Topic Proposal-Project 2

Topic Proposal: Teaching without teaching

Team: Ruthie Lohmann

Working Thesis: 

Intelligent educators have a responsibility to know what is effective and what is unhelpful when it comes to teaching in the classroom. But how does an educator teach without teaching so that the student can truly learn. How does a teacher get out of the way so that the truth of the material is the focal point and not the theatrics of the teacher? How can material be presented in a way that speaks for itself, content so rich, beautiful, so packed full of depth and meaning that it raises the student to a higher thought process? How can an educator assess the students academic progress without making grades the reward, but instead creating an environment which fosters a love of learning and seeing for the love of learning and seeing? How can a teacher tie in all subject matter so that the student becomes a thought filled human that connects all aspects of life in meaningful and critical ways? Educators who take a more backseat approach in their classroom and are thoughtfully guiding and directing the education of the students have the ability to place ownership of learning back into the hands of the student.

Four supporting ideas:

1) The teacher should be the least obvious person in a classroom and subtly use their influence and their knowledge of the subject to direct and guide the students in the learning process through a knights of the roundtable kind of structure. Not one is greater than the other- all are equal. But one obviously facilitates. Teachers also should be co-learners with the student and not be afraid to not know something. 

2) The material the is being taught should not be given directly, but indirectly, so that the student can discover for themselves. Use books and material written by people who are passionate about the topic instead o fusing dry and boring textbooks. There should be trips the students take to discover things about the matter they are studying. 

3) Teachers should do away with given grades before feedback. Unfortunately, grades are necessary in tracking who is learning what – but this leads to so many problems for the student. They become overly concerned with what their letter grade is. They are not learning for themselves but for the grade. As a teacher we need to stop this unhealthy obsession with our GPAs and concentrate on helping the students learn for themselves. How do teachers evaluate progress in a more holistic manner though? Feedback first on any given assignment- then, if necessary, give a letter grade. That might look like meeting with each student to talk through the areas they need to develop. That might mean testing the students knowledge in different ways- through oral presentations, through essays on the material, and even through class discussion.

4) Teachers should work to connect all subject matter in the classroom. Teaching one concept in isolation and not tying them into other subjects is like a doctor who looks at just the symptoms of his patient without looking at the whole person. This type of content connection produces critical thinkers and learners. 

Two quotes from Percy and Freire:

1) “The highest role of the educator is the maieutic role of Socrates: to help the student come to himself not as a consumer of experience but as a sovereign individual.” Percy

2) “From the outset, her efforts must coincide with those of the students to engage in critical thinking and the quest for mutual humanization. His efforts must be imbued with a profound trust in people and their creative power. To achieve this, they must be partners of the students in their relations with them.” Freire