Student+Poll+Sue+08

Student Poll

Curriculum is primarily planned for students.

What do they think they should be learning about in schools?

Post the responses you received to the student poll you conducted.

Please use a subheading (including your name) as part of your contribution.

Week 3 - What Should We Teach?

 * Thanks for your poll results all. I want to challenge you from a different perspective and ask you to consider the way you presented your information. Thyen look at the way others presented theirs and decide which format was the most effective for the task - ie easiest to read and make meaning of. It is always important to consider the text type you use to present info. Sue**

I talked to a six students at various ages and it was interesting to see their answers.
 * Student Poll ~by Sarai McDougall**

I spoke to a uni student who thought that music needed to be taught in schools more. It helped with mathematics, literacy (lyrics), co ordination, emotional support and general well being. She believed that numeracy and literacy and music were the three core things students needed to know. In a broader context, she felt science (including geography), history (specifically Australian and local) and philosophy/mythology/religion.

I spoke to four high school students in varying grades. They thought about primary school when they answered and said they wished they'd been taught time management skills more and how to schedule. They thought the 'core' subjects (literacy, numeracy, science, history, geography) were important but that some more 'real' skills like time management, cooking, how to deal with big life changes and maybe another language should all be taught. They feel school should be about more than information. I was really impressed with their answers (especially as one of the girls was about 14).

I then spoke to a ten year old girl who is currently home schooling in grade four. She listed what she was currently learning (spelling, handwriting, maths, people and places) and then said she thought that news should be taught in schools. I thought this was an interesting suggestion. She also mentioned dancing because she loved to dance. I find it interesting she didn't mention science but I have a feeling that might be because it's not in her personal curriculum as her parents are not very science based.

29/7/10

**STUDENT POLL:** The student poll was a very worthwhile task in understanding what actual students think about what is being taught to them currently in the classroom. Out of the eight students surveyed, they all found maths and English as the subjects with the strongest emphasis. Six out of the eight students thought that not enough attention is being focused on the arts and information technology subjects, although they said that this probably wasn’t as important at their age (7-13) because technology changes as such a rapid rate, that what they learn now, probably will not be relevant in five years. The arts such as drama was not given any attention. All the students thought it was necessary to be taught in the way they are currently, but would like to explore more of the arts. Their view is in some contrast to the media article where Principals wanted a more simplified curriculum focusing on the four core subjects. One reason why the two views are different may be because teachers feel students are not getting enough learning in the four core subjects, where as students want the chance to express and explore more ‘creative’ subjects at their younger age.. Jason Blundell - 27/7/2010

Susan Nielsen I really have enjoyed this task of discussing this question with many students on their thoughts and views. I spoke to a range of students form grade 2 to Yr 11 at college. The range of students from low socio-economic schools to private schools. The question what do you think you should be learning in school was easy to understand by all students. Students most regarded was their friendships as an important element to their school experiences and how to help them participate in a school learning environment. Nearly all places maths the predominant learning area, on to reading, science, and art were their areas of interest. Though writing/literacy was mention, ICT was more interesting to them and learning the skills to get a job was an important mention by ages 11-17. There were differences between boys and girls, but mainly between the ages and this I believe being a development process where the old children were thinking skills for their future, their preferred interests and recognising their learning styles. I discovered opinions and views of students that were being supported by a parent or parents were likely to share their ideas about what they need to learn at school. The students that I would call the struggler to grasp learning shared their interests of art, PE/sport, play, science and ICT. Due to the fact they possessed learning difficulties in literacy and numeracy when asked which one they enjoyed it was maths. Numbers attracted them more than letters/sounds/ writing and reading. I will share that the this applied to mostly boys but there was some girls who shared this view. The differences exist because its gender interests, ability, support in and outside of school as well as age.

Student Poll grade years 7 - 10. I completed my survey with 8 students. I chose one male and one female student from grades 7 up to 10. I asked each year group of students separately what they thought should be taught in schools and if they thought what they were being taught now or in past years was relevant to their lives and futures. Surprisingly I received a really positive outlay of feedback and ideas, there was some negative commentary from the two grade 10 students but their observations were quite relevant and meaningful.

