Why Don T Students Like School, By Dr. Willingham

In the article, “Why Don’t Students Like School,” Dr. Willingham describes the feelings and observations about the human brain as it relates to the process of thinking. The reason many students have difficulty connecting to the learning that takes place in schools is because the brain was not designed for thinking, but rather to save an individual from having to think about a situation or problem. The brain is busy running other processes, like memory and the visual system, to focus too much energy and power on thinking. This is one reason why the thinking process is so slow and effortful. However, sometimes the memory system can aid an individual in their thinking process. If the problem being encountered is one that the individual has already solved, or dealt with, the solution will …show more content…
Solving a difficult problem often brings satisfaction to an individual, which is why many people enjoy hobbies, such as crossword puzzles, and or careers, like teaching, that require thoughts processes daily. Humans are driven by curiosity, but before one spends too much time on a problem, consideration must be done on how difficult the task will be. This is oftentimes why students have difficulty in the classroom. Many children come to class with different levels of knowledge, so giving the same assignment to everyone will ultimately lead to students being either overwhelmed or underwhelmed. This is why it may be helpful to assign different work for each student or even a group of students with similar knowledge. Also, teachers should understand the background knowledge of the students before going deep into a lesson. If they have no knowledge on the subject, they will not be focused on what is being taught, and therefore, will not be learning the material. This is also why teachers should hold off on questioning, or puzzling, the students until the children have an understanding on the