Growing up, my academic
experiences were very teacher directed. As a student in a traditional
educational environment I would complete whatever worksheet I was handed. As
this was my only real experience with school based learning I thought that this
was the most effective method. Teachers would examine the curriculum documents,
prepare the worksheets or the daily lesson based on provincial expectations and
as students we would passively complete the required tasks. I was never truly
engaged with my learning, I simply completed the work and went home. I assumed
that this was how elementary and high school was supposed to work. This idea of
school was completely shattered when I completed my EDUC 8P19 observation.
While I was in a grade seven class in Southern Ontario, I was able to see
genius hour, a concept I had only ever briefly read about. Through genius hour
students engage in inquiry, passion based and personalized learning (Drake,
Reid & Kolohon, 2014). In this class genius hour was held every Friday for
two periods for a total of fifteen weeks. Students could select any topic.
Their work was guided by a driving question, and they were required to present
the results in some manner to the class as well as place it on their class
website. When I asked the students about the kinds of things they were working
on one student stated he was working on building a computer, another stated she
was preparing a lyrical dance to a piece of original poetry based on a modern
art installation and another stated she was preparing a book drive for schools
on a local Aboriginal Reserve. The students were ecstatic to share their
projects with me and stated that they loved their Fridays because they got to
work on something cool; something they were “actually interested in.”
Genius hour was inspired by Google’s strategy which
allows their employees to use twenty percent of their time to work on any topic
which could have the potential to benefit Google (Grinberg, 2014). Google has
stated that because workers are interested in what they are working on productivity
has increased. Approximately fifty percent of Google’s projects have been produced
as a result of this strategy. Gmail and Google News were produced through this initiative (Image 1)
(Kesler, 2013a). This increase in productivity as a result of genius hour
initiatives was noted in Daniel Pink’s 2011 study of employee output (Drake,
Reid & Kolohon, 2014).
 |
| Image 1: Gmail was produced through the genius hour method (Pontbriand, 2015). |
Genius hour has been adopted in education in attempt to
promote intrinsic motivation, creativity, self-regulation, and research skills
(Grinberg, 2014; Şen, Yılmaz, & Geban, 2015). These are important twenty
first century skills (Drake, Reid, & Kolohon, 2014). An important part of Genius
Hour is also allowing students to be comfortable with failure. Through the
research process students will encounter a variety of obstacles. They may take
risks that result in failure. This failure is important in developing resiliency
and a growth mindset (Grinberg, 2014). This type of assignment allows the teacher
to increase their knowledge of their students, allows students to work at their
own pace as well as work in a manner which best suits their learning needs (Carter,
2014). See Frenchman’s Bay Public School as well as Mr. C’s Class at Loranger Memorial School for examples of genius hour structure, parent communication and
student work. See the video below for a description of genius hour.
Genius hour is a part of the new story of education and
differs significantly from what myself as well as many of the students’ parents
will be accustomed. Many teachers as well as parents may find this type of initiative
does not fit into the academic system which prioritizes standardized testing.
To attempt to bridge the old and new stories of education to key stakeholders
like parents increased communication about the structure and the goals of genius
hour should be articulated. A Genius Hour blog or website co-created with the
students may allow parents to understand the relevancy of this type of
education (Grinberg, 2014). Students may also require additional assistance as
many have never been taught to think this way or take responsibility for their learning;
current children may still be accustomed to being passive students. Through conferences
and class discussions students will be able to work through taking on this type
of project (Grinberg, 2014). See Image 2 of the wonder wall below where
students begin to brainstorm questions with their teacher to guide their
research (Mr.C., n.d.). A big concern with genius hour is that many students,
particularly students who tend towards anxiety and perfectionism, may struggle
with this type of open ended assignment. Teachers must attempt to balance the importance
of providing an open ended inquiry based assignment while also ensuing that
students feel comfortable and confident approaching the assignment. Another concern
is whether students should be assigned grades. Students will spend a
significant portion of time on their work and will produce a final product
worthy of assessment; however, will the assigning of a grade reduce intrinsic
motivation? These questions must be answered based on each teacher’s individual
philosophy as well as the needs of their students.
 |
| Image 2: Class wonder wall (Mr.C., n.d.). |
Although Genius hour allows students to engage in a personalized
inquiry and passion based task this initiative cannot be act as a band aid for
class filled with rote memorization of work sheets. Implementing innovative
assignments like genius hour cannot be the only change that teachers make to
ensure that students’ needs are met. Teachers should strive to implement a
variety of strategies to ensure students are intrinsically motivated and develop
twenty first century skills. Genius hour is a strong example of the transition
between old and new stories of education.
References
Mr. C. (n.d.). Genius
Hour. Retrieved November 5, 2015 from
http://mistercloranger.weebly.com/genius-hour.html
Carter, N. (2014). Genius
Hour and the 6 Essentials of Personalized Education. Retrieved
November
4, 2015 from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/genius-hour-essentials-personalized-education-nichole-carter
Drake,
S. M., Reid, J. L. and Kolohon, W. (2014). Interweaving
Curriculum and Classroom
Assessment. Don Mills: Oxford
University Press.
Frenchman’s
Bay Public School. (n.d.). Genius Hour.
Retrieved November 4, 2015 from
http://www.ddsb.ca/school/frenchmans/SchoolInformation/Genius%20Hour/Pages/default.aspx
Grinberg, E. (2014). ‘Genius Hour’: What kids can learn from failure. Retrieved November
4,
2015 from http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/09/living/genius-hour-education-schools/
Kesler, C. (2013a). What is Genius Hour? Retrieved November 4, 2015 from
http://www.geniushour.com/what-is-genius-hour/
Kesler, C. (2013b). What is Genius Hour? - Introduction to Genius Hour in the Classroom.
Retrieved
November 5, 2015 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMFQUtHsWhc
Pontbriand, A. (2015). Gmail has had a Secret for Years, now it’s Been Decoded! The
Resistance Journals.
Retrieved November 5, 2015 from http://resistancejournals.com/2015/06/28/gmail-secret-logo-revealed/
Şen, Ş. s., Yılmaz, A. a., and Geban, Ö. g. (2015). The
Effects of Process Oriented Guided
Inquiry
Learning Environment on Students' Self-Regulated Learning Skills. Problems of Education in The 21St Century,
6654-66.