We recently returned from a family vacation: a beautiful week outdoors at a family camp. It had all of the amenities of a typical summer camp including fishing, swimming, archery, arts and crafts, and, of course, sleeping in a cabin. The only difference at this camp is that it is an experience for the entire family rather than being limited to the kids. We had such a fantastic time that we were all hard pressed to identify our favorite aspect of the trip. However, somewhere in the midst of tending to the bumps, bruises, scrapes and bug bites that accompany life in the great outdoors (the kids were injured a few times too), it struck me that we were all engaged in much more than a family vacation. This was a learning experience for us all.
The learning experience was fed by the great outdoors and the curiosity that accompanies trying new things. Our children learned how to shoot a bow and arrow and fish, both for the very first time. We took hikes of exploration and changed direction when another trail appeared more inviting. The kids asked about nature, plants, and animals. We discovered new sights and sounds (including an opportunity to hear what the fox really says). These are learning opportunities that would never have occurred in a typical classroom learning environment.
Learning is not that which is achieved through lecture, worksheets, and memorization to spit back on tests. Truly authentic learning is an experience; one that allows for exploration and brings on teachable moments naturally. Real learning encourages searching for solutions to real world problems and exposes learners to as much of the world as possible. The great journalist and newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst obtained the vast majority of his childhood education through traveling the world with his mother. In an age where technology can virtually bring the world to our children, we can provide the same experiences to our students.
Despite all of the possibilities, authentic, real-world learning cannot happen without a change of focus on the part of educators. Only when the focus is taken off of the lecture and worksheets can we truly provide learning experiences and foster real life learning. Of course, there is a curriculum that must be followed and teachers have very little choice (if any) over what is taught. But how the curriculum is experienced by learners is often times the prerogative of the teacher. Those teachers who allow students to experience their learning are the ones which make the greatest impact.
If we wish our children to learn in preparation for the real world, they must be taught through real world experiences, even learning in the great outdoors.
The learning experience was fed by the great outdoors and the curiosity that accompanies trying new things. Our children learned how to shoot a bow and arrow and fish, both for the very first time. We took hikes of exploration and changed direction when another trail appeared more inviting. The kids asked about nature, plants, and animals. We discovered new sights and sounds (including an opportunity to hear what the fox really says). These are learning opportunities that would never have occurred in a typical classroom learning environment.
Learning is not that which is achieved through lecture, worksheets, and memorization to spit back on tests. Truly authentic learning is an experience; one that allows for exploration and brings on teachable moments naturally. Real learning encourages searching for solutions to real world problems and exposes learners to as much of the world as possible. The great journalist and newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst obtained the vast majority of his childhood education through traveling the world with his mother. In an age where technology can virtually bring the world to our children, we can provide the same experiences to our students.
Despite all of the possibilities, authentic, real-world learning cannot happen without a change of focus on the part of educators. Only when the focus is taken off of the lecture and worksheets can we truly provide learning experiences and foster real life learning. Of course, there is a curriculum that must be followed and teachers have very little choice (if any) over what is taught. But how the curriculum is experienced by learners is often times the prerogative of the teacher. Those teachers who allow students to experience their learning are the ones which make the greatest impact.
If we wish our children to learn in preparation for the real world, they must be taught through real world experiences, even learning in the great outdoors.