Thursday, December 5, 2013
BATS and the Pedagogy of Joy
One
of the reasons that BATS continue to grow and thrive is that we expound a
Pedagogy of Joy that stands in sharp contrast to the Pegagogy of Fear
and Pain which dominates current education policy. The Arne Duncans and
Michelle Rhees and John Kings of the world advocate using schools to
"whip students in shape" to meet the demands of global competition.
Their vision turns teachers into straw bosses
and disciplinarians, forcing students to sit silently and absorb
information lest their future be compromised. BATS, by contrast, nurture
the creative and joyful aspect of learning, found in play, in
exploration of new experiences, in physical movement as well as mastery
of academic skills. We welcome disorder and spontaneity as part of the
learning process and nurture student talents and skills that may not be
in the prescribed curriculum. And it is this vision of teaching and
learning which will ultimately prevail, not only because it is more
appealing to teachers and students and families, but because the
dominant paradigm now being imposed in schools will fail miserably to
achieve the two main objectives it claims to support- achieve greater
equity, and make our schools more competitive on international tests
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1 comment:
Thanks for this. It is a valuable addition, regardless of its concision, to the work of such distinguished education masters as Korczak and Neill.
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