I dont like school: 10 COMMON REASONS WHY STUDENTS SAY THEY DON’T LIKE SCHOOL – CLC Academy

Опубликовано: April 28, 2023 в 7:29 pm

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Why Don’t Students Like School? by Dan Willingham

Why Don’t Students Like School?

Dan Willingham’s Why Don’t Students Like School? is one of the best books I have ever read for teachers. Thank you for letting me explain why this is a book you must own for yourself.

Confession: It took me two years to read this book.

It was not because I didn’t like it. In fact, the opposite is true. The reason is this:

I had to have a conversation with nearly every page.

[And I don’t want to hear any book purists criticize me for folding pages. I learned at the feet of a master, so blame Ryan Holiday.]

I left no page untouched. They all look like this (at least).

Along the way, I developed a neurocrush on author Dan Willingham, who has no idea I exist. Sigh. It’s high school all over again.

Because I wanted to continue my book date with Dan, I would put the book down, allowing myself only a few pages at a time. I stretched it out like rationing my fave Halloween candy.

What I liked:

Everything. Simply Everything.

This is one of only two books teachers need to be amazing. (The other is Doug Lemov’s Teach Like a Champion, which I briefly mention in this article). I know, I know. Only two? Yes, if they’re these two.

Let’s dive in a little deeper. What exactly is so amazing about this book, you ask?

What you’ll learn in this book:

Here are my take-aways from just the first two chapters (page numbers are in parentheses):

  • “The brain is not designed for thinking. It’s designed to save you from having to think”…because of this, “unless the cognitive conditions are right, we will avoid thinking.” (3).

  • “We normally think of memory as storing personal events…our memory also stores strategies to guide what we should do” (7).

  • We derive cognitive pleasure from the solving of problems, not being frustrated by them or having answers given to us (10).

  • Teachers should make sure there is a level of cognitive work that “poses a moderate challenge” (19) – avoid long string of teacher explanations” (19).

  • Don’t overload the working memory.
  • Respect the limits of what kids already know and create intriguing questions the knowledge they have will answer.
  • Shift often.
  • Keep a diary – recording success – (be your own scientist).
  • “It is often true (though less often appreciated) that trying to teach students skills such as analysis or synthesis in the absence of factual knowledge is impossible” (25).
  • “Factual knowledge must precede skill” (25).
  • “Chunking works only when you have applicable factual knowledge in long-term memory” (34).

  • “Good readers” has a strong connection with “good knowers” – you understand better what you know better.

  • Background knowledge is important because it provides vocabulary, allows to bridge writing gaps,  allows chunking, and guides interpretation of ambiguity.

  • Explanation for 4 th grade slump (37) as shift from decoding to comprehension, which is much more dependent upon background knowledge.

  • Even if you comprehend equally, if you have background knowledge, you’ll remember more (42).

The part where he had my back:

I particularly liked his explanation of how teaching experience is not the same as teaching expertise.

As someone who has led professional development for tens of thousands of teachers, I would love to have this emblazoned on the sign-in sheets. So many people come thinking that because they’ve taught for x number of years, they don’t need any more training.

I have had many people actually say this to me.

And the rest of the book is like that. It’s imminently readable and practical.

Why Don’t Kids Like School? is so, so worth reading if you are an educator.

The part where I got nervous:

In the chapter on how to help slow learners (Chapter 8), I got nervous because this is where the super aggressive anti-gifted kid people usually show their true colors, forcing me to drop them like the proverbial hot potato.

I literally read the chapter with my shoulders scrunched up, waiting for the “don’t label kids as gifted” ax to fall. I’m feeling especially vulnerable to this because of some anti-gifted rhetoric recently.

Luckily, I agreed in principle with Dan. I do think it takes more explanation, though, so let me provide it.

My mini-lecture in support of gifted education

Dan shares some of the anti-praise research, and I’m a big fan. He says, “How can it be a bad idea to tell a student she’s smart? by praising a child’s intelligence, we let her know that she solved the problems correctly because she is smart, not because she worked hard. It is then a short step for the student to infer that getting problems wrong is a sign of being dumb” (182).

Note: My grandparents are deaf, and I object to the use of the word “dumb” in this context, but I understand and accept that others outside of deaf culture may not mind.

