Student Perspective on Learning- A Visionary Approach for Co-Op Learning (124)

Emotional self-awareness is a tall order for us to ask of students. It’s hard enough for adults. Yet, we somehow expect for them to sit quietly and pay attention. To collaborate respectfully. To actually want to work in groups, walk around and complete station activities. To take notes, even though, for some this is downright painful.

1-      “I miss mindfulness lessons, it made me feel connected. It made me more self-aware of my actions.”

2-      “I hate stations, they are just book work and quick activities that we could do at our desks. I would rather design my own stations.”

We set time limits, grade values, the pace is not self-guided but prescriptive. The letters, numbers and percentages are based on rubrics and acquaintance, rather than co-ownership and growth. I know I create some interesting activities for them, but a lot of them, after reflection and student response, still fall into what they describe as the 'mandatory and defined' category.

1-      “I like to have some kind of directions but when the end product is identical to the table next to mine- it feels less fun because we no longer have ownership of what we are making.”

2-      “Rubrics are important, but we should be able to ‘create’ our own based on what we want to create as a project.”

Some activities that I thought were too easy or simple- they loved because they could use them as a foundation to go deeper. I was so busy making sure they were having fun, I forgot to watch and notice, that they were learning beyond the scope of Playdoh, Jenga and Lego. They were in fact using these tools as starting points to further adventures.

1-      “I love using toys and things from my childhood, the nostalgia puts me in the moment of learning because the familiarity of it, makes it a challenge to think of some new purpose.”

2-      “Starting simple is good- it creates the outline, so we can decide which quest to take. If we have options, we will never end up in quite the same place as our classmates.”

I was seeing them at the tip of the iceberg, so to speak, when they were diving beneath it to get to its underbelly. The base, floor and undercarriage of their learning. While other lessons, I thought were challenging and creative, students felt were contrived and hokey. It’s all a matter of perspective.

I am great at reflection. I am great at asking the right questions to stir their imagination. What I found out, after asking the questions I did in my survey, is that I get blinded sometimes by the 'fun factor.' Sometimes I look for shiny bobbles and candy canes, when all they need are the scissors and wrapping paper.

1-      “I appreciate that you ask for a lot of reflection. I like that you want our input. But maybe before we start a project you could ask us if it sounds valuable or if not, how could we tweak to make sure it is.”

2-      “We don’t always need the flashy stuff, sometimes data graphs and charts is a good thing for us to analyze.”

We have a makerspace, they love it. A 100% technology free center I call- Digits over Digital. I love for them to get messy. Messes mean their brains are working. If we contain the mess, we contain the imagination. But, cleaning up is a big part of the process too. Putting things back in their bins is when they discover things they missed, they discover new tools for future use.

I need to remember- less is more. Keep the goal simple, concise and creative. Leave plenty of room for them to co-own, even co-op the assignment. It is kind of amazing to see what they design when I leave them alone and hope for not expect, only one thing - their 'something.'

1-      “The makerspace is a creative spot where I look things over and imagine the possibilities.”

2-      “Sometimes drawing works too, 3D doesn’t necessarily mean better.”                           

3-      "The act of cleaning up sometimes inspires me to do something new."

I forget this sometimes, I too can be a perfectionist, I like precise expectations on things sometimes, maybe because its easier to grade. Maybe its easier to chart growth. But I have to let go of that.

There is a misalignment, in what I think makes my classroom fun and what my students actually value. The things I thought were tedious, they seem to find merit in. I have a compulsion to make it right.

To align assignments that are meaningful and purposeful for me- but also useful, appreciated and beneficial for my students. It is not an easy thing to do with curriculum standards, pacing guides and weekly lesson plan formats- but it can be done.

1-      “I like the pace of the class. You keep it moving, yet I never feel out of time. But we do have deadlines, I wish we didn’t have deadlines.”

2-      “I appreciate that grades are fluid. I wish we had more aspects of the class on-line and not just weekly discussion questions. I would prefer to do the required stuff at home and more interactive in class.”

3-      “I like how we have independent time in class, but also a lot of collaborative stuff. But I hate group work. More group interaction less group assignments would be good.”

The moment I let lessons fall into the category of what I thought was going to be fun- I lost them. I know students don’t love group work but, the extent to which they loathe it, that was a shocker. I need a revamp. Most aspects of the class they like, but some big things to reconsider, some necessary changes for next year.

It was a cold glass of water to the face in a bitter arctic breeze. Eye lashes frozen, skin blue, breath a white mist. I was woke in a big way and not a delightful one. It was painful and jarring. But necessary. You ask for brutal truth, you get brutal truth.

So now what? How can I make the changes? 

It takes recapitulation. It takes resuscitation. It takes annihilation of my personal preferences. It takes thinking about things differently. They feel unchallenged in distance learning. They miss the problem-solving, higher order thinking aspect of classroom life. 

How do I make sure when we return in the fall- that I have let go of the aspects of my classroom they found boring or trite? I must fix the cracks. I want to be better for my students.

I need to stay creative, but make sure I don't over plan. I need to let them co-op and co-own more aspects of their learning. Let them in on the process. They need the responsibility of ownership because it spawns purpose, value and interest.

1-      “Creativity is found in us too we like to do wacky stuff. The makerspace helps us think for ourselves.”

2-      “Sometimes its hard to get creative- but when you pause and get quiet and let us think for 30 minutes, it is the best gift. We like to figure things out and discover our own stuff.”

Creativity is only going to show up if, I show up looking for it. Students need the time to do the same thing, from day one. The first day of class- let them co-op the classroom. The problem is- we are often looking for creativity to fill a void in our thinking. We are trying to keep things fun and interesting but manageable. When we need to let students insert more perspective to balance the scales.

But we need to not capture creativity or curiosity– avoid trapping it in our lessons. For if we let it swirl about for students to find, it will become magnified 30 fold. For students- when we swallow up the creative process- it can feel like someone stole the stage. That the script is set with little room for ad-lib. When it should all be about the ad-lib.

After my survey, I discovered a lot about myself. I provide choice, freedom and independence but I thought I did a better job at it. But now I see I give them too much direction and guidance and that in a nutshell, blurred the lines for them. It made things feel “mandatory and defined,” when I was so desperately trying to avoid that.

Self-awareness is difficult sometimes, when we are looking for flaws, but in reality, we need to be looking for cloud cover. Shift our thinking and the fog will lift. There are many types of clouds, many layers in the stratosphere. 

It all depends on your outlook, is the storm approaching or leaving? Either way, without an umbrella, you are going to get wet. So welcome the sideways rain, getting our shoes wet makes us change them and put on warm socks. It is these footwear changes that make all the difference.

1-      “It’s hard to remember everything if I don’t have time to take notes the way I need to. I like your option of visual notes or organizers. Journal questions and Frayer models- we all learn in different ways.”

2-      “I know it takes longer when we get to choose and design our own activities, but its worth it, because when you do- it means something, that you value our opinion and that we learn to trust our instincts.”

3-      “Let your students roam, with a really long leash, we need the tether but love the wide-open space, to make mistakes and learn from them.”