Imagination in the Classroom – notes from
Copenhagen 24 March 2015
Choose a letter of the alphabet and keep
all this secret. Write down the following beginning with that letter.
first
name
animal
job
hobby
/ sport
food
e.g. this is what they mean
first
name - Dorothy
animal
= family name - Dinosaur
job
- dentist
hobby
/ sport - diving
favourite
food – doughnuts
Model the Q&A and let learners get to
know each other.
“NOW, what I want is, Facts. Teach these
boys and girls nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life. Plant nothing
else, and root out everything else. You can only form the minds of reasoning
animals upon Facts: nothing else will ever be of any service to them.”
Charles Dickens, Hard Times
When the focus was all on learning facts
by heart. Has it changed?
What is a horse?
A beautiful, brave, powerful animal? NO!
'Quadruped. Graminivorous. Forty teeth,
namely twenty-four
grinders, four eye-teeth, and twelve incisive. Sheds coat in the
spring; in marshy countries, sheds hoofs, too. Hoofs hard, but
requiring to be shod with iron. Age known by marks in mouth.’
Alas learning still seems to be all about:
One size fits all
Learning is linear
Idea of fixed ability
Facts are important
Examination success is the goal
Yet there is a change of focus:
from
what we know about language
to what we can do with it
Common European Framework of Reference
And…
Skills that were appropriate 20 years ago no longer prepare children for
the world beyond school.. Changes in society are
accelerating so rapidly that it is difficult to assess what factual knowledge
will be needed for the future..
Robert
Fisher, Teaching Children to Think, 1990
John Holt says that learning and
experimenting is natural for children..
The child
is curious…wants to make sense of things… is open and receptive… experimental..
bold… not afraid of making mistakes… is patient…can tolerate an extraordinary
amount of uncertainty, confusion, ignorance and suspense..
Imagination
is an essential part of human intelligence.
Creativity is applied
imagination
Ken Robinson, Out Of Our Minds, Capstone, 2001
UK National Curriculum Report, 1988, lists the following attitudes
as ‘important at all stages of education’:
Curiosity
Respect for evidence
Willingness to tolerate uncertainty
Critical reflection
Perseverance
Creativity and inventiveness
Open-mindedness
Co-operation with others
Why be creative?
If we have 30 students in one class, they
could go on to have 30 very different jobs.
They may change careers at least once in
their lives.
Their jobs are likely to require thinking
skills beyond knowing facts.
They will want a richer life than just a
nine to five job.
They need to go on learning.
The
most important attitude that can be formed is that of the desire to go on
learning..
John
Dewey, 1938
(1859 – 1952, American
philosopher
and educational
reformer)
Using the
words below make a one word sentence, then a two word sentence, then three,
then four …. And keep going
teenagers parents radio
cows coffee politics
a in on an to we their I
sexy green fat rich quickly
dancing is eat was say
think
…feel best
in flow.. fully involved in meeting a challenge, solving a problem, discovering
something new. Most activities that produce flow also have clear goals, clear
rules and immediate feedback..
Csikszentmihalyi
Imagination is more important than
knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.
Albert Einstein
How many things can you do with chop
sticks?
The
only time my education was interrupted was while I was at school.
Winston Churchill
Why be creative in language lessons?
We are all different
Different response to same stimuli enrich
learning
Personalise
Play with ideas and language
Make language and learning meaningful
Satisfaction - flow
Use language for a reason
Push what we use language for