A Student's Question Drove Our Learning This Week

This week in grade 7 we addressed one of the questions students had about the War of 1812. How come the British talk about the war that took place in Europe, but don't remember that they also fought a war in North America?  We watched a PBS documentary on Napoleon to find answers. It was compelling!  Unlike history textbooks, it didn't gloss over the less savory aspects of Napoleon's life and kept the students captivated for the week. It led to fabulous discussions about power, the role of women in Europe at that time, character flaws, strategy, propaganda, arrogance and quite a few others.  Part way through the documentary students were required to answer opinion questions. For the most part students admired his accomplishments, but didn't particularly like him. They also realized why the British would focus on the European war rather than the North American conflict.

Once the documentary was finished, I was left with a decision: how am I going to assess learning?  Creating a test on Napoleon and the War of 1812 in light of all that we had seen and discussed seemed a very weak finale.  Instead, students are using linoit to demonstrate their learning.  What have they learned? What do they feel is important to know about the War of 1812, Napoleon, the Napoleonic Wars, Josephine, ambition, power, arrogance, pride, courage, strategy ...

Again I come back to the idea of liberating constraints: students work within the boundaries of subject content and tool, but within those boundaries are able to pursue their own interests and fully demonstrate learning in ways meaningful to them.  As they construct their boards, they seek clarification, and pursue more knowledge.  I receive questions such as, "Where was it that Napoleon won his first battle by firing at the ships in the harbour from the hill?"  "Was it in Egypt that Napoleon abandoned his troops?" "What was the name of his second wife?" "What is that word, when someone is lower down and then they move up in the army?" Access to the wealth of material online allows them to go deeply into topics.  One student is very captivated by the story of Josephine and Napoleon. She discovered one of Napoleon's letters to Josephine, and is including it on her board.  Another student is interested in the many battles and is finding country flags from that time period and pictures of the armies.  In the end, students will have thought more deeply and have a longer-lasting  understanding than any test would have caused them to have.  As one student said, the problem with tests is that you study and then forget the material two weeks later.

Lucky for us the Eye of Napoleon exhibit is on until May at the Art Gallery of Hamilton. We'll have the opportunity to see many things that we saw in the film, including the famed Napoleon Crossing the Alps painting in a smaller version, as well as one of his famed hats.  It's nice when events align in this way; the teaching and the learning become easier.