In the past, I thought in the education program, I will learn how to teach; however, my preconception of what teacher do is challenged during PSI.
- Teacher is a facilitator
- Formative assessment
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One take away learning from PSI is: good teaching isn't about how you teach but rather how you ensure students learned.
In the past, I thought in the education program, I will learn how to teach; however, my preconception of what teacher do is challenged during PSI.
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I'm not saying to relearn the multiplication table but to study the new teaching strategies that are being implemented in the classroom today. In today's blog, I want to examine what I have learned (in the past 2 weeks since I started the education program) about the new way teachers are teaching and how it will apply and address an issue many in the working world currently are struggling with right now: "How to engage stakeholders". Facts:
Source: http://faethcoaching.com/it-project-failure-rates-facts-and-reasons/ While working as an Consulting Analyst, one question that constantly arise is "how do we best assist clients in their decision makings." Many would agree that PowerPoint skills and presentation skills are key assets that many employers seeks in the hiring process. This is because for a project to succeed, the team needs to gain buy-in and support from the stakeholders, but far too often projects fail because stakeholders no longer see the value of the project after engaging in multiple 2-3 hours reviews and revision "stage gates" with no outcomes. In general, here's how a meeting would progress:
How kids are being taught today and how it apply in the working world:
Suggestions:
In conclusion, I hope that I can help equip our next generation kids with the skills to convince upper management that it is important to have an unlimited frozen yogurt machine in the lunchroom. :) When I think about technology in the classroom today, I think of
Moore's Law: "Over the history of computing hardware, the number of transistors on integrated circuits doubles approximately every two years" - Wikipedia, 2013-09-16, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moore%27s_law What does the Moore's law mean? It means that in computer hardware world, computing power is predicted to rise exponentially with time. Being the software girl that I am, I will not try to envision the types of devices that will arrive in the coming 20 years, but rather focus on what the current technological devices that we have now can do to enhance the classroom experience. Even though the topic is technology in the classroom in 20 years, I strongly feel that this vision can be made possible in the next couple of years. Personalized Learning: With Youtube, Google, Wikipedia, Moodle, Blackboard and number of different Computer-Based-Training (CBTs) emerging in the market, teaching no longer need to be a passive teacher deliver, student receive type of situation. Learning can easily be done by a student watching a video on YouTube or Googling a topic of interest on their own. This said, student learning can easily be tailored to the needs and interests of a student.
Global Classroom/ Social Driven Learning:
Why can't teacher's twitter professional network (that was introduced to us by Kurtis Hewson)extend to students. Classroom no longer need to be limited by the physical walls of the classroom or school. I envision students collaborating and participating in musical, reading, writing, math activities virtually with other students is physically located on the other side of the world. This is completely possible through the use of social media such as twitter, pintrest, Facebook where ideas can be shared. Students can also easily use Google gchat to connect live to work on a mind map or presentation. Teacher's Role: All the technologies that I mentioned above already exist, but teachers will need to take on a big role of implementing and ensuring effective use of the technologies in the classroom. For this vision to happen over the next 20 years, teachers will need to immerse themselves into these technological trends as well as promote and help student form their virtual identity. Teacher's role will need to evolve into a facilitator role to help guide students in their self-development. This all said, I strongly feel that classroom is place where students develop social, interpersonal relationships, community and identity in society and technology, by no means can replace the need for physical presence and interactions between teachers with students and peers to peers. Technology can be a useful tool in the classroom to further advance student learning; however, it is not a substitute for good teaching. Topic to reflect upon: "How I can ensure powerful learning in students." Source of Inspiration: Please enjoy this enlightening video on "Ned's Gr8 8s: How Youth Learn" that was shared with us in our teaching seminar. This video discuss and examine eight criteria that must hold true for learners to have great learning experience:
