Touchstone 12

I help students do something with their learning.

Real life learning has always been important. My parents and grandparents went to schools that included agriculture, woodworking, cooking, sewing, and animal husbandry. Many of these programs were dropped because of budget cuts and the perception that other classes were more important. Today, the shift is to return to classes that apply learning in real life situations. Goodwin and Hubbell (2013) state "the learning cycle is not fully complete until teachers help students find ways to actually put their knowledge to use." This has always been true!

Since students today are tech savvy, the internet is a great tool to use to help students connect their learning to the real world. There are other learning extensions to use right in the classroom, that do not depend on technology. There are many ways today to extend learning and connect content to the real world. Such as:

1. Mike Schmoker (as cited in Goodwin & Hubbell, 2013) notes that one of the best ways to help students engage in deep thinking about what they're learning is simply through classroom discussion and debate. If teachers use techniques to keep student focused and respectful of each other during discussions, this can be a great way to extend learning within the classroom.

2. Teachers can use writing prompts as exercises for students to think about and express what they have learned.

3. Projects that are clearly explained and have a specific purpose (and are not just busy work) can help students express what they have learned. Science fair projects are perfect examples of this, but the same process of asking a question, researching the topic, forming a hypothesis, designing a way to test the hypothesis, performing the test, analyzing results, and presenting the learned information, and explaining how this new knowledge can be applied in life, can also be used in other subjects.

4. "Flat classroom" projects can also extend learning. For example, a social studies class can use the internet to reach out to classes in other parts of the country or world. They can learn how other students spend their time in classes, in their homes, and during leisure time. This new information can be compiled, displayed, and shared on the internet. (Wikispaces, 2012).

5. Authentic learning is a term used for real-world, complex problems and their solutions, using role-playing exercises, problem-based activities, case studies, and participation in virtual communities of practice (Lombardi, 2017).

6. Older students have more freedom to visit, interview, work with, or apprentice with businesses or leaders in their field. This way, they learn first hand from experienced adults. For example, in a high school marine biology class in Florida students chose a topic, did research, participated in some real life activity, then reported to the class. Some worked at a salt water aquarium store. Some got special permission to help rehabilitate and care for marine mammals "behind the scenes" at Sea World. Some chose to volunteer for all night turtle watch programs during laying season, or interviewed marine biologists at Sea World or Disney World. Others participated in estuary wades to collect specimens and record biodiversity data at Canaveral National Seashore. This was everyone's favorite part of the year and they all looked forward to learning from each other. Several from the class went on to become employees in marine or other science related fields.

The goal though all of these strategies is to help students do something with their learning and make sure students are ready to enter the adult world as capable, educated, and thoughtful citizens. To do this, they must be able to connect classroom content with real life. Our role, as teachers, is to make learning real, useful, and connected so that students never have to ask, "Will I ever really need to know this?"

References:

A week in the life 11-2, (2012). Retrieved from http://aweekinthelife11-2.flatclassroomproject.wikispaces.net/

Goodwin, B. & Hubbell, E. (2013). The 12 touchstones of good teaching: A checklist for staying focused every day.

Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision &

Curriculum Development. [Bookshelf Online].

Lombardi, M.M. (2007). Authentic learning for the 21st century: An overview. Educause Learning Initiative.

p 2. Retrieved from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/eli3009.pdf