As a math educator, people are often surprised to learn that I got my undergraduate degree in both math and philosophy. They are even more surprised when I tell them I’m a published songwriter. To learn all of these seemingly unrelated things, I took full advantage of the elective courses available to me in school. You see, choosing electives can be a simple bubble on a course selection sheet. Or it can be a joyous opportunity to transform school learning into personalized learning. In this blog, I hope to convince you that choosing electives thoughtfully is a hack to DIY learning – a way to make school your own personal learning laboratory.
Songwriter-Philosopher-Educator, Oh My!
Having learned guitar through after-school lessons at my elementary school, I decided to play percussion in the middle school band. This way, I was broadening my musical abilities in school while I continued to play guitar in my free time. In high school, I took elective courses in art, media, psychology, and sociology. These courses fueled my creativity while deepening my understanding of human nature and society. But it was my senior year introduction to philosophy that shaped my pathway in college. To me, philosophy was the intersection of everything – logic, creativity, truth, justice, knowledge – and I was hooked. So, when I began college, I didn’t know what I wanted to do yet but I did know I would take classes in philosophy whenever I had the chance. Further, since I continued to play and write songs I took a creative writing course to help me with my song lyrics and an audio course to teach me how to record them! Needless to say, I found my calling in teaching math but continued to pursue philosophy and music as lifelong hobbies. I consistently owned my education by making strategic choices to better myself within the confines of the schools that I attended. And never did it interfere with my core path (math and teaching). That is the power of the DIY mindset!
Required Or Not Required, That Is The Question.
So what is an elective, anyway? Electives are courses offered in school that aren’t required. It’s as simple as that. Required courses are determined based on whatever your state believes a graduate of high school should know. Check out the education commission’s state by state listing to see your own state. Notice most students in the U.S. are required to take lots of math, science, English language arts, and social studies but each state determines what else is required beyond those core four. In Wisconsin, where I live, all high school students must take health and physical education. In New Jersey, students must take financial literacy and 5 credits of either fine arts, world languages, or tech. Think about it! Taking a fine arts class in Wisconsin would be a true elective whereas you couldn’t graduate if you didn’t take fine arts (or some alternative) in New Jersey. Knowing that, let’s back up a bit to take a closer look at how this might influence what electives you choose in middle school. Because in a K-12 system, whatever is required at the end trickles into programming all the way down!
DIY Learning Hack
In my blog about DIY learning, I make a strong case for middle school students to always be on the lookout for the next opportunity to learn something new. This includes making connections between everyday experiences in and out of the classroom and following your interests wherever they lead. Unfortunately, this often means making time outside of school to do that. But, in our present discussion on electives, I believe we’ve uncovered a hack!
What is a hack? It’s a quick way to improve some aspect of your life by making it easier to accomplish. In a blog by JBCN International, they offer 25 school hacks that include everything from getting the stink out of your shoes (i.e. use tea bags) to improving your organizational skills. For example, they suggest leaving the first few pages of your notebook blank so, later, you can make a table of contents for all of the notes you take. Cool!
How are electives a DIY learning hack? Suppose you wanted to learn to play the drums. There’s no room for drumming in the core-four required classes. So you’d have to take matters into your own hands. You’d have to get drums, read books on drumming, watch videos of drummers, attend workshops, take private lessons, etc. This is the kind of thing a DIY learner would do. Or, you could just join the band elective at your middle school and choose drums as your instrument. Boom! You are now devoting a portion of each and every school day to drumming and you have a skillful, knowledgeable, passionate teacher ready to help you become a drummer!
Types Of Electives
You now know electives aren’t required. You also know some common electives like art, music, and phy ed. Beyond that, anything goes! Cooking, photography, world languages, STEM-related courses, keyboarding, digital design, puppetry, etc. are all fair game. With that in mind, here’s some steps to follow to choose your electives:
- Read your school’s course catalog to find out what’s offered
- Talk to your counselor to find out how many electives you can take
- Read the full descriptions and ask the prospective teacher to help you decide
- Determine if the course is a “one and done” or multi-year, multi-level journey
- Choose electives that support your curiosity, interests, and/or passions
For example, if you take band or orchestra you’ll have to practice your instrument daily after school. Do you have time for that? Band is also an elective that students tend to take year after year. On the other hand, a course like woodworking at the middle school level will probably have little work outside of class and may not have any further offerings. To know for sure, visit the prospective class teacher to learn about course specifics and see the kind of work or products students make. Lastly, keep in mind you don’t have to keep taking the same elective (or next level elective) even if it does continue. I’d still suggest knowing what you’re getting into so you can make an informed decision.
Keep An Open Mind
My own 8th grade son signed up for keyboarding and shark tank (an entrepreneur-like elective) last Spring. Then over summer he got super interested in graphic design so asked his counselor to switch one of his electives to digital art. They were able to do it but they had to switch both electives due to scheduling conflicts. So, this Fall, my son started digital art (yay!) and jewelry making (huh?). Guess what?! Jewelry making was a course he’d have never chosen but it is now his favorite class. Might this be the final lesson of choosing electives? You’re just starting your education and life journey. Middle school is a big deal. And there’s a lot of changes happening in your body, mind, and spirit. While preparing for college is on the horizon, now is a great time to explore, keep an open mind, and try out some new things. You just never know what might inspire you. Ultimately, if you let your curiosity guide you and continue to make connections in and among all of your experiences, you will be in the best possible position to follow whatever path most intrigues you.
One final note: When you enter high school, your counselor can work with you to identify requirements of some of the colleges you want to attend. That information might shape which electives you take to increase your chances of admission. But that isn’t something to worry about in middle school. Just have fun and learn to love learning!
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