Master Ranked Historian

In education, as in Chess, you need to exploit the opportunity presented by the person or group that you are playing.  This is what happened – by accident this week.

I have been struggling with a group of students who are excelling at the Document Based Questions which I am giving as the assignment.  They are doing them, finishing them and completing them well within the allotted time. While they are all working at their own pace, I have run into the long expected problem of what do you do about the students who finish early.  

Some believe in giving more work – or a dig deeper or from the beginning I should have anticipated these students needed something more challenging – which in essence is harder work that requires a more in-depth review of the work.  This too is difficult because many of the students will see this as unfair and you risk compromising the drive of all students. The higher students are put into a position of feeling punished for being too “smart” while the lower kids are feeling punished because of their lack of ability.  

Over the decades I have heard the arguments and can understand the approaches of different techniques.  

Motivational Learning

However, for me I fall on the side that believes that the children will lose their motivation.  Education requires a motivation. Maturity builds in the aspect to “learn for the sake of learning”.  It’s not inherent in a society that provides as many supports as our own. In the time of the hunter-gatherer the desire to learn extended from the belly.  In today’s society, you find those who have a desire to learn have different motivations, there’s no “universal” solution to motivation.

I took an informal count of students who would be interested in learning about any type of history from any time period that they might be interested in.  About seventy five percent of the students were interested (probably more but I’m taking a conservative approach).

As such, I created the Mastery Rank Historian.  As such, after all students have finished their assignments I allow them to begin work on the history that they are interested in.  There are standards involved.

Standards:

1. Students must fully complete the assignments that have been given.  I review them with the student before they can begin the assignment – if I find it lacking – they are sent back to work on the assignment until they meet my strict standards.
2. Students have to have approval of their subject matter.  For example, the Roman Empire is too extensive. It took Gibbons massive volumes to complete.  I have explained and given examples of appropriate choices.
3. The student can have the choice of presenting in various formats; Video, skit or optional approval from me.  
4. There are multiple ranks within the Mastery Rank Historian so that after completing one assignment and achieving Mastery Rank doesn’t end the student’s opportunities.  The top rank is LEGENDARY which is held by me and the other History Teacher on campus.
5. It has been stipulated that if a student completes the assignment and fails to do an adequate job they may not achieve Master Rank (although I will provide points in a grade for them).  This has been made clear and will be told to them again when they approach me. The purpose of this isn’t to penalize a student, the point is made that this isn’t something you can slap together on a Sunday Night.  It is as close to a professional position paper as you can expect from this age group.
6. Students with superior presentations will be asked to present in other classes.
7. Every student who successfully completes the assignment gets their name with a “crest” on the wall next to mine and the other teachers’.  Each time they complete the assignment successfully they will get an additional endorsement as they travel up the ranks towards Legendary.  

Additional Bonuses:

I have often waxed on about how wonderfully History and Social Studies connects with the world and every subject.  How no subject would exist without this one. And now I have the option to “put my money where my mouth is”.

As part of the order and assignment – a student must be able to explain a portion of another subject.  The example I will be giving to students this week is the breaking of the Sound Barrier.

The sound barrier was broken by Chuck Yeager.  In explaining the importance of this act I will be explaining the science behind breaking the sound barrier, the innovations that needed to be done and actual quotes from Yeager.  My presentation will be their model and I am considering recording it as it would enable me to show it off to the parents and students as to the expectations.

Certainly I’m not expecting the students to be as strong as mine.  However, the example is the goal, the higher the goal, the higher the student will reach.  

This can be tied into other classes as well.  A student who becomes a Mastery Rank Historian with an endorsement in Science can be held in high esteem and rank within their Science class.  

I will report back on this project.  As of now, if it is successful in the current grade we may be able to expand it to other grades.  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Baldini is an educator with over two decades of experience in the field of children.  Mr. Baldini has worked as a adolescent counselor in a youth shelter, a disciplinarian within a High School, a Vice Principal, a Technology Coordinator, a Social Studies Teacher as well as a Humanities Teacher.  Mr. Baldini holds a Standard Certificate in the following areas: School Leadership (Principal), Social Studies (K-12), and Elementary Education. 

Mr. Baldini also blogs for his daughter.  Derya Demirtas came down with Autoimmune Encephalitis at the last few months of 2014.  Since then he and his valiant wife have been caring for Derya.  Feel free to follow their story at www.FreeDerya.info  – and learn more about Autoimmune Encephalitis and how to help others.  

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