Involving in learners in their own learning, but to what extent...

So yes, we all want an exciting classroom and we want to be the cool teacher, have the class that the learners look forward too... This is all very good and well. We will try and and make our lessons fun and intriguing or perhaps in other ways create order in the classroom through conditioning our learners to think in a certain way when they enter your classroom. Just like the teacher did with the water bowls, asking the kids about their ideal classroom, writing their own words of expression on paper and using it in the next exercise. 

Now here is the thing...we can incorporate tools like that into our lessons or our ay of thinking, afterall it is important to be mindfull and as everyone has seen this past two weeks, being a teacher is no joke, or gap year... It is quite a serious decision one has to make, when you are going to be a teacher and I mean a teacher in the manner it is suppose to be. Not to just be another brick in the wall, rushing learners in and out of your classroom so that you can go home and continue with your life and get ypur paycheck at the end of the  month, teaching is going to be a demanding lifestyle. It will take a lot of YOUR time. Thus you have to be sure you are prepared for something like that. When I started this PGCE course that was a very real decision facing me and many others I am sure, do I deregister and go do my honeurs, or am I ready for this. I was unsure up and till the micro teaching. That was the final point were I realized I am in this for the long run. Also even if one starts out entheusiastic one will have to ensure you do not become numb as the years go on and think you know what you are doing, your classes are fine, that might be, but you have lossed the lot then. I wached many lessons of my fellow PGCE students and there wee some good lessons, however there is no such thing as the perfect lesson, there are always things one can improve on, so your lesson might be good, but do you want to be good or the best? Anyways back to bringing the kids into it...

This is innovative and so on, but to what extent do you include that in your classes, before it becomes a distraction from the work. Because at the end of the day you still have a program of work to adhere to. Moving in such fields verges on the art or perhaps cultural sides  of education and there might be a learner in your class who is a genius at maths or science or economics etc...and the information and quality of your education that you are giving the those learners are thus very important to them. I think doing such teaching through involving the learners is good, but only to a certain extent, the teacher will have to find that borderline for themselves....

Away with the teacher they said! It will be fun they said...

A school of the students, by the students, for the students- does seem like an interesting change of pace. Having learners develop an absolute knowledge on a specific topic, or perhaps in a certain field. This sounds like the best idea since someone put an engine on a bicycle. That means no math homework, if you are only interested in drama and arts, if you are interested in maths then unfortunately you will have maths homework, but hey that's what interests you! 

That is what is great about this idea, you can focus on a specific field and not become distracted with work that you are going to forget about within the very first holiday at the end of your matric year when you leave school and you will never use it ever again, unless you have to count sheep on a farm somewhere...then you might.

Now you might be thinking I probably hated maths at school, I didn't, I actually enjoy it, I am simply trying to say that today I have no use for maths, other than counting, using my tables and perhaps some basic princples. 

That is my point, you learn many things in school that you keep with you and many things that just get left behind, however I feel there is a foundation of basic knowledge that learners learn at school, being lead or inspired by a teacher, that points them in the right direction because they have experience, a child needs a pedagogue. Perhaps it is the parent, home schooling vibes, but the principle remains the same. Yes the internet has much to offer, so much knowledge a mere click away, however one day there might be a inappropriate link next to that very intellectual article, that for a adolescent with raging hormones might be a tad to inviting, can send them down the wrong path. Guidance is thus necessary, silly example, but the principle remains the same.

Perhaps relevant guidance then? In the specific field of interest? Someone with experience in the same field, to guide and teach you the ways of the force. Brilliant idea! But I cannot help but feel that it might be better left for an after school activity, just incase you find yourself in a situation where you need to count those sheep one day...

Social media integrated in the classroom

The idea of social media in the classroom integrated with teaching sends chills down many educators' spines, however should one even consider it? Well, that is the question. We have been discussing and readinng about digital pedagogy and where digital techhnology comes into play.

We are in a world where technology is developing at an alarming pace, I mean a few years ago the Nokia 3310 was the phone to have, today you have a computer in a comfortable size that fits into your hands. This has made social media an even more popular trend. People are socialising online through twitter, facebook, blogs etc. This is where the issues arise when the integration of social media and the classroom take place. The obvious and number one issue is that learners will get distracted with socializing online instead of paying attention to the lessson. However as it has been pointed out, there is a difference between socialising in a group activity and socialising outside the classroom. Thus when one brings social media into the classroom, one should plan ahead of the possible affects that will follow. Such as tweeting or getting a certain app to remind students about homework, one must be sure that it is one way commmunication from teaccher to learners only. Thus social media can be used as a tool, which learners will already know and be comfartable with and will make work or doing a certain assignment more interesting.

Certain social media platforms could be used for certain assignments or tasks.  Twitter could be used for feedback on a certain topic and allow learners to engage in a different manner as opposed to in class. Blogging might be a good way to discuss ideas for essay topics in history class for example. To give learners the chance to read other learners' ideas that can help them shape their own ideas and possibly provide them with different perspectives. Social media can thus be a great tool, which simply has to be implemented correctly.