Are We "Protecting" Students from Responsibility?

In "Students at Bat," Thomas Guskey and Eric Anderman wax nostalgic for the days when kids organized their own neighborhood baseball games without adults packaging everything for them and continually swooping in to protect them from injuries, fights, or failures.

Guskey and Anderman point out that students' learning experiences in school are now similarly prepackaged. Teachers "protect" students from the messy responsibilities of deciding how to use their time, setting their own goals, and even failing a time or two. The authors claim that

In most classrooms, teacher choose where students will sit, with whom they will work, and how they will spend their time . . . As students advance in grades, these decisions become more formalized and restrictive through course requirements and structured school schedules.

Do you agree that teachers make too many decisions about learning for students, undercutting their ability to act responsibly? Are we "protecting" students from becoming active, resilient learners?

Comments

[Eric J]

The pressure teachers feel to "get through" the standards and get students ready for high-stakes multiple-choice assessments has caused many to abandoned projects that require any type of creativity, choices, or sustained effort over time.

[James E. Mac Shane]

This article is pointing to the growing educational awareness of the difference between the educational value of internal and external motivation in the human learning process. Fortunately NCLB is pointing out the historical educational influence of adult political and philosophical ideals that don't have anything scientifically to do with how human children learn.

The solution will come with objective comparative scientific research on these two educational processes. The sooner educators have this information the sooner we will be able to solve the educational problems that adults scientifically have control over in positive children's natural learning responses to the educational environment.

[GenevieveB]

Whether students are being protected from responsibilities in individual classrooms depends largely on the teacher. On a whole, though, many teachers are restricted by prototypes and standards that promote extreme uniformity and do not leave room for the student individuality inherent in acceptance of responsibility. In a simple example, if student work of a given nature must be displayed on bulletin boards on a weekly basis, the teacher needs to ensure that the students complete this work or he, the teacher, is reprimanded. If the student is being protected from responsibility, the protective order comes from higher than the teacher.

There is a somewhat different system in place in the Montessori system and some private "open schools" where the student accepts responsibilities for his daily activities and learning, however. It would be good to see a study on how these schools compare to mainstream education.

[donna bedner]

There needs to be a place for students to make decisions in the classroom, but times are not the same as when Guskey and Anderman were children. Violence over minor disagreements lead educators to making 'safe' decisions for their students. I do agree that some choice on the student's part will help teach life skills for conflict resolution, but how to do that while still fulfilling all the curriculum requirements is still difficult.

[Tori Doss]

I don't think that we are protecting students from responsibility. But because we have so many deadlines, distict and state laws to keep we have to figure out how to make our life and jobs a little easier.

[m.]

Until it is widly accepted that each child is an individual and percieves and understands information in their own unique way: Teachers and Administrators will grapple with the best way to deliver the demands of the curriculum. The individual child dictates the best way for them to engage. Some will blossom with protection while others will wither. A move towards a more student centric approach to education may engage learners in a variety of methods more suited to the individuals unique needs. The student themselves then drive the learning process.

[Jacqueline Skinner]

I truly don't believe that we are protecting students from their responsiblility. Because teachers are pressured by time on task and curriculum assessments, the students are cut short of having the opportunity of decidintg how to use their time Most teachers have to make the decisions for students in order to maintain good classroom management.

[donna bedner]

It is difficult to address all students' needs when they come from such varied backgrounds, whether culturally, socio-economic or academic. There needs to be some continuity, plus previous comments about fulfilling requirements set by the government also place restrictions on teachers.

[Laurie Somma]

I do not believe all teachers are creating a group of students that can not make decisions on their own. Many teachers I work with make a concerted effort to make learning fun and relevent to the students. I agree however that teachers are faced with the reality that students need to perform well on state mandated testing.

[Kristy Plants]

The problem I see is that students are capable of making decisions, but are not held accountable for their actions when they make poor choices. Even teaching the standards allows for some creativity. Not everything has to be taught solely by textbook and worksheet. There are many projects and even games that could be designed in all content areas that directly cover the standards.

