A classroom is ever changing like a river, displaying the progress, continuity and outpouring of knowledge. Rapids, falls, meandering, channels, banks, and eventually estuaries and deltas where they expand and release their flow into the sea of learning. Each bend of the lesson causing a course change, each student adding a plethora of personalities and mobility of mind. The flow of a classroom is roaring when these personalities merge from individual tributaries into a channel ever changing the landscape. Every teachers goal is to have the engagement level of their classroom high. Where the ebb and drift of the activity is guiding students to a place of self-awareness and motivation. When a situation is "flowing" participants are generally happy and content, and working at their peak performance. In other words, engaged, invested and on-task. But, how can we get to this point? How can we literally change the tide if it has become stagnate water?
An oxbow lake is a pool of stagnate water which forms beside a winding river due to erosion and deposition. The literal shift of sediment. Ultimately it gets abandoned and cut off from the rest of the river. These oxbows occur in the classroom, when teachers leave their "power-zone" and students get off-task. Behaviors weather and erode when lessons lack certain characteristics: purpose, relevance, interest, and rigor. When lessons are too challenging, rocks get piled, sediment is dumped and the flow of the river weakens. But when lessons are not demanding or thought provoking they become merely trickles of water, with little flow, leading to a dry riverbed and bored students. It is a balance between drought and chaotic rapids that we aim for as teachers. A strong current with a meander to keep students interested and curious. When we make assignments and activities authentic, relevant and interesting students will jump into the deep end wholeheartedly. Edcamps designed and run by students are the best lessons I have implemented all year. Incorporating all aspects of student-centered classrooms.
If you have ever been boating, you know there are clear safety precautions in place to keep you safe on the water. These rules include wearing a safety-vest, training on white-water rafting before taking the plunge, even how to steer and paddle a canoe. But what ever the activity, no one just jumps in without some background knowledge. This is where teachers come in. We are the guides, the instructors, but the actual action is taken on by our students. They steer the boat, raise the sails, and daily choose to swim upstream, float downstream, or sit on the shore. Without these guidelines students can lose their way, capsize their canoe or unexpectedly float towards dangerous rapids. However, once the ground rules are in place it is best to step back and let them decide if they want to float slowly on an inner-tube, paddle quickly through the whitewater or swim in the cool waters of a waterfall. Choice is key. Who wants to go on a vacation with out any choice? No one. Who wants to be forced to learn in a way that does not work best for them? No one. Some students like to swim while others want to stay safely within the boat. Either way a myriad of options allow learning to be unexpected, spontaneous and self-guided.
Positive relationships and team work allows rowing and sailing crews to run smoothly on the water. A rowing crew only works because of trust and respect. A sailing crew accomplishes their race because each individual has a role, but the team has a common goal. Relationships are just as critical as skill when you are learning. The support of classmates is crucial to feeling like you belong. The safety-vest and security is created when a sense of community is formed. Not only between students but between teacher and student. Speaking to them one-on-one is like fastening the straps, tightening the buckles, and making them feel buoyant and secure in an ever-changing current. Laughing and "splashing" in the water creates a sense of camaraderie and the more the classroom feels like a place of adventure and discovery the more students will dive in, even those progressing students will move from simply testing the waters with their toes to freely doing the backstroke.
Being in the water lends itself to fun, hands-on activities. A classroom should bubble with adventure. Each day a different turn and bend in the meandering of learning. Let the river run and float on down stream. The comfort of just being on the flow of a river is addicting. When students feel the tug and pull of the waves, they will let the current carry them freely because they will feel protected against any turbulence. The lesson ends with a delta or estuary full of new experiences, exposure to new opportunities and ultimately the blending of brackish and clear, beautiful waters- nourishing and ever growing. New land is created at the mouth of a river and new knowledge and ideas are structured after traversing a challenging, interesting, relevant lesson. Either way at the end of the journey both swimmer and student, carried by the flow of the river is led to a cleansing, a reformation, a polishing of sorts. Like a pebble ultimately free of its sharp edges. A student becomes steady, resourceful and astute to their needs. Choosing the best current to ride. This is learning: choice, security, guidelines and goals that all lead ultimately to calm waters, gentle seas, and an endless ocean of opportunity.
