Is School Just Plain Boring?

I recently came across an article called School: it's way more boring then when you were there that discussed the impact of standardized tests on student's engagement in school.  Due to these detrimental assessments, schools are mainly focusing on mathematics and language arts and less on music, drama and social studies.  What does this mean for students of today?  I think the picture below states the obvious.

Photo retrieved from:

http://edtosavetheworld.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/bored-classroom.jpg 

What was your K-12 education like?  Were you bored in school?  Gatto (2003) shared his view on public education:

Boredom was everywhere in my world, and if you asked the kids, as I often did, why they felt so bored, they always gave the same answers: They said the work was stupid, that it made no sense, that they already knew it. They said they wanted to be doing something real, not just sitting around. They said teachers didn't seem to know much about their subjects and clearly weren't interested in learning more. And the kids were right: their teachers were every bit as bored as they were.                                                  

(p. 1)

Ever since the beginning of my Master's program, the way I perceive education has been questioned or brought to my attention.  Since viewing Sir Ken Robinson’s “Schools Kills Creativity”, I immediately began reflecting on my philosophy of teaching.  I may care for my students and want them to achieve the best that they can by offering differentiated instruction, but is that enough?  I went to grade school in the 90s and aside from grade 1 and 2, I was bored in school.  I had some issues with my parents growing up since I wasn’t “studious” as they wanted me to.  I am not sure if it was whether I was bored that the material was easy/difficult or that the teaching styles that I experienced was the problem.  When grade 8 came around, that was when I started to care about my education.  I had this gut feeling (and my parents’ praise) that I had to get my act together and start “working hard” in school.  In a way, I started to care about grades (quite frankly, that should have not been my motivation).  I am somewhat thankful for where my direction of education has gone.  However, I wish there was more space for creativity.
  

Photo retrieved from

http://www.farber.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/A-School-Success-Excellence-grade.jpg

My family, I would say, are highly educated.  Majority of my cousins have at least an undergraduate degree and some have continued pursuing professional careers/higher education (doctors, dentists, Masters, PhD).  I felt intimidated that these people in my life are able to achieve such success.  My parents never pushed me into such careers; they just wanted me to achieve independence by taking care of myself.  However, they were very persistent on me getting to the high grades possible.  We want our students to gain knowledge and skills that will lead them to their passion, yet kids are not truly engaged in what they are learning.  It is true, we think of “success” as synonymous with “schooling” (Gatto, 2003, p. 2).  If our parents were educated this way, then of course they will educate their children similarly.  Grades continue to be a form of assessment in understanding how our students are doing.  Can this also be a factor in students being bored and unmotivated?

Considering that I am a fairly new educator, I will keep Gatto’s theories in mind.  I agree that “we could encourage the best qualities of youthfulness – curiousity, adventure, resilience, the capacity for surprising insight – simply by being more flexible about time, texts, and tests, by introducing kids to truly competent adults, and by giving each student what autonomy he/she needs in order to take a risk every now and then.” (Gatto, 2003, p. 2). I am a firm believer of student-based learning and as a teacher, to help children guide through this world logically, independently, and freely.  We need to let students manage themselves (Gatto, 2003, p. 7).  Isn’t that the best way to learn: by doing?

Passion-Based Learning: The Missing Piece?

There are a variety of instructional strategies in keeping students engaged and to think outside the box: inquiry-based, project-based, design-based and problem-based learning.  The concepts of 21st century learning has been advocated in current education practices.  Recently, I have been hearing the term passion-based learning here and there but was not quite exactly sure what it entails.  Ainissa Ramirez' blog shares an insightful discussion regarding teaching and passion.  Can passion-based learning be the key to students not being bored anymore?  Passion-based learning consist of: 

1. Finding out what each child is innately passionate about
2. Being an educator that shows passion for the topic, share this excitement with your students

(Ramirez, 2013)

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy right?  Unfortunately, I was never given this opportunity to learn.  Did you?

Photo retrieved from

http://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/passion-based-learning-v2.jpg

Differentiated instruction (DI) has been a popular theme when I was in teacher's college.  DI mainly focusing on different types of learners.  By keeping this mind, why don't educators allow some leg room for students to choose what they want to learn?  The Ontario curriculum is very structured and has very specific expectations on what students need to learn.  By these structural "rules", educators must be creative (a 21st century skill!) in developing lessons that engages students in the curriculum.  Yet, we are uniquely different with a variety of interests and students may show interest on some of the units that are laid out in the curriculum.  Shouldn't we allow students the choice in deciding what they are passionate to learn?  Genius Hour is a time for students to explore their passion.  I was very intrigued by Genius Hour as companies such as Google are allowing their team an hour a day to focus on what they want.  I'm thinking, "Wow!  Why are we not doing this?"  I believe activities such as Genius Hour can offer students to think creatively and be engaged in what they are interested in.  