[Elizabeth Sky-McIlvain]

Standards are not getting in the way of student responsibility. If anything, a standards-based lesson, with standards-based evaluation, enhances the need for students to take responsibility for their own learning. It may be that many teachers have not changed subjective planning strategies into standards-based methods. It is certainly possible to design lessons that integrate social, collaborative activities and products into just about any lesson or activity. One caveat, however, just because a Web 2.0 lesson is designed does not mean that students will know how to use the tools - or how to use them responsibly. Teach them, scaffold them (practice, scale), then expect responsibility for learning through the process. And sure, fail them if they fail. In my experience, this happens very rarely for the student who puts forth an effort.

[rpmjm]

How schools communicate with parents and get their support is key to this conversation. Everyone needs to be speaking the same language about responsibility and reinforcing expectations.

[Rebekah Thompson]

I feel when we hold students accountable for turning in their assignments, that is part of teaching them responsibility. I tell my students it's their responsiblity to get their agenda signed not their parents responsibility to sign it. As for where children sit in the classroom and how children spend their time, should be for the teacher to decide. Certain children have to be proded and encouraged to be responsible. If not, they can easily take advantage of not being held accountable. Parents support would help make it a lot easier. If they are not getting the support at home, how can we as teachers engage them and get them excited in the classroom to want to learn and excel?

[jamey]

I feel that we as teachers try to teach responsibility to the best of our ability. However, in my experience, parental support is a big issue. When the parent argues that the student didn't complete the work because the parent didn't know about it, it takes the responsibility off of the student. When administration requires teachers to change policies because parents don't like the policy, it also makes it difficult for the teacher to hold the student accountable. I feel torn between letting the student take full responsibility for completing or not completing the work and having the attitude that failure is not an option. I could use help understanding where the fine line is between student responsibility and failure is not an option. Any opinions?

[Shannon]

I teach first grade and I let my students choose where to sit for the first week of school so that they feel comfortable. After that I change seating and do so every few weeks so that they are not always with the same kids. There are other reasons besides behavior to make decisions for kids. One is so that students can help each other. Some of my lower level students are buddied up with a higher level student just by their seating arragement (with no knowledge to either party).
I do believe choice is important not only for responsibility building but also for making kids feel like they are a valued part of the classroom. When appropriate, especially for the age level I teach, I allow my students to make choices.

[Heather R.]

As a teacher we have to be responsible to teach the content, but we can't let it be the sole decision maker. During the year I will assign seats and will let them select their own seats. We have to have them experience working with someone they may not like or get a long with.

I teach 6th grade in an elementary school. We set high expectations for homework, based on conversations we have had with faculty members at the middle schools the students will attend. I am constantly faced with parents who are upset about grades, because their student hasn't turned work in. Each student fills out a planner on a daily basis, the first week of school i will check and sign planners, but after that it is their responsibility. If they start falling behind I start checking those individual planners. I have a large calender where we track all homework assignments for the month. I post major deadlines on our classroom website, print calenders with larger assignments dates on them, and post grades online where parents can access them. Yet I still have parents that want to 'save' their student.

It would be easy to just ignore the missing assignments and give the students a grade their parents would be happy with, but I wouldn't feel that I am preparing the students. How do we get parents to hold their students responsible? How to we convince colleagues to hold students responsible?

[Angie]

Let's face it, times have changed. I think this aspect of lack of responsibility has become a vicious cycle. I teach special education. Many other teachers in my building look at my students and say, "Aww, those are the kids with disabilities. Let me help them because they can't do it for themselves." Then at home, many parents feel guilty and saddened by having a child with a disability, so they tend to shelter that child from responsibility. If no one is going to enforce responsibility, how are these kids going to learn it? Teachers need to give students some chance for choice. If they don't take responsibility at school and at home for their actions, what are we doing to todays' youth? Will the jail populations soar? Many people who can't take responsibilty for themselves, and accountability for their actions end up just where I don't want my students to be...jail.

