I really enjoyed the enthusiasm and excitement of the group of teachers in this PD group. I feel excited that there are teachers that are learning, teaching and incorporating new technology and inquiry into teaching BUT; I mentioned to one of my friends who teaches in the Catholic Board, that we had this workshop with this group and she was very negative about the ed tech group and said their workshops are @#$%. Having experience the teachers leading the group first hand I'm able to form my own opinion and I think that they have a lot of great information for teachers, I'm assuming a lot more than we were exposed to, and that my friend is one of these teachers who have been doing the same thing for several years and has no desire to change. I also understand that she is over loaded with paper work for every little thing or problem that her students have that she is finding it hard to have time to teach her students, and that she has no time to even want to change. How many teachers are like my friend?
So I ask what are we doing as teachers, what are we giving the students, does having to fill out 10 pages of paper just to refer a student for help encourage teachers to help them or to not help them so they don't drown in paper work? Is this why in our practicums we didn't see many teachers using inquiry? Is this why teachers feel that they are being squeezed like a lemon for every last drop of juice out of them? Is this why there is no energy lest for teachers to change their ways?
I also know of another teacher who was teaching in an inquiry style and she was snuffed out by her administration and other teachers in her department because her students were too engaged and too many students wanted to be in her class. Now she if forced to follow the same teaching style of the other teachers in her department so that the exams can all be the same. I was so confused by this, I don't understand why as an administrator you would not encourage what she was doing and spread that engagement throughout the school. I fear that when I start teaching I'll be demanded to follow these old ways of teaching and I'll have to conform to what all other teachers are doing. What do you say to an administrator who thinks that any assessment other than exams are just fluff??
It was truly a pleasure to come out to speak with you and your fellow students. Thank you for forming your own opinions, and also being inquisitive about other perspectives. This is an important skill. One thing that I’ve learned is that despite my every good intention, there will be people who are critical and those who think I am doing an amazing job (this includes students, colleagues, parents, and administrators). Just the other day, I received feedback from a PD session that a colleague and I had given, and out of 11 people, I got back 2 responses. One of those responses was positive on all accounts; the other was negative on all accounts! Go figure, hey? The important grounding for me is, ‘What do I think?’ Did I try to practice what I preached? Did I do my best? Is there something I missed that someone is trying to tell me? How could I do it better next time? Aligning our actions with our beliefs requires ongoing reflection and practice – hence the importance of being a reflective practitioner. The crazy thing is that not everyone believes the same thing when it comes to education. We are in a time where traditional education is being challenged because the world that our students will be working in is very different than the generation before them. When you asked the question, “How many teachers are [frustrated/overloaded] like my friend? And Why? “ I found myself asking, “How many teacher are NOT like your friend? And Why? There are some amazing teachers out there, who are living their beliefs that children must be engaged learners! The challenge is that it is more of a process than a product, so it is easy to get discouraged. How you choose to respond to the complexity of your role will shape you! It is not an easy job, but it sure does come with many rewards! I wish you all the best in your future!
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