Category: Weekly Reflections

“It is the year 2050 and technology has taken off within the realm of education…”

mmeCHelsea

Students think it is cool to “throwback” to being in a classroom. I mean how weird is that? Physically being in the same space, breathing the same air, using a PENCIL ON PAPER?!?!?!? I joke, but it doesn’t seem that long ago to me. Since then, things have drastically changed. Students are at home, in a classroom simulator, that allows us all to be there at the same time digitally. It feels surreal to see them sitting there “working on their laptops” as they join in from home to go to school, almost like being in a Virtual Reality (VR) game. It is also odd to see students be confused about how someone could’ve gone to school without a screen. They ask me to tell them stories about the “olden days” all the time… I am only 51 years old! I still believe I’m young, but they make me feel old when I get to look back to being in a classroom physically.

The students laugh as I tell them about tests from “back then”… I mean, they’ve never had to circle a multiple choice question, hand in a paper written up, or had to write a quiz on paper before! It’s kind of silly to see them get so excited about it. Sometimes they ask me to give them an “old time experience” where we write notes on paper, just for fun! However, paper is not as easily accessible anymore and I can’t find it at any of the supplies stores as they’ve all “converted” into technology stores. We don’t really need paper, pencils, pens and the works anymore!

When I tell them about Zoom, the technology we used in 2020, they tell me they’ve heard about it before in their history classes.

The world is strange now, and I miss being able to sit in a classroom, the familiar building “smells,” and chatting with my coworkers at lunch. Teaching is different now.

Today, Chantelle came and spoke to us about BCEdAccess, and we were able to hear from Chantelle on her experience & the things BCEdAccess does.

The link to the BCEdAccess site is here. Below I have made a podcast on my reflections of this visit, and highlight how inaccessible it is for parents to get assessments for their children.

ACCESS… NOT SO ACCESSIBLE?

I am curious as to what has been done to help with the issue of assessment costs, and long wait periods… I’m definitely going to be doing some inquiry on the several difficulties with getting assessments as I find this heartbreaking & upsetting. I have my own struggles with my neurodivergence, and only in adulthood was I able to access help. As future teachers, we need to think about how we can create an inclusive classroom for ALL (not just because we know about students with certain IEPs). Normalize a holistic school experience, with opportunities for every single student!

I believe that education should be both accessible, and multimodal. What does that mean for my opinion on online or offline education?

For me, I think a blend of online and offline learning is helpful and more well-rounded to all students. As someone who has a shorter attention span, I empathize with learners who need constant different stimulation to succeed in education.

FOR EXAMPLE:

When the pandemic first started I really enjoyed being able to learn from home. I was able to navigate and try new things, and I didn’t have to take the long commute to school each day. As time progressed, I struggled to focus online, felt lonely, and wouldn’t even bother to change my outfit. I found myself to be less productive, and it was hard to navigate online ed with roommates around me!

HOWEVER:

I see the perks of online education. I myself am privileged because I am able to get myself to school. I have access to a bus near my house, and I could drive (if I wanted to pay insane parking fees, but that’s another problem). I do find connection with others to be more effective, and it does not add to my anxieties. Yet, I cannot assume that everyone has the same privileges or ease to in-person education as I do. This is why I believe blending the two, or even just simply giving an online option to join into a classroom is the best option for education! Some courses (like a tech course) could be done online as it makes sense to have a class based on learning digitally to be digital.

At the end of the day, the things we do as teachers (and as teacher candidates) are SUPPOSED to be student-centered. My opinion doesn’t really matter once I’m a teacher, because we should be focusing on the students we have and their needs first. Education is not a selfish career, and we must keep our students at the forefront of the things we do!

This week, we used PowerPoint to edit and put things together to practice the skills of editing an image (just like in Photoshop!) I have to say, I loved this activity. I think because I’m familiar with the tool, I had an easier time navigating this editing form. I had never thought about using it this way in the classroom, but I am happily surprised! I love that it can be as fun or as serious as needed, and it is a tool that can easily be used in the classroom in both of these ways.

Below, I have included my silly image of a king mole grabbing at a bowl of oranges! I was feeling particularly inspired today.

Idea for using this in a French Classroom

The first thing I thought about using this tool for in my future classroom is making a silly, fun image and having students explain what the photo is in French! That way, students can have some creative liberty while also getting to the learning goal of oral practice. How fun would that be for any level? The pictures will allow students to build their vocabulary while using technology!

Tell me and I forget,

teach me, and I may remember,

involve me and I learn.

Benjamin Franklin

I appreciated this lecture and loved creating my own idea based on the fun and inspiration I had from my professor. I am even going to try and use PowerPoint for my future reflections and/or free inquiries!

