Edustange

My mind kept shifting to the two days I will be away this week during the many interludes in the course of the day. I sent them happily on their way, paused long enough to make some tea, and then began preparing for Wednesday and Thursday. It is going to be the usual mix of good ideas and bad ideas.

The group is working on Heritage Fair research projects so I booked the computer lab and distributed times for each student on the classroom computers but those tools are incidental to the learning that needs to be done. They represent moments when the young people I work with will be reasonably self directed but part of the computer time is booked for SuccessMaker. I’m ambivalent about this interactive program.

I stayed until 5:30 coaxing a series of dubious worksheets out of our overworked photocopier. A daunting stack of paper is perched beside my desk now. I use the word ‘dubious’ because I did not have the conviction that these activities represented anything more than busy work. Other times when I left the room I could confidently tell the substitute that the students knew what they were supposed to do and could be counted on to do it. That is a good feeling and when it happens I feel like learning is on track.

Perhaps it is too much to expect nineteen nine and ten year olds to be autonomous learners for five hours on two consecutive days. I think we need to work toward that. I think the challenge is to create a classroom where students can learn independently in a variety of ways without relying on a computer nanny like SuccessMaker or my treasured collection of blackline masters. Point me in the right direction someone.