Rules For Posting To This Blog and Weekly Blog Question

1. Only use your first name (no last names, addresses, IM screen names, etc.)
2. Show respect and consideration of others when posting and commenting. This includes individuals, students, organizations, political parties, colleagues, etc.
3. Check all posts for spelling and grammar errors before posting.
4. Protect the privacy of others. Gain permission from other people before you write about them. Avoid sharing someone else's last name. Use job titles or pseudonyms when writing about experiences with your co-workers or students.
5. Watch your language. Use politically correct and non-offensive language.
6. Make sure you write about things that are factual.
7. Keep your postings education-oriented. Avoid discussing plans for the weekend, etc.

FINAL BLOG POST - OUR "DAILY TRIPLE" (DUE 12/1).
This week I would like you to use your imagination. You have just won the lottery and will leave your teaching post immediately to travel around the world. As you leave your keys you meet your replacement. You are asked to give this new teacher just ONE piece of advice. What would that be, and why? Enjoy your world expedition!

Blog Post - Week 7
This past week in my own teaching I felt a little disconnected which prompts my question to you, "What was the moment (or moments) when I felt most disconnected or disengaged as a teacher - the moment(s) I said to myself, I'm just going through the motions here?"

Fall Semester 2016 Blog Post - Week 6
For the past couple of weeks you have experienced asynchronous online learning (doing modules by yourself). Previously this semester you have experienced synchronous online learning (all together in the Collaborate room). Which do you think is more effective and why do you think that? Which do you like better, and why?

Fall Semester 2016 Blog Post - Week 5
This week we have what we call "open mic." You can write a post about anything related to your teaching that you would like responses from your classmates.

Fall Semester 2016 Blog Post - Week 4
Here is this week's question: "What was the event that most took me surprise this week - and event that shook me up, caught me off guard, gave me a jolt, or made me unexpectedly happy?"

Fall Semester 2016 Blog Post - Week 3
Please write a post about the following question, "In thinking about my past week teaching what is one thing I would do differently, and why?"

Fall Semester 2016 Blog Post - Week 2
Please write a post about the following question, " In thinking about my teaching activities this past week, of what do I feel most proud? Why?"

Fall Semester 2016 Blog Post - Week 1
Describe something you used in your program in the first weeks of school that you learned in the summer NTI program. How did it work? Did it get you off to a stronger start than last year?

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Good teaching

Wow, what questions this week! I was contemplating the answer to the first question when I realized my answer for the second question so I will start there. I believe that the reason we all have different opinions about what constitutes good teaching is because we have all had different experiences in our lives with our own teachers. When I think back on the teachers that I had growing up, there are a few very special ones that immediately come to mind. I asked myself why these teachers were so special to me and it wasn't because of the vast amount of knowledge that I gained from them. Quite honestly, I know that I did learn some of the subject matter from them, but what I really remember is the way that they made us feel as students. These particular teachers always had a way of helping us learn when we didn't even know that we were learning. There was such an easy spiritedness to the way that they taught. They made each one of us feel smart and capable. They made me want to learn more!

So, this brings me back to the first question, what do I think constituted good teaching? I believe that we have to try to teach in a way that every child can understand the material, however, part of the battle is getting every child to want to understand the material. I believe that this comes from the relationships that we build with our students. We have to break through that "us against them" mentality that so many students come to us with. I believe that part of that comes from us respecting our students and only accepting respectable behavior from them. Sometimes,this is all so much easier said than done! I have a long way to go, but, I believe that I am headed in the right direction.

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