Real-World, Experiential Learning

 

“The history of education shows that up to 50 years ago, education was principally geared towards getting a job. That’s no longer the case, it seems. If we could agree the purpose of education…, then we can agree the curriculum to fulfill that purpose. Everything else follows. And there may be more than one purpose and there may be more than one curriculum. One size doesn’t fit all. (Schoolsmith, 2019)”

Children should know more than how to fill in bubble answers when they leave school. They should be confident in their abilities to think and reason, and be able to adapt to whatever environment they’re put into. They should be able to speak with respect and a deeply held belief that they have something valuable to say. Children should be able to step into the real world and say, “I’ve seen this before, and I know what to do; this time, I’m just doing it on my own.”

That is a hard goal to attain when children spend forty or more hours a week sitting in a classroom, surrounded by the same people and the same predictable environment. In a survey of 165,000 high school students, “An overwhelming number of students, 87 percent, want to eventually earn a college degree and land a career. But many believe that their schools aren’t helping them develop the skills they’ll need to succeed after graduation.”

In the grand scheme of things, “school age” represents a very small part of peoples’ lives. It is also the period in which their brains are developing and growing to survive in the world they are living in. It does not make sense for them to spend a significant amount of time in a classroom setting for thirteen to twenty years, in a stagnant and predictable environment, only to be thrown out into the chaos of a world that demands improvisation and a plethora of skills that are never taught in school. Is it any wonder that they feel lost when they are suddenly expected to integrate into the world as good and productive citizens? Students who are forced to drop out to help take care of their families understand, better than most, that there is a disconnect between what most schools offer and what they need to succeed, or even just to survive, in their real-life situations.

Academic learning is important, but it needs to have evident real-life applications. Children- especially young children- thrive when they are able to learn things that are “real” and relevant. They love to help out with what they see adults doing, because that’s how they learn to become a part of the same world.

“Learning is the holistic process of adaptation. Learning is not just the result of cognition but involves the integrated functioning of the total person- thinking, feeling, perceiving, and behaving. It encompasses other specialized models of adaptation from the scientific method to problem solving, decision making, and creativity.”.

Teaching children is much like planting a garden. If you are planting a garden, most people know that it is not enough to simply scatter seeds and water them incessantly. Plants need much more than just water. They grow best if they are planted at the proper time of year, they need room to grow, proper soil that is well-drained, nutrient rich, and the proper pH; plants need the proper amount of sunlight, good air flow, protection from extreme elements, and they need time.

However, planting a garden is more complicated than that. Because, different plants have different individual needs; some plants grow well next to each other, and others inhibit each other’s growth. So, it’s beneficial to strategically plant to allow for optimal growth.

Even if all of these considerations are accounted for with complete precision, plants will grow at different rates. Even multiple plants of the same variety will not grow exactly the same. But, eventually, if their needs are met, all plants should grow strong and hearty- the best version of themselves they can be.

By contrast, if seeds are scattered without much forethought or prep work, they will not grow as well. If the new seedlings are watered incessantly to get them to grow, some will grow, but many will drown. It is easy for the plants to become waterlogged, and many will rot or become diseased. Without good sunlight, plants will become “leggy”- tall and weak; without good airflow they will develop mildew or other fungus; without balanced nutrients, leaves will yellow or growth will be stunted- some will do well, but most will struggle to grow, and almost none will reach their full potential. Water is essential for growth, but too much water, or not enough of other essentials, makes it almost impossible for plants to grow well.

In the same way, academics are important. But, focusing exclusively on academics for the first thirteen, or more, years of life means that children’s development becomes very lopsided, and they are ill-equipped to “withstand the elements” when they arise. It used to be, that academics were secondary to the needs of the family and learning the family trade. For many years, school was a luxury that only the wealthiest families were able to provide for their children. It is a huge blessing that virtually every child now is able to be educated; however, we seem to have reached the other end of the pendulum, where children are well-versed in the things they are taught in school, but they don’t have experience or knowledge of much else. Instead of having a family trade to fall back on, children now are stuck living at home, because they go through school and then feel ill-equipped to do anything once their school tenure is done.

School was never intended to replace home learning, but was meant to be an addition to it, to enhance individuals’ abilities to thrive and provide for their families. Reading, writing, and math make it possible for people to gain knowledge independently, communicate ideas, and engage in fair business transactions. These skills are essential. They are important skills for success in business and in life. But, on their own they leave much to be desired, because there is no context in which to use them.

Until there is practical application for even these basic skills, they are just abstract ideas that possesses very little real-world significance. Perhaps that it what is missing most from the modern approach to education- people used to understand the need for these basic skills so there was a desire to learn them. Today, many people seem to have lost sight of the context and practical application for these skills, so there is very little perceived value in knowing how to do them. Children who are more involved in real-world activities better understand the importance of these skills and have a greater appreciation for school.