The Opposite of Curiosity | Hooray for Monday

January 30, 2023

By Aleta Margolis, Founder and President of Center for Inspired Teaching

Hooray for Monday is a weekly blog filled with questions, ideas, reflections, and actions we can all take to remodel the school experience for students.

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Each week at our Inspired Teaching staff meeting, we begin with a brief exercise. This past week, each of us responded to the question: “What are you curious about?” The question connects directly with Inspired Teaching’s work to promote the kind of teaching that fuels – instead of stifles – curiosity.

Here are some of our answers…

What did people do before they could Google things? What would I do now if I couldn’t turn to the internet every time I’m curious about something – who won the Oscar for best film in 2020, where stars go during the day, whether there’s gluten in barley?
What impact is the internet having on curiosity?
How will my son’s experiment to see if plants can grow with 24-hour sunlight turn out?
What is behind the egg crisis in the US?
How can I learn to be a better painter?

As often happens for me, this warm-up exercise ended up sticking in my mind for days afterward and led to new questions – particularly this one: If curiosity in the classroom leads us to approach things from a place of wonder and interest, what does the opposite look like?

Situation	Curious	vs.	Non-Curious
An unexpected challenge arises.	“Well this is surprising. I wonder what our options might be?”		“Oh no! What are we going to do?” (PANIC)
Students are struggling to follow directions.	“Can you tell me more about what’s confusing? Is there something I might do differently to make them clearer?”		“My directions are not unclear! You’re just a bad listener!” (DEFENSIVENESS)
Most of the class does poorly on a summative Algebra assessment.	“What might be going on that is making it so hard for this group of students to grasp basic algebra concepts? What can I try that might make things go differently?”		“I guess this year’s seventh period algebra class just doesn’t want to learn!” (JUMPING TO CONCLUSIONS)

We all have moments where we live in the non-curious side of a challenge, but this reflection made me notice how different it feels to intentionally approach challenges with curiosity. Last Thursday artist and activist Helanius J. Wilkins spoke to students in our Speak Truth program about his curiosity-fueled work to bridge divides in communities in all 50 states. In preparation for this talk, we asked him what role curiosity plays in his work. He said, “Curiosity is everything. Period. If I’m not curious I’m not moving. The goal is to be a student for life, the minute we decide we don’t want to learn anymore that’s when life sort of ends.” (You can listen to our full podcast interview here.)

Another antonym for curiosity, then, is apathy. And in our role as teachers, that’s something we’re actively teaching against. So this week, see what happens if you ask your students what I asked my colleagues.

What are they curious about?
What do they think the opposite of curiosity looks like?

May the discussion highlight for them, and for you, what is exciting about being, as Helanius put it, a student for life.

Activities that Foster Curiosity

Random Walk: Movement and Learning Combined!

This activity challenges students to get curious about concepts collaboratively in a physical way and completely without words.

Finding Yourself on the Line

Among the many vital things we can learn in school, one of the most valuable for our life beyond the classroom is how our own minds work and how to become more aware of our own response to the world around us.

Interesting, Important, Useful

A key to building mutual respect in your classroom is recognizing and appreciating what your students find important. That's an act of curiosity on your part and a way of sparking theirs!

Listen to This Issue of Hooray For Monday

InspiredTeaching · January 30, 2023: The Opposite of Curiosity

Micaiah Anderson

Community Outreach Specialist

As a Community Outreach Specialist, Micaiah is responsible for program promotion and outreach support for Inspired Teaching events and workshops. Micaiah has a passion for collaborating with community members to build-power and connect. She is an educator with a heart for youth and has experience supporting students fight injustices within their schools and communities. She has a BA in Political Science from, the real HU, Hampton University & anticipates graduating in May 2024 with a Masters of Arts degree in Educational Policy Transformation from Georgetown University.

AUTONOMY

"I want to have a say in what happens to me."

Autonomy is the need for independence; the ability to make choices, to create, to explore, and to express oneself freely; to have sufficient space, to move around, and to feel unrestricted with opportunities to exercise free will.

Brady Maiden

Outreach Coordinator

As the Outreach Coordinator, Brady helps maintain Inspired Teaching’s social media presence and supports the organization’s mission to connect with DC community leaders, educators, and parents. Brady has her Master’s in Public Policy from George Mason University and her BS in Political Science from Northern Arizona University. She is passionate about community, equity, and coalition building recognizing that learning and growing with the community at large is how we continue to be impactful.

What brings you joy in life?

I find joy in spending time with my friends and family and meeting new people. I like going to concerts and festivals, and finding new books to read.

The Learner’s Cycle, Wonder-Experiment-Learn, and the Teacher’s Cycle, Observe-Plan-Instigate, comprise Inspired Teaching’s approach to engaging students in inquiry-based learning.

When they are engaged in the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, students are immersed in learning. They take the lead in designing authentic learning experiences around their own interests and their school’s standards of learning. Each discovery leads to a new question which in turn leads to more wondering and more learning. In the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, Learn is not a destination or an endpoint; it is a deeper understanding, leading to a deeper wondering and new possibilities that create new entry points to further exploration. The cycle continues because what students have learned generates more wonderings that require more experiments that foster more learning – and on and on.

The Observe-Plan-Instigate Cycle is the work of an Inspired Teacher. While a student is expected to follow the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, the teacher joins them on the learning journey while following their own cycle of Observe-Plan-Instigate. This cycle ultimately serves to ensure an inquiry-based atmosphere is at play in the classroom.

Jaqueta Abbey

Teaching and Learning Specialist

Jaqueta is the Teaching and Learning Specialist for Inspired Teaching. In addition to her current role with Inspired Teaching, Jaqueta is a first-grade teaching assistant. Her background features a variety of traditional and non-traditional experiences in the field of education, including working as an adjunct professor, teaching summer reading programs to children and adults, and tutoring children in the foster care system. Jaqueta earned a B.A. in Communication Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and an M.A. in Interactive Media from Elon University.

What brings you joy in life?

Creative self-expression! In addition to my passion for storytelling, I love dancing of all kinds. I've studied belly dance, bachata, and Brazilian Zouk among other styles. I also enjoy glass fusing, crocheting, photography, and cross stitching. These art forms allow me to express myself and build connections with other people at the same time. I think life would be a lot less vibrant without artists and storytellers!

Michelle Welk

Communication & Marketing Specialist

As Communications and Marketing Specialist, Michelle is responsible for finding and creating new ways to highlight Inspired Teaching and promote its programs in order to expand and deepen the organization's impact. Michelle has worked in communications in an array of settings, from creative agencies to state politics to national nonprofits. She has a BA in Journalism from Temple University in Philadelphia and is passionate about education, access, and equity.

What brings you joy in life?

My son, the beach, making a persuasive argument and good food!

Max Peterson

Real World History Assistant Teacher

Max received his Bachelor’s degree in History and African American Studies from Boston University in May 2016. He has worked in museum curation at the Museum of the White Mountains in New Hampshire and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Max has worked with young people of varying ages from young children to young adults transitioning to college.

Feedback and Accountability

We grow through feedback and an understanding that the quality of our work is a reflection of what we are learning, but the shift to remote learning this spring disrupted a lot of the tools teachers were used to using to evaluate student growth. How might we do things differently this fall? Participants in this workshop will explore ways to bring meaningful assessment into the virtual and/or socially-distanced classroom and approaches to student feedback that strengthen motivation, and build relationships and achievement.