At the beginning of every year, teachers go through content standards and lesson plans and figure out how they are going to get through all the required content standards for that school year. Elementary teachers who teach all subjects have hundreds of content standards to get through throughout the year. High school teachers who teach content specific subjects might have it a bit easier, because they get to focus on one subject, but it is still a daunting task. Content standards also depend on the grade level. Some grades have more standards to go through than others. In the end, teachers try to cram as much content into their year as possible to be sure to hit the required content standards.
Is content important? Of course, but not at the expense of strong, foundational learning. What do I mean? If my focus is more on the content than helping my students have a strong foundation in which to grow and build on, then I am providing a disservice to my students. Yes, we need to get through content, but content should not be what determines what we do in class. Our focus should be on solidifying the knowledge and understanding of the content for our students. If we are focused on chapters and lessons and not on students’ understanding of said chapters and lessons, then our students have nothing to build on and will continue to struggle throughout their academic career.
Let’s take math content for example. Each grade has specific content standards that must be taught. However, when getting through the content becomes more important than thoroughly understanding the content, students are left with gaps and holes in their learning. If a teacher plans 3 weeks to cover multiplication, and half, or less than half the class, is still struggling with multiplication at the end of those three weeks, the teacher should NOT move on. It is vital that students have a full grasp and understanding of the content before they move on. A teacher’s schedule should NOT center around time, but rather the academic needs of ALL students.
Please don’t misunderstand me, I am not saying that if two or three students are struggling with a concept you do not move on. I am, however, suggesting that students who are struggling should be given more time to fully grasp and understand concepts before moving on. Otherwise, students move forward in their education with gaps that will cost them academic success in later years.
I have a rule in my class: if five or less students are struggling with a concept, I will move on to the next unit or content standard. However, if more than five are struggling, I will use multiple strategies to help solidify the content for my students before moving on.
A really good way of solidifying concepts for students is constantly reviewing said concepts throughout the year. I also like pairing up students who are struggling with concepts with peers who have shown their understanding and comprehension of said concepts. This allows for a student to learn from their peers rather than listen to me talk. I have found that, at times, students can relate better to their peers than they do with the teacher. Many times, students can explain the exact same thing I was trying to teach in a way that other students can understand. This is a win/win for me in the classroom. I will also give my students assignments where they are required to lean on what they have been taught and what they know and struggle through assignments. Finally, it’s all about doing it…over and over and over. As the saying goes, ‘The more you do it, the better you get,” and this is true for all things learning.
We need to allow for the learning environment to be just that – an environment meant for learning. If educators are consumed with getting through content, the learning environment turns into an academic race rather than a learning space. Learning takes time, and we need to be flexible in the classroom to meet the academic needs of our students.
You may be thinking, “Yeah, if I do that, then I will not get through all the content, and there will be holes with what is not covered.” To be honest, the more you worry less about getting through content, and focus more on helping students comprehend and understand content, you will find that you will get through almost all of your content by the end of the year. How? By focusing on building strong academic foundations, students catch on and take less time to comprehend content later throughout the year. This is especially true if you ladder your content in sequences that build upon each other. For my elementary teachers, use multiple subjects to teach multiple content standards. Reading content standards can be hit in History and Science. Math is a beast all on its own, and you need to be okay with slowing down and focusing on teaching the standard rather than getting through the content. The saying, “The more you do it, the better you get” is VERY true when it comes to math.
Overall, slow down. Don’t worry about getting through the content. If you focus on building a strong learning foundation for students for each content standard, you will find that you will more than likely get through most, if not all, of the content by the end of the year. Don’t cheat students out of a firm academic foundation by focusing more on fitting everything in rather than helping them thoroughly understand the content standards. Be flexible and worry less.
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