Right Brain Education - A Teacher's Perspective

In the world of early childhood education, there seems to be two different sides:

First, there is the world of Play based, Hands on learning.
This is the approach I learnt in college. Children learn through play, active exploration, and should have the freedom to choose their own learning activities. They do not advocate worksheets & flashcards.

Then, there is the flashcard/right brain way of learning (Glenn Doman, Shichida, TweedleWink).

In a nutshell,
Glenn Doman first worked with children with brain damage. Then, he applied the same methods to normal children. His approach uses flashcards to teach babies reading, foreign languages, maths spots, doing complicated equations, swimming, encyclopedic knowledge etc.

Shichida is a professor from Japan. He believes that the right brain has its own 5 senses: telekinesis, telepathy, clairvoyance, tactility & precognition.
The right brain also has abilities that the left brain does not:
- high speed mass memorization (photographic memory, speed reading)
- resonance (able to receive waves)
- high speed automatic process function (able to do complicated math calculations automatically)
- image visualization function (able to visualize and make what they visualize happen)

TweedleWink is in a way a combination of Glenn Doman, Montessori and a bit of Shichida, too. It is a gentle, loving approach with the motto Relationships before Results. In the class, they go through 8 different learning areas: Vision, Vocabulary, World, Music, Reading, Math, Science & Art. It is an exposure of general knowledge and topics range from learning about Ethiopia to horse breeds to conifer seed cycle.

What I wonder is, why not have the best of both worlds?

What I know for certain is that early childhood is the best time to start educating your child. Children have sensitive periods for learning and they learn faster and easier when they are younger.

My guideline is: as long as the children enjoy it.  I'm not encouraging parents to teach by making them sit at the desk without moving and just listen and do homework. Sadly, many think that teaching young children is torturing them and they make comments like "sad, nowadays children got no childhood.. Every time go for classes, start learning so young. Last time when I was young no such thing and I turned out OK." Well, just because you "turned out alright" doesn't mean you couldn't have turned out better.

Children actually enjoy learning!! YES REALLY! It's the education system of drilling and meaningless memorization which makes us grow to dislike learning. That's sadder.

I believe a holistic learning program will incorporate all the various methods, not just look at one side. Yes, children need lots of play where they can explore, run, jump, pretend, discover, imagine. Yes, children need hands on learning. Yes, children also learn from flashcards. They can learn reading, maths, expand their knowledge and the best part is, with flashcards, it only takes 5 - 10 minutes a day. If the children enjoy it and can learn. Why not?

Oh and a very important belief of mine: I believe that at the end of the day, character building is still much more important than cognitive development. What is the point if your child is super smart & bright, but is arrogant. Think of the long run. What is the purpose of education: to get good grades? Or to learn & love learning?

The even sadder part is that in Malaysia, most preschools and kindergartens are not using either approach. Not play based, not flashcards. They make 25 children sit for most parts of 4 hours or more a day and listen to the teacher without moving and do worksheets. Way to squash creativity! Go figure.

Struggles

I have recently started a new job. I was quite looking forward to it as my friend who introduced me the job is very impressed with the system and everything. I thought it is play-based, but it's not. To be honest, it was a let down. However, I can't just leave the job after two weeks, can I? So I've decided to stay there and learn what I can and just make the best of the situation.


The sad thing is, I've got to conform and do what I've been taught not to do. I've got to accept that this is the kind of kindergartens parents in Malaysia would send their children to. The kind I would send my children to (unless I plan to home-school my children). So that they are prepared for primary school. Especially if they're going to Chinese school. How else can they manage and keep up with the mountain piles of homework?


Let me just describe briefly the center. I am at the 5 year old school. There are 5 classes with around 20 children in each class. Means there are 100+ five-year-olds. The classroom uses an open concept, meaning that there are no walls dividing the classes. So when one teacher teaches, the other teacher can hear. Children have their assigned places and it is very teacher-directed. The teacher will teach and the children will listen. They have homework to bring home everyday, and they will be having their exams next week. Poor children =( The subjects they study are mainly bahasa, chinese, english, maths, with about one or two periods of art & craft, gym, computer, science, innovation each week.