We want students to love learning and we especially don't want students to be bored in school.  Wouldn't you want to learn passionately?

- Tien

References
Gatto, J. T. (2003, September). Against school: How public education cripples our kids, and why. Harper, 33-38. Retrieved on November 19, 2012 from http://www.wesjones.com/gatto1.htm

The Love of Embracing Change

Photo retrieved from https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTrE2je5mTO7Ua-jE3eaiqaGfW7115uT_KzrZY3fUQ4yLcyAfcSFELAgjEmFLncA2g2GcEmIE3Brnexu7btow6NEy4HgPh4ZEK5NBkivyCrmAEJ58r4Fpgz0WZSaK9ZuMGJAvc8BTgI2SK/s1600/change2.jpg

I have noticed that the concept of change has been the key component in our seminar discussions. Some have expressed their thoughts on the importance of reform on our current education pedagogy, while others have stated that policy somewhat keeps us from moving forward.  I personally believe that  an  individual's comfort towards differences may affect their decision on whether to pursue the new or to stick with the old.  I will be honest, it takes time for me to accept change.  I like things to be organized and I would prefer to expect what happens next rather than living in the moment.  However, through this Masters program, I have been learning that change, especially in education, is crucial.  Recently, I have shared the changes in learning skills and pedagogy with a friend of mine and she was pretty hesitant by the idea of technology used in the classroom.  She expressed that children should not spend a large amount of time on tools (such as computers).  As I reflect on this discussion, does this mean that our world is STILL not ready for this change?  I welcome you to reflect on the changes in your stories and life and how it as affected you as a 21st century individual.

Now, to bring in some animation to this post, I welcome you to watch Rethink Learning: The 21st Century Learner.  This short clip shows us how digital media is changing the way young people are playing and socializing.

Embracing our fast-paced world is the start to accepting the changes that is occurring in our education system.  SMART Boards and iPads are just some of the technological tools that are being implemented in today's classrooms.  Students blogging their homework and using Twitter to share online resources with their classmates is not something that I experienced when I was in grade school.  Change allows us to evolve and we need to be prepared for it.  When I reflected on my teaching practice, I wondered whether I possess the techniques and strategies of a 21st century teacher.  Referring back to our first seminar, we answered a questionnaire obtained from www.simplek12.com.  Out of the 21 questions, I have only (and barely) utilized 6 strategies.  Obviously, there is still some (or many!) strategies and tools that I need to learn.  From Rethink Learning video, Nichole Pinkard has stated that we are not born to be digitally native.  However, we have the ability to consume media and we now have the choice to manipulate it.  Today, we can see younger children with cell phones and portable game consoles.  Whether we agree with it or not, children are learning how to utilize tools that currently exist.  The idea of our world having this power to challenge and question content is something that I am still trying to grasp at.  

New technologies are transforming every aspect of work: reading and interacting with the web; writing memos and sending email; computing with spreadsheets and statistical analysis programs; analyzing problems with data visualization tools; creating social networking sites; marketing with digital video tools; and creating presentations with PowerPoint (Warschauer, 2011).  Somehow, all these changes reminds me of Inspector Gadget.  As a child, I used to watch this show and I was really fascinated by all his tools that he had.  In a way, he was very innovative and creative in solving cases.  The animators were possibly trying to tell the audience that our world is changing?

Photo retrieved from http://www.auburnschools.org/ahs/Media_Center/emergent_21st_century_teacher.gif

I may not be built like Inspector Gadget, but there are tools that are allowing us to feel somewhat like a hero (maybe).  For Christmas this year, I received an iPad mini that has been a lifesaver, especially when it comes to being a graduate student.  Last term, I would print all the articles for my classes and then would file them into binders.  So far, I have 2 large binders filled.  With my iPad, I can bring my readings to class, already highlighted and saved.  It may sound like I am selling an iPad to you, but it is quite a device that I never imagined using in school.  It is astounding how one tool can change how the world works.  The concept of change can be a difficult experience for some while others are willing to adopt it. Education is not only about consuming information, but to learn the tools and skills to produce and create new content. As mentioned in my previous post, our education system needs to step up and gear towards the 21st century.  Information is all around us and it is easily accessible and that is why students need to learn what and how to work with them. Change can be scary, but it is time that we learn to love and accept it.  The way we communicate, think, and comprehend has change the way educators are teaching.  How do you feel about change?  Are you prepared for what is to come?