[bf]

As an elementary teacher I do not feel that I that I am protecting my students from responsiblity. There is a limit of how much responsibility they can be responsible for at such a young age. Lets face it they are really not interested in completing a brief constructed response and if I gave them the opportunity to chose they would rather do something more interesting. At this age they are responsible for their behavoir which is even sometimes a challenge. I personally feel that by making decisions for them sets them up for success in the future when they are capable of making more mature choices!

[Karla]

Making choices, meeting deadlines, and being responsible is part of the learning process as students will experience successes and failures as they do in any content area. Therefore, teachers must balance administrative demands, meet instructional and high-stakes testing goals and teach students to be responsible and accountable. Teaching is still an art.

[Connie S.]

I sometimes feel it is not necessarily the teacher who is hendering responsibility from students. Often it is the parents. In my kindergarten room, we have routines that are started at the beginning of the year, which encourage independent learning and responsibility. However, let a parent come in one morning to drop their child off, and they immediately step in and do everything for their son/daughter. Amazingly enough, the student who normally does his/her routine, all of a sudden seems as though he/she does not know how to perform the routines when mom or dad is around.

[Ashley B]

Am I making decisions for students? Yes! Am I making too many of them? No! I do agree that children need to learn to make decisions for themselves, but as an elementary school teacher, I do not consider my students totally independent. I do make decisions for them that I know they will most-likely benefit from. My belief is that children at this age need the examples and modeling to learn how to make the appropriate decisions, while children at the older ages should be beginning to make these choices on their own. For example, I know that pairing a lower-achieving student with a higher-achieving student during a math game will benefit both. If I let them choose their friends, there would be many students that would not be successful. If I were a high school teacher, I would allow students to pick their partners, but I would also expect that they understand the partners they pick for a project are ones that they must complete it with. So if they pick their friends, regardless of whether their friend is lazy or not, the project should be completed!

[Anne S. Brooklyn, New York]

While I do agree that to some extent teachers do make too many decisions for students, there are many opportunities to enable students to take responsibility for their own education to some extent. Before I discuss those, however, the teachers making the decisions isn't because teachers want to, but are rather forced to based on the district, region or departments requirements and expectations. Now, I'm hoping that if you aren't familiar with accountable talk that this information will be helpful to you. If you are familiar with it, I do wonder if you find it to be as helpful in this area as I do. Accountable talk allows students to be active participants in their learning experiences. I pose a question or topic to be discussed and choose a student to respond. It is at this point that I take a step back and watch the students control the discussion. After the student responds he/she asks if anyone "would like to agree, disagree or elaborate" on their response. The student then chooses a classmate who will respond by either agreeing, disagreeing or elaborating. They must also explain why they are responding as they are. The discussion takes on a life of its own and children become eager to take part. At my school, the students are trained in accountable talk beginning in Kindergarten so as they continue through the grades, they already know the procedure and you would be amazed at what comes about in this type of educational setting. Students are able to intertwine personal connections or experiences to help build their understanding. We also use the "think, pair and share" method in all areas. Students have a partner and when a question is posed, they must take a moment or two to think about their ideas, pair up with their partner and share with them. This helps students who might not otherwise share their thoughts do so through a less threatening avenue. It also helps build their self-esteem as they collaborate and I've often found that the quiet students begin to speak up with the support of their partner. Additionally, when a student has difficulty they are allowed to ask "may I confer with my partner". When I first began teaching at my school I was surprised at the vocabulary being used in this setting, but now I'm grateful that children are being introduced to new ideas and new words that they are taking responsibility for.

[Anne S. Brooklyn, New York]

I'd forgotten to mention one other thing in my post. While it is extremely time-consuming on the teacher's part, my school also allows students to take responsibility in another way. Students are fully aware of their personal goals in reading, writing, mathemathics, social studies, science, gym, art, music and other courses offered. In addition to knowing their goals, they are also given the strategies with which they will achieve those goals. Students must keep their goals in mind while working on activities and use the strategies necessary to help achieve them. As each child reaches the short-term goal, they will then be involved in a conference with the teacher focusing on choosing a new goal and be given a strategy to achieve that goal.

