What changes when educators shift the focus from what we teach to how students learn?
We believe that academic success is intertwined in the quality of the learning journey. Learning that is relational, experiential, and process-oriented can gear all students not only to the mastery of specific content standards, but to be equipped with the tools to problem-solve their way through life. Studying how students learn provides deep insight into new teaching practices that create intrinsic motivators for students to pursue their own learning goals. The introduction of the Common Core brings with it exciting possibilities to re-think and re-imagine what learning looks like. To focus on students discussing a problem together rather than asking the teacher, emphasize the problem-solving process over the right answer, and encouraging students to talk about their thinking are all strategies that support bringing Common Core to life. While these ideals seem simple and obvious, integrating them into learning can be challenging for teachers coming out of the No Child Left Behind era where raising test scores was the focus, funding for enrichment was stripped from schools, and lowered literacy rates combined with student behavior issues made focusing on the learning process seem impossible. We are eager to embrace this moment in our culture to steer to a new place, where authentic learning is not measured by what one knows, but how one thinks, interacts, and relates to the world around them.
We are currently piloting Math in Afterschool with Oakland Unified Afterschool Programs. In this initiative, we offer a monthly learning community for staff interested in creating an afterschool math class, provide curriculum with interactive games and activities designed to reinforce school-day learning, and provide classroom coaching to help staff bring it all to life.
Interested in supporting research?
- Public Profit Study: Be the Change Consulting & Oakland Unified School District pilot Math in Afterschool (Coming Soon!)
- Experiential Math Curriculum