The two students in grade 7 stated that they thought subjects like math, science and English should definitely be compulsory as they equip people with valuable life skills for future prospects. They continued on to say that mostly these subjects are the boring ones to sit through and concentrate on but sometimes and depending on the teacher it can be made half interesting. Both students agreed that subjects like art, music, MDT, dance and drama, cooking and ICT should all be compulsory in the curriculum as well. A couple of the reasons that they gave were, “Things like art, cooking, drama and dance allow us to express ourselves individually, they may be hard for some but mostly they are less pressure and we have the space to be ourselves through work and creation” and “I like metal/woodwork and art mainly because I have a cool teacher but he lets me work how I want to work and encourages me to be different, I produce some cool stuff and he likes it!” Judging from these sorts of comments I think that the students enjoy freedom and the responsibility of taking control of their own work. To end the discussion they expressed that they didn’t really see much relevance in some of the things that they are taught, they feel more like time fillers but primarily they thought that the things they were learning would be preparing them for the future and one day maybe they would be put in to play.

After the grade 7 students I spoke with the two grade 8 students, they actually have very similar views to the grade 7 students. I think he difference here was that they had more of a sense of the school, they were more comfortable in their role as students in high school and had experienced much more than the year 7 students. One of the students in particular had quite a heavy outlook on most teachers which I think was putting a twist on what he thought should be taught in schools. He expressed to me that he did not think there was a point in learning anything at school let alone turning up if the teachers were mean, rude and threw students out of class all the time for doing nothing wrong. After I had coaxed him around a little he did say he enjoyed things like bike riding, basketball, soccer, woodwork, metalwork, art and even cooking and that these things should be taught in schools for every grade, some not just as elective subjects in the higher years. Both students stated that although they know English, maths and science are subjects that will help us become literate and numerate and so forth they were really hard to learn, especially if they had a difficult teacher. One student commented that when she had a relief teacher for three weeks last term she had learnt a lot from her and her lessons were fun. Both students then agreed that lessons should be more fun and hands on.

I spoke with two grade 9 students about both topics. They commented on that they have been learning about how to keep themselves healthy in HPE. Both students agreed that they have been learning a lot and really like the content involved with the subject. One student said “The teacher brought in mars bars, coke bottles, chips and bags of sugar for us to work with and we had to figure out and calculate the fat and sugar percentages for each product. We were given plastic cups and spoons and we had to figure out how many teaspoons of sugar were in each product. I won’t be drinking coke again!” What I though was actually quite funny about this was the next comment from the second student “I wish our math classes were like that, that’ll be the day.” He had real feeling in his words when he commented back and we spoke a little further about it and come up with some really good ideas. The students said that there should always be compulsory boring classes because that’s what school is mostly about, learning to read, write, spell, count etc but the day should weighed up by something fun that they enjoy. After we had spoken a little more in depth about what subjects they enjoyed that could actually be possible within a school they both agreed that the subjects like, art, music, cooking, MDT and so on were the most achievable within a schooling context. Things like motorbike riding were less achievable. I feel that both students went away from our conversation with slightly different views on school and the curriculum, the subjects that they are offered. I feel like we may have out a new meaning towards schooling for them.

I then spoke with two year 10 students, one is a peer support leader and the other coaches the year 7 boys basketball teams. These students were great to talk to, they were mature and moderate in their thinking about the curriculum and what is best for students today. We wrote a list of what subjects were currently being taught across the board for the school and we spoke about each of them, are the relevant? How are they and why are they? There were two main subjects that stood out to them as subjects that should be predominantly exposed within the school and should be readily available to all students in each grade, they were; creative computing and business studies. The main reason the students felt that both subjects should have a heavier focus on them is because they are subjects that encourage, motivate and teach for the future. The future is shaping up to be technology, computer and online based so computing and the creative side of computing (creating websites, blogs, and advertisements, virtual cartooning etc) should be exposed. Business studies is only offered in grade 10 as an elective subject, students believe that this should be available for everyone as it is fun and so much can be learnt from it, there is not enough time in one half of a year. Overall, the grade 10’s had a good sense of what school should be and agreed that every subject that they currently had in school needs to stay.

