Are we restricting our kids from exploring a wide range of intelligences and learning opportunities?
I've been doing a lot of reading lately on current approaches in educational reform. There seems to be quite a strong push for not just relying on the traditional methods of teaching and learning. Back in Australia, I was teaching 5th grade students. I loved my job. I still have a fond place in my heart for teaching, though right now I feel more comfortable working with computers and web design.
When I moved to the USA, I had the opportunity to work in some classes over here, and noticed a massive difference: there was a huge emphasis on only the teaching of knowledge and facts. Don't get me wrong. It's essential information. But creativity is stifled, and that kind of teaching approach is, well, not exciting.
From my own experience, as a teacher, here are some ways you can improve children's learning in the classroom environment:
The classroom process should be democratic
To a degree - there will be times that, as teacher, you have to be the firm disciplinarian. However, I had always viewed the kids I taught as people I worked with, rather than just being their teacher. I wanted them to have as much a say in the classroom environment. At the beginning of the school year, my students would come up with their own class rules - as well as appropriate consequences for positive and negative behavior. Despite what cynics and skeptics would say, this approach works wonders, and is well-documented under the theories and approached of Student Voice. It helps kids feel like they have a firm attachment to the way the class is run - and is a big help in developing their own reflection on their own behaviors.
Incorporate lessons that foster creativity
If you look at successful businesses today (such as Digg and Google) a lot of their development was initially developed from creative thinking. While teaching mathematical skills and scientific knowledge are essential, it shouldn't be the only thing that gets encouraged. Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences highlights that schools focus far too much on linguistic and logical-mathematical skills and knowledge only. Look into the realms of art, creative writing, and music. If you don't have time on your schedule to squeeze in art lessons, integrate it into your existing subjects - it provides a wide range of opportunity for kids to be able to flex and develop their creative muscles. Here's an example of the facilitation of creativity in the senior high school level:
Social interactions are necessary learning experiences
You remember what it was like as a kid. Sitting at separated tables, in a quiet room, regurgitating notes from the chalkboard... How many times have you found yourself in this situation in your working life? Very rarely - in fact, many of us had to develop our own "people skills" after we had joined the workforce. According to sociologist Herbert Blumer, humans derive meaning from "the social interaction that one has with one's fellows" (Blumer 1969). Therefore, being able to interact socially is an important aspect of learning. My classroom was rarely quiet - it was often noisy; kids were encouraged to discuss what they were learning or how they were going to accomplish problems. And when serious disagreements came up, we would work together to find resolutions.
Use themes as a teaching approach
Tying subject areas together gives more meaning to the students. According to Barton and Smith (2005), "by removing artificial divisions among subjects, integrated study helps students see connections within content areas and enables them more easily to understand important concepts and ideas". Let's say, for example, you wanted to use the theme of the medieval era of history. Your history lessons would obviously focus on the era itself, but within your reading lessons you could incorporate even more relevant material. Choose key words for spelling lessons. Take a look at the scientific beliefs of the time in a science lesson. Let the kids write their own "Beowulf" in creative writing. You get the point - integrating a theme across multiple subject areas makes learning more meaningful.
Break the rules
Don't be scared to use unconventional themes and topics. For example, one of my themes was "Star Wars". I used it as a means to both get kids interested in reading books, and to help improve their literacy skills. While many might frown on the usage of pop culture in the classroom, it should be considered that popular culture is a genuine representation of the needs of people in modern society (Swingewood 1977). In my case, the students read Star Wars books, completed related activities, made their own stories, created Star Wars artwork, analyzed characters, and much more. Not only was the experience enjoyable for them, but there was a very noticeable improvement in the majority of students' literacy skills. On top of that, with George Lucas' saga being heavily influenced by classic myths and legends, it provided me with an outstanding bridge into teaching that particular aspect of classic literature. ...& just because its cool, here's a film project by some high school kids using the Star Wars theme - impressive, most impressive:
Still teach the facts and knowledge
It may seem like I am trying to push a "fun and games" atmosphere here. Don't get me wrong. Explicit teaching of essential facts and knowledge are important. Basic mathematical concepts should not be left to the side. Significant historical occurrences cannot be left out. You get the idea. Explicit teaching, or direct instruction, is a necessary approach that should not be abandoned, and studies still justify its effectiveness (Adams and Engelmann 1996). To help consolidate learning, effective teachers can successfully balance the use of traditional lessons with alternative teaching styles. As a matter of fact, from my experience, using a variety of teaching styles really does promote excellent outcomes.
