Embrace the Constant Change #IMMOOC
What is one thing that you used to do in education that you no longer do or believe in? Why the change?
This is a question that I hope every educator can answer. If we are a product of our experiences, and up until recently the majority of classrooms modeled the industrial age of interchangeable parts and people (Seth Godin TED Talk Stop Stealing Dreams), then we probably started very differently than where we are today. I know I did.
Note Taking
THEN: In a 5th grade class, I started my career with lots of note-taking. I would spend entire class periods, up to 60 minutes, setting up students with information to apply in a lab later, which required students to get the information they needed via lecture and notes. I thought I was hitting two learning styles by talking and showing.
NOW: Notes are references or practice, and usually last no longer than 15 minutes. They are interactive-there is a lot of questioning happening during the note taking process. I try to have students talking as much as I am. Many times we are drawing or gluing in a graphic that we are annotating to focus the learner on how to use the information. Sometimes our notes are done in a station with a video guide instead of whole group.
I can say I rarely do anything two years in a row exactly the same. My practice is a constant shift through reflection of what I could do better, how can it be more engaging, more student centered, where can I give choice? This is one example, but there are hundreds more in my personal experience.
Change isn't something to look at as more work. Our work IS change, because our world changes. If we are not evolving as a teacher, we will experience the same survival of the fittest that we see in the animal kingdom. Its called burnout. Its called grumpy teacher. Its called "Why doesn't she just RETIRE already?!"
Love what you do or do something else. Change is inevitable. Embrace it and see your limitless potential.
This is a question that I hope every educator can answer. If we are a product of our experiences, and up until recently the majority of classrooms modeled the industrial age of interchangeable parts and people (Seth Godin TED Talk Stop Stealing Dreams), then we probably started very differently than where we are today. I know I did.
Note Taking
THEN: In a 5th grade class, I started my career with lots of note-taking. I would spend entire class periods, up to 60 minutes, setting up students with information to apply in a lab later, which required students to get the information they needed via lecture and notes. I thought I was hitting two learning styles by talking and showing.
NOW: Notes are references or practice, and usually last no longer than 15 minutes. They are interactive-there is a lot of questioning happening during the note taking process. I try to have students talking as much as I am. Many times we are drawing or gluing in a graphic that we are annotating to focus the learner on how to use the information. Sometimes our notes are done in a station with a video guide instead of whole group.
I can say I rarely do anything two years in a row exactly the same. My practice is a constant shift through reflection of what I could do better, how can it be more engaging, more student centered, where can I give choice? This is one example, but there are hundreds more in my personal experience.
Change isn't something to look at as more work. Our work IS change, because our world changes. If we are not evolving as a teacher, we will experience the same survival of the fittest that we see in the animal kingdom. Its called burnout. Its called grumpy teacher. Its called "Why doesn't she just RETIRE already?!"
Love what you do or do something else. Change is inevitable. Embrace it and see your limitless potential.
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