The Productive Struggle of Learning

Anyone who has been in a classroom within the past 10 years knows that most students want instant gratification. These students expect teachers to somehow pour information and understanding into their heads, with no great effort expended on their part.

Walk into a hypothetical classroom. Let's say it is a middle school Math class. The teacher has just introduced new material using an I Do, We Do, Y'all Do approach. She has gone over the procedure for the students, worked several problems with the students, had the students work in pairs or threes on some examples, and is now ready for students to show that they understand the procedure individually. She puts a practice question on the board for students to work. Immediately, several hands go up.

She goes to the desk of the first student who indicated that he needed help. He says that he doesn't understand. She asks what he doesn't understand. He points at the problem and says, "that." She asks the student to write the problem down. He does, and waits for her next instruction. She asks him what the first step is. He replies, "I dunno." She talks him through the first step. He waits for her to do the next step, declaring that he doesn't understand. (Other students are waving their arms frantically, seeking help.) He refuses to take any step that the teacher does not describe step by step. Finally, with several other exasperated students waiting, she simply works the problem for him so she can assist someone else.

The student has (in his eyes) achieved success. He has the correct answer to the problem on his paper, so he is not in trouble for not complying with instructions. He still does not know how to work the next problem that he sees, but he is okay for now. He has achieved another "success," as well---He has trained his teacher to do his work for him.

I call what this and many other students who operate this way do "learned helplessness." These students have learned that if they will simply demand continued assistance from the teacher, that the teacher will spoonfeed the answers to them. They are not achieving the classroom learning objective, but are not in trouble for not working because they are being "compliant" with what they were asked to do. So, these students put in very little effort, and resultantly learn very little.

True learning---learning that results in a student being able to reliably recall and use the appropriate skills when confronted with a new problem---requires what I refer to as "The Productive Struggle." Learning is not a passive process. Learning requires active engagement and struggling to incorporate new knowledge and skills. Unfortunately, our focus on "meet them where they are" and focusing on not allowing a student to fail has produced a school culture that all too frequently produces "Learned Helplessness."

When a teacher recognizes this "Learned Helplessness" and tries to force the student to refer back to other examples, to complete the steps he does understand before asking for help, etc., the reply is an angry, "YOU AREN'T TEACHING ME!" Then, the student goes home, tells Mom (with a generous supply of alligator tears, of course) that the mean old teacher does not like him and never did. That teacher is refusing to answer his questions, and will not help him. The teacher is going to cause him to fail. The next morning, an angry parent calls the Principal, explaining how "something has to be done with that teacher." The Principal asks the teacher what is going on and explains what the parent said. The teacher is now upset that her Principal may believe that she isn't doing her job. So, she acquiesces to the student's demands. Again, she has been trained by the student.

But, alas! There is hope. While we may struggle to find anything positive amidst a pandemic, here is one positive point: This is an opportunity to force our students to perform on their own (within reason). Distance-learning and shortened face-to-face classroom interactions necessitate students doing much of their work without synchronous interaction with a teacher. This is an excellent opportunity to teach students about the productive struggle of learning, and the confidence, self-esteem, and improved performance that goes along with it. This is an opportunity to help students build pride in overcoming obstacles. And, it is an opportunity to return to celebrating performance as we cast away the participation trophy mentality that created this problem.

Certainly, we do not advocate leaving students to struggle without support. We do not advocate the "I taught it, but they didn't learn it" mentality among teachers. What we advocate is retraining our students to understand that teachers create learning opportunities, support that learning, and provide feedback and reteaching as necessary to ensure that the efforts made by the student result in desired outcomes. We must support our teachers in demanding that students put forth the effort to struggle through the process of learning. We must rebuild a sense of work ethic in our students and rebuild the understanding that teachers, students, and parents are all responsible for fulfilling their roles in teaching and learning.

Article by: Delynn Bouldin, Chief Academic Officer at Academic Improvement Solutions, Inc.

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