This issue of Educational Leadership addresses many concerns educators have about teaching for meaning by providing both philosophical arguments and solid suggestions.
The articles by Jay McTighe, Elliott Seif, and Grant Wiggins (“You Can Teach for Meaning,” p. 26) and by Harold Wenglinsky (“Facts or Critical Thinking Skills? What NAEP Results Say,” p. 32) counter claims that teaching broad concepts rather than isolated facts lowers test scores. Both articles cite evidence from the TIMSS study of science and mathematics instruction in 42 nations. Countries where students excel in math and science use problem-based learning in which students grasp fundamental concepts by working through problems or experiments themselves—even if this means covering a shorter list of concepts.
- Recall how math and science were taught in the schools you went to as a student. How successful for you were approaches by different teachers?
- Have several teachers from your school or district talk to your group about how they present math and science concepts and operations. Ask each to present a portion of a sample lesson. Discuss the approaches used in terms of whether students are passively soaking up instruction or working through problems and experiments on their own.
- Invite a teacher or advanced student from another country to show your group how math or science is typically taught in their school system.
- Wenglinsky contends that reading instruction should “follow a linear trajectory. Previous studies suggest that students first need to learn the basic skills from phonics to sound out words and develop fluency. Once they have done that, [students] . . . should move on to develop reasoning skills and critical thinking skills to comprehend texts.” Do you agree that basic phonics skills should be taught in the early years of reading and critical thinking skills should be taught once students are reading fluently?
Developing Skills Through Problem Solving
Jacqueline Grennon Brooks (“To See Beyond the Lesson,” p. 8) notes that teachers' attempts to cover a vast, standardized curriculum often lead them away from teaching for meaning, not realizing that “curriculum can be embedded in solving complex problems,” and problem solving develops many academic skills.
Brainstorm several realistic problems in your school or community that you could assign students to work on. What concepts, skills, and vocabulary that students need to learn for upcoming assessments could you integrate into analyzing these problems? Meet with other teachers within your subject area to share your ideas. Could several related classes work on the same real-life problem and coordinate presenting possible solutions? How could you bring this student work to a meaningful audience?
Identifying Support—and Obstacles
“Snapshots of Meaning Making” by Jacqueline Ancess (p. 36) cites administrative support as a key condition for teachers to be able to risk teaching for meaning-related practices. Do you feel supported to take risks in your school? What approaches mentioned in this issue of EL would you like to experiment with? Are there logistical realities that make you reluctant to try some of these approaches? What specific things could administrators or other teachers do to support you?
As administrators, what changes could you make in your school climate to foster trust and willingness to try new approaches among teachers and administrators? What obstacles might you face?
Tapping Student Passion
Judy Harris Helm (“Projects That Power Young Minds,” p. 58) and Sam M. Intrator (“The Engaged Classroom,” p. 20) both discuss the importance of tapping into students' passions. Helm suggests giving young students leeway to launch open-ended projects, and Intrator recommends making class time “engaged time” by capitalizing on teens' search for excitement and self-identity.
Share an incident in your life, as teacher or student, when a classroom came alive with excitement—like Intrator's memory of the “fierce, dazzling discussion of how themes in Billie Holiday's recording of ‘Strange Fruit’ connected to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that continued long after class ended. What elements—subject matter, student or teacher activity level, room arrangement, and so on—helped foster engagement?
Have each teacher share a tried-and-true lesson plan that rarely fails to engage students, such as a creative exercise or debating topic that always leads to lively back-and-forth discussion. You might also share quick “boredom-busting” techniques that can turn around any comatose class session. Why not collect these “greatest hits” into a booklet to share with the whole faculty?
