Spring Break Musings

As a teacher, I continually feel cut off from what is happening globally in education.  I think it is a phenomenon expressed by many teachers:  we are with students, in our classrooms, working hard.  But what is going on out there?  What are other districts doing?  How are they experiencing the changes that are going on in our world and how does this impact our teaching?   

So, having a few seconds to myself, I look at blogs of teachers and educators to get a handle on how they are experiencing these fast and terrific times, and how they handle sharing their stories.  

Well, I was impressed with West Vancouver.  Check out the blog of the Superintendent, Chris Kennedy  who has done a fantastic job in uniting his district with a strong and focused message!  His emphasis is on real world learning, and how the role of teacher is changing.  We are not the deliverers of curriculum, but the supporters, managers, and coaches of students who are powerfully making sense of their own learning.

I always link it back to my own learning as a teacher:  when working in the Multi-Age Cluster Class, a full time gifted program, I was surrounded by huge intellectual powerhouses!  These students were seekers of knowledge, had brains crammed with information and facts beyond my wildest dreams, and  were able to make abstract connections that kept me on my toes.  Now, these students did not need my rendition of facts or teaching on how things worked.  They needed a guide to assist them in making sense of their learning, a facilitator, a person to keep them on track, to ask the right questions, to push them for further understanding, and to show they how to be communicators of their knowledge.  That was and continues to be my role.  And, I love it!  

So when parents and teachers ask "what do you teach" in the challenge centre, I am very evasive.  I come with a plan, and then I seek out what the students need, and then I go from there.  I always have a plan, but I always need to meet the group and get their feedback, and push forward!

Finally, I LOVE what Chris Kennedy says is so important, in his TED talk (go to his great blog and check it out)....good writing still matters.  When we use technology as teachers, we need not get bogged down by it all (my techie husband rolls his eyes at my lack of skills in the techie world) but we need to understand that good writing still matters. 


So, as we work in our "own houses" of teaching, I like to think that we can make connections with other learners, and use social media as a means to discover ideas and share knowledge.  This is 21st Century Learning at it's best!