It also places the cart before the horse, for it is facility with words and numbers that gives students the tools they need to solve problems and find answers to questions they or others may ask (Johnson & Layng, 1994 Simmons, Kame’enui, Coyne, & Chard, 2002).” 8 “This sounds wonderful,” says William Heward in an article to the Journal of Special Education, “I would welcome evidence of the phenomenon. In the process of constructing their own meanings from these activities, the students will become fluent readers and skilled calculators. Instead, teachers need only to encourage children to ask and to solve questions they may have. Kohn contend that “a growing facility with words and numbers derives from the process of finding answers to their own questions.” 6 In other words, it is unnecessary to provide students with drill and practice on basic academic tool skills. Some say that drill and practice of basic skills does not contribute to the achievement of literacy or higher-order thinking skills and that class time can be better spent in activities that are more enjoyable and will contribute to a deeper understanding. 4 “Having to spend long periods of time on repetitive tasks is a sign that learning is not taking place - that this is not a productive learning situation,” says Bartoli. Today this form of learning is considered to be “out of style,” 1 “ghastly boring” 2 and even “mindless.” 3 Drill-and-practice, teachers are told, produces only rote memorization and dulls creativity. Repetition and drill have become swear words in education.
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