Civics Education

A recent article published by Educational Leadership (Vol. 68 No. 6) mentioned an interesting study which found that Civics Education forms a core part of curriculum in top performing education systems around the world.  This study is conducted by a nonprofit research organisation based in Washington DC and they examined the differences in the content taught by nine countries[1] that have consistently done well on the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).  One key finding of the one year research is that “in nearly all of the top-performing nations, the study of the arts, literature, history, geography, civics, reading, science, foreign language, and mathematics is compulsory.”

While Science and Mathematics are subjects that are deemed universally important, it is a pleasant surprise to see Civics as one of the key subjects being taught in top performing education systems.  Civics education, in its most general definition, includes the study and understanding of politics, governance, and more importantly, the responsibilities and rights of citizenship.  Why are such knowledge considered important and could the inclusion of such knowledge actually improve students’ grades and impart lifelong skills?

Good citizens make better politicians and better politicians create a more capable government body that makes for a stronger nation and the reinforcing cycle continues.  Even if the citizens do not eventually become politicians, their knowledge on the workings of the governance system, how it functions and the shortcomings of each system will enable them to make better choices when carrying out their duties as citizens.  These decisions are by no means easy to make and it is certainly not easy to acquire skills needed for these choices.  It will require strong analytical skills, critical thinking skills, evaluation skills, observation skills, memorization skills, just to name a few.   These skills can be applied to other disciplines as well and it is not surprising to see that students who have been receiving Civic education can do better in international assessments. 

Civic education provides our students with life-long skills that are needed not only as students but even as adults.  I believe this is the time for us to seriously look into our National curriculum and make the Civic Education and learning more meaningful for our students.  If other countries can provide students with a good Civic education and train them to be good citizens, while doing well in their studies, why can’t Singapore.  Moreover, would it help our country if we have more “Good Citizens”? 

---

[1] The nine countries included Finland, Hong Kong (territory of China), South Korea, Canada, Japan, New Zealand; Australia, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.  Singapore, which has been scoring high in PISA ranking, is not included in this study.

Teach Less Learn More

What exactly is “Teach Less, Learn More” (TLLM)?  Has there been any explanation from the Ministry as to how a system that uses the TLLM ideology looks like?  How different is a school that implements the TLLM system different from the other school that does not?  Have any schools implemented the TLLM curriculum?  I have read many letters to the forums surrounding this TLLM method and I myself have also spoken to many teachers to get their views about TLLM.  From these interactions and my own observations, no one, not even the teachers, knows what a TLLM system entails. 

Does it simply mean that TLLM is just another fancy tagline?  Based on letters published in forum, parents seem to think that TLLM means less teaching from the teachers and more self-learning on the part of the students.  If we base our understanding just by literally reading off the tagline, then parents’ interpretation does seem appropriate.  But is this the system the policy makers have in mind? 

While I cannot and will not speculate how the Ministry plans to implement TLLM, I have come across programmes both from the US and Singapore that I believe adopt a TLLM approach, based on my own interpretation of TLLM.  The teacher introduced a topic or a task.  Students think about what they know and didn’t know, but would like to find out.  The teacher then arranged for some activities, written assignments, field trips, and even an interview with an experts so that students can get more information, ask question or to clarify doubts.  This will then be followed by a project that will have real-life impact on the community/society.  The output by each student or group will differ as it depends on the interest of the students.  However, because of the diversity, the whole class benefited as there is now a collective of knowledge and students can build on the understanding of their peers as well as the guidance provided by teachers and external resources.

The above approach does not suggest that the teacher is teaching less, or doing less.  While there’ll definitely be fewer lectures, there will be more planning and more thinking required on the part of teachers.  Teachers will also need to be more flexible and think on their feet to cater to students’ interests, questions and changes to circumstances.  Essentially, each class will be different, with their own takeaways, even though the ultimate learning outcome will be achieved.  Teachers will also need to help students see value in the different activities and how these different activities contribute to the bigger task on hand.  More importantly, teachers will have to read more, research more and keep themselves up to date so as to have meaningful discussions with the students.  The demands placed on the teachers will definitely be more than the conventional teaching method.  This is where I believe real learning take place, as the teacher illuminates the path, cultivates interest in learning and nurtures the child’s initiatives and confidence.

Will the students learn more?  Most certainly - I am confident that students under such as system will internalize the learnings from the lessons much better, with an enhanced intellectual curiosity and such skills and knowledge will stay with them for longer and may even shape their choices in the future.   However, is this the kind of TLLM approach that our schools and the Ministry have in mind?  Will it work in our schools?  Are we ready for it?

