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Covid disrupted American kids' schools. It might be a chance to change them for the better.

Traditional classroom instruction has failed our children for years. The pandemic may be an opportunity to adopt student-centered, hands-on learning.
Image: A child looks up at planets made of thermocol, paper rockets and windmills orbiting around his head
Instead of have students fill in worksheets and memorize information to reproduce on tests, we can encourage them to think for themselves.Anjali Nair / NBC News; Getty Images

When the coronavirus hit, overnight and with little preparation, teachers found themselves instructing students exclusively online. The results have not been pretty, as teachers, students and parents across the country can attest.

While mistakes have been made in the turn to online learning, most of the practices that have failed to engage students merely highlighted challenges that have existed for years.

But while mistakes have been made in the turn to online learning, most of the practices that have failed to engage students merely highlighted challenges that have existed for years. This new vantage point reveals that a redesign of traditional classroom instruction is long overdue.

We have known for decades that traditional teacher-centered classroom instruction is not producing enough of the independent, self-motivated learners we envision for the future. Instead of acquiring 21st century skills like critical and creative thinking, problem-solving and entrepreneurship — the kind of skills today's employers crave — students too often learn to defer to their teachers and textbooks, figure out the information they will need to know for the test and reflect back the ideas their teachers have taught them.

Because traditional methods have failed to bring the results we need, we should adopt a fresh approach rather than simply accept the status quo and do more of the same: student-centered, hands-on learning. Instead of have students fill in worksheets and memorize information to reproduce on tests, we can encourage students to think for themselves. This mode of instruction is not a new idea, but it may be one whose time has finally come.

In the early 20th century, the philosopher John Dewey observed that children learn best by doing, when they're actively involved in trying out and experiencing what they learn, not just being told what to think. He argued that inviting students to engage with and explore their environments would lead to deeper motivation and more permanent learning.

From the 1930s to the 1980s, leading thinkers like Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky and Jerome Bruner joined in the constructivist movement — a school of thought that views students as actively constructing their own knowledge as they search for answers to questions that arise from their experiences, rather than simply receiving information from teachers and other experts. They argued that education needed to follow children's natural curiosity rather than deny or impede it.

More recently, in 2010, important scholars funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and other major social philanthropies created a series of reports endorsing student-centered learning for high school students, especially the lowest achievers, disproportionately students of color and students in poverty.

Thanks to these thought leaders, practices rooted in student-centered learning are reaching broader networks of educators. Teachers who have embraced this pedagogy are acknowledging the importance of meeting students' social and emotional needs as well as learning goals. They are assigning schoolwork that students complete outside classrooms in their home environments, narrowing the gap between school and children's lives that can make school otherwise seem irrelevant.

Science projects, for instance, use household materials; environmental study requires a walk around the block; astronomy relies on what students see out their windows at night. These teachers are trusting their students by requiring them to complete work independently and in small groups. They have de-emphasized grades in favor of alternative assessments, such as projects and journal-writing.

These strategies produce students who take ownership of their learning and think critically. The skills they master better prepare them to succeed in higher education and work settings, where initiative and analysis are valued.

Yet, despite all the evidence supporting student-centered learning, private schools that have greater resources and promise an education customized for each student are far more likely to employ this pedagogy. Public schools, especially those in under-resourced urban and rural districts, face major hurdles in creating the conditions for student-centered learning.

For starters, many public school teachers continue to be trained to deliver classroom-based instruction to students who expect to be told what they need to know. Those who educate teachers tend to focus on methods that put the teacher in control of the classroom and student learning. But strong emphasis on classroom management often undermines efforts to engage students by giving them greater freedom.

Accustomed to controlling the classroom and expecting compliance, teachers can then feel insecure with this new approach. And students require serious deprogramming to meet higher expectations and take responsibility for their own learning.

There are also physical impediments. Given large class sizes, teachers often insist that all students do the same thing at the same time, an approach antithetical to breakout groups, independent study and other hallmarks of student-centered learning. Classroom spaces where teachers take center stage before large groups also reinforce the existing hierarchy of well-defined roles for teachers and learners, who have little space to move and gather. In addition, standard 45- or 50-minute subject-specific class periods make collaboration difficult and do not allow time for deeper study.

The pressures of standardized testing, however, have probably created the biggest barrier. For most school districts, the ability to respond correctly to test questions has driven curriculum and instruction since No Child Left Behind became law in 2002. Good schools brag about high test scores, while parents and policymakers alike demand accountability and insist on concrete numbers they can use to evaluate schools.

Despite all the evidence supporting student-centered learning, private schools that have greater resources and promise an education customized for each student are far more likely to employ this pedagogy.

The transformation the pandemic has forced upon us creates a perfect opportunity to try out a different pedagogy without fear of failure. Because testing has been suspended or its importance has been downgraded in many states and the bar for online instruction is low, the risks are not great. In addition, the physical constraints of the classroom have been removed as pupils study at home.

Stressed-out teachers, eager for support, can get assistance from resources about teaching inquiry skills and implementing project-based learning from peers around the country, as well as experts.

By empowering students to set their own learning agendas, especially during these uncertain times, teachers can help them make meaning out of a world that is not revealed in their textbooks. When this moment passes and it is time to go back into the classroom, schooling will never be the same.