Recently, I was talking with a friend when she mentioned that her daughters do school-related work intensely every weekday afternoon. It got me wondering, did her daughters just go to a terrific school with amazing teachers or did this love of learning come from the environment at home? Both she and her husband are highly educated, avid readers who model behavior for their children, that provide a culture for excellence
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In the past several decades, we have gone through a period of educational reform. The question always asked is, “What is wrong with American schools?” Which usually leads to, “What is wrong with American teachers?” If I am not going to give teachers the credit for my friend’s children, is it fair to blame teachers when students are failing?
Now, I understand the research shows the power of a great teacher. I have witnessed it myself when certain teachers improve student achievement by leaps and bounds. Remember however, that teachers are with students 180 days a year, seven hours a day. When you look at it that way, that’s only 22% of the child’s waking hours.
Geoffrey Canada (more here), changed the question from “Why are our schools failing?” to “Why do my students in Harlem know less than other kids?” When he switched the question around, he came up with different answers. He realized that he needed to give parents training, provide meals, and get families connected to health care. The environment around the school was as important as the actual hours in the school.
On reflection, two things come to mind. One is that we must be careful that we are asking the right question when we are trying to solve a problem. How the question is framed will determine the solution. Second, are we asking the right question about education?
Should we be asking why our students do not know as much as others do around the world? Or should we continue to ask what is wrong with schools in the United States?
I’d love to hear what you think.
While I don't believe I have been educationally hindered by my at-home environment, there have been teachers who have both increased and deterred my desire to learn. Teachers like you, Mr.Blake, and Dr. Eaton have increased my scope of interest and desire to learn tremendously, but I feel like negative influences tend to have a much stronger influence. It's much harder for me to forget teachers who have been personally rude to me than to remember those who have inspired me with their teaching. I assume these negative influences in teaching are similar to those in one's environment that affect learning as well. All that being said this is a complex issue that does not have any one cause or explanation. I don't want my statement to be read as if bad teachers are the sole reason for doing bad in academics, as there are definitely times where I was the one to blame lol.
ReplyDelete- Andrew T. Wagner
I feel there are numerous indirect factors that affect education while, of course, a student can only be as educated as the knowledge they are taught. I think analyzing education requires a ground-up point of view: step by step, let's go through the elements of a successful education:
ReplyDeleteThe education itself needs to be present. A teacher needs to be able to effectively teach. Of course, the teacher needs the knowledge to begin with. They then need to be able to convey that knowledge. When it comes to teachers, the questions I would ask would be, "Do they know what they're talking about? Can they explain that in several different ways?"
The student needs some degree of motivation. This does not even mean that they want to learn, but have a reason to do so. In many cases, especially before high school, this motivation is something along the lines of "my parents will punish me if I don't pass / do well / study." Even in cases where the motivation is more internal, self-driven, this discipline is likely instilled by an environment and parents that support it. As Mr. Bressler's example suggests, parents play a large part in a student's desire to learn. A reason to succeed in school is, though not EVERY case, most often one derived from parents directly or indirectly. I would ask in this regard, "Are the students attempting to learn? Why are or aren't they?"
Considering the above point and Wagner's post, I think there are also things that dissuade students from learning. For one, teachers who are rude or unlikable can definitely make students stop trying, out of spite if nothing else. Yet again, students develop from elementary to high school in their understanding of rules and purpose. As understood in a psychological lens, Authoritative parenting (as opposed to Authoritarian and Permissive) is where rules are set but explained and personal judgment is developed, not hindered. Children raised this way tend to follow rules better, understanding their purpose; this can be applied to schooling as well. If children have no interest or reason to care about school, they won't perform. Other factors, like stress and other life conditions, can contribute to this, and I personally believe that this is largely the case as there is also mental health crisis sweeping America in the present. I believe the tie-in of mental health and education warrants much more examination than I am able to provide in a brief comment, but I believe students' abilities to manage stress effectively has decreased over the past few decades. I would ask then, "What might preoccupy the student? Do they understand the importance of school? Are they mentally healthy? Are they happy?"
-Mason H
Mason and Drew thanks for taking the time to respond. I agree that it is a complex issue and would never deny that teachers play both a positive and negative role in the educational process. My only thought is that seems to be the focus on educational reform while there are many other aspects to the success of the student
ReplyDeleteI think this is a really interesting question to think about. I have found myself struggling in school many times, whether it was in middle school or high school. And for some reason, it was always in classes with teachers I didn't like. I suppose this stemmed from their teaching styles or from the fact that I simply wasn't understanding the material. Yet, I tried thinking about it differently one year. I realized it was truly "me" who was not understanding the material. I decided to stop blaming the teacher, the class, or any other variable around me on which I could pin my lack of success.
ReplyDeleteReally, I decided to stop making excuses for myself. If I didn't understand the textbook reading, I read it again. If I couldn't understand a lesson in class that day, I watched videos online when I got home. I became committed to figuring a way out of the situation I was in. It was often frustrating and confusing to continually not understand things. However, I often came away from the class with a better understanding of the topic than anyone else because I was committed to taking responsibility for me own learning. Doing this almost assuaged the feeling of helplessness that can come from struggling to stay above water in a class. At least knew I could take credit for my successes and failures, which was empowering.
Unfortunately, I see it all too often that when my peers (and sometimes myself) are faced with adversity, we immediately pin our shortcomings on our environment. I think this is what is truly wrong with American schools. Before, society viewed education as a gift and a means of lifting oneself up. Now, we view it is an impediment to the rest of our lives, something that we simply have to get through. I believe that when we start to look at education as a gift and take responsibility for mastering the content that is presented to us, our educational outcomes will improve by leaps and bounds. The question is not "how can the system change?"; the question is, "how can I change?"
Casimir Pozecki
Cas, I think the system changes when we get some of our best and brightest to take part in the education process. My hand goes up as being part of the generation that screwed up education, what we need now is people like yourself to get involved in fixing the mess my generation has made. What inspires me and gives me hope is working with young people who I know will make a difference. Thanks for taking the time to respond.
ReplyDelete