Dan Fouts (he/him)
Social Science Teacher, West Maine High School, USA
How did you get into teaching?
After graduating from Bradley University in 1991, I didn’t know my future plans so I decided to go to Europe, study German and backpack for six months. Coming home from that adventure and needing money to pay off my debts, I landed a long-term substitute teaching assignment in a middle school special education science class. Though it was a rough experience and in no way was aligned to my degrees in political science and philosophy, I started thinking to myself, “You know, if I actually knew what I was doing, this might be fun!” After some consideration, I decided to enroll in Northwestern University’s graduate education program and spent the next year and a half satisfying the requirements to become a secondary social science teacher. I did my student teaching at Maine West High School in Des Plaines in the winter of 1992, got hired the next school year and have been there ever since.
Who was the teacher who made the most positive impact on your life?
There were two teachers who had a huge impact. The first, Mr. McWerter, was my computer science teacher in high school. His enthusiasm for learning and passion for helping people stayed with me. In college, my philosophy professor Dr. Greene really taught me the value of asking questions and thinking deeply. After his class, I don’t think I ever took any idea or thought at face value again.
What is a professional inquiry you are currently pursuing?
I am co-founder (along with my twin brother, Steve) of a professional development company called Teach Different, which designs conversation plans for teachers. We developed a method for engaging students in inquiry and critical thinking. In this capacity I am pursuing the question “How can people have better conversations with each other in a way that actually inspires inquiry and critical thinking?”
The website is www.teachdifferent.com.
Dan and Steve facilitated one of my undergraduate classes last year at the University of Washington using the Teach Different method. I was completely blown away by the simplicity of the format, depth of the discussion and all-around good vibe it left us with. Do check it out - it works with all grade levels and subject areas!
Dan shares a recent moment he had during one of these conversations:
Three weeks ago, in my government class, we were discussing the Albert Einstein quote: "Never do anything against conscience, even if the state demands it."
Today, we discussed the Rosa Parks quote "Knowing what must be done does away with fear." At the end of our conversation, a student asked a question that he generated on the spot: "What is the similarity between the Einstein quote and the Parks quote?"
10 seconds of silence... the thinking energy was incredible…
Then, the quietest kid in the room chimed in and said "In both quotes there is a pressure acting on a person — for Einstein it is the state; for Parks it is fear. In both cases the pressure tests a person's ability to do what a person thinks is right." That, for me, was one of those incredible teaching moments where you just stand in awe of your students.
What is a personal inquiry you are currently pursuing?
How has the pandemic impacted people’s work lives, relationship lives and overall sense of well being? I'm finding it so interesting to learn about how a prolonged traumatic event shapes our thinking about what is really important in the world, and what our aspirations are moving forward. Specific questions I think about include, "How have our world views changed during this pandemic?", "Has the pandemic diminished or heightened our capacity for building relationships with others?", and "How has the pandemic revealed our need for interdependence?" Because so many people experienced the same traumatic event together, there is this strange opportunity to pursue these questions in a way that forges deep connection and understanding with others.
What three best ideas you have to improve the teaching profession?
1) Qualitative data from individual students is the most valuable
So often teachers leap to solutions for students when they see patterns of behavior that they've grown accustomed to. We provide many of our solutions based on quantitative data generated from large studies. Yet, each individual human being is entirely unique; each student has a past and a future that needs to be tended to in ways that aren't replicable. Because of that, we should ask our students "What do YOU think would help you best?" The answers you get to that question IS science in the form of a qualitative judgment rising from the subject who is needing help. Somewhere, somehow, our profession devalues this type of 'data' and opts for sterile, generic, generalized solutions to problems that are best understood on an individual level.
2) Make yourself invisible sometimes
Don’t be afraid to give up authority to students. Give them opportunities to manage their own projects and lead conversations, even if it’s clunky at first. If we do that, we change what’s possible and students start thinking of themselves as being in charge of their own learning. What this means is that the teacher won’t be the visible leader in the room all of the time but will instead be the invisible orchestrator of experiences behind the scenes. This is a beautiful role to play in other people’s personal development.
3) Keep yourself in the spotlight
This sounds like a contradiction from the last idea and it is! That’s because it’s important to never forget that students want and need adults to provide specific guidance and role-modeling to help them improve. There is nothing wrong with taking the stage as a content expert and sharing information in an engaging way that inspires student interest. The kids want to listen to experts who are passionate about the subject matter and it is our duty to play this role for them.
Steve (L) and Dan (R) Fouts
You gotta see this!
In January 2022 I am holding a workshop through Chapters International titled “3 Steps to a Deeper Classroom. Unlocking the Power of Inquiry Through Conversations.” I will be sharing our Teach Different Conversation method and strategies for how to use it to create more reflective classrooms.
Also, Teach Different runs a podcast ( https://teachdifferent.com/podcast/ ) where we break down a quote every week using our conversation method. Our podcast library is a trove of interesting insights, pieces of wisdom, humor and perspectives on life shared by education experts in the field.