Professional Self-Development

And, this is the state of direct instruction strategies that are related to "drill."

"Drill" currently enjoys a level of disrepute as thinking skills, problem solving, constructing higher-order knowledge, learning through literature or project-based communication or Multiply Intelligent styles.

So, what happened? How did the "quick-repeated-practice baby" get tossed with the "overdo-it-to-the-exclusion-of-all-else" bath water?

Easy. We pumped in another quick-fix, overdose of "teaching to the test" as we let drill in all its forms, morphs, iterations and disguises flush down the drain.

Good Reasons: Not Good Riddance

Of course, there were good reasons to limit the stifling, unrestricted use of drill. For example, drill was used…

• To keep minority students quiet and under control, never mind that they learned very little by means of this method


• By inexperienced teacher, by uncreative child dislikes, and confidence-challenged teachers in lieu of risk taking, personal interaction and experiment-to-see-what-motivates-students-to-achieve professionals


• AS an "easy way out" by the "walking-retired," by the somnambulant moonlighters who focused more of their personal time and resources on the other job, and by the folks with couch-tomato energy and skill who believed that they were hired to oversee seatwork


• By the lazy, the burned-out, the bitter, and the "trapped-in-the-job" folks who marked time to the &I can't wait 'till I'm outa [sic] here" drum

Memorization: No More Allure

Blame it on the Internet where billions of pages of content can pop on screen with the typing of a few choice search terms.

Blame it on knowledge expanding so fast that no-one can keep up, or on knowledge becoming so fluid that there are no constants.

Sidebar

Just 50 years ago, everyone knew that there were nine planets and that an atom had three parts that could not be divided (now we know that protons and neutrons are made up of quarks and leptons). Saturn had two rings (now countless), and Jupiter had nine moons (now 63 and counting).

Since you are NOT using "Drill" Strategies, Why do we Bring it Up?

The reason that we bring this issue of the "death of drill" up is that we need to re-introduce some drill (within reason).

For example, people used to have to remember several telephone numbers. Now, their telephone or their PDA remembers these numbers for them.

Likewise for addresses.

And to find the latest facts, Google™ is able to provide up-to-the-minute access to the most relevant, authoritative and timely information.

Even better, a search of Wikipedia™, the most "authoritative" site that Google™ can recommend; can result in an army of minion editors revising the content, on-the-fly, as you watch it change!

Stress of Complexity

Many students experience stress when confronted with a world that is complex, intricate, fluid, ambiguous, evolving, dynamic and unstable (if only cogitatively).

Providing knowledge that seems solid and stable is soothing and comforting to children at the "concrete" level of cognitive development.

Sidebar

We haven't forgotten that children seem to pass through a series of cognitive stages before they are ready to run the high-stakes test marathon, have we?

Giving some students the security of knowledge that will remain stable for a short time will increase their ability to focus. This is especially true of the 75% of students that prefer hands-on, tactile, kinesthetic leaning modes. Visual learners may be comfortable with picture-screen images that change every ten seconds, and auditory learners get to adjust to the transient nature of sound. But, our physical universe should not be changing at electron speed, and hands-on learners would like for that bit of their learning environment to remain static.

Memories worth Knowing

Basic Building blocks of knowledge are worth memorizing, even if drill, flash cards, buddy practice encompass a sliver of the daily learning schedule.

For example:

• The names of the teacher, principal, classmates, brothers and sister, maybe even the name of the current president are worth memorizing


• It would be nice to know the room number, and which seat is assigned


• Knowing the school bus number corresponding to the route home, and an emergency telephone number for contacting parents would be a plus


• Remembering the steps of the Scientific Method makes sense, as does remembering the steps to renaming (borrowing and carrying). and the steps to long multiplication and division (students might not have their cell phone when they need to perform a calculation)


• It might be nice to remember that our number system is Base 10, and that computer use a "Binary System," i.e., Base 2


• Basic formulas for perimeter, area, circumference, etc.


• Add your own crucial facts to this list

The Raw Ingredients of Creativity and Problem-Solving

What drill haters often overlook is that memories are the raw ingredient for creativity. Most creative people have sparkling and snappy memories. And, the unconscious mind needs a storehouse of memories, readily available, if ideas are to be incubated, hatched, nurtured to fruition.

Not every skill is enhanced by a key press. Mental acuity and the ability to think, communicate and interact engage components of learning that require more than an online interface.

Help your students memorize useful information in fun and stress-free ways, and they will appreciate you for it.

Besides, friends and family often amuse themselves at get togethers by asking questions and quizzing children about items of common knowledge. If the students can't recite basic knowledge, friends and family will…

• Assume that you aren't teaching your students anything


• Question whether they are getting their money's worth from the school taxes that they pay


• Think that your students are slow learners, are falling behind, or are mentally retarded

Prepare your students for the holidays, and they will appreciate you for that, too.