The chapter I read from my book of choice is called, The Power of Engaging Lessons, and it sheds light on exactly what the name implies. Before even reading this chapter, I found myself reflecting on lessons I remember from both my K-12 experience and my time in college. I noticed that the lessons I really enjoyed and remembered where the ones that were the most engaging. The one that first comes to mind is one from my 10th grade history class, where to finish off the unit on the Great Depression, we spent quite a few classes doing a Great Depression simulation. I got more out of this than I would have from just reading from the textbook and sitting through lectures. The more I thought about that activity in my history class and as I read further into the chapter, the more I noticed the connection between engaging lessons and skill development. Not only did I have fun learning, but I developed more skills than I would have if the teacher decided against doing this engaging activity. The most significant skill that I continued to develop through this activity would be partner work and peer collaboration as me and my partner (“husband”) navigated through the simulation. This really clicked for me when the authors of this chapter write, “Engaging lessons are incredibly powerful and produce countless unexpected ripple effects. They also serve as steady reminders that learning can be fun. And when students make the connection that learning isn’t just remote memorization, but an enjoyable opportunity to explore and be challenged, then they too will want to continue learning long after the last bell rings.” With today’s emphasis on testing, we have become so narrowly focused on what skills should be incorporated into the classroom, often providing students with a dry and dull learning experience. Typically, only memorization is focused on to pass these tests and lessons/activities that promote the growth of some very beneficial skills, such as communication, are shied away from. I loved how the authors mention the ripple effects of engaging lessons, because while in my instance the focus was the Great Depression, I learned so much more than history through that activity and picked up many more skills than if we would have stuck with the very traditional learning methods.
As a preservice teacher, when considering the topic of skill development and reading about the importance of engaging lessons in my book of choice, it is easy to see the strong positive relationship between the two. Engagement promotes greater skill development and will help students write better about the topic of the lesson, as they can pull from their lived experience they had during the lesson and will likely have a better understanding of what is being asked of them because of their engagement with the material. Muhammad writes, “Skills are central to the ways in which we do school today and typically define achievement standards. Skills are also significant in designing learning standards that govern teaching and learning in schools, and each content area has its own descriptions and set of skills.” This is an interesting point because yes, each discipline has its own individual skill requirements, but there is no mention about how skills can overlap across the various disciplines. Writing is the biggest example of a skill that should be required within each discipline. It may not look the same in each discipline, but there are countless benefits to including it in more than just language arts classes. What educators consider to be a worthwhile skill is an everchanging argument as times change and technology continues to advance. However, engagement to better promote skill development remains crucial to effective and lasting learning. One author talks about her best and worst learning experiences. Her worst being a college history class where the professor just rambled and the course grade was solely based on a paper and two exams, and her best being a very engaging high school Spanish class. She highlights the importance of engagement by mentioning that her lowest grade in college was in that boring history course, whereas the Spanish class encouraged her to learn Spanish long after it was required and that teachers teaching methods impacted her as a future educator. Engagement also gives students the courage to feel as if they have gained enough skills and interest to pursue the topic further.
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