Chapter 5 - Innovating Learning
"But it is a rare class that genuinely encourages students to take intellectual risks, and that encourages learning from - rather than penalizing - failure. Olin [College] students, on the other hand, have been taught to view trial and error - or failure - as an integral part of problem solving." (p. 174)
I chose this quote simply because it speaks strongly to me and my beliefs as a mathematics teacher, and what I have come to view as a better way to live my life.
Question: What strategies can I employ to help my students who are paralyzed by fear and anxiety?
Connection: No more is this concept more prevalent, and important, than in a mathematics classroom, in my unbiased opinion. There exists a clash of beliefs about how people learn mathematics. On the one hand, students learn by struggling, making mistakes and growing socially as a class. On the other, students learn from seeing how things are done, and practicing those procedures until they become a matter of course. In the former belief, mistakes are not simply made often, they are celebrated and learned from. By contrast, in the latter mistakes are quickly identified and smoothed out as efficiently as possibly.
I fall into the celebrating struggle and mistakes camp because I would have to agree with the author that these are hugely important in the problem solving and learning process. In fact, this seems to tightly align with Jo Boaler's work on mathematical mindsets.
Epiphany: For me the epiphany comes in the form of a desire to more frequently celebrate failure, not just in my classroom but in life. That includes pushing myself to try uncomfortable things like yoga, and help inform my students about the power of learning from mistakes or failures.
Chapter 6 - The Future of Innovation (Part I)
"This is no longer a 'father knows best' world. What limits to set; when to say no versus letting a child decide; when to protect versus let go; when to push the homework versus when to support learning out of school; when to trust a child's 'wisdom' versus your 'better judgement' as an adult - all these decisions are decisions that successful parents of young innovators struggle with daily." (p. 227)
This quote, taken from the section of the chapter focused on parenting, best summarizes what the author recommends for parents of children at all ages. In essence, it suggest a shift of authority in some ways from parents to students, and probably could apply to classroom teachers as well.
Question: What if you're a parent who, for a variety of reasons, cannot spend the quantity time with their children? How does that change the situation?
Connection: I think this doesn't just apply to parents, but teachers as well. For me personally, I think it's important for my students development to remember that I am not the only mathematical authority in the room, and that while my students logic may differ from mine, I should not discount it as incorrect for being different. This links very closely with the readings I've seen on listening to students ideas and promoting their individual mathematical authority.
Epiphany: From this section of the chapter, I had an "aha" moment reading about parents who schedule out their children's lives. It represents a stark reminder to me on the challenges I will face once I have children, and the dangers I could face now by failing to schedule exploration time for my students.
Chapter 6 - The Future of Innovation (Part II)
"As Semyon Dukach - a successful innovator, entrepreneur, angel investor, and parent - told me, "You can't separate innovation from disobedience." If you are an innovator, compliance is not in your nature." (p. 241)
I chose this quote from the latter half of this chapter because I believe it best represents the kinds of challenges parents and teachers should expect if they do begin to "create" more young innovators.
Question: What about people with a natural tendency to comply or follow rules? Can these people be innovators?
Connection: Change frightens me even though I try to embrace it, and it probably frightens most people to varying degrees. However, this section of the chapter seems to indicate the need for disobedience to effect real positive change. I would tend to agree based on the limited experiences I've had in the education field. It seems like once people have developed a mindset on how students learn, or what they are capable of learning, most people hesitate to change those viewpoints. Gradual change can gradually be changed back to the way it was in my opinion. Disobedience and pushing for major alterations probably represents the best way to really make things better, if that's what you're looking to do.
Epiphany: I think my epiphany here was to celebrate disobedience in my students, and find ways to be creatively disobedient myself as I step forward in my career.
Citations:
Wagner, T., & Compton, R. A. (2012). Creating innovators: The making of young people who will change the world. New York: Scribner.
"But it is a rare class that genuinely encourages students to take intellectual risks, and that encourages learning from - rather than penalizing - failure. Olin [College] students, on the other hand, have been taught to view trial and error - or failure - as an integral part of problem solving." (p. 174)
I chose this quote simply because it speaks strongly to me and my beliefs as a mathematics teacher, and what I have come to view as a better way to live my life.
Question: What strategies can I employ to help my students who are paralyzed by fear and anxiety?
Connection: No more is this concept more prevalent, and important, than in a mathematics classroom, in my unbiased opinion. There exists a clash of beliefs about how people learn mathematics. On the one hand, students learn by struggling, making mistakes and growing socially as a class. On the other, students learn from seeing how things are done, and practicing those procedures until they become a matter of course. In the former belief, mistakes are not simply made often, they are celebrated and learned from. By contrast, in the latter mistakes are quickly identified and smoothed out as efficiently as possibly.
I fall into the celebrating struggle and mistakes camp because I would have to agree with the author that these are hugely important in the problem solving and learning process. In fact, this seems to tightly align with Jo Boaler's work on mathematical mindsets.
Epiphany: For me the epiphany comes in the form of a desire to more frequently celebrate failure, not just in my classroom but in life. That includes pushing myself to try uncomfortable things like yoga, and help inform my students about the power of learning from mistakes or failures.
Chapter 6 - The Future of Innovation (Part I)
"This is no longer a 'father knows best' world. What limits to set; when to say no versus letting a child decide; when to protect versus let go; when to push the homework versus when to support learning out of school; when to trust a child's 'wisdom' versus your 'better judgement' as an adult - all these decisions are decisions that successful parents of young innovators struggle with daily." (p. 227)
This quote, taken from the section of the chapter focused on parenting, best summarizes what the author recommends for parents of children at all ages. In essence, it suggest a shift of authority in some ways from parents to students, and probably could apply to classroom teachers as well.
Question: What if you're a parent who, for a variety of reasons, cannot spend the quantity time with their children? How does that change the situation?
Connection: I think this doesn't just apply to parents, but teachers as well. For me personally, I think it's important for my students development to remember that I am not the only mathematical authority in the room, and that while my students logic may differ from mine, I should not discount it as incorrect for being different. This links very closely with the readings I've seen on listening to students ideas and promoting their individual mathematical authority.
Epiphany: From this section of the chapter, I had an "aha" moment reading about parents who schedule out their children's lives. It represents a stark reminder to me on the challenges I will face once I have children, and the dangers I could face now by failing to schedule exploration time for my students.
Chapter 6 - The Future of Innovation (Part II)
"As Semyon Dukach - a successful innovator, entrepreneur, angel investor, and parent - told me, "You can't separate innovation from disobedience." If you are an innovator, compliance is not in your nature." (p. 241)
I chose this quote from the latter half of this chapter because I believe it best represents the kinds of challenges parents and teachers should expect if they do begin to "create" more young innovators.
Question: What about people with a natural tendency to comply or follow rules? Can these people be innovators?
Connection: Change frightens me even though I try to embrace it, and it probably frightens most people to varying degrees. However, this section of the chapter seems to indicate the need for disobedience to effect real positive change. I would tend to agree based on the limited experiences I've had in the education field. It seems like once people have developed a mindset on how students learn, or what they are capable of learning, most people hesitate to change those viewpoints. Gradual change can gradually be changed back to the way it was in my opinion. Disobedience and pushing for major alterations probably represents the best way to really make things better, if that's what you're looking to do.
Epiphany: I think my epiphany here was to celebrate disobedience in my students, and find ways to be creatively disobedient myself as I step forward in my career.
Citations:
Wagner, T., & Compton, R. A. (2012). Creating innovators: The making of young people who will change the world. New York: Scribner.