No "Busy Work": Part 1

In order to avoid time-wasting, pointless activities in the classroom, I commend to you a set of questions that I used when generating daily lesson plans. A beginning-of-the-year lecture by my previous headmaster led to formulation of these questions.

Do today's lessons and assignments:

Equip the students with any Tools?

Teach or refine necessary Skills?

Build the Worldview Framework?

Convey & foster Love of Learning?

Tools are those overarching means which must be at every students' disposal in order for them to do the job of learning anything. There are 3 essential tools: Language, Critical Thinking, and Communication.

The tool of language encompasses all aspects of words: reading, handwriting, vocabulary, etc.

Critical thinking is the ability to observe, analyze and evaluate anything: physical matter, words, ideas, etc.

The tool of communication equips our students to listen and respond carefully, whether in written words, spoken words, or actions taken.

Skills provide the effective means for our students to use the tools. Therefore, every skill we teach should directly relate to developing one or more of the three tools. In determining what skills need to be taught, it is helpful to start from the end and work backwards.

At what level of efficiency and dexterity do we want our graduating Seniors to use the tool of language? We want them to read and comprehend advanced literature, speak and write with clarity and grace, and listen carefully and thoughtfully. Then what skills must they master in order to arrive at that destination?

With the tool of critical thinking we desire that the students observe carefully with all their senses, that they analyze by parsing, (words, sentences, arguments, ideas, plants, rocks, wars...everything can be broken down into smaller parts in order to understand it more thoroughly!!), and evaluate wisely, making sound judgments and decisions about that which they have observed and analyzed. What skills do they need to accomplish that?

With the tool of communication we may expect our students to write persuasively and engagingly, with coherence, perspicuity (that was for you, Joanie!), mature structure and eloquent style. We want them to articulate confidently and gracefully with finely-tuned words, phrases and ideas. Think about what it takes to get them there.

When we think these things through, we more easily eliminate wasteful and superfluous activity. We need never resort to busy-work in order to fill the day and to appear that we are accomplishing something!

I'll talk about Worldview and Love of Learning next time.