Discourse is just how you get there

In an earlier post I talked a lot about TALK in the classroom, but after reading "Choice Words" by Peter Johnson for my literacy class (it really applies to all subjects, not just literacy), I've realized that what I really want is for my kids to gain a "sense of agency" and talk is (in my opinion) the best vehicle for getting them there.

I want my students to become people who figure out things and solve problems and ask questions - and, maybe more importantly, to see themselves as such. I want them to see themselves as readers, as writers, as mathematicians and scientists. As Johnson says, "When you figure something out for yourself, there is a certain thrill in the figuring. After a few successful experiences, you mihgt start to think that figuring things out is something you can actually do. Maybe you are even a figuring-out kind of person, encouraging an agentive dimension to identity."

I realize that this is idealistic, but I really think that the best classrooms are the ones where the teacher talks the least. Where the teacher gives kids space and tools to figure things out for themselves, to discuss what they read, to respond to each other, to teach each other. There is nothing quite as good as feeling a sense of accomplishment. "I want children to see themselves not only as inquiring individuals, but as inquiring individuals who are part of a diverse community that inquires, whose members, through their active participation and diversity of perspective, contribute to each other's intellectual growth."

One of my favorite lines (can you tell I'm in love with this book?): "If nothing else, children should leave school with a sense that if they act, and act strategically, they can accomplish their goals."