List of Personal Practice Theories (PPTs)
By - Felicia Maxa
1) Respect for all (students, teachers, and peers) is of utmost importance in the classroom. (Respect = Safety = Sharing = Learning/Teaching)
Mutual respect among for every person in the class, by every other person in the class, is paramount to the learning process. As noted above, I believe that with mutual respect comes a feeling of safety (safe from judgment and hostility in any form). With that feeling of safety comes an open sharing of ideas, thoughts, feelings, and stories. Through this process of sharing, discussion and debate occur. It is within the context of debate and discussion (participation) that learning occurs most naturally and most permanently. This collaborative environment allows for learning to be fluid and different in every single classroom, every single day. Creativity thrives in this sort of an environment, and new ideas, thoughts, feelings, and stories are born of creative (and collaborative) minds. The students, in this way, are not only free to be students, but to be teachers as well.
2) Students are responsible for their own learning and motivation. The teacher is only an aid to this process.
If we put the learning into the hands of our students, we give them the feeling that it is concrete and finite. A tangible “thing” which they are responsible for. To allow students to find their own motivation to learn is to give them control over ta small aspect of their lives. This feeling of control over something is a powerful tool in the learning process when so many kids now have power and control over nothing in their lives/families/communities.
3) Every student is an individual and must be treated as such.
All students learn differently and at different rates. I was a very visual and active learner as a child (I still am). Having attended school where the lessons were usually taught to the auditory learner I found myself struggling to bring home good grades to “prove” my learning. Having worked as an Assistant Learning Disabled Teacher in Aurora I know the importance of defining and using IEPs. The only issue with an IEP or an inclusion child in a classroom is that teachers tend to cater only to that one individual. I, myself, was never found to have a need for an IEP, I simply needed more stimulating curriculum to “prove” learning. As such I strongly believe that ALL kids can and do learn, just in different ways. It is our job, as teachers, to create “IEPs” for all of our students! They are not empty vessels which come to school so that they can be “filled” with stuff!!! Our students are people with feelings, emotions, backgrounds, knowledge, etc. and should be treated (and taught) in a way that strengthens them.
4) Learning life skills (respect, communication through discussion and debate, listening to others, etc.) are as important (if not more so) to learn in a classroom as academics.
Our students are in (mandatory) school for 12 years of their lives (give or take). When they leave their final educational institution they will be living in the world. This world may or may not care if they learned how to properly conjugate words/sentences, or if they have the correct vocabulary and terminology memorized for math or science (there are dictionaries and computers for that). They will, hover, need to know how to work cooperatively with others, how to discuss ideas and feelings, how to debate without worrying that someone will slash their tires because they didn’t agree with what someone else said. Our students need to learn the academic “stuff” we teach in schools, but I believe it is more valuable to empower our students to learn how to live in life successfully. They should be shown how to navigate within the context of the communities that they will be participating in so that they can enact change if, and when, they see a need.
5) Learning occurs when students are participatory and interested (i.e. the topics are meaningful and responsive to the interests of the students).
If we are to truly teach our young people how to learn to be motivated learners, we must first allow them to learn about things that are motivating to them. Motivation comes from having a deep seated interest or passion in something. I believe that it is imperative to teach about things that our students have this sort of passion and interest in! Regardless of the subject, if the students are interested they will problem pose, research, and problem solve as needed to find answers to their questions/concerns. Teachers are there to advise and supervise this process, to intertwine standards into the learning that the students are doing on an “as needed” basis. In this way the standards become back loaded into the learning as opposed to front loading them and creating boring and in-tangible lessons for children who are naturally curious about their world any way. I believe that our students (the future generations as a whole) understand that they are stakeholders in the welfare of their world! They realize that their futures are very dependent upon what happens within the context of their families, their communities, their countries, and their world. Their questions and interests about their world should be integrated into curriculum so that they KNOW their thoughts, questions, and interests in their environments are valid. Our students need to know that they matter!
