It’s a fine line between boredom and overwhelm in today’s classroom
Education is something other people bestow on you. Learning is something we do for ourselves.
All learning involves oscillating between certainty and confusion. As we ingest new information, we shift between the certainty of what we knew before, to confusion as we encounter new information and then return to certainty once we process and assimilate the new information. Overwhelm occurs when we cannot process the new information at the rate we need to, if at all. If we remain confused in the face of even more new information, and we do not return to certainty, our confusion descends to frustration, then anger, and ultimately we disengage from the learning process altogether.
This overwhelm happens for one of two reasons. One: the information is delivered too quickly, and we cannot cognitively process it in time. Two: the information is presented in a way that will not allow us ever to return to certainty. We usually disregard it as beyond our ability or too difficult. Conversely, if we find ourselves processing information too easily, we become bored.
As a teacher, it is a fine line between boredom and overwhelm. I often teach foundation computer classes where some students are filled with panic and frustration because they cannot keep pace with the material and the rest of the class. These students spend most of the time in confusion, frustration, anger and unless they can return to certainty, they disengage. Other students rush ahead and find the same material doesn’t challenge them enough, and they spend most of the class in certainty which then becomes boredom.
Most of a teacher’s job is spent trying to make sure all students exist in the balance between certainty and confusion. They must be challenged, but not overwhelmed, and this means delivering the same material in different ways.
If you are directing your own learning, it is your job to be aware of when you are in confusion, and ask enough questions to return to certainty. If you spend too long in confusion, you will eventually feel overwhelmed. Conversely, you need to challenge yourself enough to feel engaged with the process. It is a tricky balancing act, but useful to understand. Most people feel overwhelmed or bored and take it personally. They feel somehow responsible for their inability to engage with or understand the material when the key is to be aware of how to balance your own confusion and certainty.