Okay, so what needs clarification in my opinion is that this idea that praising ability instead of effort is damaging is being used to argue that you shouldn’t label kids as gifted. I’ve written about this before, and it needs to be said again and again, especially when big names like Jo Boaler at Stanford are singing this song.

The distinction is that identification of children for gifted services is not praise.

Dan says that intelligence is seen as desirable, and I agree that is where the problem comes in. Because it is seen as desirable, people possessed of it are often envied. Envy leads to hate and resentment.

It does not actually matter whether the child in school is smart because of nature, nurture, a complex interdependence of the two, or a good sale on neurons at Amazon.

The gifted child in school needs assistance in a very similar way to that the child who is a slower learner does. They are atypical, and they need help in navigating an environment created for the typical.

Do we require proof of how a child obtained a learning disability before we meet their needs? Do we worry that the label “dyslexia” will be harmful, so we just force them to go for it with no help? We used to, and we harmed hundreds of thousands of kids.

We cannot let this not be true for gifted students simply because some people have used the label incorrectly.

It is critically important that students understand why they’re smart, what being smart really means. It means (probably) that their native intellect combined with their environment and experiences, leading to effective thinking practices.

They must apply those effective thinking practices through concerted, diligent practice and effort in order to be successful. If they do not, they will be far less well off than those of typical intelligence who apply themselves.

It doesn’t mean things will be easy, that they don’t have to work, and that if they struggle, they need to take the WISC again.

Identification is not praise. It is acknowledgement of difference.

Would you agree, Dan? If not, it may cure my crush permanently.

Wrapping Up

 Usually this is where I add in what I didn’t like, but in this case the only thing I can think of is that some of the pictures are a little cheesy, but that’s partly the publisher’s decision about print quality, so I won’t hold it against Dan (who of course can do no wrong in my eyes).

Go get Why Don’t Kids Like School? You need to own it. You need to read it. You need to do these in that order because of all of the marginalia you’ll write, even if you’re a purist.

Worth Reading Rating: A rousing and heartfelt 5

You can learn more about my Worth Reading Rating System here.

(Note: this post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a few pennies if you make a purchase using the link, but it doesn’t cost you anything.)

10 things kids hate about school (and 10 they love)

What is it about school that stirs up such passions in our kids? We asked an informal panel of school-agers across the country what they adore and abhor about school. Not surprisingly, many say recess and gym light up their school day. But others just love learning about everything — from bugs to boats. Here are kids’ report cards.

10 worst things

1. Homework hassles
Not surprisingly, homework tops most kids’ hate lists. “I have a T-shirt that says, ‘Home and work are two words that should never be together,’” says 11-year-old Alex Jones* from Guelph, Ont. “When you’re home, you should be doing home stuff!” agrees 10-year-old Tristan Mills, who also lives in Guelph. Older kids juggling multiple subjects feel especially overwhelmed. “I don’t like when every teacher gives you homework and projects and tests…and you spend all day doing work because you have these deadlines all at once,” complains one grade-nine student.

2. Too-simple subjects
Some students crave more challenging work. “Music could be more advanced,” suggests a grade-five future maestro from Nanaimo, BC. “We learn the notes go from A to G, when most of us already know that.”

3. Frosty recess
Escaping class to play outside is not always blissful. “If it’s really frozen and cold out, you’re not [supposed] to go back in,” says nine-year-old Owen McGreal from Hamilton. One grade-seven student says he hates mingling at recess because “there are really annoying people who find it fun to put other people down. ”

4. Wearying words
Ditch school jargon, kids advise. Nine-year-old Olivia Mater of Guelph, Ont., doesn’t like the “fancy words some teachers use, like ‘nutrition break’ and ‘dismissal routine.’”

5. Lunch-break blues
Lunch feels like a dine and dash, especially for sociable grade-seven and -eight students. Alannah Clarke, a 14-year-old from Pugwash, NS, yearns for more than 37 minutes. Other kids loathe their lunchtime venue. “I can’t stand sitting on the gym floor to eat lunch,” says Graham Mater, 13, of Guelph, Ont.

6. Numbing numbers
No secret some kids would like to subtract math from their daily routine — not always for the reason you may think. “I hate math because my hands get sore after all that counting on my fingers,” explains a seven-year-old from the Saskatoon area.

