Learning faster doesn’t mean learning better

As a future special education teacher, I am especially concerned about the constant need for students to learn faster, which, in turn, is believed to make them more intelligent. Students may be memorizing information faster, but not actually learning it. Memorization and learning are two different entities.

For example, a mathematical understanding is not merely a subject to memorize. Mathematical understandings take time to deepen and take root. The deeper the concept is embedded within the brain, the easier the information will be able to be retrieved later on. In math, prior understanding of previously learned concepts is crucial, as each new idea builds off previously learned knowledge.

Do teachers have this time to teach concepts? Well, with the state standards resting on their backs, they often do not. Each year, teachers receive more and more standards to teach to. If some children do not understand a concept, there is no time to go back and reteach, the teacher must keep on trucking.

Are the students' best interests the focus during the school day? I would like to see the lawmakers and education curriculum specialists try to find time to keep moving at the speed of light and then find time to squeeze in the reteaching of multiple lessons.

Caitlyn Zewen

Luxemburg