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The legal requirement for school in many places is 180 days.
Why? We don’t know.
I’ve seen students make three years of progress in six weeks when they get excited about the work they are doing.
I’ve also seen them languish for three years without ever making an investment in learning.
Read MoreHow much of what we do in school is intrinsically valuable?
I would argue that everything should be, but often, it’s not.
School conditions us to do the minimum to please the teacher. Very little of what we do is actually worth anything on its own. What a waste of time.
When I solve a problem or a puzzle, I feel a sense of accomplishment that is my own. When I play a piece of music, it is ephemeral but still hopefully brings a moment of satisfaction to those who hear it. And when I finish reading a book, I have expanded my world. Perhaps I can even use these new insights to serve others in some way.
Read MoreThe scene: Algebra II classroom, York High School, York, Maine, early 1990s.
Mr. Hawkes: “What’s your answer?”
My friend: “Three-fourths.”
Mr. Hawkes: “Stake your life on it?”
My friend: “It’s just math — I don’t want to die.”
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As it turned out, my friend’s answer was correct. But he didn’t know for sure that it was correct, and he didn’t care enough to go that deeply. He preferred to spend that energy diving deep into the world of music, where he did have a sense of conviction. In music, when he was right, he knew that he was right.
Read More“The bottom of the nose belongs down here, and the eyebrows should hit here. You can improve the perspective on the house in the background by incorporating these lines. Also, why is the sky a strip of blue at the top?”
We know that there are developmental stages that children’s artwork goes through as they learn, so we don’t expect kids to draw like adult professionals. Dena Luchsinger makes the case that it’s just as unhelpful to a growing writer to point out all of their mistakes.
Read MoreYeah, I know that schools talk about how important creativity and critical thinking are. And some school cultures are set up to deeply value these skills. However, for the most part, nobody wants students to, for instance, use their critical thinking skills in to question the value of the assignments they are given or put their creativity to work to find more efficient ways to get a given result. “I can see from your test that you understand this material, but you still need to turn in the homework so you don’t get zeros. The YouTube video you made was great, but you still need to do the worksheet.”
Read MoreImagine that everything your child knows and can do can be represented by nested rings.
The violet center represents that which your child has mastered.
The red outer ring represents skills and knowledge that your child has very little exposure to.
Too often, the learning process requires students to spend the majority of their time on shaky ground:
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