As a rookie student teacher, at this point in time, I don't quite know how to ensure all eight criteria holds so my student will have a powerful learning experience (hopefully, I will have a revised perspective by the time I have my own class). For now, I want to focus on one fundamental condition "Learner must feel okay". Students need to be physically and emotionally well to learn. Feeling hungry, lonely, sick, distracted, worried, stress can all take away from a student's learning ability. Feeling Hungry: "15 minutes…10 minutes…5 minutes until lunch…seriously, is the clock broken!?" "I wonder if anyone heard my stomach growl…that was embarrassing" "Man, I wish I thought of that…pizza for breakfast…smells so good…" "I'm so hungry…" Throughout my learning career, multiple permutations of these statements have often taken over my thoughts in class. Many of my teachers in the past have enforced the no food policy in class on the bases of respect for other students and I never questioned it. Smell, sound, curiosity can often be source of distraction for other students. It was also never a major concern, I have always taken this physical component of well being for granted. However, my EDU 2500 experience changed my perspective and helped me acknowledge the importance of ensuring students aren't hungry when they're learning. I came to realize how much time those thoughts have taken away from my learning as a student, and that hunger can be the greatest inhibitor to powerful learning for students. The student family demographic of this particular school was not well off. Many students often do not have parents or caregiver at home to prepare food for them. In response to this, the school deployed a breakfast/ lunch program where all students are provided breakfast to start the day off right. I learned while at this school, the harsh reality that even in Canada, there are cases when students have to worry about whether they will be having dinner that night or not and 6X6 is not the top priority. Students need to be physically well to be engaged in learning. Emotional well being: How we feel dictates how we act and how we act will affect others. It was not until grade 5 that my marks started to pick up. Throughout elementary, I was always a marginal student, I would always receive 3's and 4's on report cards (with 1 being exceptional and 4 not meeting expectations). Reflecting back, I realized what changed when I entered grade 5, it was that my family finally settled down and I was no longer on the move. I often zoned out to escape own feeling, Now as an adult reflecting back, I came to realize it was an escape mechanism to help me cope with the distress of constantly moving. In my EDU 2500 experience, I had a student who often acted out in class. She would sometimes pick on another student who have a learning disability but other times be very protective of her. One time, I had the opportunity to talk with her about her behavior that made me realize her acting out was not intentional but rather an outlet for her bottled up feelings from home. She was the youngest out of three in a broken family and was often neglected at home. Learning can't happen when student's mind are preoccupied with other concerns. KSA #1 explained as interim teachers, we need to be aware of contextual variables that will affect student learning. Perhaps in the role of a teacher, we may be limited in what we can do to address certain situations for students outside of the classroom; but to ensure students are emotionally fit to learn, we can teach students how to acknowledge, comprehend their feelings and teach them proper mechanisms to cope with their feelings in face of challenges. The followings are the teaching standards set by the Alberta Teachers Association:
KSA #1 Teachers make reasoned decisions about teaching and learning based on their ongoing analysis of contextual variables. KSA #2 Teachers understand the legislated, moral and ethical framework within which they work. KSA #3 Teachers use the programs of study to inform and direct planning instruction and assessment. KSA #4 Teachers demonstrate knowledge of the content they teach. KSA #5 Teachers identify and respond to learner differences. KSA #6 Teachers plan for instruction, translating curriculum and outcomes into meaningful learning activities. KSA #7 Teachers create and maintain environments that are conducive to student learning and understand student needs for physical, social, cultural and psychological security. KSA #8 Establishes relationships with students that respect human dignity. KSA #9 Teachers use a broad range of instructional strategies. KSA #10 Teachers apply a variety of technologies to meet students’ learning needs. KSA #11 Teachers gather and use information about students’ learning needs and progress and assess the range of learning objectives. KSA #12 Teachers engage parents in all aspects of teaching and learning. KSA #13 Teachers identify and use relevant learning resources. KSA #14 Teachers contribute professionally to the quality of their school KSA #15 Teachers engage in assessing the quality of their teaching. KSA #16 Teachers are able to communicate a personal vision of their own teaching. |