familiar enough with the history of education to know whether or not students in public schools were ever allowed to follow their own interests. However, my guess is that the aim of public schools has ever been to teach to an agenda determined by people other than the students.
How easily could something change to make the problem go away?
I believe all the needed building blocks are in place to make this possible. For example, schools could begin tapping into expertise that already exists in the community to help students follow their interests. And, this expertise is no longer limited by geography due to the availability of technology. The difficult part is that doing this in public schools will require a paradigm shift. Instead of school being a place we go to learn what other people want us to learn, school could become a place we can also go to learn what we want to learn.
Imagine being a student that struggles in school. You're not good at math. You're not good at reading. Your writing looks like chicken scratch. Your favorite hours in school are lunch and recess. But when you're at home, you love to build things. Now imagine you are given one hour a week during school to learn anything you want. You could spend that hour building things, something you're actually good at. Maybe that simple thing wouldn't change your outlook on school for the better. But what if it did?
What causes the problem?
One cause could be that "raising standards" in education almost always equates to adding more. Many teachers already feel it's difficult to cover everything that's required, which is only compounded by constantly adding more breadth (which usually equates to a sacrifice in depth).
Another cause could be the ever-increasing focus on "accountability" which nearly always correlates with standardized testing. These tests are adept at pointing out how badly schools are failing, which has created a mentality that doing more of the same is the answer. If schools are not performing well in reading and math, it must needs be that they spend more time on reading and math. This mentality has also created a fear among many educators that taking time to teach anything outside the bounds of curriculum will somehow disadvantage students.
What are people currently doing, or willing to do, to solve the problem?
While I was an educator, the thought had never occurred to me to allow students to follow their own interests. Even if it had, as first-year teacher short on time and energy, I wouldn't have been able to figure out how to do that on my own. This is a topic I've never heard addressed in educational discussions.
What are all of the current solutions to the problem?
Schools have recognized to some degree the need and desire of students to branch out in their learning. For example, some schools have gifted programs for students who are ready for more than what the current system provides. However, the focus of these programs is still limited to core subjects for the most part. Most middle and high schools allow students to choose electives to fill out their schedules, but this depends a great deal on the skill sets of teachers within the schools and is not student determined.
Another solution are private lessons and after school activities such as sports teams. However, these activities are limited at times for students due to parental budgets, geography, or program availability.
Why aren't the current solutions good enough?
For one, the current circumstances are what cause many of us to separate learning into two types: the kind we receive at school (boring in many students' estimations), and the kind we receive after school (fun because it's voluntary). Due to constraints, extracurricular learning is often least available to those who may need it most (the kind of student described in the beginning vignette).
How long has it been a problem?
I'm not familiar enough with the history of education to know whether or not students in public schools were ever allowed to follow their own interests. However, my guess is that the aim of public schools has ever been to teach to an agenda determined by people other than the students.
How easily could something change to make the problem go away?
I believe all the needed building blocks are in place to make this possible. For example, schools could begin tapping into expertise that already exists in the community to help students follow their interests. And, this expertise is no longer limited by geography due to the availability of technology. The difficult part is that doing this in public schools will require a paradigm shift. Instead of school being a place we go to learn what other people want us to learn, school could become a place we can also go to learn what we want to learn.
I agree with you that students need time in school in an academic setting to pursue their interests inside school walls. (There might have been another post close to something like this...) A question arises is what goals or benchmarks do students need to keep growing academically in these areas.
ReplyDeleteAs a teacher I try to get a sense at the beginning of the school year to see what they are interested inside of school and outside of school and try to match what they like to a style of teaching. It helps engage the students and keeps them motivated in mathematics.
I love the idea.