Troubles/Worries:
This year has been unlike any other. I never thought that a pandemic would hit and that schools would close down and we would have to teach online. Technology can do some amazing things but teaching I always thought of as an in person learning experience for high school students and lower grades. These past few months, I've had to adapt to distance learning and I've had to learn some new skills. Although, I am very tech savvy I had my doubts. How do we have students collaborate with one another with projects and how will they be bale to fill out guides when reading or watching a video when they may or may not have a printer? My list of worries was endless like many of my peers across the world. But with these new tools under my belt, I have gained confidence that distance learning will work if we give our students the support they need. Lecture videos work just as well as an in person lecture and so do online meetings. I can teach distance learning.
New Understanding:
Working on this project has given me a lot of insight into the thinking parents as well as to the reluctant reader. I understood that not everyone could visualize words on a page but I did not know how to help students become better readers. After researching many articles, I learned about close reading strategies and how to expand vocabulary that does not entail memorization. Memorizing is not the same as comprehending. I also now see why parents are reluctant to let their students read certain books with certain material. I believe this new insight will allow me to be more empathetic towards parents who really will not allow their child to read about certain topics.
Next Questions:
While working on this inquiry project, I found myself asking different questions. The one that really has me thinking is inclusion. My next inquiry will be about inclusion in the classroom. I want a safe environment that celebrates diversity from ethnic backgrounds to different learning abilities. I will not say different learning styles because I had a professor who taught us that there is not enough scientific evidence to support different learning styles and yet many aspiring educators and licensed educators continue to teach Gardner's multiple intelligence's as well as IQ tests such as the WISC, WAIS, and Ravens Matrices. In short, I would like to have an inclusive classroom as well as a classroom that incorporated educational psychology.
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