Life is a journey, not a destination.
Although this quote was Ralph Waldo Emerson, it's philosophy goes back to the very roots of Buddhist Southeast Asia.
A recent article I read told the following story about how school in Japan is often taught.
In a fourth grade geometry class, the teacher was attempting to teach her students how to draw a cube on a flat piece of paper. One of the students was really struggling with getting it right. The teacher, noticing this, asked the student to come up to the board. An action like this could have caught some western educators off guard a bit. Why should the struggling kid be used as an example?
The teacher asked the kid to draw a cube on the board. After each attempt, she would ask the class if he had gotten it right, and every time the other students said, "No, not quite." Finally, after a host of attempts, the kid did finally get it somewhat correct. When the teacher asked the class, they all said, "YES! YOU GOT IT!!!" The student was then reminded of how he could solve problems on his own, and was sent back to his seat with a new source of pride. He had accomplished something through hard work!'
Doesn't that last sentence define a core lesson we want ALL our students here in the West to learn? And yet, why don't we see strategies used like this more often?
It seems that we Americans, though we speak so idealistically about the rewards begotten of hard work, we resent the idea of struggle. When we see a child struggling at a certain subject, we tend to dismiss it, essentially saying, "Oh, he's just not so smart in this area."
The article I read compared different means of praising kids. When we say things like, "You're smart!", "Wow, you really know this stuff!", and the like, we essentially inform them that they don't have to strive to any higher goals, they're smart already! Whereas, if we say "Good work!", "You must have worked hard at this!", and "See? Anythings possible if you work hard!", these messages are the ones we need to be giving our students, as this always leaves the door open for advancement.
We need to involve more of that Japanese Teacher's actions into our own system. It shouldn't be the ONLY thing we do, by any means, but we ought to do it more often at least.
Are we too focused on building self-esteem? Maybe even false self-esteem? Are we more centered on the learning cycle or feeling good?
ReplyDeleteWhat is healthy self-esteem? What is it made of?
ReplyDeleteIf someone has self-esteem because they just think they're smart, that's not healthy self-esteem. That's ego. That breeds selfishness, zealous pride, and meanness.
However, the self-esteem I'm talking about here is the self-esteem one get's from accomplishing something on their own. They might not think themselves particularly special, but they know they can get anything done if they try.
The Humanistic movement in Psychology and broader culture that was dominant in the 70's, 80's, and 90's led Americans to believe that we have to treat self-esteem like it is some sort of incubating little chick that has to be nurtured and held with gentle care. The research now is showing us exactly what you point out, Etienne. We will be far better off when we encourage our kids to get "down and dirty" in learning; make some mistakes and have fun with that! Hard work and perseverance needs to be the goal. That and love of inquiry. Thanks!
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