- Tien

References

Mcfound. (2010). Rethinking Learning: The 21st Century Learner | MacArthur Foundation.
 [video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0xa98cy-Rw

Warschauer, M. (2011). Learning in the Cloud: How (and Why) to Transform with Digital Media. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

A New Culture of Learning

The new culture of learning is taking root and transforming the way we think about information, imagination and play. We can see that learning is taking place in day-to-play life through the fusion of vast informational resources with very personal, specific needs and actions. The new culture of learning gives us the freedom to make the general personal and then share out personal experience in a way that, in turn, adds to the general flow of knowledge. Learning becomes a life-long interest that is renewed and redefined on a continual basis. Everything and everyone - around us can be seen as resources for learning.

(Thomas & Brown, 2011, p. 31)

Photo retrieved from http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5015/5501637623_dd41e0b754.jpg

As I sit here typing out my first blog, it dawn on me how education has drastically changed compared to when I was in grade school (if you are wondering when that was, it was the early 90's).  Just to give you a glimpse as to how I was learning, it was pretty much teacher says, students do. In grade 3, I remember memorizing the multiplication times tables and that was a daunting task.  Also, none of my classmates or myself ever questioned how we knew the answer, we just had to know them by heart.  At the time, our year was also the beginning of the grade 3 EQAO math tests.  

Photo retrieved from: http://blog.k12.com/sites/default/files/math-confusion-wide_0.png

Now forwarding to 2013, students are urged to think outside the box, question those answers, share and reflect on their analytical thinking and collaboratively work with others.  Currently, there is a push for reform in mathematics at Rainy River District School Board (RRDSB) and I had the opportunity to witness this strategy in action.  A question would be presented and the teacher would guide the students through an introductory discussion.  The students would then pair up and shared their thinking through discussion and notes.  Once each group had their ideas and came to a collective decision, the students shared their thinking through pictures, writing and sometimes graphs on chart paper.  What stood out from that math lesson was that the students had the opportunity to learn various strategies of presenting their answers, engaged in cooperative learning with their peers, and were critically thinking.    According to Van de Walle and Folk (2008), there are 5 shifts in the environment of the mathematics classroom that are necessary to allow students to develop mathematical power (p. 6).  Teachers need to shift:

• Toward classrooms as mathematics communities and away from classrooms as simply a collection of individuals 
• Towards logic and mathematical evidence as verification and away from the teacher as the sole authority for correct answers 
• Towards mathematical reasoning and away from mere memorizing procedures 
• Towards conjecturing, inventing, and problem solving and away from an emphasis on the mechanistic finding of answers 
• Toward connecting mathematics, its ideas, and its applications and away from teaching mathematics as a body of isolated concepts and procedures

(Van de Walle & Folk, 2008, p. 6)

The idea of creating learning communities, producing, problem solving and developing skills and tools to work with content can also be reflected in other subjects as well.  Rather than educators presenting content and students sit and listen, teachers are now guiding learners to sift through information, analyze what is considered relevant to their area of study and share the student's learning through a variety of multimedia tools.  I can't help but question whether all educators agree to this reform, particularly those that have been in the education field for 20+ years.  I also wonder whether we are falling behind in setting changes in learning compared to our face-paced world.  By the time we get students to collaborate through multi-media, is this considered the thing of the past tomorrow?  According to Warschauer (2011), these are the following skills students need to acquire for the 21st century:

Learning and Innovation Skills

• Creativity and Innovation
• Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
• Communication and Collaboration

Information, Media and Technology Skills

• Information Literacy
• Media Literacy
• ICT (information, communications, and technology) Literacy

Life and Career Skills

• Flexibility and Adaptability
• Initiative and Self-Direction
• Social and Cross-Cultural Skills
• Productivity and Accountability
• Leadership and Responsibility

(p. 13)

With these skills in mind, is our current Ontario Curriculum setting standards that cater to what is considered a 21st century learner?  I would advocate for current and new teachers to consider the reform and to take charge in how we are currently learning.  The curriculum and forms of assessment need to be reconsidered and revisited to cater to student success.  In our constant evolving world, students need to become innovators of the future  to thrive in the 21st century.  In order for this to happen, educators themselves should follow the same path.  Thoughts? 

- Tien

References

Thomas, D. & Brown, J.S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. USA: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.

Van de Walle, J.A. & Folk, S. (2008). Elementary and middle school mathematics: Teaching developmentally, 2nd Canadian Ed. Toronto, ON: Pearson Education Inc.

Warschauer, M. (2011). Learning in the cloud: How (and why) to Transform schools with digital media. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.