Encouraging Risk in Class

   It seems that teachers are often contradictory in their expectations of students. On one hand teachers want students to take risks, to push the boundaries of their learning, creativity, and skills. On the other hand teachers penalize failure, deducting marks for work that doesn't "cut" it. Often, students don't find out that the risk didn't work out until the deadline is approaching, and there's little time to rework the challenge. So what would you do as a student?
   I want my students to take risks, but as a teacher what do I do if the risk blows up in their face? I think we teachers need to develop other options for students that put themselves out there and try a risk. We have to support them and provide options when things don't work out.
  For the student that takes a risk and succeeds, full props, level four work, an A, well done.
  For the student that tries something new and discovers the new tact doesn't work so well, how about a lengthy extension to try again? How about a detailed analysis of what worked and what didn't, and a 'what did I learn from this' explanation? What if they presented what they got done and had the class help with the analysis? There are so many options, that teachers should be bending over backwards to help a student that took a risk.
   Of course there is an onus on the teacher to continually monitor the student's progress so that a total failure of the risk would never really happen - that is the purpose of formative feedback and assessment for learning, isn't it?

Best quotation for teachers

"What year are you preparing your students for? 1973? 1995?
Can you honestly say that your school's curriculum and the program you use are preparing your students for 2015 or 2020? Are you even preparing them for today?"

Heidi Hayes Jacobs wrote the above quotation in the introduction to Curriculum 21, which she edited.

  Think about it. What year are you preparing your students for? What future jobs will they be able to get, learning under your guidance?
   I want my son prepared for the future. Why won't any parent want that? If yo are teaching memorization in the age of google, what are you doing? If you aren't teaching inquiry skills, or critical analysis skills, or creativity, what are you doing?

"To encourage means to give courage."

  "To encourage means to give courage", is the first line from the 'acknowledgments' of the book Curriculum 21, edited by Heidi Hayes Jacobs. Heidi begins with this line as a way to thank the authors who contributed to the book, but I love the line for the layers of meaning it has for all of us.
    To many of us, it represents what teachers do. Teachers encourage students and in doing so give courage to students - they develop skills, knowledge, and appreciation.
   To education consultants the line also applies to the work they do with teachers. Consultants want to encourage teachers and give them courage to try newly developed classroom techniques and teaching strategies that reach more students and engage more students.
   As teachers get ready to start the school year I would encourage you to be more courageous.

First Blog Entry

It's the 12th of August and I've decided to start blogging. This blog isn't about family or friends or social events. This will be about education and thoughts about it. Most blogs will begin with a quotation from something I've read and I'll either leave it at that or add comments.