I appreciated getting to both discuss AND participate in Ed Camp (however within the classroom setting, and not online)! I find it important to put our ideas and thoughts into a practical setting, and trying something together as colleagues before introducing something like this into the classroom.

In my group, we were discussing adding literature that highlights LGBTQ+ people and BIPOC together in a classroom. It was nice to be surrounded by like-minded people who had ideas and thoughts and things/books to share with the group. I was interested, and was passionate about what we were chatting about.

I will definitely be using something like this into my future French classroom, because it can be based on the ideas of students (and learning should be student-centered in the context of education!!) I think this is one of my favourite activities that we’ve done together as a class.

I have included a cool gif below that I think captures the essence of collaboration! I found it on a blog, that was chatting about collaboration!

Below, I have included my H5P Video on Teachers Pay Teachers to show how to use H5P through WordPress! At first, this was difficult to navigate… I found it difficult to figure out where to start. I appreciate the vast information offered on this through UVic Libraries. However, sometimes this can be a bit overwhelming for the average brain. (i.e. me).

In all, I found this to be a useful teaching tool, and will probably use this in the future! A big thanks to Rich for coming in and working with me on this project. Here’s to furthering my tech journey!

Thanks,

Chels

A chat with guest speaker Jesse

Jesse shared some of his knowledge about the digital world in this day’s class. Information is so wide spread. We use it simply because it is an easy way to connect with our coworkers, friends, family, and the people in our life who are essential for living.

In the realm of teaching, the digital world can be extremely helpful if you do it the right way… As educators, we create environments of participation. For example, we watch movies, and find information more readily. Yet, it is easy to forget the barriers that the internet can hold for students.

This workshop reminded me of some fundamental things:

• Not every student readily has wifi connection
• Not every student has the socioeconomic means to afford the ability to be digital 
• If we tell students screen time is bad, how can we expect them to use it as a learning tool?

Overall, I found this chat grounding as it made me check my privilege. Although simple concepts, it is important to be reminded of these valuable lessons!

We all have an idea of what we think we can learn. How do you think the mind actually works? 

In this week’s class, we discussed different methods of learning such as the TPAK Framework, and the SAMR Model, among others. All of these are valuable tools for working within the classroom. Yet, it begs the question: why is there so much “research” on what kind of learner our students are when we should be focusing on implementing all different types of methods? 

 There is an idea in the educational realm where there are “types of learners” in a classroom. However, I don’t believe learners should be boxed into visual vs. verbal vs. logical learners. I believe that for student success, there needs to be a multimodal way of teaching regardless of what the needs  are for specific learners. 

Attached, I have an included an article about types of learners as it is something that tends to be spoken of often within education. 

How to Engage the 7 Types of Learners in your Classroom

Overall, I believe we should keep changing our styles of learning regardless of the “types of learners.” It is important to constantly keep students “on their toes” to get them to retain knowledge more consistently. 

In class, the issue of whether or not you should have to pay for teaching resources came up. Although I do believe there should be open access teaching resources to help with the process, I do find it valuable to have buy-in teaching resources! 

Why should you pay for some resources? 

In this mini podcast, I explain my reason for loving (some) buy-in resources like Teachers Pay Teachers. I feel as though a platform that allows a teacher to be paid for their efforts is valuable, as the things a teacher creates can be considered its own form of artwork! 

Links to mentioned platforms: 

 Share Ed BC  – an open educational resource!

 Teachers Pay Teachers – a buy-in educational resource!

As part of our first piece of homework, we were tasked with watching “Most Likely to Succeed” (2015) which shows the story of students who create their own project in the form of a showcase and present it to their friends, family, and greater school community. 

This movie made me feel a little unsettled at first, as I grew up in a “pen-to-paper” academia focused school system. I caught myself thinking, “ will this work? Is this system actually preparing students for post-secondary education?” However, as I continued to watch and see how their showcase unfolded, I grew more confident in a system that allows for self-driven creativity.

 At the very end of the film, a student was unable to fix his project for the showcase– and I found this to be impactful. 

Why is this so powerful?

This is powerful because his teacher does not say “c’mon, be prepared next time” or anything of this sort. The child knows this, and he is able to recognize this on his own (as shown in the film). The project seems to have meant a lot to the child– and this makes the difference in his self-reflection! I realized that by doing this student-driven project, a child is able to learn and grow more effectively within the classroom setting. 

🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚🏫📚

I appreciated stepping out of my comfort zone and watching something I’m not used to seeing. I plan to take on a hands-on approach to teaching, so this film allowed me to see a system so different from what I’m used to and  how it works!