On the Same Page

The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools

On the Same Page

January 2004

Lab School Resolutions for 2004 - Part I

It's that time of year for resolutions. Some of us make them because of traditions surrounding new beginnings. Others, like me, make resolutions because of our guilt in failing to control dietary impulses during the holiday season. Just as individuals can resolve to do things differently or better, so too can groups, organizations, and, yes, especially schools. Let me suggest two that the Lab Schools' community should consider for 2004.

Resolve to "fill a pail and light a fire.
Resolve to maintain respect and civility.

Both of these resolutions need to be fully developed and, therefore, I will address the first in January and the second in February.

The Irish poet William Butler Yeats said, "Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." While Yeats was an excellent poet, I don't believe that he spent much time teaching young children. His emphasis may have been correct, but I believe that both 'pail filling' and 'fire lighting' are present in the best of classrooms. Indeed, inspiring children's learning through active engagement is the foundation of progressive education, and surely there have been many fires lit and pails filled during our 100-plus years of Lab Schools' history.

The "filling of a pail" has, in some areas of our program, taken a very appropriate secondary position to 'lighting a fire.' Rote memorization of facts and drilling for mastery have been replaced by student initiated and directed learning, creative problem solving, and an emphasis on thinking carefully about what is being learned.

While I applaud this approach and find it fascinating to watch in so many of our classrooms, we cannot forget that we also have a responsibility for ensuring that the pail is filled. Examination of the curricular content is an on-going responsibility of good schools, and we should always be able to state that what is being taught is current, relevant, and meets the test of time. We should have a systemic approach to curriculum development and be sure that every major discipline has the chance to fully discuss, debate, and plan fully for what needs to be learned during the twelve-plus years that a student is in our schools. We should be sure that each of our courses and programs clearly expresses the expected student competencies desired for all of our students.

Some educators have taken pail filling to an extreme. The late philosopher, Mortimer Adler, created quite a stir at the University of Chicago in the 1930s with his push toward a "great ideas" curriculum found in Great Books of the western world. E.D. Hirsch, Jr., prescribed through his Core Knowledge curriculum what he believes all American children should know. More recently, the standards movement has refocused attention on the content of what is being taught in American schools and what we should expect all children to know and demonstrate.

From my perspective, knowledge by itself has very little utility. All of us know at least one person who is an incredible warehouse of information but rarely uses it in a productive and meaningful way. It is the person on fire who gathers information, looks at it critically, and finds a way to use and share it.

Perhaps the greatest pedagogical tension I feel at Lab is the earnest attempt to find the right mix between 'filling a pail' and 'lighting a fire.' I believe that it is a healthy tension and should be on all of our minds as we make individual decisions about what works for each child. 'What works' is the operational part of the preceding sentence and is what makes teaching so engaging, challenging, and rewarding.

As I enjoyed the joyful Lobby Sings in Blaine Hall preceding the holidays, my eyes drifted to the Dewey quote inscribed in the sandstone mantelpiece above the fireplace. It reads, "True Education Frees the Human Spirit." Surely, by identifying the right mix of "filling a pail and lighting a fire," we will be doing our part in freeing the human spirit.

Happy New Year! Stay tuned for Part II in February.

David W. Magill
Director