As I’ve written, I always try to explain to students why I want them to do things in class (and not just them to do it) — whether they’re assignments, certain behaviors, or tasks. I don’t always succeed in remembering to do so, but most of the time I do. I think it helps a lot in creating a positive classroom culture.
Recent studies have shown that the idea of “explanation over declaration” also has a positive effect on cognitive development — often telling young people what to do without giving the reasons actually hurts their capacity to learn.
I whole-heartedly agree. Asking the students why they think they’ve been asked to do an assignment has yielded some pretty great responses as well. Sometimes the rationale they come up with is more relevant than my rationale.
It furthers the classroom atmosphere buzz when you can then say, “That’s a great reason. I was asking you to do it because… but I didn’t even think of that…”