I think his style is very dangerous but in it is in a way that education should be. When she allows the students to keep their own language and also learn about other subjects like computers she runs the risk of the students not learning anything due to laziness. I don't think it is realistically very dangerous though. Young humans, I believe, have a natural desire to learn everything about something they are interested in. Proof for this is evident everywhere around us, from teens mastering difficult computer programs and operations to kids learning complicated tricks on skateboards. By allowing students to learn whatever they have an interest in we may have less experts in regurgitating information for a ninth grade geography test, but we may have more experts in technological innovation.
Is it possible that the whole creation of controlled learning is more of a hinderance to actual learning?
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ReplyDeleteIn chapter 7, Gloria Ladson-Billings investigates the classroom for a study and finds that many teachers are allowing students to fail. Shannon, the stubborn six year old observed during this study, refused to write her lines in fear that white people would pick on her for her reading and writing skills. She would not participate, and without any persuasion from her teacher, takes herself out of the game. Billings says, “At six years old Shannon must not be allowed to determine her own demise.” She believes teachers are not demanding that students live up to their potential and “perform at the same level with their peers.”
ReplyDeleteAlthough some of her observations were discouraging, she does meet a teacher who refuses to let his students fall behind and choose to give up on writing. His method of teaching is revised after many failures to get students to put forth any real effort. He decides to modify his teaching to find something the students would be interested in, and motivate them to write. He succeeded in doing this and the student’s loved his creative writing project.
In his inquiry, Neil said that teachers could run the risk of students not learning anything in a classroom with a teacher similar to this. He also says that he believes it could be a good thing because kids will learn more about something that they are interested in. His closing question is, “Is it possible that the whole creation of controlled learning is more of a hindrance to actual learning?” My answer is yes. But, at the same time, Neil has a point with the kid that would take the freedom and become lazy instead of learning. Aside from that kid, I think that kids want to learn. If they were not in school though, many of them probably wouldn’t have the opportunity to. With that said, I think the most important thing to get out of the last two chapters has been to incorporate students interests into our lesson plans. Being creative, finding out what students like, and coming up with ways to make that a part of your teaching is time consuming, and some teachers won’t care that much. This is the difference in a teacher who actually wants to be there and a teacher that is only doing it because they didn’t have another career option.