During
a semester, teachers do not always have enough free time available to make
radical class improvements.
Consequently, as I have said often in these blog postings over the
years, the summer is a fabulous time to work on the upcoming learning
process. Frequently, this advice has
focused on the students. How can you get
them especially well motivated for an outstanding class in the fall? Today, however, I want to address you as the
teacher. I want to make a suggestion
for a simple experiment that I hope you will try between now and the first week
of class.
Creating
a great educational experience is impossible unless you have a clear idea as to
what success should look like. What do
you really want to happen? “By the last
day of the fall semester, I want to have a great class but I really do not know
what that will look like,” is a ludicrous statement. However, many teachers really do not know what
that great class would look like. They have just never considered it.
I
believe college teachers should merge their class goals and their basic teaching
philosophy to form a mental model of the type of learning environment they hope
to create over the course of a semester.
I refer to this as “my desired reality,” what I want to see happen on
the final day of class next fall. In
sports, athletes often talk about the importance of mentally visualizing an
upcoming competition. Prior to a tennis
match or football game, the athlete will sit quietly and envision exactly what
he or she hopes to have occur. The athlete
makes this mental picture as vivid as possible by “walking” sequentially
through each desired step of the coming contest. The athlete wants to have a sense of how the
actions will feel when everything goes just perfectly as planned. In your class, what does designed perfection
look like? Decades ago, a popular book
titled Psycho-Cybernetics (by Maxwell
Maltz) described the potential benefits of this type of visualization.
For
me, creating an organized structure for my class is difficult without a clear
picture of my desired reality. How do I
envision that last day of class each semester?
Everyone has their own dream ending but here is mine.
I see myself
walking into the classroom on the last day of the semester. The students are in their seats, attentive and
ready to go to work. I select a student
at random and ask that person to address a particular question about the topic
assigned for that day. There is no
hesitation. The student gives a
reasonable, thought-out response to my query.
The student has obviously read the assignment and, moreover, has given
the issues being raised serious consideration.
The answer is not superficial.
The student has thought about the topic.
The student is not afraid to be incorrect. The student is not worried about being the
subject of laughter or ridicule. In that
room, a feeling of mutual respect exists between the teacher and the students
as a group as well as among the individual students. This is a team effort. I ask a second student to comment on the
answer presented by the first student.
The second student has listened carefully to the previous response and
begins to discuss, question, and elaborate on specific points that were
covered. The student compliments the
first student for answers that were well conceived but is also willing to
criticize the validity of specific points as long as the first student is not
personally degraded. A third student
raises a hand to defend an assertion made by the first student. A fourth student raises a hand to pose a
question in hopes of clarifying an answer that was offered. A fifth student raises a hand to compare the
current issue to ones we have discussed earlier in the semester. And, so it goes. Every student in the room is engaged in the
conversation and the exploration of the topic. No one asks "will this be on the test?" Understanding is the goal and not memorization.
In
my desired reality, the classroom experience is a guided conversation in which
we, as a group, explore a particular topic.
The students are asked to prepare in advance and they do so. They are asked to think and they do so. They are asked to listen and they do so. They are asked to respond and question and
they do so. They are asked to get
involved and they do so.
The
teacher is asked to guide, prod, and encourage and does so. Both groups are expected to enjoy the give
and take process that leads to thinking and learning. The daily class experience is an intriguing exploration
and not dreary torture. Speaking strictly for me, this is an educational experience worth having (if it can be created).
Of
course, this is just what I want. What
you want for your classes can be entirely different and even more valid. The decision is up to you. However, no one reaches the goal if it has
not been envisioned in advance.
Can
any desired reality come true? Two
things are absolutely necessary. First,
I have to know what I want to accomplish.
Any teacher who does not have a firm grip on what that last class session
is supposed to look like will never get there.
Second, from the time I start communicating with my students, everything
I do has to help achieve this reality.
Students will never conform to the reality you seek without clear guidance. This vision is just a daydream if you are
not willing to “guide, prod, and encourage” your students in that direction.
It
all starts with a clear understanding of your desired reality.
So,
here is your (obvious) assignment. Take some time
and think deeply about the last day of your fall classes. What reality would you like to see on that
day? When you walk into the last class
in November or December, what would be the best outcome that you could possibly
want? Take some time and write it down. That helps to make the goals more concrete.
If you can dream it, you can
create it.
Once
you know the reality you seek, start asking yourself how can you start moving your students to that point by the end of the fall. Make good use of your summer.