Media sends mixed views. There seems to be a heavy push on literacy, numeracy and history in schools these days and a very small emphasis on the visual arts, music and ways of learning to express who we are. When it comes down to it, bar the attitude, mood swings, stubbornness, eye rolling and talking back, I believe that students have a good view of the curriculum and the subjects that should be taught in schools. From the small group of students I spoke with I gained great understanding in to how they think and feel about some subjects they are taught. The vibe I got from the students is that as long as the teacher is a good, positive, motivated, respectful teacher with a healthy, reasonable attitude towards the students, the content could be anything. Students know they are at school to learn (although at times we are fooled by their confident social beings) and if given the right opportunities to, they will. Elle Davy

Student’s views varied when I polled them on what they thought they should be learning at school. All of the students had activities that they would add to the school curriculum including driver education, basic first aid and ICT. The students who selected these activities varied in age. The polled primary school students were keen to learn more about using computers in their primary school years. The lower high school students wanted to know more about first aid and the upper level of high school students wanted driver education to be added to the school curriculum. All of the students had suggestions of what to take out of the school curriculum, including anything they perceived as boring, such as maths, SOSE and literacy. In the article titled ‘Risk of overcrowding teaching program’ published in the ‘Age’ April 26, 2010, the author conveys the notion that the curriculum is in danger of becoming overcrowded. He states that some schools are teaching responsible pet care, beach rip safety and table manners. Although these are things today’s student needs to know, surely it is not the role of a school to teach what the students family/social experiences should. The school system cannot take the role of a student’s family. The school curriculum is already packed with important subjects such as maths, science, history, ICT and English. These subjects must be the school’s first priority whilst they leave their students families to take on the role of parenting and bringing up their own children. Different expectations on the school system come from different groups of stakeholders. It will be impossible to construct a school curriculum that will satisfy all parties, as there are many different views and expectations on what the school curriculum should contain. Lynda Harmer
 * Student Poll **

Student survey I have asked two seven year old what they would like to be taught at school. The girl said she would like to learn more about animals (she wants to be a vet) and learn how to cook. The male student said he would like to learn all about Star Wars and do science experiments all the time.

A six year old boy said he does not mind what he is taught in school as long as it is interesting and not too hard.

Two eight year old boys said they would like to do more sport and science experiments. One of them said he would like more art lessons.

A five year old girl said she just wants to dance all the time and learn about nothing except dance. But when she is too tired to dance she would like to paint or listen to music.

A nine year old boy said he would like to do more art, sport and science experiments.

From my survey it is interesting to note that the students prefer the hands on subjects or the visual learning subjects such as sport, music,art and science. Lisa Monks

When I first read about this activity I went to my husband and asked him to think like a child would in primary school and tell me what should be taught. As expected he answered like an adult, literacy, numeracy etc. I had mixed feelings about what answers I would receive from students, I half expected hearing replies such as “nothing, I don’t like school and learning”. How I underestimated the student body. I asked a variety of students ranging from prep to year 6 and these are the answers I received: Year 6: 3 girls Their reasons included views that it would help them when they were older; that they need to be polite through life; that fitness is important; and you need to have faith. Year 2: 2 boys, 1 girl Their reasons included that they like it, it is fun; and need to practice so you know how to do it. <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Prep: 5 girls <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">They thought that writing is “fun” and “Important”. <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Grade 3: 2 boys, 1 girl <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Their reasons included to assist them when they are older, life skills and they like it. It was very interesting to see the connection they made to play time and exercise and increased energy. To think that at grade 3 they are already relating these together.
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Student Poll **
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Spelling
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· English
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Maths
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Manners
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Physical Education
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Religious Education
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Maths
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Writing
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· How to sit still
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· How to play nicely and get along with others
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· How to be nice
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Art
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Writing
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Reading
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Spelling
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· People learning
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Listening to the teacher
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Maths
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· More homework
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Handwriting
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Art
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">· Play time / exercise = increased energy

<span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">I was pleasantly surprised by these responses, the students, who were chosen very randomly whilst playing at recess, provided a vast array of answers all relating to enjoyment and helping them when they are older. <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Thinking back to my time at school, I have absolutely no idea how I would have responded. I know now I wish I did different subjects in pre tertiary years but primary school and what I thought we should be taught, it would be interesting to be back at that age and have this question asked of myself, would I answer in the same way the above students did?

