Being C3-Minded in the Non-Traditional Classroom

Since joining the C3 Teacher team, I have noticed the Framework infiltrating my thinking. My teaching practice has certainly evolved, reflecting my refined pedagogical philosophies.   I have been trying to foster more mindfulness in my personal life, so I think the appropriate term would be that I am becoming C3-minded. This was especially evident as I began preparing for my summer classes.

This past summer was my second year working with Kentucky’s Governor’s Scholars Program (GSP). One of the things that makes working with GSP different from a traditional classroom is that there are no graded assignments, hence no grades. It is an academic program, but they are learners who want to learn. Now, that doesn’t mean they all stare at me with bated breath, latching on to every word I say. But, they are the students in class who enjoy learning. The students about whom we say, “I’d take a whole class of [insert student name]”.

As scholars, they always start the summer ready to go. But despite any initial intrinsic motivation, it can wane very quickly if they aren’t into it. To keep them engaged, I need to make sure the class stays compelling. Well, the C3 Framework knows a little something about compelling questions…

This is where I was able to put my newly branded C3-mindedness to the test…informally speaking. I needed to apply the philosophies and principles without being able to assess in the way we’re used to in the traditional classroom setting. It is both liberating and intimidating. Indeed, I experienced a pretty significant culture shock my first summer with the program. Having worked extensively with the Inquiry Design Model (IDM) over the last year, the necessary structure, such as the progression of tasks, was informing how I wanted the class to evolve.

We are assigned a Focus Area, a subject reflecting our area of expertise, mine being Cultural Anthropology. Our second class is titled “General Studies.” This is a class where faculty are expected to pick a subject about which they want to learn more, one that they can explore with the scholars. In this sense, we are all scholars. (That’s also why they call me Carly instead of Ms. Muetterties.)

In my General Studies, I decided I wanted us to explore the culturally constructed concept of “happiness.”

Now, this was not meant to be a class that was all sunshine and lollypops. Though I didn’t introduce the class to scholars this way, my goal was to make them recognize that “happiness” is unattainable. Don’t worry – it wasn’t a complete downer! “Happiness,” in the sense that our society has defined it as an endpoint, is unattainable. BUT they can find contentment by focusing on improving themselves and the world around them, all the while enjoying the journey. This also requires a redefining of one’s sense of self. The metaphor we used, taken from John Gray’s The Silence of Animals, was that there is always a Mozart to our Salieri – they should focus on being their best selves rather than constantly comparing themselves to others.

Upon hearing they were in a class about happiness, many students were hoping this meant we would go to an amusement park or make daily trips to get ice cream because that would make them “happy.” “Nope, we’re doing a different kind of happiness, we’re doing an inquiry!”

To be continued…