True sports fans Beware!
A Kentucky fan who doesn't know much about basketball is about to
explain why she doesn't buy the practice for tests/practice a game sports
analogy.
Sports have never really been my passion, but when I moved
to Kentucky almost nine years ago, the contagious Kentucky Wildcat fever was
difficult to shake. In the high school
where I taught, sports were as important as they are in most high schools. Our administrators commonly used sports
analogies to explain why they thought we should practice for the state
assessment. It never really made sense
to me—was that because I wasn’t a true fan? Or because I wanted to do more than
practice for tests?
Me: “Why do we
have to force so many practice tests on our students?”
Administrator: “We
wouldn’t ask the players to go on the basketball court after practicing
football all year, would we? Test
practice is the same thing…we have to practice the tests so the students will
score well and our school test scores will improve.”
I didn’t buy it then and I still don’t. Students will not have a passion for learning
if all we ever do is practice for tests and if we measure the success of students
and teachers based solely on summative test scores.
As I watched the big Kentucky Wildcats versus Louisville
Cardinals basketball game last night, I listened to the sports commenters and
the coaches talk about skill associated with effective play. I didn’t hear—they should have practiced
more. I did hear— “A summer in the
weight room and that player will have what he needs.” What if we equate the conditioning and muscle
building a player does in the weight room to the critical thinking and creativity
that sharpens the brain when we engage students in meaningful learning in the
classroom.
Let’s celebrate the wins of students who can make plays that
can’t be coached just as Kansas Coach, Billy Self, suggested when asked about
the Kentucky players his team will face Monday night for the National
Championship. As
quoted in the Lexington
Herald Leader “…They're terrific. They're great. They have guys who can
make plays you can't coach."
