The power of the immeasurable learning

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading Dave Warlick’s blog over the past 2 years and have often quoted or referenced him on this page. A while back he ran a survey on his site about the teachers that impact our lives as students and if it is possible to measure the level of that impact. He prompted us with the following thought…..

“Think back to those teachers who truly influenced your life, who’s teaching is actually a part of who you are and what you do now. Think about what happened in those classrooms that influenced you so deeply and share with us the percentage of it that might have been measured with research, and what percentage could not be effectively measured.”

100% measurable – 0% not measurable

75% measurable – 25% not measurable

50% measurable – 50% not measurable

25% measurable – 75% not measurable

0% measurable – 100% not measurable

I had some thoughts on this myself and went for the second at the bottom. Personally I think it was probably closer to 10% measurable and 90% not measurable. I am reminded of a wonderful thought I read about John Holt the author of “How children fail.” During a conference a teacher asked him why he did not write a book on why teachers fail in which he could address why it was our profession was losing so many teachers. His reply was priceless…. He simply replied with…. “Well in actual fact I did write a book about why teachers fail….. It is entitled “How children fail.”

Would that thought still be a valid point in today’s day and age? Perhaps… but I think there may be more to it. Allow me to reflect on an experience today….

Here in Australia we have a public holiday on the 25th of April each year to remember those who fought in wars throughout history. ANZAC day is our day to reflect and honour those who have defended our country. At our school just like at many around the country the students stop and have a commemorative service. Each year at my school the principal would invite a special guest who had something to do with war throughout their life. However, this year he asked a group of teachers to put together a multimedia presentation that paid tribute and helped the students better understand the meaning of the service. Well a minute or so into the presentation, the students were captured and engrossed in what was happening on the screen. As we left the school hall a teacher commented to me on how she was amazed how the students were so engrossed in the presentation. This obviously engaged them, but is the effect of this presentation on their learning something that could be measurable? While we could all sit a test after the presentation to gauge what facts the students could recall, I would say the learning that occurred was much deeper, it was something that struck at all the senses and engaged the students in what exactly has happened to men and women who have gone to war to defend our nation. This to me is not measurable learning, but holds much more long-term impact on a student than an ability to recall facts.

So as we head into an age that seems to be pushing governments towards performance pay for teachers, let us not forget the power of the immeasurable learning.