Schools are places where aims are so high and noble that we are in pursuit of these. Teach children beauty of science, grandeur of maths and legacy of English. Students should excel in Sports and Arts. They should become law-abiding citizens and should have good moral values. They should have discipline and respect elders.
To achieve this is of course not a small undertaking. Policy makers, schools and teachers device elaborate schemes to ensure that every one is working towards these aims, full throttle. There are exams, re-test, remedial classes, workshops, counseling sessions. If a Martian were to view this, it will appear mind-boggling enterprise to it.
In this grand venture, we have forgotten that - God is in details. Students are taught atomic theory, Algebra and Shakespeare, yet they haven't learned how to write well. They are unable to focus for extended period or write in clear hand. These are the details which no one is focusing on. They sound trivial compared to the grand goals listed above.
I strongly feel that we need to spend a lot more time on details every day. If children can learn to deliver details perfectly, the larger picture will emerge. For age 9-11 students, I have focused on writing skills. This means they focus on margins, indents, handwriting, structure of a write-up, the word to use, the flow of what you write. What you write is not as important as How you write. All the silly rules that a good copy-writer would use, we try to follow. We do writing exercises every week for one hour.
The benefit of this is not limited to English writing. It forces children to focus on a single task, it builds the stamina, it high-lights the "trivial". My hope is to get them to write well and for longer stretches. This is hard work for them and that is my point. Ability to focus on a task single-mindedly, even for an unpleasant task, is what is often needed in life. It is true of so many high achievers in a variety of fields.
We hope, foolishly, that by dumping a lot of home-work, three hour exams and demanding high marks, automatically will build these abilities in kids as a bi-product. We are demanding a lot of work from students, all of which comes out with a poor quality.
We need smaller amount of work, but with demand on greater focus and high quality. We need to explicitly teach, how to focus on details and how to deliver quality work. We need to focus on trivial pursuits.
PS : There is a documentary on design called "Objectified" in which VP of design for Apple products, Jonathan Ive talks about design. And he intensely and obsessively talks about focus on details, trivial details.
To achieve this is of course not a small undertaking. Policy makers, schools and teachers device elaborate schemes to ensure that every one is working towards these aims, full throttle. There are exams, re-test, remedial classes, workshops, counseling sessions. If a Martian were to view this, it will appear mind-boggling enterprise to it.
In this grand venture, we have forgotten that - God is in details. Students are taught atomic theory, Algebra and Shakespeare, yet they haven't learned how to write well. They are unable to focus for extended period or write in clear hand. These are the details which no one is focusing on. They sound trivial compared to the grand goals listed above.
I strongly feel that we need to spend a lot more time on details every day. If children can learn to deliver details perfectly, the larger picture will emerge. For age 9-11 students, I have focused on writing skills. This means they focus on margins, indents, handwriting, structure of a write-up, the word to use, the flow of what you write. What you write is not as important as How you write. All the silly rules that a good copy-writer would use, we try to follow. We do writing exercises every week for one hour.
The benefit of this is not limited to English writing. It forces children to focus on a single task, it builds the stamina, it high-lights the "trivial". My hope is to get them to write well and for longer stretches. This is hard work for them and that is my point. Ability to focus on a task single-mindedly, even for an unpleasant task, is what is often needed in life. It is true of so many high achievers in a variety of fields.
We hope, foolishly, that by dumping a lot of home-work, three hour exams and demanding high marks, automatically will build these abilities in kids as a bi-product. We are demanding a lot of work from students, all of which comes out with a poor quality.
We need smaller amount of work, but with demand on greater focus and high quality. We need to explicitly teach, how to focus on details and how to deliver quality work. We need to focus on trivial pursuits.
PS : There is a documentary on design called "Objectified" in which VP of design for Apple products, Jonathan Ive talks about design. And he intensely and obsessively talks about focus on details, trivial details.
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