Closure: A Difference A Day Makes

Closure is a concept we as humans often equate with the end of something. The horrible break-up we went through in high school or college, we just needed closure and it was all alright. Even closing the door on something meaning to be done with it. Most often we do not take it to the next level and believe that closure is a connection between one concept or event and the next. We expect at the end of the day that what ever we taught needs a finality. The unit keeps going, the vocabulary is interwoven into the next lesson but we deep down inside feel there needs to be a clear delineation or transition between ideas. When in fact closure is a bridge, a path that leads to many unique directions that our students can follow.

If a student is truly intrigued and curious about the concept they will take a different course then a student who is merely complacent or a different student who is a reluctant learner. It is our job as a teacher to get the paths aligned with the right student. More importantly to provide the road map that they can use to find their destination. Some may use GPS while others may rely on good old fashion paper maps. Teachers need to make sure the various roads are smooth and friction-less rather than a rocky terrain. But we also need to understand that we can never get every student to choose the same path. While some learners need road signs and stop lights, others prefer the wide open desert roads where their is little traffic in site. But as they traverse their personal journeys they each encounter different obstacles and barriers. If we provide them with the capability to deal them as they arise they will overcome them with little reliance on us. That in the end is a teachers goal: independent learners.

At the end of a discussion I always say to my students, how can we add this to our wall, our billboard, our scrap book of knowledge. Putting into a place of perspective and relevance. My students either draw it in their journals, write a reflection, and even just a simple teach my neighbor discussion. But the adding to the arsenal of information is where if we use the word "closure" occurs. Where cementation happens. Where it no longer is an isolated concept but placed in the larger schema where it can be built upon. Not done, not in the past merely put in its place like a giant jigsaw puzzle piece where after many more lessons the picture or image becomes clear. Closure brings exposure to new ideas, differentiation, interest, and diversity together into a process of learning that is accessible to every student because it is based not on intelligence but on personal understanding and relevance. Each student has a different arsenal of knowledge, individualized directions or navigation tools, and personal curiosity and understanding. If we lay the groundwork they will find their own path through the maze of learning.