Obviously, the main focus is on language. And its mostly reading and writing. Even in language, they do not have much storytelling. For english its mostly learning blends, vowel sounds etc such as ba be bi bo bu. Lots and lots of drilling and repetition. For mandarin its mostly recognizing words. For bahasa its learning new words and separating suku kata etc. Very Very Dull, in my opinion.


But, thinking back, that is what I went through when I was in kindergarten. I pulled through and I am alright. Is it wrong that children have to go through this? I mean, they can always have their play after school, can't they? I am really confused as it is so hard to practice what I learn in the real world. I am kinda starting to doubt the effectiveness of play based methods in Malaysia. Don't get me wrong - I know that play is good for children, but how far can play help children in terms of discipline? And discipline is greatly required in our schooling systems.

Speaking about discipline - it is actually one thing I admire about the school; but at the same time, one thing I despise. It is admirable that they can get the children to follow instructions and to keep quiet. But sometimes I feel they go too far. In the sense that, I myself can't sit through a college lecture without chatting with my friends, or letting my mind wander all around the world...and u expect a FIVE-YEAR-OLD to? 


I'm really really confused right now on what I should do. On what is the best way to combine the two extremes of play and of academic work. I guess I still have a long way to go and a lot of learning to do.

Play

For one of our previous assignments, we had to set up a booth at the cafeteria to educate the public regarding developmentally appropriate practices. I made some bookmarks to give out to the visitors and came up with this slogan for the bookmarks: "Play is the Way Kids Learn Best" 

My eight-year-old sister, my biggest fan and supporter, watched me as I made the bookmarks. And she made her own bookmarks and came up with her own slogan:

"Now is time to play! Kids learn more and faster!"

Bookmarks my eight year old sister designed

See, kids themselves advocate play!

Hurdles are obstacles; but you jump over them

I am a relatively new teacher. I entered the field of ECE in 2007 when I started teaching the 6-year-olds in the Sunday School Programme in my congregation. I was the assistant teacher then. In 2008, I was the assistant teacher in the 2-3 class. In 2009, I became the main teacher of the same class. (Of course, now they are 3-4 years old.)

I was awfully comfortable teaching these children as I've been with them for two years and I had lots of fun with them. I thought I have already moved past the Survival Stage and entered into the Consolidation Stage (Lilian Katz's developmental stages of Preschool Teachers)

But I suppose it's just not that easy! This year, I have a new batch of students to teach. They are two to two and a half years old. I was looking forward to teaching them but admit I did not foresee the challenges ahead.

Last year, I usually told the children a Bible story and gave them some crafts or activities to do which is related to the story (Sunday School is only about 1 hour). So, during the first class, I went to class armed with a story book, but as I started telling the story, the children's eyes wandered off to other areas of the classroom and they told me they want to play toys and they went around the classroom taking everything from toys to colour pencils to sharpeners... Knowing that children this age are curious about the environment and I shouldn't have expected them to sit still in the first place, I relented and let them play the toys, putting the storybook aside. It was back to the Survival Stage all over again.

So, for the next few weeks, I put in extra effort in preparing more hands-on activities for them.

My theme is: God Gave Me My Senses

A simple puzzle to match the senses to the correct places.

A texture book for them to touch

They enjoy touching the sand

Making the shakers to hear the sound

Playing play doh

Playing with the animals

It is certainly rewarding as I watch them learn in a way that is meaningful to them. I admit I am not the best teacher yet, but I am learning =)

*Permission obtained from the parents of children in the pictures published.

Creativity

What is art?

Is art copying a picture the teacher pasted on the board, following exactly what the teacher drew and the colours used?

Is art created by holding a child's hand when he's painting so he won't paint out of line and dirty himself?

I've seen a center doing arts and crafts such that if they're making a house, the teacher would cut out the shapes nicely: a square, a roof, two windows, a door, a chimney, two clouds, three patches of grass, nine flowers...The teacher doesn't allow the children to hold the glue, they might get dirty, you see, the teacher puts the glue on the paper, puts the cut out pieces onto the glued area on the paper, and tells the child: "press."

Is this art?

Art is not for display purposes. The emphasis should be on the learning process, not on the end product. Don't underestimate the importance of art. Children learn loads through art and craft.

