https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/7e3dc91a332d13d91e9544df6785ab93.pdf e63314dac050d0c894215f26fb8f9dce PDF Text Text FROM TEACHING TO LEARNING: ARE WE STILL EDUCATING STUDENTS? by Chad M. Hanson, Northcentral Technical College, IVisconsin hanson@northcentral. tec. wi. us by Terry O’Banion. Both describe what is wrong with higher education today, and both suggest a move from teaching to Editor's note: Here's a piece that takes a por­ learning as the solution to our ills. tion other than thepapular one 'with respect to According to Barr and Tagg, the prob­ the current interest in andfocus on learning. If lem lies with the assumptions we make it makes you think andyou'd like to respond, be about the purpose and structure of higher welcome to share your ruminations with us! education. They argue that our “dominant paradigm mistakes a means for an end ... n current efforts at reform in higher it takes the means or method — called education, I have noticed a recurring ‘instruction’ or ‘teaching’ — and makes it message that may slight our efforts to the college’s end or purpose.” The question improve. I would like to suggest that the I would like to raise is an empirical one. current “learning revolution” and the dis­ Which institutions conceive teaching as an cussion that surrounds the move from end in and of itself? I have studied and vis­ teaching to learning may be based on both ited two- and four-year schools all over the questionable assumptions about the goals country in the last several years, and each of higher education and a limited under­ one treats the production of educated stu­ standing of the classroom experience. dents as a primary goal and teaching as a My interest in this topic peaked after I means, often a partial one, to those ends. I noticed that in the discussion about the am not convinced that a large number of learning revolution, the word education and colleges or universities promote or have all that it means is rarely, if ever, included. promoted teaching for its own sake. Consider two notable examples of such A second consideration has to do with work, both widely referenced by learning the nature and purpose of education as it advocates: a 1995 Change article by Robert happens in classrooms. In contrast to Barr Barr and John Tagg entitled “From and Tagg, who question the epistemologi­ Teaching to Learning: A New Paradigm cal foundations of higher education, for Undergraduate Education," and a 1995 O’Banion points out weaknesses of educat­ report, “School is Out — Learning is In” ing students on campuses and in class­ rooms. He explains that in the classroom, our work is time-bound, place-bound, and teacher-bound, and that learning is not bound by any of these conditions. Thus, the question is “why should our institutions be?” On one level that question is a fair one. It is true that learning happens every­ where, all the time, and certainly without the presence of professional educators. However, education is more than just learning, and it is certainly more than just teaching. The dictionary defines education as a complex social institution where stu­ I dents are involved in “acquiring general knowledge, developing the powers of rea­ soning and judgment, and preparing one’s self or others intellectually for mature life.” One of my favorite illustrations of this definition in action comes from the award-winning film The Paper Chase. In one of the opening scenes from the film, the renowned Professor Kingsfield explains to a large group of students that in his class, “you teach yourselves the law, but I train your mind.” He goes on to prod students with the suggestion that “you come in here with a skull full of mush and you leave thinking like a lawyer.” What Professor Kingsfield is talking about is socialization. What I notice each time I watch the film is that by confronting students this way, he demonstrates that a college education is largely a process of professional socializa­ tion. Through the process, students come to know a detailed set of norms, roles, and values. Whether or not those appear on our syllabi, we teach and students learn a set of social expectations: how to think, talk, and act like educated people. My hunch is that many faculty will struggle with the idea that they have a responsibility to socialize students. However, I am personally ready to accept that I have a strong role in shap­ ing my students’ understanding of what it means to be a professional and a bet­ ter member of society. What concerns me about the learning revolution is that in both language and practice we do not acknowledge that teaching and learning are but two equivalent parts of the giant, complex, chaotic, and wonderful social process called education. Ultimately, that is what we are responsible for — our students’ education. # � Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Print Newsletter Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource From Teaching to Learning: Are We Still Educating Students? Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text"> <div class="element-text"> <div class="element-text"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text"><a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1998-10 Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Chad Hanson Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Chad Hanson Journal Publications, CCA 04.ii.e.2025.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 04.ii.e.2025.01_ChadHansonPapers_01 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available <em>The Teaching Professor&nbsp;</em>is published by Magna Publications Inc.