Can school be more fun? Can it be more joyful? Why do kids get bored so easily in school? As I watched this webinar "Joy in Learning" hosted by Barbara Bray, Bray talked about how school has become more dull in today's modern world. Back then education was more fun and exciting, more joyful compared to years ago. Now we face a generation of studentsd who often see school as boring, not fun, which leads to high dropout rates, and less educated people in the world. This webinar opened my eyes of why students like this in schools and how we can fix that problem.
As I watched this webinar, Bray stated that students are getting more and more bored of school not because of teachers but when students don't understand what's going on in class, they easily give up and always think they can never learn which brings a halt to their learning. Bray stated that students don't perceive information well which is normal, that's how learning starts, by being curious and asking questions, but when students ask questions, sometimes the teacher can be difficult on the student and get tired of hearing so many questions. Teachers sometimes expect too much from students, they expect perfection which is wrong. Bray stated that when students are constantly told they are wrong, the student will soon develop that thinking in their head and the student will always think they are wrong, which stops the student from learning, also Bray mentioned a TED talk in here webinar by Sir Ken Robinson, "Do Schools kill Creativity?" Robinson said the same exact same thing Bray stated, when students are constantly scolded for being wrong, the students will stop learning and never move on. Robinson stated that it's ok for students to get be wrong, it helps them to know the difference from right and wrong, also if you encourage students after they did something wrong instead of scolding them, the student will be more motivated in learning instead of being shut down. So to get students to learn, don't give constant lectures, but constant support and encouragement.
So if we solved the problem why students get bored in school, what can we as teachers help fix that problem. Bray summed that answer in one word, "Joy." If there's more joy in classrooms, the more fun it is, if there is more joy in classrooms, the more students will be motivated in doing their work and learning. The more joy in the classroom, the more the student will learn better. Bray came up with a system known as "Flow." Bray stated that the more flow, the more joy is in the classroom. She described "flow" in the list below.
1. Clear goals and expectatons.
2. Deep concentration.
3. A loss of feeling of self-consciousness
4. Distorted sense of time.
5. Direct and immediate feedback.
6. Balance between ability level and challenge.
7. A sense of personal control over the situation or activity.
8. Intrinsically rewarding activity.
9. A lack of awareness of bodily needs.
10. Absorbed and focused on activity.
So to sum it all up, if you have the "flow" in your classroom, then you have joy and you will have no trouble with your students.
So to conclude, don't expect perfection from students but encourage them when they do wrong and that will get students to learn better, and if you have the "flow" in your classroom, you have joy in your classroom and you will never have bored students again.
I, too, believe that classrooms need to be filled with joy to have a more comfortable and focused learning environment. If students suffer a boring atmosphere in the classroom with long and dull lectures, it will reflect towards their work ethic and their will to learn. Bray's "flow" list is something to keep in mind when teaching because it gets students involved with lectures and activities making whatever the topic is fun and interesting. I agree that teachers should never discourage students, but motivate them to do the best they can and continue to get the right answer--learning from their mistake.
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