Teachers are learners too...

It was great to be back in class today...familiar faces, eager smiles, a sharing environment - younger and older students wanting to know about my holidays and how my art had progressed and the older students asking questions about their coursework and listening so that they can immerse into producing the best work they can...

Teaching is a partnership and I don't know who learns most, whether it is the teacher or the student who does most of the learning. It's amazing when you are able to speak to a class and you see their minds thinking as you speak; it makes you think about yourself and whether what you are sharing with them is helpful to your own growth as an individual. You see them listening and then you find yourself listening not only to them but also to yourself.

For one of the assessment tasks students are required to keep a record of the project they are about to manage. We were discussing the pros and cons of developing a Gantt Chart in a speadsheet as was done in previous years. I had noted that they had done a rushed job to fill in all the boxes of the work completed after the project was completed and not before, during and after as is expected to keep a detailed account of work in progress. Apart from using project management software, I suggested to students that they use a blog...to keep a record of progress with screenshots and video/audio attachments. They looked at me in disbelief without saying anything...Noting their disappointment, I asked what had not worked for them and they had almost unanimously stated that the constant writing up and the embarrassment that anyone in the world could read their boring blogs about a 'perfect' project they had to do to pass a course was fake and not representative of their real feelings. They felt as if they had to cover their real feelings and not present the frustrations that they often underwent to solve problems in ICT.

I was speaking to a Facebook generation here, a place where feelings are exposed, frustrations vented, joys expressed, where people get to know each other from the inside out first before the the outside in - where it is easier to reveal onself through writing and sharing emoticons than bonding on a physical level.

So I said, why do we wear masks...why can we not be ourselves when we are writing up our projects...why can't we say how frustrating it was to secure an interview with the interviewee one day then express our delight when it was secured the following day?

A student remarked that they do not feel free because grammar has to be used appropriately and it's not the normal way they would write; that they can't express their own individuality and personality when they are being forced to write in a certain manner.

So I asked if they speak in the same manner to their mum or teacher as they would their friends...and yes we managed to come to an understanding of the issues surrounding formality and informality and having a sense of purpose and a sense of audience.

Can we not be ourselves if we are feeling restrained by societal conventions and formalities...but surely we always need to be mindful of being kind and be fully aware of how much we listen to others and respect them for what they bring to a relationship? Aren't these virtues part of our innate being, our very existence that we either fully embrace or shut down and choose not to listen to?

While these thoughts were racing round in my head, we agreed that we would blog our progress, that we would speak for ourselves from ourselves, that we would unpeel all our masks, reveal all our being and let our personalities shine. We shall respect and embrace each individual, each frustration, each hope, each joy in a manner that is mindful of the others with whom we work, for whom we work and for ourselves...

I look forward to reading the project blogs this year...