Of the 6 NETS-S the one that I would most like to address and implement in my classroom is Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making. Although I teach University students I find that this concept is very foreign to them. I find that in the asian culture educationally students are taught that there is one right answer. You memorize this one answer and that's it. Often times when my students are required to think of their own answer, form their own opinions, and express this in any way they choose, I can see the lost look of a puppy in their eyes. They can't decide where to start.
In my classes I often give my students the assignment to find a partner and make their own conversation. Because of the open endedness of this assignment the students often have trouble knowing where to start. Usually I must ask them many questions to get them started. This semester I assigned oral reports. The simple task of deciding what to report, how to go about this report, and what tools to use for this report was extremely difficult for my students and required a lot of coaching. Seeing this made me realize that the students are so used to being told: What to do and how to do it, that when allowed to make their own decisions and solve their own problems that didn't know where to start. Because of this I have decided that I will include more Critical thinking and decision making assignments for my classes. I believe as the students do these assignments more and more they will become more comfortable with the idea and need less coaching through it.
That is my favorite NETS also. Once our students can think critically, the rest is easy.
ReplyDeleteHi Scott, I enjoyed reading your post and totally agree with your view that in Asian culture memorization is the method in which most students learn material. It seems that the (A+B=C now memorize) approach to education is much more common here than in the west. I realize that this is a generalization but I think that in the west we are more encouraged to ask, why does A+B=C?
ReplyDeleteCritical thinking, problem solving and decision making are skills we need in every facet of our lives. I feel that educators need to include some aspect of improving these skills in every lesson plan they make. This can be accomplished by asking an open ended question, a lateral thinking puzzle or including a “what if” scenario.
As the saying goes “practice makes perfect”. Like you, I find that many students have difficulty completing assignments when free thought is involved and I think the only way to overcome this problem is through practice As a teacher I think we need to encourage and offer positive feedback to help them build their confidence, which in turn will lead to better answers.