Reflections on; Common Miracles: The New American Revolution in Learning

There are many excerpts in this documentary that were thought provoking and evocative. It touched on many issues concerning the potential of the human mind, with the central focus on learning. Too often in the past, children with great potential are left to flounder because of traditional learning strategies. It is clear from some poignant examples in this film that everyone has the ability to learn regardless of there race, gender, color, origin and/or disabilities. We all can learn from each other, which in turn, enrich everyone, by broadening his/her horizons across a vast demographic landscape to better serve society.

It was a lesson in humanity, to watch educators diligently at work, realizing that even people who are born with brain damage at birth can learn. Learning involves discovering everyone’s ability to perform at his best, while exploring strengths to overcome weaknesses. This can be a challenging task; however, it can be the catalyst to more meaningful learning.

There is one excerpt in this film that had a profound effect on me. This was the segment which involved a school whereby the children’s scores didn’t meet the standards of assessment. The school implemented new learning methodologies, supported by research that was both motivating and exciting. As a result it became and accelerated school within three years.

This has compelled me to think about the many children that are left behind because of the institutions’ inability to facilitate the kinds of learning practices depicted in this school. It will be a tragedy to continue to lose children because of these inadequacies.

In my opinion teachers need to continue to educate themselves, to stay informed about updated research related to learning. This will enable them to keep children excited and motivated, which are important ingredients for effective learning.

I think the future teacher should have clear and definitive goals of what he/she wants to accomplish. It should be expected that part of the teachers self fulfillment would be to adopt a strategy of teaching that treat children as equals and not label them. Children tend to work better in such an environment and there is research that supports this.

The traditional methods of teaching should be avoided. The fallacies inherent in some of these methods are intellectually debilitating, unchallenging, and ineffective.

New Approaches to Learning

I had the opportunity of viewing a documentary, Common Miracles: The New American Revolution In Learning, on new approaches to learning that was evocative and made me reflect upon the way I have seen our educational system work for many years. It was an exemplary laboratory of new approaches to learning. This documentary clearly demonstrated that the old ways of learning just aren’t adequate to tap the unlimited potential of the human mind.

While there were several excerpts that were thought provoking to me, there is one that stands out most poignantly. It involved some elementary school kids. They had to complete a classroom assignment that required the use of computers. The assignment was brought up on the monitor and the children weren’t given any further instructions. They were allowed to collaborate with other pupils and work in groups. The teacher wasn’t to give any help or instruction; they were left alone to accomplish the assignment.

This should have been called a course in wonderment, because the kids were so excited when they figured out for themselves how to accomplish the assignment . It became an exposition for the kids to display their cognitive skills and work on their own. They were using what is known as metacognitive skill. The teacher was interviewed and she stated ;“It was very hard not to intervene in this learning process”, however she was astounded at the results of this new approach as she watched. She was use to the old way of teaching; show and tell style.

It is so important for the new teacher to familiarize themselves with these new learning methodologies, because it cannot only make a difference in their lives-a sense of self fulfillment- but most importantly have a profound effect on the students’ level of comprehension and learning ability.