<span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">It is interesting to see that Literacy and Numeracy, which are observed in the media, were answers that the students provided. I feel that the students starting from the preps have an understanding on what is required for adulthood.
 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Sarah Greig **

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I was suprised by the responses to the poll that I conducted on a group of 10 children aged from 9 to 16. All of them said maths and literacy, with one of them wanting to see more children's literature being focused on. ====== Some of the comments made were: My suprise was that they answered the way I would have answered. The school these children attends is in a remote community and access to specialist teachers is very difficult. The students Sarai polled talk about learning more "everyday skills" where as the students I spoke to wanted to move away from this type of cirruculum and more towards maths, english, science and art. One student in Year 8 felt that she missed out because she only got to do art for half the year, when this was something she really liked, and had to do cooking the other half, something she did at home anyway. I liked the 9 year olds response of needing to do more maths because when he was older he would need to do taxes and when he had his business he would need to work out much money he had.
 * more everyday maths concepts instead of things like algebra
 * science
 * metal work
 * art and drama
 * a better PE program
 * LOTE-not french


 * __ Student poll - Tracey Collyer __**

Despite working with grade 5's then 1 & 2's yesterday, I was so busy I forgot to ask them about the poll! I did ask kids from grade 8, grade 9, grade 11 & grade 3. They are from the same rural school that Rebecca mentioned above.

The year 8 girl (13yrs) said she wanted to be taught spelling, literacy, general maths, health, science, history music but not art. I got the impression she was just listing all the subjects she could think of that she already does. She finds the content of the curriculum OK but finds the presentation boring. She finds that the teacher writes too much stuff on the board. She'd rather read or watch something.

The year 9 (14yrs) girl said she'd students should to learn middle english (?), maths & science. She said that P.E. and all types of music and art should be compulsory through to year 10. She finds that she is not pushed enough. She thinks the teachers aren't strict enough and have too low expectations from them. She often feels patronised by the teacher over-explaining things.

The grade 3 (9yrs) girl had a bit of a think. I told her she could say anything so she decided that grade 3's should be given cars and learn driving, trampolining and literacy. She said she happy with most subjects in the curriculum. She said she was not excited about learning in the classroom because the teachers are annoying and too strict.

The year 11 (16yrs) boy I asked has started this year at a school in NSW after leaving King Island last year. He said he doesn't have any new idears (sic) about the curriculum as they seem to have most of the vital stuff covered. His interest level depend on what subject he is in but he said he wasn't falling asleep or anything". He said "Im not really exited about learning anything much, exept prehaps history and english, but I think this is just my natural aversion to work :) ".

Honestly, I don't ever see claims in the media about education. I regularly read the Herald-Sun but aside from driver education coming up last week, I can't particularly recall any debate on curriculum content. I don't read the education section, perhaps that is where the debate rages. The overwhelming feeling I got from the students is that they've never given the curriculum any thought. They are used to trusting the 'grown-ups'to make these decisions for them. The students were more concerned about the presentation of the curriculum rather than the content.

Student poll - Natalie Hillier

I talked to 8 children aged from 8 - 14. I found their responses interesting, and even from a young age found that the students had strong opinions on what should be taught. It was interesting that the 3 boys I talked to mentioned hands-on activities. One boy is in grade 7, and enjoys design graphics and tech. He also enjoys PE, but understands that maths are english are important subjects. The other grade 7 boy believes that Indonesian shouldn't be taught. He said it is boring and a waste of time. He enjoys music and pe, but also believes schools should teach english, maths and science.

The third boy is in grade 4. He said that his class mainly does literacy and maths. He wishes they participated in more science activities, which he really enjoys, and also mentioned that he would like to spend more time on the class computers.

