To Choose or Not To Choose?

Perceptions of Choice

After reading the article The Complexity of Intellectual Currents by Christou (2012), I began to reflect on the concept of CHOICE.  At the forefront of this article is an innovative approach to education. Christou (2012), similar to my working definition of innovation, writes that there was a  need for progressive education as a response to a changing world. Such changes require that students “be given the opportunity to exercise choice, which would build experiences using critical, rational thought” (p.687). He also saw the importance of  subjects being “taught in a relevant manner… and that teachers be allowed freedom to make curriculum interesting for their students” (p.694).

I am someone who is often debilitated by choice. I see the value in having choice, but when faced with making a decision to choose, I get lost in playing out all of the possible ‘if’s’ and ‘buts’,  that in the end, I would rather have never had the choice in the first place. After finishing the article, I was left with the following question:

While students should be given choice, how do we decide which subjects should be among the options? The notion of choice in some cultures is seen as overwhelming and debilitating - how do we address cultural differences with respect to choice and individualisation?

As an international teacher, I am often curious about the various perspectives on topics such as this one. I watched a video titled The Art of Choosing where Sheena Lyengar (2012) explores the various perspectives of choice. She argues that there is a fundamental difference in Western Ideas about choice compared to other parts of the world. Lyengar (2012) asks us to consider three assumptions we make about choice:

1. It is  better to make your own choices

Does the individual as the primary locus of choice benefit everyone? Lyengar (2012),  argues that in some cultures students perform better when they are given autonomy while in other cultures they perform better when the choices are made for them.

2. The more choices we have the more likely we are to make the best choice

Lyengar (2012) argues that in reality, many of the choices we are presented with are not that much different. Perception of choice depends on our ability to differences between options - if we perceive a difference we can attach a value. Not every culture sees choice in the same places or to the same extent.

3. You must never say no to choice

When presented with choice we have a preconceived notion that one option must be better than the other. This can cause unnecessary anxiety and poor performance from our students.

If we have more options/choices for courses that lead to the same goal or objects that perform the same task are these options a form of innovation?

References:

Christou, T. M. (2012). The complexity of intellectual currents: Duncan McArthur and Ontario’s progressivist curriculum reforms. Paedagogica Historica: International Journal of the History of Education, 49(5), 677–697. doi: 10.1080/00309230.2012.739181

Sheena Iyengar (2010). “The Art of Choosing”. Retrieved: January 17, 2017 from: https://youtu.be/lDq9-QxvsNU)