Comments on: Creating our own lament http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html Technology, leadership, and the future of schools Wed, 08 Feb 2012 23:00:32 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Holly Kragthorpe-Shirley http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html/comment-page-1#comment-13146 Holly Kragthorpe-Shirley Tue, 30 Nov 1999 05:00:00 +0000 http://annahein.com/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html#comment-13146 How can we not agree? I enjoyed this article; thank you for including it in your post. I love that Wesch says, "If our students are 'not cut out for school,' perhaps we have made the mold too narrow...or just not meaningful enough for them to fit in." Having taught in urban high schools, I was forced to confront the issue of significance the minute I walked in the door to teach my first day of US History. In my experience, most urban learners are less concerned with "what is on the test" and they demand to know what it all means to them personally. In my moments where I feel like I am the most effective teacher I feel more like a facilitator or a coach. Those "good questions", as Wesch says, "drive the force of critical thinking." This article reminds me of the Coalition of Essential Schools guiding principle of "student as learner, teacher as coach." Another tagline that I took away from his article: "The medium is the message." So true, especially in developing adolescent literacy. How can we not agree? I enjoyed this article; thank you for including it in your post. I love that Wesch says, “If our students are ‘not cut out for school,’ perhaps we have made the mold too narrow…or just not meaningful enough for them to fit in.”

Having taught in urban high schools, I was forced to confront the issue of significance the minute I walked in the door to teach my first day of US History. In my experience, most urban learners are less concerned with “what is on the test” and they demand to know what it all means to them personally. In my moments where I feel like I am the most effective teacher I feel more like a facilitator or a coach. Those “good questions”, as Wesch says, “drive the force of critical thinking.” This article reminds me of the Coalition of Essential Schools guiding principle of “student as learner, teacher as coach.”

Another tagline that I took away from his article: “The medium is the message.” So true, especially in developing adolescent literacy.

]]> By: Jarrod Martin http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html/comment-page-1#comment-13147 Jarrod Martin Tue, 30 Nov 1999 05:00:00 +0000 http://annahein.com/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html#comment-13147 Holly, I agree with you completely. I find that my most successful moments in teaching don't come from my planned lessons. When I have given an assignment that requires action, thinking, creativity, and questions, that's when I find myself guiding them. In those moments, I don't have to motivate, but I respond. I teach in a very rural area, where everyone of my students asks, "What are we going to do today?", which sounds great. Then, once we've started class, the next question is, "Do I really need to know this for the real world?" It is my driving passion to be able to answer the first question, and then never hear the second question. Holly,
I agree with you completely. I find that my most successful moments in teaching don’t come from my planned lessons. When I have given an assignment that requires action, thinking, creativity, and questions, that’s when I find myself guiding them. In those moments, I don’t have to motivate, but I respond.

I teach in a very rural area, where everyone of my students asks, “What are we going to do today?”, which sounds great. Then, once we’ve started class, the next question is, “Do I really need to know this for the real world?” It is my driving passion to be able to answer the first question, and then never hear the second question.

]]> By: Rob Jacobs http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html/comment-page-1#comment-13148 Rob Jacobs Tue, 30 Nov 1999 05:00:00 +0000 http://annahein.com/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html#comment-13148 I can't tell you have relevant this discussion is to the needs of the students at the K-6 level. Too often they are waiting for the teacher to tell them what they need to know or what to think, instead of the teacher pushing the students to use their ideas and creativity. If we are going to expect high school students and college students to think, create, and innovate, we must start asking them questions that require these traits in elementary school. I can’t tell you have relevant this discussion is to the needs of the students at the K-6 level. Too often they are waiting for the teacher to tell them what they need to know or what to think, instead of the teacher pushing the students to use their ideas and creativity. If we are going to expect high school students and college students to think, create, and innovate, we must start asking them questions that require these traits in elementary school.

]]> By: Mark Christensen http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html/comment-page-1#comment-13149 Mark Christensen Tue, 30 Nov 1999 05:00:00 +0000 http://annahein.com/2008/04/creating-our-ow.html#comment-13149 As an ICT teacher trainer I am always encouraging teachers to incorporate more ICT and self directed learning into their pedagogy. It's no wonder students have become bored with traditional teaching methods - just look at how they learn outside of the classroom. They use messaging, wikki, blogs, youtube and other web2 content to gain the knowledge they need (whatever it may be for). Remembering back to my recent Uni study, I did quite well - high scores and the dean's commendations. Not that I'm smart, I just understood the system. In Assignments you restate the lecturer's views, quote what others have said and reference like it’s going out of fashion. I viewed my time at uni as waiting period to get a piece of paper so I could get on with what I really wanted to do. Isn't it a pity that high school students are now adopting the same attitude? Many of them now don't even bother asking "Why do we have to know this?" because they already know the answer "Because it's on the test". I'm now looking at how students today learn by themselves outside of school and looking for ways to apply that model to the educational situations in the classroom. But guess what! the two just don't seem to match up and the distance between them is getting greater year by year. As an ICT teacher trainer I am always encouraging teachers to incorporate more ICT and self directed learning into their pedagogy. It’s no wonder students have become bored with traditional teaching methods – just look at how they learn outside of the classroom. They use messaging, wikki, blogs, youtube and other web2 content to gain the knowledge they need (whatever it may be for). Remembering back to my recent Uni study, I did quite well – high scores and the dean’s commendations. Not that I’m smart, I just understood the system. In Assignments you restate the lecturer’s views, quote what others have said and reference like it’s going out of fashion. I viewed my time at uni as waiting period to get a piece of paper so I could get on with what I really wanted to do. Isn’t it a pity that high school students are now adopting the same attitude? Many of them now don’t even bother asking “Why do we have to know this?” because they already know the answer “Because it’s on the test”. I’m now looking at how students today learn by themselves outside of school and looking for ways to apply that model to the educational situations in the classroom. But guess what! the two just don’t seem to match up and the distance between them is getting greater year by year.

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