Options for Learning

I watched my own kids perform in a wide variety of activities. My two daughters took dance and the recitals went on for many hours (not a fan of the prancing pixie performance). My kids were all involved in musical theater. I enjoyed the performances but began to question the values of the organizers who seemed to expect a total time commitment from kids with multiple talents or other commitments. One of our kids (no disrespect to the rest) was a gifted athlete and we spent immense amounts of time travelling throughout the region to watch her play. You have not lived until you drive 180 miles after a night game during a North Dakota winter storm. Looking back she really does not have much to say about these experiences. Even watching the development of people you know well, it is difficult to connect early experiences with what follows.

I now observe my kids’ kids. Soccer was not part of my personal experience, but the activity seems to be everywhere. Even with the viewing time I devoted to the World Cup, I must say that I do not understand the game. The only relevant background seems to be my experiences watching theater. When do the youngsters learn to flop around on the ground to request a penalty call? I do get the concept of a GOALLL… and after waiting for an hour or so why the announcer emphasizes the accomplishment.

I just had the opportunity to watch the performance of a granddaughter taking a circus class. I would be willing to bet you cannot find a circus class in the entire state of North Dakota. I came away far more impressed than I had expected – an interesting combination of athleticism and performance. The “fans” were also an unusual group for me. My impression was that they were more multi-ethnic, but not more multiracial than you might experience at the other events I have experienced. There were languages I could not identify. Spending time in the “big city” does result in new experiences.

I wonder about the expectations of schools vs. parents in providing experiences that feed the individual interests of young people. What any of us find motivating varies so greatly. Given the fixed time schools are given, I wonder about the best allocation of this limited amount of time. We have so many skill and content expectations and now some propose we add more individual choices. There seems this constant pressure to add without deleting. Even the notion of individual interests and perspectives makes agreement on what is core difficult. It is fun to make arguments against popular trends. Do most students really need four HS math courses? I have an undergraduate degree in a science and a PhD., I still do not see the reason for the Calculus requirement I had to satisfy. I think a course in research methods and statistics has greater general value as a HS or college requirement.

It is interesting to consider how hidden values exist when any of us promote individualized learning. One advocate’s individualization could be experienced as a requirement by others with a different perspective. For example, I was thinking about whether it makes the most sense to allow time within multiple required courses for individual investigations or to reduce the number of required courses freeing up time for other experiences. I think this is an issue for which we have different perspectives. As a learner, I was never that much bothered by methods of instruction, but there were clearly topics I found boring. I took some large lecture, biology courses I found intriguing and a couple of small, discussion-oriented, humanities courses I thought were pointless. Given the choice, I prefer topic over method. The external method does not control my cognition which is the type of freedom it seems I prioritize. My only freedom given a topic that is of no interest is to daydream. I am assuming others have just the opposite reactions. This is my point. Even what we consider addressing individual needs is an individualized perspective.