The idea that “kids today” have it too easy is part of a broader conservative worldview that’s been around for a long, long time. Children are routinely described as coddled and indulged, overprotected and overpraised. But I’ve been unable to find any data to support this claim, … there’s simply no proof that the phenomenon is widespread, much less that it’s more common today than it was 10, 20, 50, or 100 years ago.
I agree. This tends to be back in my day nonsense. Everyone has it tough in various degrees, and each generation is faced with its own set of challenges.
In fact, studies find that when kids fail, they tend to construct an image of themselves as incompetent and even helpless, which leads to more failure. …if an adult declines to step in and help when kids are frustrated, that doesn’t make them more self-sufficient or self-confident: It mostly leaves them feeling less supported, less secure about their own worthiness, and more doubtful about the extent to which the parent or teacher really cares about them.
I struggle with this balance of stepping in and butting out. It’s a tough call. I want to support my own children and students, but I don’t want them to feel like they can’t to things for themselves.
Many students whom a teacher brands with zeroes already see themselves as failures. They’re likely to experience his insistence that they be “held accountable” as yet another dose of humiliation and punishment. (And it’s the students’ perception, not the teacher’s intention, that determines the result.) The idea that another goose egg will snap them out of their cycle of failure and put them on the road to success is, to put it gently, naïve.
I personally know that spiral of failure all too well. I don’t think it makes for the best learning environment.
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Justin,
ReplyDeleteYou've spotlighted fantastic quotes here. The whole notion that we hold kids accountable when we drill them with zeros has always made me laugh.
Rick DuFour argues that if we REALLY wanted to hold kids accountable, we'd make sure -- after providing support and guidance -- that they did all the work that we asked them to do.
Zeros are unprofessional -- not only because they hurt kids in a thousand ways, but because a teacher can't fairly assess abilities that they haven't seen.
Rock on,
Bill
Most kids do have it easier than 100 years ago, probably even 50. We can't rewrite the history narrative to fit our perspective, even Alfie Kohn should know this. I won't be citing proof, it is easy enough to find online.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I give my students the choice to work or to not work. I don't believe the grade, as much as I try to make it, really reflects learning. Learning simply can't be observed or recorded (at least in a classroom without a brain scan.) What we grade is what students allow us to see. They may not even be aware they have learned something until they apply that learning at a later date.
Kids don't do the work for a lot of reasons, instead of blaming them we need to involve them in a discussion to figure out a) did they learn what they needed to learn and b) do we need the assignment as proof that learning happened.
Good feedback. I do think that kids have it easier now.
DeleteI also think that the grade is the #1 killer of quality education. I want to puke when I hear "how many points is this worth" or "what is my grade on this". They don't want feedback, they want a good grade.
I did a survey and asked students if they would rather get an "A" but learn nothing or get a "C" and learn a LOT. Around 65% said "A" but learn nothing. That is sad. That illustrates a problem.
I work in a project-based program. Our biggest difficulty is getting students (especially the highest performing students)to step outside the box a little bit and allow the sky to be the limit. For this reason they do mediocre, cookie-cutter things that ensure A's.
ReplyDeleteIn this respect, I think that it is important to allow for a culture in which failure is acceptable....in fact it is celebrated and then you determine what went wrong and what you learned from it. I do not think that watching a student fail, without being right there to pick them up and reflect with them about what went wrong and how to fix it, is good for their confidence at all.
I really think that the word "failure" has taken on several meanings in education. I agree with your blog and with Alfie that giving zeroes and allowing people to fail and bathe in pity is not helpful, but if handled correctly I think that failure can be beneficial and should actually be promoted to push some of our students.
As I typed that last sentence, it made me realize that I am not explaining myself well. By failure, I mean that a final product turned out "not working" or "not as efficient as planned". I am not talking about getting an "F". I think that this needs to be handled by assessing students on the PROCESS and NOT the FINAL PRODUCT. Once I started doing this, I noticed that many more students were willing to take risks and learn from mistakes or misconceptions.
I am not sure my comment even makes sense.
Thank you for sharing! Your blog is great and I appreciate everything you do!!!
Oliver Schinkten
@schink10
I often come across argumentative when I do not intend to be. I feel this is one of those times. I was just joining in on the conversation!!! I got nothing but love! What you got? I got nothing but love!
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