I haven’t blogged for quite awhile as a result of the intensely busy time in which we find ourselves at the midpoint of the semester. This brings up an interesting point to ponder.
As students, we are taught to prioritize and plan our time wisely so as not to become too overwhelmed. In theory, this is a wonderful idea. In practice, however, sometimes it is just not practical to get everything done. It is at these times that prioritizing takes its place in the foreground. Students must make decisions about their homework and readings in addition to trying to find a balance between school and the other important aspects in their lives. They must ask themselves the questions “What homework is most important to work on today?” “When are my different assignments due?” and, “At the end of the day, do I still have time (and energy) to fit in all those required and recommended readings?” It all becomes an impressive balancing act with the student on the high wire. …and what can I say, if we lose our balance every once in a while, life goes on, so long as we can find our centre of gravity once more to continue along our life’s journey.
As teachers, this topic brings up another perspective. Teachers often encourage their students to get organized and to prioritize their work and plan ahead. I think what we need to realize as teachers, however, is that this planning and prioritization may have different outcomes than we had originally hoped. If we are teaching our students about the importance of finding a balance in life, it is necessary that we are understanding when a child exercises this ability to prioritize even if the priority was not given to the homework we assigned. This is not to say that we should allow students to eschew their work altogether, but is merely a suggestion that we listen to the students’ explanation and demonstrate a willingness to be reasonable and to give the students some leeway they have demonstrated maturity in organization and prioritizing of the various demands placed on them in the many different roles they play in their lives.
As students, we are taught to prioritize and plan our time wisely so as not to become too overwhelmed. In theory, this is a wonderful idea. In practice, however, sometimes it is just not practical to get everything done. It is at these times that prioritizing takes its place in the foreground. Students must make decisions about their homework and readings in addition to trying to find a balance between school and the other important aspects in their lives. They must ask themselves the questions “What homework is most important to work on today?” “When are my different assignments due?” and, “At the end of the day, do I still have time (and energy) to fit in all those required and recommended readings?” It all becomes an impressive balancing act with the student on the high wire. …and what can I say, if we lose our balance every once in a while, life goes on, so long as we can find our centre of gravity once more to continue along our life’s journey.
As teachers, this topic brings up another perspective. Teachers often encourage their students to get organized and to prioritize their work and plan ahead. I think what we need to realize as teachers, however, is that this planning and prioritization may have different outcomes than we had originally hoped. If we are teaching our students about the importance of finding a balance in life, it is necessary that we are understanding when a child exercises this ability to prioritize even if the priority was not given to the homework we assigned. This is not to say that we should allow students to eschew their work altogether, but is merely a suggestion that we listen to the students’ explanation and demonstrate a willingness to be reasonable and to give the students some leeway they have demonstrated maturity in organization and prioritizing of the various demands placed on them in the many different roles they play in their lives.
3 comments:
I thoroughly enjoyed your insightful perspective on what I would say is looking at the whole student. Students are much more than the assignments they submit or don't submit, the tests they write, and all the other forms of assessment that we throw at them. Seeing the student as someone who is performing a balancing act between school life and their other lives is crucial.
It makes me wonder about the value of grades and if we are truly doing students justice by summing them up in a report card at the end of their public education and then sending them on their merry way. Where in that report are the lessons learning from performing that balancing act?
So I had a colleague in a PhD program in Ed Admin back when I was doing my PhD and I noticed that she had something like 45 assignments compared to my one or two. So I eventually got around to asking one of the ed Admin profs why their students had so many assignments when really, 5 papers a week is undoable. And he explained, in your program, they're preparing scholars, so thinking deeply about one or two papers allows you to get to a very scholarly level. But most of our PhDs are not going to be scholars, they're going to be principals and superintendents -- and the thing about that job is that there is always way more to do than is possible to get done in the time available. So part of what we're teaching them is how to cope by grinding out some kind of answer, however superficial, in the time available; but mostly we're teaching them to priorize -- they have to figure out which papers they can blow off and which are the ones they actually have to attend to." And that struck me as an odd approach, but it did seem to fit the realistic needs of the career for which the grads were being prepared... Same with university papers I guess for student teachers I guess -- learning not to put too much work into a 5% paper in a busy program....
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