7. Excruciating silence
It’s hard to zip your lip in a room full of friends. “Silent reading gives me a headache because everyone has to whisper during that time — like ‘What do you want to do at recess?’” says six-year-old Noah Viitala from King City, Ont.

8. Toilet trauma
Sharing school facilities with the opposite sex — as some kindergartners do — can be challenging for little ones. Kirsten, a fastidious five-year-old from Newmarket, Ont., hates “when the boys leave the seat up on the toilet, and they sometimes pee on the floor.”

9. Wheely boring busing
As nine-year-old Katelynn Wynen knows, heading to school by bus is a drag. “You don’t have much to do except talk, stare out the window and maybe read,” says the Eden Mills, Ont., student.

10. All work, no play
Bottom line: Kids just want to have fun. “I’d rather stay home and watch Arthur and Princess Diaries and Ella Enchanted all day,” says one seven-year-old. Spencer Johne from Mississauga, Ont., who is plugging away in grade one, is wearied by his workload. “(I hate) all the work. Because I just want to play.”
10 best things

1. Terrific teachers
Thirteen-year-old Graham Mater loves when his favourite teacher shares personal experiences. “Time limits don’t seem to matter, and he never cuts off a discussion.” Younger kids have different criteria for teacher excellence. “I love all the candy they give us and (my teacher) sings all the time!” says Tyler Bradshaw* of Ajax, Ont.

2. Extracurricular excitement
Choosing from a varied smorgasbord of sports and clubs delights many students. “[I] the wide variety of sports and extracurricular activities,” says Alannah Clarke. Participating in basketball, soccer, track and field and the “hospitality committee” jazzed up her grade-eight year.

3. Getting out and about
Day tripping thrills most kids — whether it’s to a science centre, conservation area or jazz concert. And extended adventures, such as five whirlwind days in Ottawa or Quebec City, help students and teachers bond. As 13-year-old Nicole Shaw* from Guelph, Ont., says: “I like getting to know the teachers outside the school setting because you can find out what they’re really like. ”

4. Peer pleasure
Socializing — that all-important school perk, especially for preteens and teens — is even better when classmates are diverse. “I think it’s pretty cool to meet kids from other cultures at school,” says 10-year-old Keely Sifton of Nanaimo, BC. “I have friends from South Korea, India and Denmark.” Also, many kids enjoy being reading buddies, or helping younger students conquer tricky snowsuits, lunch containers and shoelaces.

5. Piqued curiosity
Some classroom sessions are unforgettable. One five-year-old “just cannot stop talking about how a chrysalis turns into a butterfly.” Plus hands-on learning is always a hit: A science class involving a baking-soda-and-vinegar-powered toy car mesmerized one 10-year-old.

6. The pause that refreshes
For many kids, nothing is more beloved than recess. “I like recess because we don’t work during that time,” says 10-year-old Maxime Forcier of L’Île-Bizard, Que. Instead, they explore outdoor playground equipment, chat and play games like Grounder. To play: “You spin, chase and tag kids,” explains one seven-year-old.

7. Creative classes
Despite the time some projects may take, many kids are proud of their finished creations. King City, Ont., grade-one graduate Noah Bishop* relished researching and presenting his findings about lobsters. Aspiring authors and artists are thrilled to launch their books and artwork at school. “I love Published Stories, where we get to publish the best of our journal writing,” says a thoughtful grade-three student.

8. A moving experience
Gym class is the perfect antidote to carpet sitting and desk work. Noah Viitala loves gym games like Pluck the Chicken. Team bowling with mini-pylons is a winner for Alex Jones. Other junior athletes take sport seriously. “You get to learn other strategies to help you run, like breathing patterns and pacing yourself,” explains a grade-five phys. ed fan.

9. Super celebrations
Sometimes, kids just want to party like it’s their birthday! “The best thing about school is all the parties we have on special days, because I get to play games and eat lots of snacks,” enthuses Hayden McGreal, who whoops it up in grade one in Hamilton.

10. Well-rounded routine
Six-year-old Catherine Johne of Mississauga, Ont., succinctly sums up the school experience: “You do work, you do recess, and you do some important stuff. You do drawings and write, and it makes your brain learn a lot. That’s what I like about school.”

