The Power of Breaking the Classroom Routine & Simple Tips for Embracing Education for Sustainable Development
"Telling students where they are going, only spoils the journey"
Dylan Williams
I am an advocate of the unexpected. Not as in throwing a surprise celebration for someone, that's a surface surprise. When the unexpected enters the classroom environment it can be both invigorating and challenging depending on the student. No matter the case, when the unexpected is embraced properly by the educator, students can deepen their learning.
When students enter my classroom, most of the time there is a problem or quote of the day and a list of tasks/expectations with clear indicators of what they will learn. Sometimes we begin with an enduring understanding or powerful questions such as: "What does it mean to be ethical? Some students create forward movement as we search for answers. Whatever the case, students are able to clearly see what our path was, and as much as I create an atmosphere for appropriately covering the curriculum or program of studies, it was unremarkable progress.
When I break the routine, the opportunity for genuine student ownership of their learning increases greatly. If students walk into class and see no schedule nothing on the board, they become dislodged from the prediction trap they are so accustomed to. The lesson plan could be the exact same except the steps were not written on the board. The point is, when comparing my days where I overly-prescribe to a classroom routine in order to justify coverage of curriculum or behaviour management, there is a disservice. Innovation is capped.
The underlying concept of this directly correlates to the current failure of Environmental/Sustainability Education:
Most agree sustainability is of a central significance, and it has reached all disciplines in the curriculum; however, researchers such as Stephen Sterling point out: "...most current educational provision is instumental (developing skills for an industrial/commercial society), it takes little account of the 'increasing complexity, interdependence, and systems breakdown in the world".
A simple example deepening feelings before knowing 'why':
Years ago I began introducing weekly solitude spots (developed by Steve Van Matre) within the class, (explained in a post last year in The Fresh Classroom) They are vital to to deepen feelings for the natural world because of their simple goal of focussing our senses on the natural world. This is in hopes that the feelings or emotions we experience when thinking about the planet and our relationship with it, will influence our actions in relation to sustainability.
Often described as 'Place-Based Learning', the concept is just plain old 'good teaching' where an educator is responsive to students needs and focuses on deepening students relations with their learning.
One step further? Look into my unit of questions to develop a sense of place.
Dylan Williams
I am an advocate of the unexpected. Not as in throwing a surprise celebration for someone, that's a surface surprise. When the unexpected enters the classroom environment it can be both invigorating and challenging depending on the student. No matter the case, when the unexpected is embraced properly by the educator, students can deepen their learning.
When students enter my classroom, most of the time there is a problem or quote of the day and a list of tasks/expectations with clear indicators of what they will learn. Sometimes we begin with an enduring understanding or powerful questions such as: "What does it mean to be ethical? Some students create forward movement as we search for answers. Whatever the case, students are able to clearly see what our path was, and as much as I create an atmosphere for appropriately covering the curriculum or program of studies, it was unremarkable progress.
When I break the routine, the opportunity for genuine student ownership of their learning increases greatly. If students walk into class and see no schedule nothing on the board, they become dislodged from the prediction trap they are so accustomed to. The lesson plan could be the exact same except the steps were not written on the board. The point is, when comparing my days where I overly-prescribe to a classroom routine in order to justify coverage of curriculum or behaviour management, there is a disservice. Innovation is capped.
The underlying concept of this directly correlates to the current failure of Environmental/Sustainability Education:
A simple example deepening feelings before knowing 'why':
Years ago I began introducing weekly solitude spots (developed by Steve Van Matre) within the class, (explained in a post last year in The Fresh Classroom) They are vital to to deepen feelings for the natural world because of their simple goal of focussing our senses on the natural world. This is in hopes that the feelings or emotions we experience when thinking about the planet and our relationship with it, will influence our actions in relation to sustainability.
Often described as 'Place-Based Learning', the concept is just plain old 'good teaching' where an educator is responsive to students needs and focuses on deepening students relations with their learning.
One step further? Look into my unit of questions to develop a sense of place.
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