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Teaching Tips December 1, 2009 |
The change of the calendar year is often a time of looking back at the passing year, giving thanks for God's faithfulness and provision. We remind ourselves of the gift of Christ – rejoicing in salvation, yet mindful of the work He is still doing in us. We examine ourselves within the limitations of our own reasoning to look for New Year resolutions – most of which dissolve in the demands of daily living.
Many homeschoolers take stock, too, to review how the academic year has gone so far and to see if any changes need to be made. For many of us, change is swirling all around us, threatening to capsize our homeschooling efforts. Rough economic times. Job challenges. Elderly parents to care for. Health issues – with our children and ourselves. Governmental uncertainty. What can we do to stay on target with our homeschooling goals? I'd like to share with you a business tool that relates remarkably well to teaching, and to the vision of homeschooling in particular. It comes from Debbie Rossi, a veteran homeschooler and support group leader, by way of her husband, Paul. He acquired it through a business seminar. I have been unable to track down the original source to give credit where credit is due. If you know where it originated, please let me know. It appears to have been based on a similar model from Church Growth Resources in Ontario (http://mtbx.m3mr.net). The chart is designed to help executives manage change. It displays the required elements for any successful endeavor: vision, skills, incentive, resources, and action plan. If you've been visiting this website for any length of time, you know we talk a lot about having a vision for our homeschooling. One of the major changes in homeschooling over the years has been the explosion of resources now available to homeschoolers. This bounty has made it easier for many people to homeschool, providing the necessary skills to teach their children. The element of incentive really has two parts. The first is what drove you to homeschool. Learning problems in school? Bullies and the threat of violence? Bad influences? Anti-Christian bias in the curriculum, school, or teachers and students? A desire to spend more time together as a family? A longing to instill godly character and values? The chance to design a program to meet your child's needs and talents? Whatever the reason or reasons, the incentive is yours. The other part of incentive is what motivates your student. Can you build on the child's natural curiosity and desire to learn? Or has it been drained out of your child through the school system? Does your child need encouragement to want to learn? Is the child ready to learn? How can you channel your child's energy toward learning? All these questions have to do with the child's will. Both aspects have to do with behavior and discipline – your own and your children's. As you go down the chart, you can see what happens when one of the components is missing. Without a strong sense of vision, where everyone involved understands the mission, you can have all the resources and skills available, but you'll end up with confusion. Those resources aren't targeted toward a united goal. If you don't have the skills needed to complete the task, you become anxious; if you don't have the resources needed, you become frustrated. Two lines in particular seem to affect homeschoolers. The fourth line lacks an action plan. This is the same as goals and objectives for your program. You know you are to homeschool, you've found some great looking curriculum that you feel you can use successfully, and the whole family is excited to get started. But if you don't have measurable objectives to chart your course, you'll end up spinning your wheels – starting one thing, but never quite finishing it. The last line highlights what happens when the incentive is missing. Change or progress takes place, but it's gradual. I've seen this happen with families who have started homeschooling not because they believe in the concept, but to escape a bad situation or because the school system wasn't working for the child. And that's certainly a valid reason. But without a strong sense of why homeschooling is so important, it seems to become a half-hearted activity. The children learn, but probably not to their full potential.  (Zechariah 4:6) |
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