*Names changed by request.

This article was originally published on Jan 09, 2007

Personal stories: why I don’t like school

What emotions do you experience when you remember your school days? Do you dream of returning to that time or do you try to forget it like a bad dream? The author of Manshuq Nailya Galeeva and two other heroines of this material are more inclined towards the latter. Why? Read in stories.

Nailya Galeeva


Hi all. My name is Naila and I don’t like school. Shy applause. If there were support groups for those who want to forget school days, I would go there every week. The more I think about school, the more I understand that if I have a daughter, I do not want to send her to our educational institutions. I don’t want her to be judged by her looks, ridiculed for being overweight, or bullied for not conforming to the stupid, dubious canons of beauty. I do not want her to go to boring subjects, to study what she will not need in life, which is contrary to her nature.

I don’t want her to feverishly prepare for the UNT during the last two years of her studies, on which the future allegedly depends

I cannot and do not want to say anything bad about the teachers: I am grateful to them, and I understand how difficult it is to work with children and teenagers. My mom and dad are teachers, I know it’s a titanic job and I respect people who dared to go to school.

I didn’t go through severe bullying, but when you study at the school where your mother works, you constantly have to prove that she didn’t ask teachers for your good grades. My mother, on the contrary, went to the teachers and said: “If you don’t pull it, put a three.” And still there were conversations behind his back, laughter, rumors. Therefore, my mother insisted that I enter the capital’s university, where I can achieve everything myself, and then no one will even utter a word that someone helped me there.

At school, I was in a state of constant tension: I must not disgrace my mother and father, I must study perfectly, I must be smart and obey adults.

And how fiercely I hate this UNT – I can’t express it in words or interjections!

When the scores were posted with the results of the intermediate weekly UNT, I was seized by a terrible fear that I scored few points and my parents would be unhappy with me. And if in algebra I always had triples, then tests in literature simply killed with their stupidity. I don’t understand how you can cram such a unique subject into dry test questions? Does knowing what color Chichikov’s coat was at the ball show how I understood the work and how I interpret it? By the way, the frock coat was a lingonberry color with a sparkle, in case you were wondering.

I don’t want to say anything bad about the school I went to. It’s more about the education system itself

I still don’t understand why I, an absolute humanist, needed algebra or geometry? If in the first one there were still some laws that could be understood even by my stupid little head for numbers, then with the second everything was very deplorable. I have no spatial imagination – that’s what I learned about myself in geometry lessons. Teachers were asked reproachfully: “Do you like to read and imagine characters and their actions in your head?” But it is one thing to represent the village life of the Larins, and quite another to represent the hypotenuses and legs. In general, I did not have a relationship with the exact sciences. Yes, and physical education. Both physics and chemistry too. At school, I sincerely loved two subjects – the Russian language and Russian literature. Kazakh literature is also among my favorites, but I still cannot read it in the original.

It is clear that I was not a popular girl at school

You know, recently I realized that the songs of Dima Bilan pulled me out of the quagmire of my teenage complexes. It’s funny to you, probably, but at the age of 16 these simple poems about selfless love and other sentimental nonsense helped me a lot. If I ever meet Dima, I will definitely thank him for helping the fat and insecure girl so much. Although now I can’t listen to it for a long time, even when nostalgia kicks in.

Once, at the stage of a school Olympiad in Russian, I wrote an essay about why I consider books to be my best friends. I simply have nothing in common with my classmates, and I don’t want to speak badly about them. After all, they still remember my birthday and don’t allow themselves any hurtful remarks. But I still won’t go to the reunion of graduates – I didn’t like school too much, despite the fact that there were a lot of good things in it.

Tomyris

26 years old

I have two kinds of memories of school – there were both good and bad. Now I try to remember only positive moments: our concerts, competitions, hikes, classmates who became my friends, the teaching staff, which was quite powerful.

If we talk about the bad – about bullying – it certainly was. I first encountered bullying in kindergarten, when one boy pinched my stomach fat and called me names.

After that, the stigma of “fatty” firmly entered my life

In elementary school, the tendency to call names and make remarks about my excess weight did not stop, but even intensified. I remember there were adults who said that perhaps such harassment would help me lose weight. But this is not so at all. Bullying cannot affect you like a “magic pendel”.

