NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Back to results
ERIC Number: EJ790095
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008
Pages: 4
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0013-1253
EISSN: N/A
Anti-Teaching: Confronting the Crisis of Significance
Wesch, Michael
Education Canada, v48 n2 p4-7 Spr 2008
The most significant problem with education today is the problem of significance itself. Students are struggling to find meaning and significance in their education. To see the significance problem first hand, visit a classroom and pay attention to the types of questions asked by students. Good questions are the driving force of critical and creative thinking and therefore one of the best indicators of significant learning. Good questions are those that force students to challenge their taken-for-granted assumptions and see their own underlying biases. Oftentimes the answer to a good question is irrelevant--the question is an insight in itself. The only answer to the best questions is another good question. And so the best questions send students on rich and meaningful lifelong quests, question after question after question. Unfortunately, such great questions are rarely asked by students in an education system facing a crisis of significance. In this article, the author argues that for many students and teachers alike, school has become a relatively meaningless game of grades rather than an important and meaningful exploration of the world in which people live and co-create. He uses his own classroom experiences to illustrate how his "anti-teaching" techniques have transformed the significance of learning for his students to go beyond the question: "what do I need to know for the next test?"
Canadian Education Association. 317 Adelaid Street West #300, Toronto, ON M5V 1P9, Canada. Tel: 416-591-6300; Fax: 416-591-5345; e-mail: publications@cea-ace-ca; Web site: http://www.cea-ace.ca/home.cfm
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A