Yesterday I sat in on a roundtable designed to get at the secrets behind excellent teaching.
The talk originated with a really thoughtful dean, who does things like this.
(Peer reviews, retreats, roundtables.)
Imagine — asking teachers what makes for excellent teaching.
I love it when notions are totally sensible and radical at the same time.
So here’s what struck me:
How many smart, articulate, imaginative and totally devoted teachers there are — working everyday to make learning accessible, engaging, relevant and, ultimately, truly possible.
It’s enough to make me want to cry. Or cheer.
And it’s for sure enough to make me want to do an ever-more impassioned job myself.
I came home with a long list of ways my colleagues bring learning to life in their classrooms —
using games and patience and examples and compassion.
We talked about kids just out of high school, new immigrants, pregnant moms, and students overwhelmed by everyday roadblocks. And story after story was recounted of actually reaching these students. Of accomplishment. Empowerment. Humour. Joy.
And this was one intimate little group at one little community college.
Makes a gal kind of hopeful, y’know what I mean?
It was nice to read your post after just reading this article by Jordan Sonnenblick http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6555540.html
Teaching
Elaine M.
Liz,
Thanks for the link to the SLJ article. My May issue hasn’t arrived yet. It’s No Child Left Behind AND state mandated tests that are killing best teaching practices in our classrooms–even in middle class communities. Think: fewer field trips, less exploration in and outside the classroom, little time for creative activities…and on and on and on.
I left the classroom in 2000. I had really enjoyed working as an elementary teacher for more than thirty years–but I read the handwriting on the wall. Fortunately, I spent my last three years before retiring as our school’s library media specialist. I was left alone to run my library program the way I thought best.
I really have sympathy for the colleagues I left behind. So much of the joy of working with children has gone out of teaching today. Enrichment and arts programs are being cut to make way for more test prep.
I hope our country comes to its senses and realizes that the educational road we’re traveling at the present time is taking us in the wrong direction.