Do You Have a Transformational Vision?

I have been working this summer on taking the 300+ essays that I have written for this blog and turning them into a “teaching book” that I could give away to any and all interested educators for free. 

I considered this idea once before about five years ago but never found a structure for the book that I liked.  This past May, a friend suggested that I try again.  Maybe I am just older and wiser, but the process is going much better. 

The question I considered this morning.

Assume that a college teacher comes to you for advice.  Her classes are going well but are not yet great.  She wants to improve.  What might you tell her?

One of the tactics that I use in such cases is to ask the person to sit with closed eyes and describe to me in as much detail as possible what the perfect last day of class would look like for her.  I firmly believe that the better you can visualize what you are trying to achieve, the more likely it is that you and your students will succeed.  It is like having a lighthouse that helps you navigate through the semester to your destination.

Here is what I wrote in this section of my “in-process” book.

“The learning process you are developing will simply not work unless you have a clear vision of what you intend to accomplish.  Start the semester and every class session with a mental image of what you want to see happen during the last class of the semester.  As I explain to my students, “If you don’t know where you are going, you don’t need a map.”  I wrote earlier in this book that a college course should be transformational.  Design your learning process to bring about the specific change you want for each of your students.  

“I always picture the students on the last day of class arriving early so that they can chat with each other about their assignment.  They are fully prepared and eager to discuss the issues of the day.  They are confident.  They are ready to justify the solutions they have developed for the puzzles I have assigned.  The work has required serious thought and effort, but it is not impossible.  Class begins and the conversation is animated.  Everyone is willing to speak and express their opinions.  The students are interested and engaged even though the material is complex.  They do not fear being belittled or reprimanded.  They take what they have learned during the semester and use it to arrive at reasonable answers.  I say as little as possible although I willingly step in when I have a thought I want to convey.  Most importantly, a sense of joy permeates the room.  Learning should always be fun.  At its best, I believe that college education is a serious mental challenge laced with enjoyment. 

“That vision is the transformation I hope to create.  It guides every step I take during the semester to build up to that finale.  Whenever I make any class decision, I consider what is most likely to help my students arrive at this outcome.

“How do you see the last day of class?  If you could rub a magic lamp and have a genie appear who granted educational wishes, how different would you want your students to be on the final day of the semester?  As the saying goes, ‘If you can dream it, you can do it.’”

Okay, that is enough about my classes.  What is your vision?  Is it clear enough?  Is it aspirational enough?  Will it transform the students in the way that you want?