[Kim D.]

I believe that in some respects we are raising a group of students who have no concept of responsibility. Students who don't complete work or just don't do the work are given a "free pass". When I was in school if you didn't do the work you got an F. It was simple and straightforward. Now if a student doesn't do the assignment it is your job as the teacher to chase them down, give them extra time, or worse (in my opinion) give them a 60. This is what is required of me at my school. Now, I'm not saying that there are circumstances in which exceptions can be made. I always have extra supplies and materials on hand for those who can't afford them. I give a variety of choices due to different levels of ability. All parents have my home phone number for questions or concerns. I make myself available. However, I do not agree with the fact that students, in some states(districts) can get away with doing nothing. This isn't teaching responsibility. It teaches that there are no negative consequences to our choices.

[Nakeisha]

As an educator, I personally don't feel that teachers are protecting students from their responsibilities. I feel that a teacher set her standards and that's what she expects from her students. Regardless of the standards set by the state or county, a teacher knows her students and shouldn't let that deter her from her expectations of her students. Students must hold responsibility as well for their own learning.

[Anne S. Brooklyn, New York]

Personally, I don't believe in pairing up higher and lower achieving students. It creates an atmosphere of babysitting on the part of the higher achiever. Instead, we need to partner up the higher achievers to challenge them beyond the curriculum. The children who struggle can work in partnerships after a small group reinforcement activity with the teacher or remain in a small group with the teacher. Having our students paired with imbalance doesn't work. The higher achiever ends up doing the work while the other child copies or feels less adequate. My classroom is tiered by ability. Tier 1 works with me in a small group. Tier 2 works in partnerships that are fairly equal and Tier 3 works independently. This works in all areas of the curriculum. The level of responsibility varies, but they are all responsible.

[Nanci]

I taught in public schools and Montessori schools and the main difference is that much more preparation goes into the classroom environment to make materials easily accessible to children. Also the teacher models to children how to do things at the outset and trusts in their ability to do what's right as this is modeled by older students in the classroom and the teacher guide. Once the "Grace and Courtesy" lessons have been taught about how to conduct oneself in situations, students have the freedom to move around the classroom and work independently or with a classmate. I have seen more purposeful activity and academic hands-on work done in Montessori classrooms than in public classrooms because the child is fulfilling his need to carry out a real life task by himself without interruption. There is a 3hr work cycle that is protected from distracting PA announcements, assemblies or outside school events. However, in traditional classrooms, there is often a strong emphasis on the authoritative figure of the teacher, whose behavior shows that she is the holder of knowledge, decider of actions and giver of positive feedback. This leads to students who learn quickly how to do the bare necessities to please the teacher... learning things by rote in order to make the deadlines, perform on the tests and receive satisfactory grades. When educators realize that learning should not be tedious or chore-like, we will see less worksheets, mindless memorizing of facts and a shift toward teacher as facilitator rather than authoritarian. If I could make one suggestion to future president Obama regarding education reform, I would ask that he provide teachers time to step away from their classrooms and observe a AMI Montessori classroom. In Dekalb County where I live, there are several public schools who have implemented the Montessori Method. In the meantime, I would encourage all teachers and parents to observe a classroom for half an hour. If it is a certified Montessori school with the core principles intact in its mission statement, be prepared to see how much children are capable of doing at such a young age when they are given the right materials and environment. Imagine how successful Head Start Pre-K programs would be if they were run as Montessori classrooms.

[sheila moore]

Teachers are now held accountable through legislative acts as NCLB. The classroom environment is now one of intense preparation for tests and AYP. How can you nurture children in an environment that is constantly frayed with testing and not learning?

[Paul B.]

Students don't become responsible by following directions. Students become responsible by making and learning from decisions. There is far too little student ownership in learning, far too little creative chaos. I do what I can to counter this trend as an 8th grade teacher.