Let us look at the 5 main developmental domains:

1. Physical - Children learn to use the pincer grip. It helps them as they begin learning to write.
2. Intellectual - Creativity can improve their problem solving skills; they learn to think out of the box. Through art and craft, children also learn about shapes and spatial sense.
3. Language - If you ask a child to draw a picture regarding a story you just told, it can show the child's understanding of the story. Children also create new stories through art and craft. Their creativity and imagination is way beyond the levels of adults'.
4. Emotional - Children have the opportunity to express themselves. They also have so much fun in the process. Besides, they will feel a sense of accomplishment - they feel proud of their own work.
5. Social - Children share their art works with others, work together on art projects.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. Children learn so much through art and craft. Don't hinder their potential. Don't insist they colour within the lines. Don't scold them if they want to colour everything blue. Their concept of beautiful and your concept of beautiful is totally different.

Provide them opportunities to draw. You don't have to give them line drawings to colour all the time. You can just give them blank papers. Provide lots of open ended materials. It doesn't have to be expensive. You can collect recycled materials for them to work with and be amazed with what they can come up with!

Here's an article from The Star regarding creativity and children:

Nurturing a Child's Creativity

Childwise

by Ruth Liew

Passive copying and writing will not turn children into creative individuals.

IN a class of five- and six-year-olds, there will be children with different levels of abilities and interests. Some like to sit quietly to listen to stories, while others prefer to tell their own stories.

Whether it’s reading or maths lesson, children need to work off their irrepressible energy.

They want to be able to show off what they already know and can contribute.

M, a five-year-old boy, is a challenging child, according to his teacher. She has not been able to get him to do much writing work like the rest of his friends in class. He is not one to sit still.

The day I replaced his English teacher for a session, I found him most interesting. He was not only a student in the class, but a teacher. He had ideas of his own.

Being his usual self, he decided to do his own thing. He was focusing on recipe writing like the rest of the class. It was just that he did not follow what was written on the board.

I thought he might want some help. So I called another child, who had completed his work, to give him a hand. This turned out to be quite interesting.

M did some writing on his own but was delayed by his own ideas. He took out a storybook and copied the pictures from the pages related to the writing that he was doing.

The rest of the class dutifully copied everything on the board and handed in their exercise books when they were done.

M depicted his work through his pictures and not words. They meant more to him than the few lines of words.

Children can take initiative in their work when they are given the freedom to do so. Sadly, this does not happen very often in many classrooms.

Many people believe that children should learn to pick up the necessary technical skills in reading and writing first, before they start expressing their ideas.

So children often spend their time writing in workbooks and exercise books at school and at home.

Their ideas are ignored because they have not the qualifications to really know what is right for them.

To promote creativity in children, we must give them the right environment to work in.

The work that they do must be important to them. Expecting them to sit quietly and write lines of words will not make them any wiser or more creative.

Children need to find ways to express their ideas in pictures or in words.

They can also create their ideas in clay structures or paper mache. Some may like to dance and sing to express their ideas.

I worry when I see children sitting perfectly still in their chairs writing away lines of words or numbers. It is just not natural. They like movement and they have a lot to say. They want interactions between adults and children, not instructions.

I met another five-and-a-half-year-old boy many years ago. He is now probably in his mid-twenties doing what he really likes – writing. His mother told me that he was studying journalism.

When he was attending my daycare programme, he would ask for the recipes to the snacks and drinks he enjoyed every afternoon. He copied them down carefully.

When asked why he needed the recipes, he responded: “These recipes are for my mother. Now she will know how to prepare the same food for me.”

Children can learn to be responsible if they are allowed the freedom to lead and to create.

Their development as individuals is more complete when they take charge of themselves and what they learn.

The time I spent with M and his classmates made me realise that children could be their own teachers. All they really needed was for me to support them when they were on the right path and offer them guidance when they needed it.

When two children fought over some toys, another child immediately suggested that I send one child packing home and not let him continue playing in the class. They knew what to do in every situation.

Children learn best when they are deeply involved.

When they can identify with what they are doing and learning, they will want to participate and pay attention. Children can stay focused in activities that they are interested in.

If we can only accept how children learn best, we will not be demanding that they complete pages of homework that they find rather boring.

Instead, we can encourage them to create their own homework which they feel is important; this can make learning more effective.

When acceptance is combined with positive expectations, children are made aware of their own strengths. They will discover the potential within them.

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Parents and teachers, let us not hinder these creative beings' potential!