Creating Thinking Classrooms by Garfield Gini-Newman & Roland Case

Author:Garfield Gini-Newman & Roland Case
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Published: 2018-04-02T13:32:08.539765+00:00

Emphasize a Few Commitments and Do Them Well.

Although shaping the classroom and school climate is the most effective strategy for fostering the desired dispositions, educators may want to offer instruction and facilitate evocative experiences to help initiate particularly needed dispositions.

Formal Instruction: Although on its own it will have little impact, there is value in introducing students in a formal way to the dispositions that are especially valued. This would include helping students understand the nature of the disposition—for example, what it means to be open minded or to show respect for others. In addition, there is value in helping students become more aware of the situations that require the disposition. For example, one is most likely to be in need of open-mindedness and respect for others when disagreeing with others. Also useful is helping students increase their capacity to act in ways consistent with the desired disposition. For example, strategies such as pausing before speaking out and trying to see things from another’s perspective may help students be open and respectful.

Evocative Experiences: Powerful evocative experiences can motivate students to care about desired dispositions. Unlike a reinforcing atmosphere, whose goal is to gradually habituate students to particular frames of mind, direct experiences present students with opportunities to encounter for themselves, vividly and emphatically, the power and merits of certain ways of being. We have all heard stories of students who were inspired by an encounter with a cherished hero or a life-changing outdoor learning experience. Often, these direct experiences—whether brought about vicariously, through simulation, or in firsthand encounters—will open students’ minds and hearts to perspectives and possibilities they would otherwise miss or downplay. The following box suggests how various evocative experiences may encourage students to begin to think and act in desired ways.

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