The other 5 students I talked to were girls. 3 of them were in primary school. One wished they did music lessons. The other 2 had previously done drama, and wished that drama was still included. These girls said they mainly do literacy and maths.

The other 2 girls go to a catholic high school. One girl mentioned that their enjoyment of a subject often depends on the teacher taking it. For example, she said that she does not enjoy religion at all. She mentioned that the teacher taking it has told the class she doesn't believe it should be taught, but has to as it is in the curriculum. The girl believes that because this particular teacher does not enjoy teaching religion, it is delivered in a boring way. Likewise, she realises maths is important, but said that maths is delivered in a boring way. She thinks maths should focus more on the skills she will need in her future. The other high school girl enjoys drama, music and cooking. She is glad that now she is in high school she has the opportunity to undertake these subjects. She said that there was limited teaching in primary school of these subjects.

Most of the students I talked to believed that maths and literacy are important. Similar views are often expressed in the media, and I often read articles that concentrate on literacy and numeracy.However the students also valued other curriculum areas, such as music, drama, ICT and art.

STUDENT POLL, Donna Monish The theme I discovered from speaking to various aged children was that most subjects currently being taught were boring and irrelevant. The exceptions to the rule were the hands on subjects, such as Art. The other interesting fact was the importance of the teacher. No matter what the subject, if the teacher made it FUN then it was a good subject to learn. One boy in year 7 said he liked Science because his teacher made it fun. He did lot's of hands on learning and made jokes instead of being all serious. Another comment was that they enjoyed independant learning rather than having the teacher up the front talking to the whole class, this just made them turn off. From my discussions with these children and teenagers it seems that no matter what the subject if the teacher is not engaging with the class and making it interesting then there is not going to be much learning or enthusiasm happening.

<span style="color: #5f355f; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Student Poll - Mell Moulin

<span style="color: #5f355f; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">I was impressed with most of the responses from my student poll. They were older students between year 7 and year 11. All agreed that Maths and Literacy were important subjects because “they are needed all the time in life”. Other subjects listed were Science and subjects that taught you life skills like cooking, financial skills and the skills you would need to get a job after leaving school. This seemed quite important to all. Their view of school was that it should prepare you for life after school and getting a job. Only one student, from Year 11, included music, arts and history in his list and mentioned although history was boring we should know about early Australia. A Year 7 student said his favourite subjects were MDT, cooking and maths (sometimes). When asked why, he said it was because they were fun and you were learning different things but also things that you would use in life.

<span style="color: #5f355f; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">They all commented that having a good teacher made a difference to how they felt about the subject they were learning. One student’s comment was “if you have a teacher that is crabby all the time and you don’t think you can ask them anything then you don’t look forward being in that class”. The year 10 student commented that having a teacher that didn’t treat you like a little kid made a difference and liked the teachers that made learning interesting and not boring.

<span style="color: #5f355f; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">After talking with the students I came away thinking that students do want to learn, it was very evident that they all were very aware that learning was important to their futures, however, it is the manner that they learn in that was an issue. The students wanted learning to be engaging, they want to be involved and active learners not sitting in seats all day while someone dishes out knowledge. It was a great activity to do in my opinion.

** Part 2 – Student Poll  ** ** // Lauren Woodland  // ** ** When asked “What do you think you should be learning at school?” most responses were expected, though some unexpected. ** **  These students believed that they should be learning  ** ** It occurred to me later on that not one of the students mentioned history. ** **  I definitely agree with Donna’s view, and found myself, that the opinions that students have on subjects can be linked to the type of teacher they have, and the teaching styles. When I think back to my high school years, I can totally relate to that! **
 * ** Numeracy  **
 * ** Literacy  **
 * ** Physical Education  **
 * ** Science  **
 * ** Music  **
 * ** Work Experience  **
 * ** Home Economics  **
 * ** Art  **
 * ** Driver Education  **
 * ** MDT  **
 * ** Drama  **
 * ** Religion  **
 * ** Community Access  **
 * ** Geography  **