We are not teaching our students to pursue passions, says guest blogger Tim Holt. Instead, we are teaching students to pursue predetermined pathways that they may or may not value. Too often, they leave their passions at the doorway of education and career, and maybe pick them back up when they leave the building. For the most part, they have to pursue our passions on their own time, outside the official learning paradigm.
If we concentrate on fostering curiosity and exploration in the early grades, and guide students to find joy in learning and discovery through their passions and interests, then as those interests change (and the world changes), they will possess the tools and insight to continue to seek learning opportunities. If my 3rd graders graduate as passionate learners and innovative problem solvers, they will be an asset in the future – no matter what that future may bring.
After being a little bit mistreated by some folks who don’t understand civil dialogue, Justin Hamilton, the US Department of Education Press Secretary, asked folks to share what they’re for, education policy-wise, as they were also sharing what they were against. That seemed like a reasonable request. Here’s my list.
For me, this week is one of the most important weeks in the entire semester of English 10B. The reason? We begin to delve into a gamut of complicated, yet crucial human rights issues. To be honest, there is very little that I am more passionate about than social justice. And from what I’ve seen from this generation, for many of my students this is the “stuff” that matters… I teach to show my students that the bystander effect is lethal, often on a scale beyond our imagination.
Just two months ago, we launched Voices from the Learning Revolution. Nearly 30 posts later, it’s time for a recap. Here’s what our teachers, librarians, IT specialists, principals, district leaders and consultants have shared so far. A special thanks to all our twitter friends and blogs like MindShift, The Answer Sheet, Connected Principals and many more for pushing some of these great ideas and insights out into the viral stream.
What most of us in education understand is that the skills necessary to be a successful online student are the same skills that will serve our students well into adulthood. Successful students are self-directed, self-motivated, and self-assessing. They are equipped with these skills because a great teacher taught them how and gave them ample opportunities to practice. It is a myth that any student can sit at a computer and learn, even with the best online curriculum.
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