What I like about Haskell's brief talk is that he reminds us that school has always been a game, just not a game some students can win. Changing the game by providing choice and showing students how to master the learning requires rethinking how we do what we do. It reminds me of these talks by Rick Wormeli:
I agree with what both men are saying. If we are after mastery, I don't see why products cannot be redone. In the classroom, I was a big proponent of redoing work for that reason. Adding in more choice in how the work is done can be frightening as we worry about standards that must be met, but in the end, if we have designed the learning experiences in a thoughtful way, all of this will be addressed.
As a parent, I squirm a little about some of this. I have no problem with my kids coming home with less work, and I'm glad I don't have to do a science fair project, as I already did those years ago. That said, I've had times when both kids really struggled with concepts and nothing was coming home that I could help with. The teachers refused to step in and help, and I watched both kids really deflate. If more happens at school, which I agree should be the case, then part of the paradigm shift has to also address parental support. What new questions should parents ask? How can parents support what is happening in the classroom? How can parents enrich? How can kids communicate what is happening during the day in ways that parents can understand?
Maybe I taught Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead too many times, but I do see how school has always been a game, just like many areas in life are a game. If that's true, how can we change the game to help make students excited about playing?
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