Use Techniques Thoughtfully

I know it has been a while since it was on TV, but recently, I decided to re-watch Project Runway on Amazon Prime.  I have one general takeaway and one that is relevant to education.

1.  Tim Gunn is a national treasure. Protect him at all cost.

2.  In every challenge, the designers had to make clothing, but models obviously needed shoes, bags, and jewelry to go with the outfit while they walked down the runway. Somewhere in each challenge, Tim Gunn said the following line, "Use the accessories wall thoughtfully." 

If they used the wall but not "thoughtfully," they were usually called out by the judges for styling errors.  "The dress is cute, but these shoes made her look like a mom on her way to lunch." or "That bag just took all the youth out of your design."  They had used the resources that were provided to them, but they had not chosen them well or used them in beneficial ways.

Because your mind probably works like a normal person's, you are likely saying, "I thought you said this would be relevant to education."  Okay, here it is.

As teachers, we have access to an overwhelming number of techniques.  I can teach any point of curriculum with direct instruction, video resources, websites, lab experiments, projects, and on and on and on.  I have many ways to "style" my lesson.  Because there are so many options, it is important that I choose my techniques thoughtfully.  

I must sit down with my objectives and ask myself, "What is the best way to teach this? How will the content make the most change in their long term memories?"  It may be that having students create a video in which they act as reporters who are telling people about a historical event or scientific discovery is the best way for them to learn about that event, but it might not be the best way to have them learn about Newton's first law of motion or a geometry proof. In that case, the "accessory" is getting in the way of the "garment." 

Teachers, if we are honest with ourselves, we will admit that we are pretty excitable people.  We like the shiny new things that come our way, and we want to use them. I'll never forget the spring we learned about Kahoot.  Every teacher used it for every test review.  By the time we got to May, kids would groan if I said to login to Kahoot because they were so tired of using it (even shiny new things get tiresome if we overuse them).  

I'm glad we are excited, it's a profession where excitement is contagious.  But we must also be thoughtful.  We must ask ourselves, "Is this technique the best way to teach this content or do I just want to use it?" If so, save it for next week or next month or next semester. Using where it fits best will elevate your lesson; using it for the sake of using it will confuse your students.

I am reminded of an episode of Craig Barton's podcast "Tips for Teachers."  Guests on his show bring 5 tips to share, and one said, "My first tip is, only look for tips if you need them."  In other words, if something is working, don't go looking for ways to change it.  If you are struggling to teach a specific concept, it might be time to seek out a new technique.  If the method you are currently using works, don't just change for the sake of change.

Now, I just can't help but circle back to Tim Gunn and say: "Teachers, make it work."