The Case for Authentic Learning

“The Case for Authentic Learning” by George Rislov first appeared on the CompassLearning Navigator blog.
It was John Dewey who created the notion of “learning by doing.” His famous line was, “Education is not preparation for life: Education is life itself.” And years later it was Jerome Bruner who stated that it wasn’t enough to learn, say, history. The more successful approach would be to teach students to think like a historian. The ideas of these education philosophers, and others such as Johann Pestalozzi, are making something of reappearance in the call for more authentic learning experiences in an age of extensive testing. Authentic learning could be defined as learning that involves real-world tasks and problems. Testing, and the preparation for it, would be seen as decidedly un-authentic. Overemphasis on testing and test preparation was recently called “a perversion of what was intended” by outgoing Texas Commissioner of Education Robert Scott.
There is a real desire among many teachers to move away from rote learning. The flipped classroom, in which students receive direct instruction at times other than class time, reserves teachers’ time with students for more authentic activities, such as projects or simulations. Organizations such as Future Problem Solving Program International and National History Day provide formats and competitions for students to hone their skills and create authentic products.
To find out more about authentic learning, read this white paper by Marilyn Lombardi, which lays out a thorough overview of authentic learning for the 21st century. Also, we’ll be hosting a webinar on November 15th with noted education consultant Dayna Laur who will guide you through the basics of authentic learning with lots of examples for all levels of students. “Like” us on Facebook so you don’t miss Dayna’s authentic learning registration announcement.
Teachers: What’s your take on authentic learning? Are you incorporating opportunities for your students to experience authentic learning in your classroom? If so, we want to hear about it in the comment section!
CompassLearning is a Getting Smart Advocacy Partner.

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1 Comment

Torn Halves
11/2/2012

Isn't the opposite also true? E.g. history: we need to tell the story and pass it on, and make sure the children are in a position to retell it in their turn, with their own spin. To be in a position to intelligently appreciate the partiality of that story, they need to look at how historians and others have put it together, but if we think that that is the only authentic historical education, we will have missed the real essence of the matter in hand.

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