Entrance slip - October 7

"School mathematics has traditionally organized some of its applications around the needs of the moment." 

When I first started reading this I wasn't sure of the connection, ecological sustainability and math education seemed like a bit of a stretch, but this makes sense. Throughout human history, math problems have always been posed in terms of current needs. For example the Egyptians dividing up loafs of bread for multiple workers. I'm not sure in what form problems of the future might look, but posing climate problems as math problems might be one of the first necessary steps in guiding the future of humanity to address those issues. People generally ignore these issues or brush them off, but it's the future generations that'll suffer, so why not make them more aware now, and be comfortable with necessary talks. 

"Even though sustainable mathematics education is motivated by urgent issues of survival, it need not adopt the pessimistic tone of many writings on ecology." 

This is what I meant. People avoid these needed conversations because it makes them feel bad. If you grow up with these talks, and their in the open, it gets easier to deal with the actual problem at hand. I don't think we need to avoid the pessimistic tone entirely; I think it's important to know how serious this problem is, but it should also be delivered evenly with the knowledge that something can be done. 

Entrance Slip - September 23

 If I'm allowed to be honest in this blog, and I hope I am, I find myself struggling to get behind the idea of "backsourcing" as Kallis put it. The idea of teaching in a garden as well, seems so foreign to me but I WANT to be open to the idea. Maybe I'm a product of modern day thinking and I'm too stuck in my ways but I don't like that as an answer. I hate the idea that I'm incapable of changing, the teachers that I felt were the most uninspiring were the teachers that weren't willing to try something new or change to the modern day. So I'm making a conscious decision to be more open to the idea everyday; my worst fear would be to reflect on myself one day and realize that I'VE become one of 'those' teachers. It's not as if I'm opposed to this at all, I just can't picture myself personally doing this or finding any motivation to want to learn to do this.

The merits however aren't lost to me. If this becomes a norm then just like Kallis said then our thoughts and perceptions will change too. People will be more economically and environmentally conscious about the decisions they make, and they'll be more self sufficient in everyday things. I'm sure more people will have a sense of being capable as well as Kallis mentions. 

Something I found interesting that Kallis said that made me stop and reflect was, "Sometimes, creating situations that fulfill emotional, physical or spirtual needs can subtly open one's thinking to a new world of possibilities and show people what they didn't even know they were missing." I feel this might be the root of my disconnect with the natural world and the idea of backsourcing. I believe it when Kallis says that creating things can be fulfilling, and that others feel the same way. But I don't feel that way at all. I'm not a spiritual person, I'm emotionally fulfilled in the relationships I made already, and I don't have a physical need to exert myself into creating things. My lack of interest in this, I think, stems from a feeling that I'm missing that others seem to enjoy. I feel alienated in my ways as many others in my class feel excited and inspired at the opportunity at being outside but for me it seems like a bizarre concept. I constantly feel like there's something I'm not getting when we're outside and this might be the answer.

Entrance Slip - Sep 16

This weeks reading was a great follow up to the Frank McCourt mini documentary. By that I mean that both the writers and Frank brush on the topic of becoming a reflexive teacher in the modern age. A teacher that is flexible and adaptable and can adjust to "cope effectively with changing circumstances"(Grant & Zeichner, 1984, pg. 107). Obviously this is invaluable in a teacher, or perhaps I should say obvious to some. I hear too often from students and even teachers speaking on other teachers, that some get stuck in their ways and refuse to change, no matter how many years and classrooms pass them by. And make no mistake neither speak favourably about the type of environment and lessons they produce. In the article they stress that becoming a "reflective teacher is a continual process of growth" (Grant & Zeichner, 1984, pg. 111, and that the onus is on us to develop and nurture this skill. 

Grant and Zeichner go over what attributes to a reflexive teacher and they highlight 3 qualities in particular: open mindedness, responsibility, and wholeheartedness. Open to new ideas and possibilities, being responsible for our own actions and their possible consequences, and whole heartedly dedicated and committed to teachings all students. Zeichner and Grant feel that honing these qualities as a teacher, will implore students to want to learn. As people change so to then should our teaching strategies change to meet the new growing minds of tomorrow. I think this is sound advice, no matter what the time period is, whether this is a classroom in ancient Greece or a modern classroom today. A teacher shouldn't force a student to bend to their thinking, but design a plan to meet theirs.  

But what really resonated with me the most in this article, and left me thinking even after reading the article is the following statement, "There are no greater errors that prospective teachers can make than those that stem from an unbending certainty to one's beliefs" on page 111. I know my own faults, as I spend a lot of time being introspective, and I know I have a stubbornness in me when it comes to my own beliefs. When I read that it made me more aware of something I already knew, but I know have to focus on. I have a tendency to think I'm very logical and that my beliefs are therefore logical leaving no room for other possibilities sometimes. But I've learned to be humble and accept that I'm wrong and that there's still quite a lot I need to learn. I feel that had I not read this I might have made the same mistake that Zeichner and Grant has warned in this article, and for that I'm grateful. 

 

Exit Slip - Sep 9

The importance of making connections with my students, and to be genuine and human around them. That's the single most important thing I took away from todays class, and from our video segment featuring Frank McCourt. Not that this was something all too new to me or probably anyone in the class, but watching Frank go through and talk about his life and experiences as a teacher and outside of his teaching career, really drives home how big of an impact it can have. Understanding your students, empathizing with them, getting to know them as a person. These are all things that are the makings of a genuine connection, and Frank sounds like he was an expert on this the way he described how he would handle situations in which the students were frustrated with or hated topics or books - how he'd sit there with them and talk about why they hate it together. I've always had the same notion that if you want the students to be interested and learn, it can't begin if they feel like it's just a process they have to go through, a chore to complete. The interest and drive to learn starts with you, the teacher. Being genuine and passionate about teaching can go a long way in my short experience as a tutor. Make them laugh, make them feel like they're heard, make them feel like they're talking to a human being. this is something I learned early on, and there's more lessons ahead of me, I'm sure. "If you're teaching and you're not learning, you're not teaching." - Frank McCourt

Hello World

This is my dog as a puppy.

Dexter —->

Enjoy his cuteness. ✌