Are you in your right mind? My grandmother used to rise from her bed each morning thanking the Lord for her "right mind." I hear movie lines where older people ask the younger people: "Are you in your right mind?"
Has the younger generation lost their minds?
How can we impress upon a child that education is crucial to the mind?
Our ancestors found that the discovery of fire made a huge difference in their lives. Tools, like a chisel, solved a lot of problems. The invention of pens was a big thing. The typewriter stayed around for a long time. Who can argue with the impact of invention?
But, to invent anything, two components must be present. First, there has to be a need. Secondly, there has to be some base knowledge. One variable feeds on the other.
Today's youth is suffering from the first component. Do they see the need? The high price of having computers is that our children are paying for the lack of invention. Without this "need," there will be no enthusiasm toward the thirst for knowledge. So, how do we revert without losing the stride?
Creativity is the answer. The instruction must be used to create and expand the knowledge base. Students must learn to make connections. Without this "gel," they will miss the point.
We don't need to reinvent the wheel, just emphasize the number of uses for the wheel. The challenge for the teacher is putting this task in front of the student every day. Employers are begging colleges and high school administrators to prepare students for the real world. Statistics are showing that students cannot translate what they learn in the classroom to real world skills. Should this be a surprise? Many teachers cannot do this either. Students can only learn what the teachers are capable of teaching them. If teachers are not equipped with the "deeper" meaning of their content areas, then they may best be suited for another profession.
Teachers must (now more than ever) instruct with a hands off approach. How many times do you hear a teacher tell a student "figure it out?" This is probably one of the most important and powerful tools of teaching: figure it out. The reason this makes such an impact is because so much is at the child's disposal that he has little to no time to "figure things out" on his own. The knowledge is only one click away. There's no need for figuring anything out. The entire textbook is online. The answers are online. The methods are online. The commentaries are online. As valuable as technology is to our society, if not utilized properly in a classroom setting becomes more damaging than any other educational setback in academic history. I will speak about strategies in upcoming blogs.
The point here is to understand that creativity has to be encouraged in the classroom. Teachers have to step back and allow students to figure some things out on their own. Instruction has to be centered around making connections. How can anyone teach in isolation? To me, this is impossible.
The younger people have minds.
We have to catch up.
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