If You Tell Students What They're Learning...

Is it really inquiry?  I've pondered this thought for a long time.  Many districts and administrators require objectives/"I Can" statements/assignments to be written on the board at all times.  Sometimes I wondered if it was for the students or for the administrators.

Think about this.  Before your students arrive, you write each objective for the day on the board.  If you're like I used to be, it probably looked something like this:

 Math: Classifying 3D Shapes or I Can Classify 3D Shapes

 Science: Classifying Living Organisms

 Reading: Character Traits

 Writing: Quotation Marks

 Social Studies: Map Skills

Raise your hand if that sounds even a little bit familiar.  I, too, faithfully wrote my objectives on the board everyday for an excessive amount of years.  The kids wrote them in their assignment books (planners) and my administration could see what we were doing at any time.  HOWEVER, there are a lot of problems with this practice.  First, the students are writing something down, but rarely remember what they wrote.  I asked just to make sure they actually knew what they had written.  Most of the time, they didn't! Therefore, they don't own their learning.  Second, the parents don't always look at the assignment books/planner either, so it doesn't help them keep up with what we are doing in school.  Finally, having objectives can look good, but administrators don't get into most classrooms on a daily basis (for good reason) to look at the faithfulness of objective writing.  In my honest opinion, writing objectives is not best practice at all.  

After really diving into inquiry-based learning, I started to realize that by simply writing objectives so blatantly on the board, I was yanking the inquiry right out my classroom!  Scout's honor, I was telling my students what I wanted them to know, instead of guiding them through an inquiry process to learn.  I am not telling you to write absolutely nothing on your board (most districts require it).  What I am saying is that in order for you to have students wonder about things, you must give them something to wonder about.  Instead of listing objectives like I did (example above), try something like this:

Math: What dimension are you from? or Shape it up! (T. Swift anyone?)
Science: What does a dichotomous key open? (This made them ask me all day what we were doing!)
Reading: How would you describe the main character? or Is your character acting up?
Writing: Who's talking now?
Social Studies: Oh, no; we're lost! How do we find our way?

There are countless ways to pose questions that get your students thinking!

Instead of telling your brilliant students exactly what they are learning, ask them questions and make them smarter!  They love trying to figure out what you mean.  Believe me, you'll be fielding questions from them.  Isn't that what learning is supposed to be?  Making students so curious that they WANT to learn.  They have a desire to learn because they're intrigued. It becomes a game to them, and games make everything more fun to learn.

You might be wondering how I come up with my questions to write on the board.  When I plan my units or simply plan for the week, I come up with essential questions and that's where my assignment board questions are developed.  Ideally, these questions will help guide students on researching and finding answers on their own.  Be creative! Google essential questions about your topic; there's a ton of ideas out there.  Something else to consider, your questions might not change daily, since you will spend more than one day on certain topics.

While trying to find a few resources on this topic, I stumbled across a great video that shows the strength of effective questioning with students.  Use this same thought while writing questions on your daily board, instead of simple objectives or "I Can" statements.  Our students deserve a chance to figure out the answers to questions without us coming to their immediate rescue with a spoon!

If you are ready to jump on board with inquiry and project-based learning, you'll have to reconsider writing objectives on the board.  It's not best for student learning and the end result is given before they even get a chance to wonder, question, and research!  As Mahatma Gandhi said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world." You might not convince everyone to ditch traditional objectives, but you can be the change for your class!

Next Week: Is a scope and sequence really necessary?  Caution: Some might think I've lost my marbles!