Does my own practise reflect the essence of what it means to teach in the 21st century? That was the question I asked myself five semesters ago. In fact, I have forgotten why I asked myself that question ... even after being in this profession for about 20 years. After all, I was comfortable doing what I was doing and the majority of my students were quite happy being in my class, or so I thought. Even then, I found myself searching for some answers and inspiration. I found one in the form of a video presentation by Dr. Terri Cox-Cruey. It is indeed inspiring! Her message to all teachers is that no matter what content, skills or subjects that you teach, you need to reflect on your own practise honestly and ask yourself if you are truly preparing your students to socially function effectively, to master information systems and to compete effectively in the global job market.
In fact, the following semester I decided to follow her dream. At that time I had no idea that I would be enrolling in the Masters Of Teaching and Learning program. Besides, I wasn't even sure if I was going to help my students in the way describe by Dr. Terri Cox-Cruey. I was just inspired to change my approaches to engage my students after discovering some sites posted by a few Mathematics teachers about the interesting and different things they do with their students. They really showed me the possibilities that I never knew exist for a subject like Mathematics!
After some thought, I decided to go ahead and try out some of the ideas and eventually added some of my own. Along the way, I discovered that there was a tremendous amount of work involved. Monitoring the students, almost 90 of them, was really no walk in the park. However, I persisted. To be honest, it was all worth the effort as the results were truly amazing and I would like to believe that my students were truly inspired. I am sharing some of my favourite student websites here with you.
Upon reflecting, I realise that the first step to this amazing journey was my desire to improve my practise. Then came checking out what was out there and finally taking the plunge, which was to start small. Feeling excited, I shared the results of my and my students' hard work with some of my colleagues. One of them tried out the project and commented that it was very hard work and wondered whether it was all worth the effort. I do understand what she meant as teachers want the improvement in student learning to justify the often difficult changes they had to make (Guskey, 2000). Although I do think that collaborating is a good thing and may sound easy but the truth is, more often than not, it is a real challenge. You need to have like-minded teachers. However, sharing ideas is still a valuable activity. I am really glad that I took that first step!
The following are some of my students' learning portfolios. They are some of my favourites. Click on their names to visit their portfolios.
This learning experience has taught me that learning is often an uncomfortable process, with many obstacles and challenges along the way. However, the results of your effort can sometimes be life changing. This particular experience made me realize that alternative assessment certainly is a powerful tool. Now, I am definitely more open to new ways of thinking about my work.
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