What is engaging instruction?
As part of the readings for week four, we were asked to watch a TED Talk by Katie Simonds. Her message was about urging adults to listen to students' ideas and thoughts on important issues in society. During her talk, she points out several instances where adults have looked down upon her for being young. She also points out that students have lost confidence in their own ideas due to lack of respect. This TED Talk really spoke to me as I had a different experience with my education. Because I was homeschooled, I had the freedom to choose what I wanted to study. I had the freedom to think of creative ideas and very rarely, if ever, were my ideas made fun of. I had a voice in my education. After hearing this TED Talk, I realized that having your opinions matter as a teenager can be hard to come by. This makes me want to fight for students to have a say in their education. The idea of listening to new ideas from students ties into the topic of engagement. If we can give students the freedom to speak their minds, we can use their thoughts and opinions to get them engaged in their education. I am looking forward to exploring this topic further as the week goes on!
References
I'm 17 | Kate Sihttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OkOQhXhsIE
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Photo curtesy of Google Images
Olivia, it is so insightful to have you in our cohort with the perspective of someone who did not experience K-12 public school! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteOne of my personal battles have always been, age-ism. I have never felt fully respected as a young professional for my thoughts or actions. Her talk has really resonated with me and I fully intend to battle this mindset with my students!
ReplyDeleteHi Olivia,
ReplyDeleteThis week's topic is one that I have experienced from several different view points; as a student, a young teacher, and as an experienced teacher. As you become more experienced in an area its easy to overlook a new perspective. Given you own experiences, you will bring a unique perspective to future discussions. My suggestion to the entire cohort is as you think about engaging and listening to young audiences, consider the difficulties that young and inexperienced minorities face in being heard. How will you address these injustices in your classroom?
Olivia,
ReplyDeleteI think because you were homeschooled you really do bring a unique perspective to the 2019 cohort. I’m sure you have many differences between what you were allowed to do and what you weren’t allowed to do. It’s interesting to thing that your freedoms and voice were different than someone that went through k-12.
A lot of great insights in the replies. Without echoing, I think a role we have as teachers and even mentors for our young teachers is coaching them on how to present individual voice. I think of a number of times, mostly as a young professional, that the dismissal wasn't so much about my thoughts but about the presentation. As the mentor, it is our responsibility to ensure that systems to be heard reasonable and productive, as opposed to cumbersome and inequitable. I think the question I would pose to all of us, how do we facilitate this in our classrooms and organizations? One way I do it within my classroom is to structure projects so that students have choice in which context they explore. I also try to join groups during brainstorming and discussion time, so I can give recognition to ideas and questions for the entire group.
ReplyDeleteOlivia, I like how you bring your perspective of having a "voice" from an early age because of your experience of being homeschooled. Because you were able to have more educational freedom than the traditional student, you were able to use your creativity and interests to have a truly personalized education. What ideas do you have to bring this into your classroom to increase student engagement and ownership of their learning?
ReplyDeleteOlivia, what a great topic and a great analysis/reflection on it. Student choice in their education not only yields higher levels of mastery/comprehension, but it makes the whole process of "going to school and learning" more palatable for youth. As ag teachers, we have a unique opportunity to be that different teacher that lets students explore and gain ownership of their learning experiences. Keep up the great work, looking forward to watching you develop as an educator.
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