As teachers we have options in our classrooms every single day. Lights on or off. Windows open or closed. Blue Marker or Green. Word or Publisher. Voicemail or email. Lime yogurt or lemon. It goes on. But, the most important choice is that one that defines everything we do…. how to teach our students. I think it’s time to let the kids drive. I know what you are thinking….whoa…. the kids? They’ll go crazy. It will be chaos. They won’t learn unless I tell them….
Wait, I didn’t say leave the room and never look back. I’m saying, guide them, stand back, and let them learn. Think about this:
When you shop for a new car, what is the best way to tell which one you should buy?
1.) The brochure? It’s glossy, filled with info, great to look at, and may even make the car look enticing. But, it’s really just a textbook. It’s filled with info, but it doesn’t truly give you the experience of the car.
2.) The commerical? Watching the car glide along curves in places that you don’t live, and seeing the glossy paint, even hearing the snazzy music. It’s all very glamorous. But again, you haven’t experienced the car. You’ve just watched the movie, heard the lecture, and sat back.
3.) The test drive? You’re in the driver’s seat. You’ve gotta figure out where to put the key. Where are the headlights? What about windshield wipers? Oooohh… look at all those buttons for the stereo system. That feeling of cruising out of the dealership, pressing the gas pedal, and going… it’s YOURS. That’s the feeling students need when they learn. Project Based Learning, in which the “teacher” is the “guide on the side” or, the car salesman in the backseat, gives kids a chance to experience, live, learn, and it’s authentic. The brochure becomes a resources, the commercial a small piece of the puzzle, the rest of it is problem solving, thinking, collaborating, and DOING.
So, it’s time. Stop showing them brochures and commercials, and let them drive. Turning the keys over is hard. It causes you to question yourself as a teacher. But, once you are in the backseat and watching students in control, you’ll realize that you are on a whole new highway… the highway of authentic learning. It may feel like unknown territory, be filled with surprise potholes, and even the occasional roadblock, but it’s real learning and THAT is the best type of teaching we can provide our students.
