Pouring Gasoline #IMMOOC

Week 3 – IMMOOC – Chapters 4 & 5 – with Tara Martin

What caught my attention with Tara Martin’s interview was POURING GASOLINE on her fire. What a visual!!! I would say “add fuel to my fire” but never pouring gasoline. That’s intense. She must have incredible mentors and supporters that encourage her to be a edu-trailblazer. Tara Martin was referring to people who believed in her. When I think about this metaphor… it was MY STUDENTS who poured gasoline on my fire. Their stories, their experiences, their learning and learning potential confirmed and validated my purpose in education. I also realize that my students are my biggest fans and supporters. I am truly grateful for that. My mentors, on the other hand, STOKE MY FIRE. My mentors and supporters bring to my awareness my strengths, my purpose, my fire.

Other aspects of Tara’s interview that provoked me and sparked my attention was (1) be a knowledge contributor not just a consumer; (2) take the leap and be a trailblazer (i.e. blogging), and (3) the edu-world is HUGE and you are one piece in the puzzle… you cannot create system change alone but you can create conditions for change. These points resonate with me because I now feel like a contributor with my doctoral thesis, but really it was a mechanism that organized my thoughts and views connecting literature and practice. I love the idea that you have to take a risk and keep doing it to get better at it. That’s the learning process. Finally, I had always believed that “I” could change the system but it takes all of us in the system to create change… so FIND YOUR PLACE.

IMMOOC REFLECTION QUESTION

What was one thing that you used to do in education that you no longer do or believe in? Why the change?

Grading… the accumulation of grades or marks… policing student behaviour with grades. For years as a student and my early years as a high school teacher, I collected many “marks” or scores to track student achievement… well, student doing. What I’m writing about today reminds me about what Alice Keeler had talked about last episode. Looking  back, it was busy-work… policing… and artificial or false approach to “measure” student learning. It’s a lie. I remember a student asking me in the middle of my class if I liked students. Whoa. BOLD, yet I’m grateful that this Grade 8 student felt safe enough to ask. It was so true… “collecting grades” was soul sucking… and truth, it was my best guess.

My professional intuition and expertise was much more accurate. Then I went to a provincial inservice conference/workshop on UDL, but I ended up talking to a teacher/faculty associate on ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING. We stayed connected during that year and he sent me various resources on AFL. It’s not everyday that you have a colleague/stranger question your professional practice and then help guide you through to a new place of being. I played and practiced with my Math 8-12 classes on AFL, which in turn helped me to focus on my learning and quality of my instruction. Things started to line-up so nicely such that learning was meaningful for me and my students. You know it’s a good thing when students have to remind you of the importance of AFL.

BC’s New Curriculum emphasizes the importance of AFL and formative assessment to student learning. I could not agree more. Now as a sessional instructor at the university, I try to implement the ideals of BC’s New Curriculum into my fourth year education classes, which includes formative assessment, personalized learning, and competencies. The shift is/was amazing. I continue to learn and I am completely aligned with Tara Martin when she says you have to get out there and try something… make mistakes… learn from those mistakes… get better at what you do… and share your learning. This makes sense to me. Although we are not the student in the system, we are still learners. I love making learning fun and meaningful for students, as seen in the photo above, regardless of age or course. Formative assessment and AFL helped me to achieve this. I am very thankful.

#IMMOOC Season 3 – Episode 3 with Tara Martin @TaraMartinEDU