This blog post has some pretty useful information. So print it out; get out your highlighter and take off the cap.
Ready? Now throw it away, because highlighters don’t really help people learn. (Kamenetz, 2017, para. 1-2)
My greatest teacher… is only 7 years old.
Addison’s birth was pretty typical – at least for me; I just had to wait in the waiting room. I had planned on being my sister’s labor coach just as I had done for the birth of my nephew, but Addison was stubborn from day one. She was breached and refused to move. When I finally held her in my arms, I couldn’t get over her perfect button nose, her eyes that were already curious, and her little pursed lips. My sister was still in the hospital bed, tears streaked her face – I assumed they were tears of joy or maybe the c-section was awful. I asked her if she was okay, and she quietly said, “They think she has Down Syndrome.”
For my sister’s sake, I fought back my own tears, “Okay. That’s awesome. Look at how beautiful she is.” But inside, my ideas of dance recitals, athletic events, and sleepovers made way for the thoughts of struggles and questions. I stopped wondering, I wonder if she’ll like to…, and switched to, I wonder if she’ll be able to…
I immediately got on the internet to learn more. I wanted to make sure I knew everything. I signed up for mailing lists and organizations I had never heard of. I called a friend whose son has Down Syndrome and was graduating high school that year; she could hardly contain her excitement and said, “Congratulations. What a gift!” (The doctor had apologized). The resources at my fingertips were endless. I reached out to an amazing and supportive community – one I am now proud to be a part of. I became immersed in a world I knew nothing about.
Fast forward seven years, an open-heart surgery, countless dance recitals,
and plenty of laughs, life with Addison has taught me more than any formal
educational setting could. She has taught me true strength and how to take
on any challenge – her approach usually involves hands on her hips and a bit
of an attitude. Through her unconditional love for everything (strangers, dogs,
cake), she has taught me to embrace and appreciate everyone in my life. She
has taught me to live every day with pure happiness. But most importantly,
Addison has taught me that everything will be okay.
No. Everything will be amazing.
Why do I bring this up? There is so much out there to learn. And so many amazing teachers to teach. I don’t look at myself as the teacher who has information to give out; rather, my students and I are in this together. We tackle the tough problems and ask the deeper questions. We find our own meaning and create significance in the world. Paulo Coelho (2007) puts it best, “What is a teacher? I’ll tell you: it isn’t someone who teaches something, but someone who inspires the student to give of her best in order to discover what she already knows” (para. 38).
As a teacher, I am lucky enough to be surrounded by individuals from all walks of life who have so much to offer. It has always been my goal to create a classroom where I am more of a facilitator and learning can happen organically. By reflecting on my own learning, it becomes even clearer that there is no easy answer to how people learn. With no quick fix, we must embrace what we do know: students are inquisitive, eager, passionate, and knowledgeable. Constructivist theory, with roots going back to John Dewey and Jean Piaget, embraces all of these things. I am a firm believer that everyone and everything has within them/it a lesson to be shared. It is on us as learners to find that out.
References
Coelho, P. (2007, April 17). Eleventh chapter. [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://paulocoelhoblog.com/2007/04/17/eleventh-chapter/
Kamenetz, A. (2017, March 22). You probably believe some learning myths: Take our quiz to find out. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/03/22/520843457/you-probably-believe-some-learning-myths-take-our-quiz-to-find-out
Annotated Bibliography
Donovan, M. S., Bransford, J. D., & Pellegrino, J. W. (1999). How people learn: Bridging research and practice. Retrieved from http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9457.html
“There is no universal best teaching practice” (p. 19). But we must understand key elements of how people learn. In addition to some easy to understand key findings, this article puts forth guidelines for designing learning environments that work.
Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. New York: Random House.
I keep coming back to this book in my daily life and in teaching. Dweck puts forth stories and examples to back up her research demonstrating how important it is to have a “growth mindset.” While this has been extremely helpful for my own learning journey, sharing these ideas with my students has also helped them to foster a growth mindset – one that is ready for change.
Harapnuik, D. (2016, March 11). Four keys to understanding learning theories. [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.harapnuik.org/?p=6344
Start here! Dr. Harapnuik is able to take even the most complex and seemingly disparate ideas and transform them into something manageable. A key take away is the importance of taking the time to understand learning theories as this is at the heart of understanding teaching. Additionally, he does not argue one theory is better than another; rather, a deeper understanding will allow the best possible “mash-up.”
Smith, M. K. (2003). Learning theory: models, product and process. Retrieved from http://infed.org/mobi/learning-theory-models-product-and-process/
In addition to breaking learning down as a product and a process, Smith created a helpful chart describing 4 orientations to learning. This is an interesting read as he also highlights what people think about learning. If we have a greater understanding of what our students think about learning, maybe we can help them realize greater potential. For further reading, Smith includes his own annotated bibliography.
Mims, C. (n.d.). Authentic learning: A practical introduction & guide for implementation. Retrieved from https://projects.ncsu.edu/meridian/win2003/authentic_learning/
This is a great place for help understanding some key ideas of constructivist theory. Mims’ introduction is straightforward and packed with research that gets the reader’s attention. He provides an extremely detailed model of what authentic learning looks like when put in action.
