Missing in Action: The Case 

“At the end of this case, Samantha begins to question whether her approach to teaching is meeting all of her student’s needs. As a strong believer in constructivism, how might she have responded more effectively at different stages of the process to keep all of her students engaged?”

Samantha’s approach to inquiry-based teaching was intended for the students to be personally attached to the topic; therefore, their engagement to the project should have been a “given”. Of course, it would be easy for Samantha to believe this notion because she has successfully carried out this lesson in the past where all of the students were engaged. Samantha could have responded more effectively from the initial planning of this assignment, throughout, and right to the end by taking on a more involved guidance role.

Because this assignment/project is not new to Samantha, it did not require rigorous planning going into it. There may have been some review while gathering materials and rehearsing the steps, but it would probably feel quite relaxed as it has always been a hit with the class. Because of this, Samantha may not have re-evaluated how the new class dynamics (based off of the new and diverse students in her class) could shift how the project was to be enforced. Samantha could have taken more time reflecting on her new students and applied some differentiated instruction to those who may not succeed at such open-ended teaching strategies. This could look like having group responsibilities such as having a scribe, researcher, etc. and meeting with each group to establish and guide each student through what their responsibilities looked like. Samantha could have then met with each student individually to pull out some ideas and direction to help the group focus. This would hopefully eliminate one student taking over all areas of the project leaving the rest feel hopeless and unhelpful. 

Once the project is in motion, Samantha could meet with the group again and check on not only their progress, but ensuring that they were still captivated by their topic. This could be done by simply observing the group dynamics. Samantha observed that some of her students were staring off into space while the rest of the group was working. Instead of just feeling helpless and going straight to the idea that the lesson wasn’t reaching each student, Samantha could have sat with the group and guided a conversation that would require them to see their topic from a different perspective or how they could stem from it. This would allow Samantha to regain the attention from individual students without having to pull them aside. Similarly, Samantha could provide different ways that each student could carry out their given tasks.

Sometimes giving students too much freedom in their learning can be overwhelming because there is so much choice and it is hard to narrow it down. Overall, I think that Samantha could have made more of an effort to guide her students by listening to their ideas and interests, and keep them on track. I think it is important for the teacher to become a student themselves in these types of projects by sitting with them, asking questions, and pulling out ideas through meaningful discussion.

 

Who’s Culture? Who’s teachings?: Implications for Practice

“What would you do if your teaching load was “topped up” by having to teach a language you didn’t know very well?”

In this case study, the school district has a law that there can be no uncertified teachers in the classroom. The school provided a Niskawal’ly language class; however, there were no elders or Indigenous people qualified to the school district’s standards to teach this course, leaving it to a white teacher with no association to the culture or language.  

 

I would feel extremely overwhelmed and nervous to teach a language that I had no attachment to. I would also feel like I wouldn’t be able to provide a meaningful education to my students, which would go against my very well-being as I believe teaching should be meaningful and passionate. I would spend a lot of time not only trying to learn the language, but researching the culture and practices behind it. Even then, like in this case study, I would still not feel like I could do justice to what the language really means. Language is very personal to each region and culture. It is not just sounds and letters spoken or written differently than others, words have different meanings, there are different contexts, and it is one of the most significant aspects as to what separates one culture to the next.

Not only would I feel guilty in teaching a subject that clearly someone else is more qualified for, but I would be speaking to my colleagues and admin to ensure that something changes for the students’ sake, as well as the culture the language originated from.

 

I would be very mindful about bringing in a support worker and guest speakers into the classroom who speak and have connections to the language to ensure that there is genuine discussion and education among the classroom. I would also provide opportunities of inquiry-based projects (with close guidance) to ensure that the students weren’t just memorizing the language, but instead were thinking critically about it and understanding the language as a whole.   

As I write this response, I can’t help but think of that game we have all played in elementary school called “telephone,” where one person down the line starts with a word and whispers it to the next, and eventually the last person in line says what the person next to them had whispered, only to find that the words spoken from the beginning to the end were completely different. Languages have such unique dialects, whether it is how you stress the word, use it, etc. It is not black and white, and I would not feel comfortable (without having strong connections to the language) knowing that I would have the responsibility of being a first-hand account of the language to my students, only to have created misunderstandings and barriers between them and the culture that the language derived from. 

 

Blurred Reflections: Philosophy

“What does it mean to be a ‘reflective practitioner’?”

A ‘reflective practitioner’ is someone who is constantly reflecting on their practices, whether it be their career, interests, or personal roles, and takes a step back to observe whether or not their strategies or ideas were effective in accomplishing their goals. A “reflective practitioner” takes time out of there day to be intentional in their thoughts of their accomplishments and failures. That being said, failing can be seen as a success to a reflective practitioner because it means that there is something for them to improve on. Self-reflection is a very personal approach to assessment, and allows the individual to tailor their approach to whatever it is they are practicing. 

In this case, Ben finds out that his students are tiring from writing so many reflections about their teaching practices. This was a moment for Ben to realize that what has worked in the past for him, and seemed to be a continuing success with his current students, wasn’t going in the direction he thought. Ben was reflecting on his practice throughout this whole scenario. First, when he was comparing his practice of journalling to his colleague’s, and then after he overheard his students’ opinions on his reflection journals. He wasn’t writing his personal reflections down, but he was allowing himself to think deeply about why journalling wasn’t working in his class. Ben is a reflective practitioner because he came to an obstacle in his teaching practice, and questioned how he could improve.

Reflection comes in endless forms such as journaling, drawing, painting, music, or even thoughtful discussions with a colleague or friend, making it such an available space for self-development and growth. When someone self-reflects, they are more likely to develop a growth mindset because it is always there for them to go back to and see how far they have come in their goals, or whether there is still some improvement to be made. Instead of quitting and breaking down when their practice does not go as planned, a reflective practitioner is able to objectively reflect and question why their plans may not have gone so smoothly, and how they can prevent any chaos in the future. 

Every day is different, and even though we may think that we have mastered our practices, there are so many variables that can prove us differently. This is where personal reflection is helpful as the more that we reflect our struggles or accomplishments, we create a bank of resources and tools to either help others or for our own reminders. When someone else is observing you during your practice they do not have the inside information of why you chose to do something, or whether you realize what is working and what is not, so personal reflection gives the individual a chance to think deeply about your own ideas and thought processes. 

Reflective practitioners ask the “why” question quite often, not necessarily to find the answer right away, but to be aware of the questions they have.