Learning Never Stops

 I want to start with a little anecdote. I am currently spending a month in Singapore. The days have been easy, lazy. The other day, I was trying to open a bottle of Merlot with a bottle opener. I struggled for almost half an hour. Sweating, cussing. The house keeper, an Indian lady, who has never opened a bottle of wine before, told me to leave the bottler opener alone, and twist the cap. She had applied what I didn't: critical thinking skills. I am an IB educator and teach primary year children. I am currently teaching 4 th grade students. ( I know! You must be saying, "Those poor kids!"). Our school follows the inquiry method of teaching. The students are encouraged to become independent learners; they are also expected to exhibit ten learner profiles: Inquirer, Thinker, Communicator, Balanced, Principled, Risk Taker, Leader, Steward , Reflective, and Open-Minded by the end of the primary year program. These profiles are embedded into our school’s cur...

I have been reading George Couros's post here and I felt I should write something about this. Creativity or what Maslow (1943) calls self-actualization is the highest form of human endevour. What a powerful video. We really get very unsettled when our kids are bored. Put an Ipod in their hands or a television set in front of them. And watch them slowly transform into zombies. Well this child shows us the power of creativity. Boredom is a state of mind and he chose not to be bored. He seized the opportunity. Though he did not have any customers, he never stopped being excited about his arcade because, to him, it was not about the final product or the money. To him the very act of creating was fun. Creativity needs time.   Observe how the children become creative when we give them more time! So the question we educators need to ask is "How can we encourage our students to be creative?" What if we had one period of the day where they are give...

Research! The thought of research brings to mind hours of pouring over academic literature, the onerous task of collecting data, plotting it into absurdly complicated cluster/bar graphs and analysis. For the next 8 weeks, I will be learning how to undertake an action research. I tried it once before. But I don't think it was a success. I felt no sense of accomplishment. I got lost in the process. And worst of all, I changed my mind about my wondering half way through the process! The first thing I learnt this week is to look at this process more as an inquiry than a research. This knowledge was soothing. I have been teaching through inquiry. The only difference is that the spot light is on me and my learning, not the students. The whole purpose of AR is of course to improve student learning. It also gives voice to the otherwise neglected teachers who rely on outsiders, scientists and university professors who have spent years thinking about something connect...

1) Give them your phone number. I know most teachers are reluctant to do this. But there is a good reason- At the back of their minds, parents know that you are there for their child. You care enough to sacrifice your time. I have always given my phone number and till date not one parent has abused that privilege unnecessarily. I have occasionally been called up to clarify concerns. This, in turn, has nipped problems in the bud. 2) Call them up. At times I find myself thinking about the kids. Something funny may have happened in school that day; or something was bothering me. I pick up the phone and share my thoughts with them. 3) A class blog is like a gift to parents. They get to see their child's work; they watch videos of class activities; homework is always clearly laid out. 4) Encourage parents to blog. I always encourage parents to post comments in the class blog. The students feel that their parents are interested in their education. The parents feel part o...