Learning to Unlearn

In the book The Connected Educator the authors talk about how as teachers we must learn to unlearn. This a hard concept to think about at first. When I first read about this concept I had a hard time understanding it. I thought about it as I am in college learning to teach so why would I unlearn? Aren't we supposed to build on our prior knowledge? The whole concept left me feeling lost.

After the initial shock wore off and I had time to think about this I saw where this can be useful as a teacher. I can see a few ways where it would be beneficial. First, I think that when someone decides to become a teacher they have preconceived notions about what a teacher does and who a teacher is. Through my classes and experiences in schools I have seen these beliefs challenged and in many cases shift.

We also have to unlearn how to teach in many cases. The ways that I was taught information in school, in most cases, are no longer acceptable. This has changed based on research that is constantly occurring to see if children can learn content easier if it is taught in a different way. I think that there is a constant cycle of learning that occurs as a teacher.

I also think that as teachers we need to unlearn every new school year. Every year we learn about our students. We learn how they learn and about their personal lives. We learn how to reach them and how to teach them. We have to unlearn all of this with each new year so that we can relearn about our new students. Some practices might carryover, while others need to be adjusted for the new students. It is the teacher's job to learn about their students and create a classroom that meets those needs. If they don't, then the students are the ones who suffer.