Thursday, August 15, 2013
Quantity over Quality
I was at first shocked to see this phrase listed on our directions and even considered if it were a typo. It seems like teachers are always trying to drive home to students that quality is what truly matters. However, after completing the post-it activity, I realized just how powerful quantity can be. As I mentioned in our session, I can see myself using this technique to help students write essays and learn how to brainstorm. For APUSH essays, I am consistently trying to stress the importance of including specific factual information to back up their thesis statements. It seems to be the hardest skill for students every year. I think by giving them a time frame like 5 minutes, using post-its so they have a visual of how many facts they are listing, and stressing quantity over quality, students will be better enabled to brainstorm. Then, we can transition this skill to the actual essay process.
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Yea I loved this phrase too! It will definitely be part of my new lingo sometimes when it's appropriate!
ReplyDeleteYou know, when I first heard quantity over quality in relation to design thinking, I had the exact same thought! Definitely a typo. But I realized, as you did here, that sometimes what's important is ideating without judging your ideas, and it works so much better when one temporarily suspends the need for quality. I particularly love the Linus Pauling quote: "If you want to have good ideas you must have many ideas. Most of them will be wrong, and what you have to learn is which ones to throw away."
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