Why Should We Ask the Children?
This year I took the ultimate risk; I asked my students what they wanted to learn about. The first time I did this, I was met with averted eyes and mumblings. One student even asked me if this was a trick question? After much reassurance, after all, these kids know that adults usually use their words against them, a few dared to raise their hands. ”Well, we like what learn about, Mrs. Ripp, perhaps we could just learn about in a different way?” ”Yeah,” piped in another, “Maybe we could have some choice? You know, instead of doing a presentation, I could write a paper. ” And with that, my blinders fell away and I started to realize that teaching is not a solitary job but one you share with every single one of your students.
So I set forth to provide my students with choice, some set perimeters, but always the option to add their own voice somehow. Some students craved the choice, others hated it, after all, why couldn’t the teacher just decide everything, wasn’t that what I got paid to do? After a while though, my students demanded a choice if I had not provided one. Sometime large ones as to what the topic would be and others as simple as who they would work with. The engagement in my students multiplied and the work they did was enthusiastic, creative, and
