"Let it go, let it go!" Yes, I got my Frozen reference in for the day, I'm quite obsessed. But the song fits the purpose of today's blog, or at least that part of the chorus does. We are talking about letting go of some of that control we have as educators in feeling the compelling need to guide students too much.
Wait a minute, guide them too much? Can it be so? Absolutely. In far too many classrooms, we are overwhelmed by spoon fed kids. Now, I'm not saying there are a plethora of bad teachers out there, but what I am saying is that it is very difficult for teachers to allow their students time to work through a problem before they jump in and save them. I get it. I see it too. Your kids get frustrated, they get upset, because they can't figure something out and they want you to just tell them. They are used to that. They are used to just being given what they need rather than being made to think through a problem and work for the joy of achieving a solution on their own. Now, I'm not advocating we throw the kids into the deep end and wait until they figure out how to swim, but the idea of inquiry learning is that instead of spelling things out for students, we teach them the skills they need to figure out something new for themselves. We teach them some of the content, key vocabulary and understandings, and then give them opportunities to use that information and apply in a way that makes sense to them. In his blog, Grant Wiggins discusses how learning is like a game of soccer, and proposes the question of whether or not students really understand what they are preparing for in the classroom, when they are learning content and skills and strategies. I was so proud the other day, of my own first graders, when the assistant principal came into the class. We were doing centers, and I was working with some small groups. She called several of my students over throughout the time she was there and asked them about what they were doing, and *gasp* why they were doing it. You can imagine my bated breath as I watched this going on from my spot with my students. At the end of the period, the AP came to me and said, "I'm glad they were able to tell me what they were doing, and why. I constantly heard from them 'in the real world...'" and she said this with the little flair my first graders said it, with the same inflection that I use when I'm talking with them. Inside I screamed "Yes! They get it!" I strive to get my students, as young as they are, to understand why they are here, in school, learning about why when two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking. We talk about what their parents do, and what they need to know to be able to do those things, and relate them to what we are doing in school.
This is the beginning of inquiry learning. Recognizing the need and application of skills learned. As Chris Lehmann said in the webinar, "it's not about control, it's about support." We shouldn't want to control every aspect of what students learn, but rather guide them to the content and let them make sense of it themselves. In first grade, that's done by letting them experiment, and play, and observe their surroundings, and then talking about it. Teachers ask guiding questions, and lead them in thinking about what they do and see. When they are working through problems, instead of telling them the answer or what they need, ask questions that make them think about what they have already learned, and guide them to apply that to the new situation. As students get older, you relinquish more and more control over what you provide to them, and the classroom should become more Socratic, problem based, and independent, where the teacher acts as a support, a discussion leader, and a guide. Wiggins also suggests this in his blog. He says this type of classroom "should be the norm for schools, not the exception." Unfortunately, the latter is true, though schools across the country are moving in the right direction.
I really loved something Chris said in the webniar I viewed, where he stated "Inquiry, at its root, is the idea of intellectual play. The idea that we can get our hands dirty, we can ask powerful questions, we can seek out answers, and we can really add that time and space to play with our ides." Children are born inquiry learners. It's exactly how babies, toddlers, and preschoolers learn, by being curious, and trying things. Somewhere along the way, however, the world teaches them that no, that is not the way we learn, you are given what you need to know. As educators, we need be conscious of this occurrence and seek to prevent it from happening, and in every grade, and every class, constantly encouraging that "intellectual play" and supporting inquiry.
Resources:
Lehmann, C. et al. (2013). Inquiry; The Very First Step in the Process of Learning. Connected Learning TV. retrieved from: http://connectedlearning.tv/chris-lehmann-inquiry-very-first-step-process-learning
Wiggins, G. (2014) Great Teaching Means Letting Go. Te@chThought. retrieved from: http://www.teachthought.com/learning/great-teaching-means-letting-go/
"Let it Go" my students love that song (especially the girls), whenever we have to do indoor recess that is definitely a song request that I get often. Yes, "Letting go" is something that is hard for teachers to do. Its hard for teachers to find the balance of helping their students and babying them/spoon feeding them (as you said). Teachers have to find that happy medium! It may be a harder situation for teachers, since they just want to help their students get to the solution. Teachers can teach their students the knowledge they need to know in a variety of ways, so that in any given situation the students can find the answer. The next step for teachers is taking a step back and watching, to see how they complete the challenge independently. Just like your students, the AP was able to talk to your students and they were able to explain to her what they were doing and why. AWESOME! Students definitely need to learn why they are doing things, so they can identify how to use it in real world situations.
ReplyDeleteFunny that you referenced "Let it Go." I referenced that in my post as well. I teach Pre-K so that is a song that we sing often. It is one of our favorites fro GoNoodle. I like that you pointed out many kids in the classrooms are spoon fed. I teach my students to work independently on many activities. I do not often hear my students say that they can't do it or can I help them. Because they know my answer is for them to try their best first. Don't get me wrong, it is not that I do not want to help my students. I want them to be confident in their abilities to complete an assignment without me helping them throughout each step. However, I have witnessed these spoon fed kids while teaching after school tutoring. These students had trouble completing ANYTHING without asking me to help them. I think that we, as teachers, need to let go and teach our kids how to be more independent and take control of their learning. It is very important that students understand why we are learning what we are learning. I always try to make the information relevant to my kids by telling them the purpose of our learning.
ReplyDeleteThe quote from Chris is so thought-provoking. It's strange how we seem to have taken inquiry from our students and conditioned them to wait for knowledge to be given to them. I wonder where this starts. Is it because adults need to have a sense of control so we don't want young people to have too much freedom, the ability to make their own decisions? Whatever it is, I'm glad that inquiry learning is making its way back to the forefront of education. Everyone needs to be able to figure out, because as the title of the webinar states, inquiry is the very first step of learning.
ReplyDeleteHow do we un-inquiry learning? As an elementary person myself, I wonder this all the time. How have we taken something that is so natural and made it foreign and impossible?
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