STUDENT EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM
"STUDENTS
WANTED FOR A VALUES BASED EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM
BASED ON OUR
CONSTITUTION"
2.
TEACHING METHODS
The You
the People process uses a different teaching method than
some of you are used to. It is called the non-directive
teaching method. Any of you who have had courses taught
using the case study or seminar method will be familiar
with it. The principle is simple. You can't train people
to come to their own conclusions by telling them what to
do. Therefore this process is best taught by using the "Socratic" or
non-directive method of teaching. When possible answer
a students question with a question. It is somewhat like
the old maxim, "Give a person a fish and you feed
them for a day, teach them how to fish and you feed them
for a lifetime". Much of this work requires looking
into things such as why the city council choose to deal
with an issue a certain way? Rather than give them the
answer it is better to ask them questions that will help
them to find the answer, such as "Why don't you call
a council person who sponsored and one who opposed the
measure and find out?'; Why don't you call the reporter
at the newspaper who covered the story and find out?';
Why don't you follow up on what happened as a result of
their action and see if that helps you to understand why
they did what they did? In this way the students have to
learn how to get the answers for themselves which will
serve them well in later life. It also vastly increases
their retention of the material. To paraphrase an old maxim, "Be
very energetic in helping them find the answers for themselves,
be very lazy in giving them the answers".
There
will be times that you have to throw in a short lecture,
usually no more than 5 minutes in length to explain events
or historical actions that bear on the issue they are working
on or put it into context to save them some time. Sometimes
the students will not be able to get the concept of the
problem/issue right and need a short lecture to reorient
them and get them going in the right direction. For instance,
if you are using a current Supreme Court issue that the
students are "hot" about. If it is before you
have covered the Court, you may have to take time out to
explain some of the workings of the Court or previous decisions
that bear on the one they are making. Be careful not to
guide their decision, just give them the tools to make
a rational one. It may also be necessary to fill in some
of the core competencies that they missed but will need.
For instance it is not necessary to force a rote memory
exercise such as which amendment does what into the You
the PEOPLE process just to cover a teaching point. While
many of them will be covered naturally in the process,
some will be left out and need to be covered at the end
of the period in a short lecture form. A good short example
of this is found in the lesson plan, "Becoming an
American Citizen".
Once
you get used to it, you will find it more effective and
far less stressful than the old lecture only technique.
Here you don't always have to provide the energy for the
class and push them. You point the way and they provide
the energy themselves. You will find that, given their
head, students really get into this process and will come
up with things you never thought of. It uses the peer pressure
that teenagers are so susceptible to in a positive way
under your guidance.
Additionally,
you will note that this method relies on lots of homework
to succeed. Surprisingly to some you will find that the
considerable homework required is done willingly and completely
. For some students they do it for the carrot of mission
orientation and the excitement of the group process. Others
do it because they don't want to risk the wrath of their
peers when they mess up the group project and everyone's
grade with it. Either way the homework gets done without
a lot of pushing on the instructors part.
That
is not to say you let them do anything they come up with.
Your questioning should be ever present to ensure they
know what they are doing, that it makes sense, and will
not get them in trouble. This does not include making sure
that they do not make mistakes. Mistakes, as long as they
are not harmful, can be the best teachers.
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