#25. Give your students, the power!
On a casual stroll through the corridors of one of the schools that I’m acquainted with, I happened to come across a vibrant and inviting classroom. I was curious to find out the constituents that prompted me to attach those characteristics previously mentioned. Ah, these charts! As a student, I took a heavy liking to black charts. Red and dark blue colored charts came a close second.
On careful introspection, my emotion transformed from sheer delight to disappointment. I was told that these charts, displaying a variety of information and using many different creative elements, were made by facilitators.
What was the purpose of these charts, then? Was it merely to make the classroom look more attractive? Should the walls not play a crucial role in helping the learners to internalize relevant and interesting information, in addition to admiring their own piece of work? Should they not feel proud at their creation?
Student Ownership is the key!
Any learning environment should offer ONE key take-away for the learners — which is to offer a sense of ownership in their learning environment. This is what makes them feel respected, participate meaningfully and look forward to being there EVERY single day!
It is totally fine to deck up the learning environment with a bunch of charts and other fancies, but JUST encourage the kids themselves to do it! Let them decide how they would like to create their own learning environment. Let them decide what should be the content they want to look at everyday. This could be a great way to begin the academic year on a meaningful and fun way. You will surprised at their creativity and will also have that privilege to get to know them better.
Over time, you could guide them to refine the content that has gone up on the walls and elsewhere. Also, this will ensure that student ownership is made part and parcel of what the learning environment has to offer. Let this tenet become a habit!
Just give them the tools, not the finished product! Make them creators, not onlookers!
