Thoughts after our second class...

I loved our discussions in class. I was impressed with the depth and thoughtfulness of the comments of my classmates. My husband and I love to discuss ideas, society, politics, religion; basically everything. Often our children will join into our conversations and share their ideas.

I think this kind of discourse is missing in education today. I was bothered by the story told last week in class about the children not believing the people had horses because there weren't any in the picture. I think programs like Accelerated Reader (AR) have harmed our children. They only seem able to answer literal questions. They have lost their ability to think critically.

I have taken two classes from Roberto Bahruth. In both of these classes he put up an essay on the overhead. As you read it you realized it made no sense. He then would ask us a series of AR type questions. We could all answer the questions perfectly. He then would ask what the essay was about. No one had any idea. Just because a child can answer those questions doesn't mean they understand what they read. It also doesn't mean a child has connected with the text in any significant way or that they really understand the people in the story.

I think Social Studies is a great place to reinforce critical thinking skills. As we investigate a topic together we can help our students to not only the learn the content but also help them develop critical thinking skills which will be valuable as they grow into adulthood.