Who is responsible?

Last week, I discussed the purpose of schooling and identified the adults who were responsible for providing the best possible learning opportunities for our children.  These adults include parents, teachers, principals and policy-makers.  With so many adults involved, who actually is taking primary responsibility?

When speaking to parents about why they make their children do certain academic exercises or attend certain enrichment programmes, their typical response will be, “This is what the teacher asked of my kids”.  Then, when speaking with teachers, more often than not, their reply will be, “This is what the principal wanted”.  When speaking to the principals, one would expect to hear,” This is inline with the policies of Ministry of Education”.  Then when you speak with the policy-makers, their respond will be,” If we do not do this, then parents will be get upset”.  This circular reference of replies prompted me to question, “Who’s taking the responsibility of ensuring that what we are putting our children through is to the children’s best interests and not just satisfying what another clueless adult want?  Do we adults really know what we are doing?”

The longer this debate goes on, the less our children will benefit.  This chain has to be broken and someone has to take full responsibility of this.  I believe that all parents love and want the best for their children.  Their love, care and concern for their children are beyond what words can offer.  What then about the other adults?  Do they not share any responsibility?  Yes, they do.  However, I see them as the agents to fulfill the plan laid out by the parents.  Teachers, principals and policy-makers have professional obligations to ensure that what they are doing are according to sound pedagogy and (hopefully) to their best abilities and without personal agenda.  Morally, I hope this group of adult does not see their chosen professional as just another job.  Our role in the educational eco-system is significant.  Children trust and look to us to guide them.  As parents, educators or policy makers, we adults have the unique opportunity to influence another individual’s life!  Ultimately, teachers, principals and policy-makers cannot decide for the child.  This responsibility rests undisputedly with parents.

I hope parents will think about and take this responsibility seriously.  No other professional will come with the same dedication and love.  It is an opportunity for you to plan, to decide and to eventually mound the kind of future you want for your children and their children to come.  So parents, start seeing this as a privilege and enjoy the process!    

The Purpose of Schooling

This week, I came across an article that attempts to define the purpose of schooling.  The article outlines 3 broad purposes of schooling: Personal, Economic, and Civic.


Personal
Schools have helped students discover and cultivate individual interests, talents, and tastes; form good habits, and develop an understanding of what it means to lead a good life.


Economic
Schools have prepared students to contribute productively to the economy by preparing them to pursue a vacation or further study leading toward some profession.


Civic
Schools have achieved civic goals by equipping students with the knowledge and skills necessary to be good citizens.


While I agree that, historically, schools have the capacity to achieve the above purposes, I question how successfully, modern schools, have been able to achieve these objectives.  More importantly, do schools and teachers see the above as their aims?


Looking back at the students that I have taught, I can say that schools have certainty achieved goal number 2 : Economic.  Students know for a fact that if they do not do well in their studies, their chances of being economically successful, will be very slim.  


What about goal number 1 and 3?  


During one of my teaching experiences, I wanted my students to choose an object so that they could research and share information about that object with their friends.  These are 10-12 year old students.  This assignment became one of the most difficult assignments.  It was supposed to be a 5-minute thing, but we ended taking 45 minutes.  It could have been longer if not for the ultimatum.  Along the way, I received questions like "Which one is the correct answer?", "Why don't you tell me which one to choose?", "I don't know which one I like".  I am disappointed as an educator because I feel that the school system has failed our students.  If schooling is meant to help our young discover and cultivate individuality, then my example has shown that we have not achieved our goal.


Everyone defers in their view of what it means to be a "good citizen".  Not breaking the law, not littering and paying taxes can all be seen as the acts of being a good citizen.  However, is that it?  I am not attempting to define what a good citizen should be; but I believe that if a person has good values and morale bearing, then these values can be seen through his actions.  I once asked a group of gifted teenagers if they would consider volunteering their time.  Their respond, "If only we are paid or if it adds to my portfolio".  I am not surprised by their thinking, but I am worried of what this will entail for our country in the future.  


I know my above experiences are very limiting and may not be an accurate reflection of the big picture.    I certainty hope that my examples are the outliers and not the norm.  The pursuit of the 3 purposes outlined in the article should be the goal of any good educator and education system.  Children may not be able to decide for themselves what kind of schooling they can have, but parents, teachers, principals and policy makers have the ability to provide our children with an education that they truly deserves.  


For those who are interested in the article:
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/mar11/vol68/num06/The-Humanities@-Why-Such-a-Hard-Sell%C2%A2.aspx