Most school head figures boast that if their students are disciplined and obedient, they will succedd in life. However, I don´t quite agree with it.
To begin with, although learning is a painful process, students need to get involved and find some kind of pleasure in what they are studying, and, in this way, make use of their freedom to choose, for example, to decide what kind of exercise they would prefer to do. Nonetheless, headmasters fear if students feel pleasure, they will get distracted, and, for this reason, lose their track.
In my opinion, the sensible thing to do for teachers is help their students become free thinkers, and, in doing so, they will be learning to reason things wisely. If, on the contrary, regulations are always imposed on them from the outside and students never get the chance to opt on their own, they will become muppets unable to think for themselves. How will the cope with real life when they finish school?
Chapter 8
By Miriam Rodriguez
To begin with, although learning is a painful process, students need to get involved and find some kind of pleasure in what they are studying, and, in this way, make use of their freedom to choose, for example, to decide what kind of exercise they would prefer to do. Nonetheless, headmasters fear if students feel pleasure, they will get distracted, and, for this reason, lose their track.
In my opinion, the sensible thing to do for teachers is help their students become free thinkers, and, in doing so, they will be learning to reason things wisely. If, on the contrary, regulations are always imposed on them from the outside and students never get the chance to opt on their own, they will become muppets unable to think for themselves. How will the cope with real life when they finish school?
Chapter 8
By Miriam Rodriguez
3 comments:
I love your figure of teachers "educating" muppets instead of contributing to people's development of their potential to its highest possible level, Miriam! 8-D!
Have you asked yourself what common teaching practices contribute to the development of critical thinkers, and which go against it?
All the best,
Gladys
I would say activities that foster their capacity to express themselves: predict, give their opinion, analyse something, discuss different options, etc; instead of the typical information gap questions or fill in the gap exercises. Teach them meaningfully, I would say. Am I right?
Miriam
Good answers, INHO, Miri! Nevertheless, the whole issue goes well beyond these "complex" tasks, and is involved in "simple" things as the way we approach mistakes, for instance...
More about it during our second term!
Big hug,
Gladys
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