What I Believe
- Sarah Hodgson
- Apr 4, 2012
- 4 min read
“I believe the children are our future
Teach them well and let them lead the way
Show them all the beauty they possess inside
Give them a sense of pride to make it easier
Let the children’s laughter remind us how we used to be.”
Whitney Houston
It is time for me to reflect on exactly what I personally believe at this one moment in time about teachers, students, teaching, learning and the world of educational technology. I have done so much learning over the past few months; lines have become blurred and my thinking has been challenged. Yet I suspect that my fundamental pedagogical beliefs remain intact. Some remain the same and have been strongly reinforced; some have been nurtured and developed through my recent learning. Before I begin the second part of my studies, I really need to collect my thoughts and organise my thinking. I am a list-maker extraordinaire – so intend to compile my ramblings here, in no particular order. My inventory of what I believe educators, students and parents can, or should, do in order to prepare our children for the future.
I believe:
The children ARE our future, but it is a future that no-one can predict. I keep hearing this and truth be told it is wearing a bit thin. I read a tweet from a colleague and I could not have said it better: “teaching for a future we can’t predict has been true 4 a long time. not new thinking! why are people so amazed by this idea?” I almost think that some educators are using this as an excuse to not completely embrace new technology. I guess they could argue that if it is going to be obsolete in five or ten years time, what is the point of trying it out now? That does not sit right with me though. Why does this seem to be the main perceived problem? We have never been able to predict the future and I doubt we ever will be able to.
We do need to let them lead the way. Allow the students to have some say in their learning, make some decisions about what they will learn, how they will learn it and how their learning will be assessed. Teachers need to let go more and trust that the students will go in a direction that is meaningful and relevant to THEM.
Give them a sense of pride. By taking some control over their learning, they will own it, they will be interested in it and they will accept accountability for it. They will accomplish more and will be proud of their achievements.
Let them laugh. Let them play. All work and no play made Jack a dull boy, so the saying goes. Any half-decent Early Childhood educator will agree that the importance of play should not be underestimated. Play helps children learn. Play builds self-esteem and social skills. Ellie Dixon writes about the importance of play in child development. “Play helps children learn about the world in which they live. They can investigate and discover, test their theories, spatial relationships, explore cause and effect, societal roles and family values. Such is the importance of play, that there’s virtually no area of life about which it can’t teach your child something.” Most importantly, play should not stop when the students leave kindergarten. Tim Brown talks about the powerful link between creativity and play. He highlights three main ‘play’ behaviours that prove to be useful to adult designers: playful exploration, playful building and role play. I found an article that highlights some ‘new’ research on the importance of play (2009). I absolutely love the boldness of the final remarks of the article: Play refreshes and energizes, allows burdens to feel lighter, and opens us to new possibilities. It is a central element to life, like nutrition and sleep.
Accept that some students will know more about technology than us. We will never be able to keep up with the latest web tools, apps and gadgets. Use the knowledgeable students to teach their peers and learn WITH them.
Less us, more them. Let them figure out some of the ‘stuff’. We should not just be telling them the answers. Give them the tools and give them time to work out the solutions by themselves.
Less knowledge, more skills. I never internalised my times tables. I didn’t see the point. I failed Maths A Level because I could see absolutely no connection between all the equations and formulas and the real world. Does a child really need to know the capital cities of all the countries in the world? Rote learning of irrelevant facts should be OUT. Learning how to learn and find information to solve real and authentic problems should be IN.
Collaboration and communication are essential skills. Surowiecki’s The Wisdom of Crowds. Sugata Mitra’s Hole in the Wall. Need I say more? Group work should be happening as much as possible in the classroom.
Creativity should be promoted and developed. Sir Ken Robinson discusses how important creativity is and how as we get older we are less likely to ‘have a go’. “Children will take a chance. If they don’t know, they will have a go. They are not frightened of being wrong.” Give students as many opportunities as possible to create, design and invent.
Ensure the students feel safe and secure. Much easier to do when you only had to worry about the confines of a classroom with four walls and one door. Educating students about how to be responsible and safe digital citizens now comes with the territory of being a teacher. While the responsibility cannot fall solely on the shoulders of the teacher, it also cannot be entirely the parents’ job to guide the students through the enormous maze of websites that now exist. Teachers, parents and students must work together to establish virtual barriers and web-friendly ethical codes of conduct.
Teachers need to be good role models. By internalising and demonstrating a positive approach to all things technological, teachers will show the students that they too are life-long learners. Educators should model appropriate online etiquette and seek to continually improve their own understanding of the digital world.
Using technology in the classroom must be focused on enhancing the learning, not just playing around with cool tools.
We should never, EVER, underestimate what they can do. A pet hate of mine is when people call young students ‘cute’. They seem to think that because they are young they are not capable of thinking, questioning and creating. Wrong, wrong, WRONG. Set the bar high and they will rise to it.
Well, that’s my list as it stands today. I expect it to change over time.
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