Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
Students have already written many words, sentences and paragraphs in answer to Lucie's first question. The idea is to decide your teaching philosophy, and which great educational philosopher (from the list) you feel you are most like. It is a long list, and initially I felt I should make a table and compare them to my philosophies, and maybe I should do just that! I do like the visual of a table.
However, this needs to be written out in words, sentences and (maybe) paragraphs.
During library readings, research activities, technology lessons and maker projects, I want my students to become self-directed. I love to try to influence them by sharing biographies of great humans (from Jacques Cousteau to Marian Anderson to Wilma Rudolph - there are so many!). In addition to "teaching", I give demonstrations and show videos of innovative technologies and projects, but first and foremost, I require them to find their passions, follow their dreams, be resilient, and have fun. I do my best not to be a dictator, but the old-fashioned teacher in me does pop out at times. I also believe that our classroom community, our school community, and our larger communities need to be honored.
So, first that brings me to John Dewey. I try to emulate his idea of the "continuous spiral", his ideas of democracy in the classroom, and that student learning should be connected to students' lives. However, I cannot stop with John Dewey. All of these scholars have influenced me in many ways. I have certainly been touched by Seymour Papert's ideas. I first came in contact with his work when I began using the coding application, Scratch. Mitch Resnick talked about him at the Scratch events and online. When my students use their devices, I want them to be creative and active participants. This quote from Papert is posted on my wall, "The role of the teacher is to create the conditions for invention rather than provide ready-made knowledge."
I hope to learn more about and practice Papert's theory of constructionism this summer and bring those ideas back to my schools in the fall.
Posted on 7-06-18 & Posted CML.
Ch. 1, 2 Questions 1-2