Change the scene
The classroom can become boring and mundane. So change the scene. During private reading time, if it's nice weather outside, take the kids out into the playground so they can read out there for a change. If your school has funding and opportunities for it, take them on field trips. If the class in general is looking a little restless, take them out for a short sport-based activity. In short, this approach is based upon the Situated Learning philosophy (Farmer and Hughes, 2005).
Get them to work in groups
I mentioned social interaction earlier, and while working in groups is related to that, it is important to point out that most lessons seem to be either whole class lessons, or individual work. It's called collaborative learning, and is a very successful teaching approach (McInnerney and Roberts, 2005) - it is often used in online education, but can be very effective when employed in the traditional classroom. Getting kids to work in groups employs another teaching strategy that can help make the learning environment a little more varied for them.
Destroy the "school is boring" mentality
School should be entertaining and exciting. My problem when I first started teaching was how could I make that happen? For me, the solution was to create somewhat of a "teaching identity" for myself, which evolved into something like a cross between Tom Green (as far as humor was concerned) and Steve Jobs (as far as a "casual informal look" was concerned): In other words, I integrated humor into my teaching, and also acted and dressed more casually than the average teacher. I wanted to make the kids laugh, and make sure that there was some kind of entertaining factor to my teaching. That may sound silly to some people, but think about your own personal experiences: it is the learning experiences you enjoyed the most that you remembered. As a matter of fact, there is strong evidence to suggest that there is a correlation between a student's perception of a teacher's "coolness" and positive student behavior (Sackett and Chun, 1998). My recommendation would be find your own groove - you don't have to act like a comedian, but you can find your own teaching identity and make it work so that it will both maximize learning, and make school exciting for kids.
Don't assess all the time - focus on smarter grading
I've noticed a lot of teachers assess and record every piece of work a student does. That is so counter productive. Grade in a smarter fashion: when planning your lessons for the semester, select major assessment tasks in advance - and use these for your recording and reporting. They don't have to be tests, and anecdotal evaluation can be handy as well. In a world of OBE educational reform, there is research to suggest that various types of assessment should not be overused (Ysseldyke, Olsen, and Thurlow, 1997). Though don't get too relaxed - a lot of parents like seeing graded material, so be sure that most if not all of your students' work is seen by you and marked; or at the very least corrected in groups.
Enjoy what you do
Kids are not stupid. They're incredibly smart, and can pick up on whether you like teaching or not. If you don't enjoy it, find another career. It is possible to take on a wide range of teaching strategies, and truly take pleasure in what you do as a teacher (Benson 2002). If you like what you do, and show that you benefit from it, the students will pick up on this, and it will affect their learning - in a very positive manner.
Overall, I wouldn't expect anyone to take all of these ideas on board and convert their whole classroom approach. But if anyone can see merit in my suggestions, just know one thing: they worked for me and my students... and sometimes it can take one person to make the biggest change with the most meaningful impact.
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To a degree - there will be times that, as teacher, you have to be the firm disciplinarian. However, I had always viewed the kids I taught as people I worked with, rather than just being their teacher. I wanted them to have as much a say in the classroom environment. At the beginning of the school year, my students would come up with their own class rules - as well as appropriate consequences for positive and negative behavior. Despite what cynics and skeptics would say, this approach works wonders, and is well-documented under the theories and approached of 
If you look at successful businesses today (such as 
You remember what it was like as a kid. Sitting at separated tables, in a quiet room, regurgitating notes from the 
Tying subject areas together gives more meaning to the students. According to 
Don't be scared to use unconventional themes and topics. For example, one of my themes was "
It may seem like I am trying to push a "fun and games" atmosphere here. Don't get me wrong. 
The classroom can become boring and mundane. So change the scene. During private reading time, if it's nice weather outside, take the kids out into the playground so they can read out there for a change. If your school has funding and opportunities for it, take them on 
I mentioned 
School should be entertaining and exciting. My problem when I first started teaching was how could I make that happen? For me, the solution was to create somewhat of a "teaching identity" for myself, which evolved into something like a cross between 
I've noticed a lot of teachers 
Kids are not stupid. They're incredibly smart, and can pick up on whether you like teaching or not. If you don't enjoy it, find another career. It is possible to take on a wide range of teaching strategies, and truly take pleasure in what you do as a teacher (
