What is the learner’s mindset?
According to Dwayne Harapnuik (Harapnuik, 2021), the Learner’s mindset is, “A state of being where people act on the intrinsic capacity to learn and respond to their inquisitive nature.”
We are all born with the desire to learn. We crave to know how to eat, talk, walk, and learn our ABC’s. If you had an older sibling, you followed them around and wanted to learn how to do everything they did. When you learned the word “Why” your parents tired of hearing you ask it. This is true for all humans because we crave learning.
Before entering the k-12 school system kids are so eager to learn. By high school, most of them are just going through the motions to get themselves to graduation. What happens between kindergarten and senior year? In short, the factory model of traditional schooling experience kills the love of learning by forcing students to learn facts based on inauthentic experiences that aren’t relatable to them and not applicable to real-world situations.
How can we prevent the loss of the desire to learn?
The simplest answer may be the hardest to implement: reimagine the way we teach students from kindergarten on. Instead of pumping students into a one-size-fits-all, traditional model of school which prepares them for a world which no longer exists, we need to start their schooling with authentic projects which matter to them and to the rest of the world.
While we’re at it, why do we need to structure schooling in grade levels based on age? While it’s true students do hit developmental milestones at different ages, why does their age dictate when they are ready for an advanced math class? If they are ready for algebraic concepts when they are 9 because math comes easily for them, why would we hold them back to a 4th-grade level?
Some kids break the mold and “skip grades.” These are students who tend to be truly gifted in all aspects of traditional learning. But what about the students who are gifted in one area and not another? Like the student who is ready for algebraic concepts at 9, but is merely “on-level” in the English language skills. Should their desire to learn math be held back because algebra isn’t taught in elementary? Nonsense. They should be challenged in every aspect of their education so they continue to ask questions, wonder why, and crave learning.
So how do we reignite the love of learning until the system can change?
This is tough because it requires that we create an authentic environment that speaks to the student and connects their interests to learning.
When I was a kid I loved learning. Going through school, learning by the sit and get, and drill and kill methods, and dealing with the emotional baggage of adolescence, I can say that the thrill of learning was somewhat dead by the time I got to high school. I remember getting my hands on a textbook and getting excited by all of the knowledge contained within but then hating the book by midway through the year when I was exhausted and didn’t feel like I ever had a chance to learn anything I wanted to know. By junior year of high school, I was going through the motions and just doing enough of what was expected to get into a good school so I could get a job. The factory model in a nutshell.
While in college I signed up for a science class that was just supposed to get me a science credit. Lucky for me, I had a lot of time on my hands that semester and found time to read the textbook -- even the parts that weren’t assigned. I found everything in the book fascinating. It answered questions I’d had for a very long time. It was that class that made me want to take other classes like it as electives. That class reignited my desire to learn. I excelled in classes related to this science and craved to learn more. So much so that I read other books on my own just to learn more. I excelled in any classes that I could frame in a way that related to this newfound passion.
This is what we need to do for our students. We need to expose them to different subjects and topics so they can find their passion and reignite their love for learning. Once they see the connection between their interests and school, they will desire to learn again.
Reference:
Harapnuik, D. (2021, May 26). [web log]. Retrieved December 1, 2021, from
https://www.harapnuik.org/?tag=learners-mindset.
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