School closures are an opportunity to battle-harden students' independent learning
Let's invest in building young peoples' capacity and appetite for organising and grappling with things on their own.
Sharon McCutcheon, Hampton Beach, Hampton, NH, USA, Child of COVID-19, Coronavirus, social distancing. March 18, 2020.
It really does seem as if this viral cloud could have an educational silver lining – for those school leaders who have already been training up their students to take greater control over planning, trouble-shooting and evaluating their own learning. If they have already begun to taste the pride and satisfaction that comes from figuring things out for yourself (both alone and together with peers), then school closures will be a great opportunity to battle-harden that independence. But students who have been trained to be compliant and dependent – to know only how to learn when they are being spoon-fed – will be much more at sea. And their poor teachers will be having to work their fingers to the bone digitising all their traditional lessons.
I’m reminded of a friend of mine who used to teach history at an independent school in England. George loved his A-level teaching especially, was a knowledgeable and inspiring teacher, and prided himself on getting great results. But he has always been puzzled by one thing. The year his students did best of all in their A-levels was a year in which George was away from school for a crucial 6 weeks in the spring term, and he was replaced by a very mediocre supply teacher! How come? They weren’t an especially gifted set, so the only explanation was that they just had to set to and organise their learning for themselves. And in doing so, they worked harder, had to think more deeply and independently – and Hey Presto! Better results!
As we in the Learning Power Approach have been saying for some time, invest in building your students’ capacity and appetite for organising and grappling with things on their own – with an appropriate amount of checking, supervision and quality control – and you have a Win Win Win situation: better results, better preparation for the independent learning that universities and colleges will require, and more enjoyable teaching. What’s not to like?
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Lately, I've been paying much more attention to the economy in WoW Forever. wow gold seems to disappear quickly when you're buying supplies, repairing gear, learning skills, or getting ready for challenging dungeons. I'd love to find more efficient ways to build up my WoW Gold without spending all my playtime grinding. What are your favorite money-making methods? Any hidden farming spots, profitable professions, or simple gold-making tricks that are worth trying?
The point about how unexpected disruptions can force students to take true ownership of their progress is really fascinating. Beyond traditional academic subjects, independent learning today often extends into digital and creative projects—such as students editing their own media portfolios, producing short films, or building side projects where tools like bgchanger come in handy for efficient video background removal and replacement. When learners are trusted to manage these kinds of creative workflows independently, it builds practical problem-solving skills that serve them well beyond the standard classroom.
I've been spending more time exploring WoW Forever lately, and one thing I've noticed is how much gold management can affect your overall experience. Between repairing gear, training skills, buying supplies, and preparing for dungeons, having enough wow gold makes progression a lot smoother. I've been looking into different ways to manage gold more efficiently without spending all my playtime farming. How do you guys usually handle your gold economy? Any farming routes, professions, or money-making tips you'd recommend to other players?
The George anecdote is striking, but I wonder whether it proves the value of independence or simply the value of a well-designed curriculum that students could navigate without him. Those students still had the syllabus, past papers and expectations to guide them. That seems different from asking children to organise their learning from scratch during a sudden closure, with no structure at all. How do we tell the difference between genuine independence and simply being left alone?
Related resource: https://worksheetgenerator.org/
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