As time goes by, students tend to have more questions as new machines and discoveries are made. But it is just ironic how learners today are more curious yet less thirsty to look for answers. Unknowingly, this takes away the creativity and obscurity of their brilliant minds.

Undeniably, different learners have different styles of learning. Some prefer to have graphic organizers and videos while some prefer to just listen to a plain discussion. As educators with limited time and resources, it is impossible to do a wide variation of teaching style in order to ensure that their preference are all catered. For most of the learners, it is a disadvantage and they subconsciously think that it’s normal for them to not understand a particular lesson which we should avoid as educators.

Today, creativity is lost. Learners tend to be ‘satisfied’ with what they are given and won’t raise a question anymore. In order to make learning effective, they have to be creative and critical thinkers. So the ‘spoon feeding’ system must be abolished right away.

That is why allotting a short moment after class to give an opportunity for everyone to ask questions is very important. It is called by many as Overcoming the Difficulties of the Day or ODD. In this moment, everyone with questions and clarifications can come up to the educator and clarify things at once. It is essential not only for secondary students but for the young learners as well. In fact, it benefits them more than anyone else.

ODD is primarily aimed to improve retention and understanding to students who weren’t able to cope in class. Moreover, it helps the young ones to build enough confidence to communicate and share ideas with each other. It gives them courage and hunger to seek for more information which is an essential trait when they grow up. Prior to that, it gives them the chance to exercise their critical thinking skills in order to formulate creative questions and can even let them think of what they do not know. This way, there is a higher probability that every learners’ needs are met.

Practically speaking, what the industry needs are critical and analytical thinkers. In order to break through and improve the level of learning, students need to be taught the why’s, the what if’s and the what for’s rather than just the what’s and the how’s. These students cannot be trapped with what they get, they should be taught to raise questions in order to get more.

In this new era of erudition, what the world requires is creativity. And this new generation, we are currently molding, we cannot have it unless we give them the freedom to think, to ask and to create.

This is why it is important to start them young with just a simple step. An extra hour of ODD won’t be a loss to us if our learners will gain from it.

The happenings today happened because we lack what it takes. So it is safe to say that to breed a new generation of critical thinkers can change the flow of the world.