By - Felicia Maxa
1) Respect for all (students, teachers, and peers) is of utmost importance in the classroom. (Respect = Safety = Sharing = Learning/Teaching)
Mutual respect among for every person in the class, by every other person in the class, is paramount to the learning process. As noted above, I believe that with mutual respect comes a feeling of safety (safe from judgment and hostility in any form). With that feeling of safety comes an open sharing of ideas, thoughts, feelings, and stories. Through this process of sharing, discussion and debate occur. It is within the context of debate and discussion (participation) that learning occurs most naturally and most permanently. This collaborative environment allows for learning to be fluid and different in every single classroom, every single day. Creativity thrives in this sort of an environment, and new ideas, thoughts, feelings, and stories are born of creative (and collaborative) minds. The students, in this way, are not only free to be students, but to be teachers as well.
2) Students are responsible for their own learning and motivation. The teacher is only an aid to this process.
If we put the learning into the hands of our students, we give them the feeling that it is concrete and finite. A tangible “thing” which they are responsible for. To allow students to find their own motivation to learn is to give them control over ta small aspect of their lives. This feeling of control over something is a powerful tool in the learning process when so many kids now have power and control over nothing in their lives/families/communities.
3) Every student is an individual and must be treated as such.
All students learn differently and at different rates. I was a very visual and active learner as a child (I still am). Having attended school where the lessons were usually taught to the auditory learner I found myself struggling to bring home good grades to “prove” my learning. Having worked as an Assistant Learning Disabled Teacher in Aurora I know the importance of defining and using IEPs. The only issue with an IEP or an inclusion child in a classroom is that teachers tend to cater only to that one individual. I, myself, was never found to have a need for an IEP, I simply needed more stimulating curriculum to “prove” learning. As such I strongly believe that ALL kids can and do learn, just in different ways. It is our job, as teachers, to create “IEPs” for all of our students! They are not empty vessels which come to school so that they can be “filled” with stuff!!! Our students are people with feelings, emotions, backgrounds, knowledge, etc. and should be treated (and taught) in a way that strengthens them.
4) Learning life skills (respect, communication through discussion and debate, listening to others, etc.) are as important (if not more so) to learn in a classroom as academics.
Our students are in (mandatory) school for 12 years of their lives (give or take). When they leave their final educational institution they will be living in the world. This world may or may not care if they learned how to properly conjugate words/sentences, or if they have the correct vocabulary and terminology memorized for math or science (there are dictionaries and computers for that). They will, hover, need to know how to work cooperatively with others, how to discuss ideas and feelings, how to debate without worrying that someone will slash their tires because they didn’t agree with what someone else said. Our students need to learn the academic “stuff” we teach in schools, but I believe it is more valuable to empower our students to learn how to live in life successfully. They should be shown how to navigate within the context of the communities that they will be participating in so that they can enact change if, and when, they see a need.
5) Learning occurs when students are participatory and interested (i.e. the topics are meaningful and responsive to the interests of the students).
If we are to truly teach our young people how to learn to be motivated learners, we must first allow them to learn about things that are motivating to them. Motivation comes from having a deep seated interest or passion in something. I believe that it is imperative to teach about things that our students have this sort of passion and interest in! Regardless of the subject, if the students are interested they will problem pose, research, and problem solve as needed to find answers to their questions/concerns. Teachers are there to advise and supervise this process, to intertwine standards into the learning that the students are doing on an “as needed” basis. In this way the standards become back loaded into the learning as opposed to front loading them and creating boring and in-tangible lessons for children who are naturally curious about their world any way. I believe that our students (the future generations as a whole) understand that they are stakeholders in the welfare of their world! They realize that their futures are very dependent upon what happens within the context of their families, their communities, their countries, and their world. Their questions and interests about their world should be integrated into curriculum so that they KNOW their thoughts, questions, and interests in their environments are valid. Our students need to know that they matter!