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- Fecei Madrid
Last Saturday I had the wonderful opportunity to talk at the inaugural FECEI conference in Madrid. It was a very successful and extremely well organised event that attracted a good number of teachers from all over Spain. It was the first time I've...
- I'm Not A Dogmetician, I'm A Teacher
I wrote a post questioning dogme and what exactly it was some time ago now and revisited it recently. You can read the original here. Here are some current thoughts, which I think demonstrates my continuing state of 'being critical'. There...
- 'blended' Learning And The Social Media Revolution
So, this socio-constructivist, all fingers to the keyboard, online, blended-learning thing is the way forward, isn't? Everybody should get online and interact. It's the business! I have been considering recently what I will investigate for...
- Grammar Lessons
You can't touch this!Paul Braddock recently wrote an interesting post about grammar lessons for teachers, following an #eltchat on teacher development. I commented that at my first school I had grammar lessons every Friday during the first term....
- An Empty Teachers' Room
I went into school the other day and found the door locked and nobody around. We all have keys, so can come and go as we please, so this isn't necessarily a problem. There are four teachers, a senior teacher - me, a secretary (who works evenings only)...
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What motivates us?
I really enjoyed this video. The notion of freedom being a great motivator really struck a chord with me.
I love the fact that a US economist actually dared to use the word 'socialism'. I also like that he shares ideas that are essentially socio-constructivist - in terms of knowledge sharing by experts for no compensation. I think that many ideas in the video have direct connections to teaching, particularly of how teachers should be treated by employers and managers.
I love the fact that a US economist actually dared to use the word 'socialism'. I also like that he shares ideas that are essentially socio-constructivist - in terms of knowledge sharing by experts for no compensation. I think that many ideas in the video have direct connections to teaching, particularly of how teachers should be treated by employers and managers.
The ideas connect strongly with feelings I have about teacher development. Why is it that so many schools have such difficulty getting teachers motivated to attend workshops? People I've talked to and bosses at a couple of previous schools have had great difficulty getting teachers to 'buy into' teacher development. However, did they ever stop to ask what it was that the teachers would like to do? In many cases, I think not. 'You have to come in on a Friday at 11am for a development workshop (Dalek voice - we WILL develop you!), you should do peer observation, you will be observed once a term and given feedback'. All these things will help you develop as a teacher. Really?
In terms of how I would like to be treated, a good way to work with teachers is to encourage and support their development as reflective practitioners. A school can make knowledge available - a good library is a start. Teachers should be given the opportunity to share and discuss knowledge and experience, not (necessarily) have a workshop delivered to them once a week. Development is a personal thing, you can't be developed, you can be trained, but that's different. I believe most teachers want to become better at their job and be introduced to new possibilities, whether they try them all or not. We want the freedom to be creative, to try new things and I think to an extent we want to do it our own way, because that's the way that feels best to us at any given moment. I don't for a minute think that it's only me who craves this freedom. However, at the same time, teaching should be viewed as teamwork. It is a social profession and good staff rooms reflect that, talking about what happened, sharing anecdotes or requesting support are all part of teaching life. Teachers are often great story tellers and sharing narratives helps to build our experience. It's not about having a bunch of people who merely share the same building. Perhaps you're lucky and your school does this, so maybe you don't know any different, but it doesn't happen everywhere.
I think there is need for a balance - giving teachers the opportunity to act individually as part of a collective. Independence and interdependence. Individual empowerment supported by peers and mentors, not by management imposing methodology or training. In a nutshell, don't tell us what to do, support us to do what we do better and don't judge our decisions. As research evidence in the video suggests, this autonomy could lead to more motivated teachers and a happier staff room.
I think this desire for freedom also manifests itself in the course book argument. Some people like the support of a book whilst some feel restricted by it, but that's another discussion and one for which there are only personal answers.
A non-judgemental approach may of course lead to challenges of opinion and a conflict between institutionally imposed ways of working and decisions made by teachers. I remember having to more or less discipline a teacher in one school for using L1 in class. The school dictated that L1 was not to be used in class, for various reasons which I discussed with the teacher. His view was that this was wrong and it worked for him and whilst taking his opinions on board, at that time I was sitting in judgement, considering him to be wrong and the institution to be right. A few years later, if put in the same position, I may still have to toe the line imposed by the institution, if that was what they wanted, but I would not judge the teacher to be wrong and would perhaps suggest to the institution that their rules may not be entirely fair. Perhaps his motivation was affected by this experience and it was part of a professional development interview, which hardly seems right. It's something that I regret now, despite the fact I was following 'orders'.
Anyway, this stream of consciousness containing my post-video-watching thoughts has found itself on this page, so make of it what you will!
I encourage you to watch the video and let me know what you think.
Cheers.
- Fecei Madrid
Last Saturday I had the wonderful opportunity to talk at the inaugural FECEI conference in Madrid. It was a very successful and extremely well organised event that attracted a good number of teachers from all over Spain. It was the first time I've...
- I'm Not A Dogmetician, I'm A Teacher
I wrote a post questioning dogme and what exactly it was some time ago now and revisited it recently. You can read the original here. Here are some current thoughts, which I think demonstrates my continuing state of 'being critical'. There...
- 'blended' Learning And The Social Media Revolution
So, this socio-constructivist, all fingers to the keyboard, online, blended-learning thing is the way forward, isn't? Everybody should get online and interact. It's the business! I have been considering recently what I will investigate for...
- Grammar Lessons
You can't touch this!Paul Braddock recently wrote an interesting post about grammar lessons for teachers, following an #eltchat on teacher development. I commented that at my first school I had grammar lessons every Friday during the first term....
- An Empty Teachers' Room
I went into school the other day and found the door locked and nobody around. We all have keys, so can come and go as we please, so this isn't necessarily a problem. There are four teachers, a senior teacher - me, a secretary (who works evenings only)...