First of all, allow me to apologize for taking a hiatus from this blog. Obviously I am not under the impression that those who read this have been tirelessly waiting on pins and needles for my next entry, but I do appreciate those that have shared with me that they have missed my posts. Its nice to know that there are some of you out there who take interest in my rambling thoughts. Think of my time off as the “Tori” episodes on Saved By the Bell where Kelly and Jessie disappeared without any mention or explanation (even a die-hard fan like myself tries to ignore those episodes as if they do not exist). I don’t have a good reason for not writing lately, just like there was no good reason to have Tori on the show (well, except for her help in delivering Mrs. Belding’s baby in an elevator without any mess).
Over the last few months, I have done a lot of thinking about how I teach and what I teach. Self-reflection is always a good idea for teachers to participate in every once in a while, but my reflections have been real challenges to what I consider to be important in the classroom. I really began to focus on what was wrong with my traditional approach, and what skills are really necessary for students to achieve before they leave high school. So one night I stayed up really late and scribbled down random thoughts about changes I could make to my classroom. And then to take it to the next level, I decided to experiment with a new approach for the last quarter of the year in some of my classes.
I stopped giving homework. I realized that what I made the students do was busywork (worksheets, flashcards, questions from the textbook) that I never really graded…it was more like I just gave them points for doing it. I realize that you could make the argument that homework teaches responsibility and that in future careers, my students will be asked to complete spreadsheets, projects, or whatever else after work hours, but I was swayed by the fact that I was often giving them “mindless” work that did not increase their understanding of the material. Instead, I started a class blog where students would have to critically think and respond to a question I posted (and reply to each other). This would force them to use the details we learned in class to form their own opinions and have an “online” discussion with the class.
I stopped giving tests. I realized that especially in a history class, students simply memorize as much as possible the days leading up to the test (names, dates, vocabulary, events), and then once the test is over, forget it all. They would clear their mind of the old information to make room for the new information. This made me think that if I really want to find out what they know, I should not tell them when tests were so they can’t prepare and “fake” what they know. So I started giving pop quizzes that focused on important information and placed less emphasis on memorization. I understand that this goes against the model of standardized tests that are a major part of our school system in America, but I don’t agree with them anyway…
I’ve always known that unless my students become history teachers or find themselves on Jeopardy, the “facts” of history are not very important or useful to them. Will they be a poor doctor, engineer, small business owner, lawyer, or citizen if they do not know when the Missouri Compromise was or who wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin? Of course not. So I began to emphasize more important skills like collaboration with others, purposeful writing, critical thinking, and problem solving. I found that I could still give them the details of history but in the context of the bigger picture. To me, I was changing the focus of my class from what, when, where, who to the how and why
If you have time, I would like to ask for feedback for this post. I guess you could say that I am asking you to participate in a “survey” style blog entry, either by commenting directly or sending me a message/comment through Facebook. Am I crazy about the homework or tests thing? Is this realistic for an entire school year? Am I just falling into a trap of the latest “fad” in education? I realize that all of this makes me seem like Mr. Belding’s brother, Rob, who showed up as a substitute teacher and became everyone’s favorite because he allowed students to choose their own grade and threw out tests. I hope I never become that extreme (nor do I want to hook up with Ingrid the stewardess…my wife wouldn’t like that very much). But I realize that I better hear from students, parents, and fellow teachers before I go thinking that this is a good idea
