Students as Highly Evolved Experimenters and Powerful Problem Solvers

Teach Thought 30 day blogging challenge ~ Day 17 ~ What do you think is the most challenging issue in education today?

I'm tempted to say that it is the same thing that was the most challenging yesterday, the most challenging yesteryear, and until we solve it, will continue to be the most challenging in the future.

How do we reach each student on a deep level that develops them into unstoppable problem solvers throughout their lives?

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And how do we (their collection of teachers -  parents, instructors K-12+, coaches, role models, etc.) know we were successful?

Did that child in his or her adult life go on to figure out how to perform the biggest experiment and solve the biggest problem of their life?

Making their biggest and brightest dreams happen, resulting in becoming their biggest, brightest and most beautiful selves? 

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If the answer is yes, then we have done out jobs.

We know that right now the answer 9 out of 10 times is no. 

I don't care if it was only 1 out of 10 who didn't get their real dreams. That's one too many.

But 9 out of 10? That's a crime. I know we're a relatively new species, and don't care exactly how many years we have or have not been here. I care that we become more evolved right now to the point where our students do achieve their dreams, and not just dream about, dismiss or deny they ever really had them. 

And education is where we can truly teach our students how to do this.

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*Dedicated to the great dreamer, Robin Williams, who inspired me to become a teacher. 

  

Previewing New Content with Wow-Me Movie Trailers

This year I'm going to use iMovie and stop motion animation to preview new content with students.

Since a movie trailer is a preview of what the upcoming movie is going to be about, why not make a movie trailer to preview what an upcoming lesson is going to be about? How obvious is this connection? (Thanks to my friend and colleague Megan Gunter who thought of the connection and made it obvious to me :-p)

And not just make any old dull preview, but a Wow! I-can't-wait-to-see-this-lesson movie trailer preview!

Not only will the important links be made during the foundation stage of knowledge acquisition from what students already know about the content to what they will know after the lesson, but it will be done in an exciting, open up those neurons for learning way that will lead to real gathering, processing, storing and recalling of the knowledge or skill being taught.

Using iMovie and stop motion animation,  I will first make the movie trailers for my students. When we get to deepening knowledge and rigorous cognitive complexity, the students will learn how to make their own movie trailers demonstrating their mastery of what was taught.

I'm excited to use this technology to not just prepare my students for success on test assessments, but to have them practice using the new knowledge in a way that will help prepare them for success in life!