That’s Learning

The other weekend I was returning to New York from my brother’s graduation in Austin. On the plane I sat next to a little girl who—as I came to find out—was travelling by herself. We ended up chatting later on in the flight, and she told me how she was in fourth grade and would be moving to Texas soon. She told me about the book she was reading and I told her about the book I was reading and we discussed the snack packs available for purchase and lots of other things.

But as we sat on the runway, before all of that, here’s what I saw: a little girl, buckled in, but lifting herself up a little out of her seat. So that she could see the safety demonstration. Hanging on every word.

Hands-on? Interdisciplinary? Flipped? Problem-based? Project-based? Real-world? Student-centered?

Those are all adjectives, and maybe useful ones.

But what I saw? That’s learning.