I was under a lot of stress that made me want to eat more

It was impossible to get out of this hell, and, unfortunately, no one could help me. Plus, being overweight wasn’t the only reason for bullying. Since I was the only child in the family, my parents took care of me in every possible way, which was also a reason for ridicule. Each time, I, already a quiet and modest girl, huddled in a corner, closed in on myself, embarrassed of myself and my parents.

In elementary school, I didn’t understand why other children were so cruel to me. And in middle school, bullying from peers became even harder to accept. Transitional age and raging hormones pushed me to thoughts of suicide. My friends helped me get out of this hole. In middle school, when I made friends with other girls, life got easier and I stopped feeling like an outcast.

As for school teachers, I can say that I am grateful to them for the knowledge they have invested in us, for always being honest, fair and sometimes struggling with our laziness and selfishness. Special thanks to the psychologists of my school, who were always open.

I remember my classmates as smart slobs

Many of them were really capable, just lazy. Several of them showed particular cruelty and arrogance. Sometimes I remember how they mocked my other peers, throwing their things out of the window, standing with their feet on their desks and chairs, humiliating them verbally, extorting money and things. I don’t keep in touch with most of them. I don’t know if they were able to realize that they were spoiling the lives of other classmates. More likely no than yes. It’s been ten years since I graduated from high school, and to be honest, I’m not interested in knowing what became of them. Am I ready to meet? I could easily meet with all my offenders, but I don’t see the point in this. Most importantly, I forgave them. First of all, for myself, to bury all children’s grievances, traumas and live on. Already at an adult and conscious age, I realized that they projected their pain, fears, experiences with the help of aggression, these children were deeply unhappy. As far as I know, many of them have experienced parental divorce, adult bullying and indifference, and some even drug addiction, poverty and unwanted pregnancies.

Daria

27 years old

I never liked school. It wasn’t hate, the way teen movies tend to show it. In my school life, there was no bullying on such a scale that I didn’t want to get up in the morning and wait in horror for the moment when I crossed the threshold of the school. I didn’t like school for very banal reasons: it was a very boring place, with boring and quarrelsome people – both students and teachers.

I didn’t like school because I fell asleep during boring lessons

And although I studied perfectly well, the exact sciences were bad for me. And if, for example, in mathematics I had strong teachers, and it was in my mindset, then endlessly replacing each other teachers in physics did not try to interest this subject. As a result, I have a huge gap in physics, even at the everyday level.

My school period came at a rather strange time. These were the 2000s, people only recently experienced the horrors of the nineties, they still remembered the shortage and censorship of the Soviet era. People of that time were distinguished by carelessness, which could not but affect educational institutions. Yesterday’s university graduates were often accepted into the school, and communication between students and teachers gradually moved to a more mundane level. High school students, due to a small difference in age, addressed young teachers as “you”, the communication itself was informal, moreover, they communicated outside of school and even attended evening events together.

The gap between students and teachers only widened

If earlier students treated the teaching profession with respect, now they have seen what kind of people who do not know their subject can come to work in a school. These people lacked knowledge, endurance, and by and large they were still children themselves. These people in the classroom often preferred to simply read a paragraph from the textbook and give the task strictly according to the training manual. And in the worst case, they could chat the whole lesson with the students. In my school, unfortunately, this is exactly the situation with young teachers.

In the end, looking at everything that was happening, I began to feel a kind of contempt for the teachers, and we began to arrange real persecution of young teachers. I don’t remember how we came to the conclusion that we need to harass teachers. We made a real mess in the classroom, exchanged notes, played cards and sea battle in the back desks, drew comics on them, chatted, laughed and even ate right during the lessons. And when the bell rang, they left without even writing down their homework.

Masculinity in my school could be a separate article. Modest boys with slight delays in sexual development suffered from it, and school “alphas” sadly ended their lives. School “alphas”, at least in such remote regions of the country in which I grew up, ended up in prison or a condition. At best, such a school “alpha” simply decided to rob grandmothers at bus stops, and at worst, he broke into houses or committed murder. Some of the “alfachi” immediately after graduation (or even earlier) became young fathers and husbands. The same boys who, during their school years, could not demonstrate the qualities that a typical school alpha male should have, were subjected to severe harassment from both boys and girls.

