What is your response to Ken Robinson’s challenge to revolutionize education and how does our work in developing a PBL mindset for Spartanburg District Six students promote/support that paradigm shift?
Ken Robinson’s challenge to us is to revolutionize education. Reform is simply not enough, because all it does is attempt to fix a broken model. What struck me the most during Robinson’s talk was his description of the “fast food” model of education. When I think of fast food, I think of something that is quick, convenient, and low-cost. However, other words that come to mind include bland, standardized, unhealthy, and low-quality. How sad is it to consider that so many schools are limiting their students by continuing to provide them with this type of service. I am so thankful to work for a district that recognizes that our students deserve “fine dining” opportunities filled with choice, high-quality ingredients, and time to sit and savor the meal. I am even more thankful to work for a principal who strays away from the pre-made, standardized models of instruction. He truly allows the teachers to be the ones who create and design everything we implement. He knows that we are the ones who best know how to cater to the needs and interests of our students. Project Based Learning is an instructional model that can provide students with the “fine dining” experiences we want them to have. It allows for choice, requires students to consult high-quality resources, and demands that students spend time engaged with their topic of study.
What does Ken Robinson’s challenge mean for you personally and specifically for your teaching practice? Describe your vision of a PBL classroom? What practices will you continue to foster? What is your greatest challenge in implementing PBL in the upcoming school year?
During my four years of teaching, I feel like I have been consistently moving toward student-centered instruction, but I know I still have quite a ways to go. I am excited to learn more about PBL and implement it frequently in my classroom. I think my biggest roadblock right now is figuring out how to allow for student-driven inquiry while still maintaining a focus on state standards. Ideally, I would love to allow students’ questions and interests to drive my instruction. Last year, I started “Genius Hour” with my students, and it was great to see them get excited as they conducted research to create a product based on their own driving questions. During each session, I was able to conference with students both individually and in groups. I was able to introduce and reinforce concepts relating to our science, math, reading, and language standards (when applicable). Though students were not necessarily learning exact content outlined in SC 5th grade standards, I know that their learning was meaningful. The challenge is to create opportunities for this type of inquiry and product creation within the boundaries of our standards. I am excited for the year head and for the opportunity to continue to make improvements in my teaching by implementing more PBL in my classroom.
So I have a couple of requests.
ReplyDeleteI have heard this “Genius Hour” referred to several times. I would really like to get a summary of what this is and how it works.
You stated that, "students were not necessarily learning exact content outlined in SC 5th grade standards... ." I teach at the high school level and the content that students need to know (standards) can be pretty challenging to cover adequately. I read the research and speak with college professors often and I try to make sure that my students have the requisite knowledge and skills for success at that level. I don't find that there is a lot of time available to deviate from activities that address the standards. Do you have that kind of time?
Hi Brittany,
ReplyDeleteLike you, Sir Ken Robinson's fast food analogy really resonated with me. Standardized education isn't healthy for kids and it doesn't provide them with viable paths for differentiation or innovation. Thinking about public education in that light is not only sad, it fuels our work with pbl towards student ownership and towards inquiry based learning.
I am thankful for the work that you and our other teachers at Fairforest and across our district are doing with pbl. You mentioned in your email how a current challenge for you is balancing student choice and ownership over their learning with standards. We are all looking for this balance and one of the places I find it is in structured choice and in providing multiple opportunities for student agency throughout both the product and the process. I look forward to the work we will do this week.