tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4184539467031647989.post2885247209671758944..comments2023-10-07T02:42:10.642-07:00Comments on Coalition for Kid-Friendly Schools: Real Teachers, Real SubjectsFedUpMomhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00951858601020687242noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4184539467031647989.post-48627265472278652272014-10-25T17:17:31.358-07:002014-10-25T17:17:31.358-07:00PS
I believe Common Core's point and why it&...PS <br />I believe Common Core's point and why it's mandatory, is to create a better cannon fodder...that's not a joke Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05033117202223821117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4184539467031647989.post-81343280857681944412014-10-25T17:14:41.125-07:002014-10-25T17:14:41.125-07:00A "first, do no harm" approach would be ...<i>A "first, do no harm" approach would be a great foundation for K-12 education, but it would require education policy-makers to give up their dream that they can accomplish their goals simply by fiat, rather than by grappling with the students as actual people with ideas and desires of their own.</i><br /><br />Bingo. <br /><br />Who develops these programs that teachers are then expected to use? Is that known? Some suit who has never spent a day teaching I'm guessing . Just these names ( deep comprehension, Core ) are horrifying. Is Whole Brain still going strong? ( That name makes me think of a brain in a jar) <br /><br />As I often say, most of our intuitions are a shambles right now and for the same reason...no one is home. The system, whether public or private ,does not want to have to deal with individuals , or their ideas or desires. <br />It's across the board, school being one of the more glaring places Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05033117202223821117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4184539467031647989.post-31456011390768520212014-10-09T09:46:24.796-07:002014-10-09T09:46:24.796-07:00Children are born wanting to learn. When it comes...Children are born wanting to learn. When it comes to basic skills like reading and arithmetic, in my experience kids are already motivated. Both of my (very different) daughters were eager to learn these skills. It takes truly appalling teaching to wreck that motivation, although it can be done.FedUpMomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00951858601020687242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4184539467031647989.post-71730260650938185732014-10-06T06:58:17.171-07:002014-10-06T06:58:17.171-07:00In both of your fictional examples, the student wa...In both of your fictional examples, the student wanted to learn the subject. I think most of the "high-falutin' nonsense" (and I totally agree with the characterization) results from the compulsory nature of K-12 education. When someone really wants to learn something, teaching is relatively easy. When you have to make someone learn something -- someone who may have no interest whatsoever in the subject, at least at that particular moment -- it's much harder.<br /><br />Maybe K-12 education will always be compulsory, but it's another thing for it to completely give up on cultivating intrinsic motivation, as it seems to be doing. It can, for example, give the student a greater role in choosing what to study or what to read, and can be more open to working at the student's own pace rather than squeezing everyone into cookie-cutter "standards." With reading instruction, it would certainly make sense to ensure that the inherently enjoyable aspects of reading are always front and center, so teachers won't win the battle (i.e., squeeze a few more standardized testing points out of the students) while losing the war (making kids loathe reading). <br /><br />A "first, do no harm" approach would be a great foundation for K-12 education, but it would require education policy-makers to give up their dream that they can accomplish their goals simply by fiat, rather than by grappling with the students as actual people with ideas and desires of their own.Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07559356125770114400noreply@blogger.com