Struggle plays a huge role in my teaching practice because struggle is essential to learning.
But sometimes, I think I let my students struggle a little too much. There has to be a balance, and it's a balance I'm still working on after eleven years in the classroom. It also seems to be the product of experience rather than skill or content knowledge.
As a young teacher, I didn't want to let my students struggle, ever. I wanted them to be comfortable and interested and engaged because everything was Just So Engaging Because I Said It Was! I didn't realise that the students needed to be working harder than I was; frankly, I'm not sure anyone could have worked harder than I did that first year.
I grew more experienced, and probably leaned too far in the other direction. In the name of constructivism, I explained far too little and expected far too much.
There are some things that work best as direct instruction, and there are things that work best as student-centred constructivism. Again, it's about finding balance between telling them ALL OF THE THINGS and letting them discover ALL OF THE THINGS.
But sometimes, I think I let my students struggle a little too much. There has to be a balance, and it's a balance I'm still working on after eleven years in the classroom. It also seems to be the product of experience rather than skill or content knowledge.
As a young teacher, I didn't want to let my students struggle, ever. I wanted them to be comfortable and interested and engaged because everything was Just So Engaging Because I Said It Was! I didn't realise that the students needed to be working harder than I was; frankly, I'm not sure anyone could have worked harder than I did that first year.
I grew more experienced, and probably leaned too far in the other direction. In the name of constructivism, I explained far too little and expected far too much.
There are some things that work best as direct instruction, and there are things that work best as student-centred constructivism. Again, it's about finding balance between telling them ALL OF THE THINGS and letting them discover ALL OF THE THINGS.
I'm still trying to find the ideal blend of constructivism and direct instruction. The key difference between how I conceive of my role as teacher now and how I did when I started is that I am not here to be everything to everyone. I'm a teacher so I can guide my students towards the real-world skills they will been to be successful. Not so I can impress them with my knowledge or skill.*
As a guide, I can explain when necessary and point to experts when it's not. Or I can ask a good question and just be silent as they figure out their answer. Those skills are ones bourne out of the struggle I've faced as I developed as a teacher, and the ones that will produce the most healthy struggle from my students.
I don't ever want them to feel hopeless or stupid, but I do want them to be challenged every single day. I don't want them to fail, unless it leads to reflection of how to do better next time. I don't want them to be handed all the knowledge, because I want them to have the joy of figuring it out for themselves.
Creating struggle is part of my job as a teacher. It's also my job to create the kind of environment where struggle is safe. Without both of those factors, I can't be successful as a teacher.
How do you use struggle in your classroom? How do you balance constructivism with direct instruction? How do you make struggle safe?
*such as my skill in using an intentional sentence fragment while I'm teaching sentence fluency.
As a guide, I can explain when necessary and point to experts when it's not. Or I can ask a good question and just be silent as they figure out their answer. Those skills are ones bourne out of the struggle I've faced as I developed as a teacher, and the ones that will produce the most healthy struggle from my students.
I don't ever want them to feel hopeless or stupid, but I do want them to be challenged every single day. I don't want them to fail, unless it leads to reflection of how to do better next time. I don't want them to be handed all the knowledge, because I want them to have the joy of figuring it out for themselves.
Creating struggle is part of my job as a teacher. It's also my job to create the kind of environment where struggle is safe. Without both of those factors, I can't be successful as a teacher.
How do you use struggle in your classroom? How do you balance constructivism with direct instruction? How do you make struggle safe?
*such as my skill in using an intentional sentence fragment while I'm teaching sentence fluency.
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