Leadership’s Future: How Should Teachers Teach?
September 3, 2009 by Miki Saxon
Are you aware of the new teaching approach in middle school English classes that gives kids a say in which books they read?
The approach is known as “reading workshop” and “…students choose their own books, discuss them individually with their teacher and one another, and keep detailed journals about their reading…”
I sent the article to my niece, who alternates between teaching and being a school librarian. She started as a teacher, was driven out of it by internal politics and unreasonable parents, got a Master of Library Science and spent a few years as school librarian and is now back to teaching.
She wrote back, “This is how I teach! Cool! Thanks for sending it. It is controversial and some English teachers think I’m nuts but I love it!”
My niece, along with many others, is the type of teachers we need more of—they love reading and learning and work to pass that love on.
But there is a lot of opposition to moving away from the way reading has been taught.
“In the method familiar to generations of students, an entire class reads a novel — often a classic — together to draw out the themes and study literary craft. That tradition, proponents say, builds a shared literary culture among students, exposes all readers to works of quality and complexity and is the best way to prepare students for standardized tests.”
I bolded the last five words because they are the crux of the problem.
Is the purpose of school to prepare for standardized tests or to teach kids to think?
Are communities stronger and the workforce more cohesive because the people all read To Kill A Mockingbird in eighth grade? And what of those educated elsewhere?
What serves the future better, a love of learning and reading or the skill to ace a standardized test?
At which do you want your kids to excel?
Which skill set do you want to hire?
What do you think?
Your comments—priceless
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Image credit: lusi on sxc.hu
There are a lot of issues with the way we do things in schools. Why does research point to more effective methods, but we fail to adopt any of them? I find it fascinating that with two years of Spanish the only thing a kid can remember is how to say “hello, how are you” and “I am fine.” Why do we spend time teaching children about Spanish grammar? What does a piñata party have to do with learning Spanish? We really have it wrong.
Hi Mike, why schools don’t adopt research is a good question. Possibly because of the prevalence of ‘we’ve always done it this way” and “not invented here” syndrome, the same reasons companies don’t change.
Way, way back when I was young it was proven that the best way to teach a language was by immersion starting in first grade. Just teach words and have the kids use them in the natural course of things, then teach grammar in high school. So I can see the piñata party making sense for young children learning Spanish, but not the grammar.
Thanks for visiting and contributing to the conversation.