As for me, I have never been popular enough to lead this parade, and at the same time I have not been hunted. It’s just that almost all this time I was insanely bored with both teachers and students.

Interest in alcohol, sex and even drugs grew out of this boredom

There was no sex education in our school. Yes, they explained something to us about pistils and stamens, they explained to the guys how to properly put on a condom, but this topic was exhausted, because everyone felt shame. Both adults and children. No one explained to us about the importance of the verbal consent of the partner and that persuasion is also harassment.

Surprisingly, I experienced bullying after I left school, about four years later. Over the years, I became more and more distant from my former friends, we had less and less common interests and topics for conversation. I moved to another city and entered the university thanks to my parents. Classmates stayed where we lived. A few entered the university, most of them went to college, but many did not work a single day in their specialty. Many have been in toxic and addictive relationships, married and had children quickly.

Once they told me to my face that I was conceited. I had no desire to engage in polemics, and I simply stopped communicating. Then I was removed from our class WhatsApp chat for zero activity.

And then I found out that there were all sorts of unpleasant gossip about me

Of course, after all this, I never went to reunions and I can’t say that they were waiting for me there. I don’t like school because of the narrow-minded classmates, the class system and the endless struggle. For the fact that I myself was and am in it.

Illustrations: Sohail Amir Layan

Why I don’t like school

June 11, 10:43 am

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NOT EVALUATION MAIN

Almost a month of summer has already passed. For me, this means closing the session. For someone – another summer vacation or graduation from school. I remember my school days. I almost always attended classes conscientiously. However, for the last two years of study, I simply hated school, saw no reason to go to graduation, although I knew that I would be awarded a gold medal and many certificates of all sorts of Olympiads. It so happened that throughout the training I was an excellent student. Perhaps for some this is a good prospect. However, in high school, it became a burden for me. Autumn began with preparation for the Olympiads: the Ukrainian language, mathematics, ecology, history, chemistry – that’s such a variety. I went to some because I was interested, to some because I just wanted to win, to others I was “dragged” by teachers. I studied everything, and it worried me a little. Then I did not know yet that the best option for me was to choose two or three subjects that I would take for the UPE, and not fill my head with unnecessary information. Now I open my younger sister’s school textbooks and understand that I neither remember nor understand most of the material. Perhaps, if I were now offered to write several control tests, the grades would be very different from those in my certificate.

Mathematics was the worst. Frankly speaking, I stopped understanding her in the eleventh grade. The teacher didn’t like it. She understood that I needed to be “pulled” for a medal, and she didn’t want any extra problems.

It was just as difficult with the Ukrainian language. Evaluation of UPE in this subject went to my certificate. Therefore, the teacher did not dare to put a semester grade until the last moment (although according to current grades, 10 points were obtained). I was afraid that the result of the STA would be less. In the end, I passed the STA in the Ukrainian language with 12 and 10 turned into 11. As you can see, I don’t like school not because they give homework there, not because I have to go there five times a week. I don’t like school because it’s not your knowledge that matters, but grades. And the teachers support it. Of course, this is not the case in all schools. And this is purely my experience and subjectivity.

NO CHANGE

I have been out of school for three years now. As they say, I was a little let down. I sometimes feel nostalgia for school classes, teachers and female teachers. Almost always, when I’m at school, I go to the teacher’s room. With the teachers with whom we once quarreled in the principal’s office, we can now sit down for tea. Yes, and the school itself has changed a bit, outwardly, though. The creation of a community in the city, the status of a pivotal school – a new renovation as a result.

Recently, before the holidays, I went to school. For some reason, I again wanted to return to childhood and sit in the classroom. As you can guess, I chose not a lesson in mathematics or Ukrainian, but foreign literature (it was one of my favorite subjects). I was going to just sit and listen, but the teacher suggested that I speak to the students. It was sixth grade. In general, they were supposed to have a control, but they decided to reschedule it. So I started talking about my student life and how I “grew up” during those three years. I really liked that the teacher of world literature from time to time asked me questions and gave the children analogies of my own experience and literary works. Then I began to talk about my most valuable experience – volunteering. When I asked the sixth graders who knew what it was, only three raised their hands. And just as I began to explain, the classroom doors opened. The head teacher came in and told the teacher to let the students go immediately.