Why getting stuck is a good thing.

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If teachers could have a pound for every time we hear, "Miss! I'm stuck on..." we could all retire to the Bahamas. Being stuck is uncomfortable - just ask Pooh - it's frustrating and if you stay stuck too long you can start to feel like a failure. So surely as teachers we should make sure our learners don't get stuck, shouldn't we? And if they DO get stuck shouldn't we pull them out as quickly as possible?

I'm going to make the case for being stuck being a good thing.

Look at it this way, if your learners never get stuck, how do they learn to get unstuck? How do they develop the resilience to stick at something until they get it? Short answer - they don't.

The kids I work with get stuck A LOT. They have missed a lot of school for one reason or another and so have huge gaps in their knowledge and skills. They will hit a point every day where they don't know, don't understand or aren't able to do something. They come to us ashamed, frustrated and angry or (which is worse) defeated and passive. They come to us well and truly stuck.

Being stuck however is an opportunity:

  • it is an opportunity for me to learn what they don't know
  • it is an opportunity for them to make real progress
  • it is an opportunity to ask for help and develop trust that they will receive it
  • it is an opportunity for them to develop resilience and perseverance

I tell my learners that being stuck means you have to struggle a bit, but that the struggle is where real learning happens. If you never get stuck then you are not reaching your potential. Be proud of the struggle.

If I really do my job right, then I can even teach my learners to LIKE being stuck. It can be fun to puzzle over something. I like to show them mystery object pictures like this one:

I ask them to tell me what they think it is. We get all sorts of answers - all wildly wrong and often hilarious.  And then they what they do is start asking questions. I answer the questions until they get it - it's a Victorian ice cream maker by the way.

What do we take away from this activity? 
  • That it's ok not to know things. 
  • It's ok to be stuck - it's just not ok to stay stuck for too long.  
  • That someone else may be able to help
  • That the struggle can be fun
  • That we are all in this together


Comments

  1. Joanna Bonetti22 October 2016 at 14:54

    Good reading, Anna. I'm sure you're already familiar with this wok, but if not, Karen Reivich's Seven Protective Factors to Resilience is fascinating, as is Carol Dweck on Mindsets.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Beatrice23 October 2016 at 09:07

      Thank you for your comment - I find the idea of the growth mindset useful when thinking about overcoming problems although I am not sure I agree with it all. I have not read Reivich properly - only summaries - so thanks for the steer - I'll have a proper look.

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