I must admit, it was the first thing I noticed since leaving the traditional teaching role. I didn't have to rush around anymore, I had more time to think, more time to be myself. I stopped feeling that sense of urgency.
I still teach now but it a very different setting/format. I do think that there's too much urgency and pressure placed on teachers. If this was alleviated, I think teachers would be able to plan and deliver a much better quality of lessons.
Absolutely! When I barely have time to eat my lunch, it makes it really challenging to be creative in my pedagogy. I think this is why US schools rely so heavily on standardized curricula; they are scripted and require very little thought in order to deliver lessons.
When I left the classroom for a bit, I was an instructional coach, charged with creating innovative learning experiences in STEM classes. When I had time to think and plan and collaborate with others, my productivity shot through the roof! I was able to come up with great learning experiences because I had time to think about what I wanted to teach and how I wanted to teach it in a creative way.
I love this so much, especially as a teacher who is always rushing, rushing, rushing through curriculum ("can I get through the Haitian Revolution by the end of Semester 1?!?") Let me remember to pause and read them an Edwidge Danticat poem today :)
Also, I am so interested in the "has EduTech failed" question. Like you, I attended all the technology conferences and wanted everything to be online. Now, I too am questioning it all. It seems that technology has been good for teachers but not necessarily good for students.
I'm glad that this resonated with you! The mad rush to "cover the content" is crazy here at the elementary level. The more I slow down, the more I feel like my students begin to act like themselves, which always makes for better learner.
I've been struggling with the edtech question for a few years now. I used to do so much online and in our LMS, but now I'm going old school with journal entries and handwritten drafts. My students hate it!
Very good! School is almost naturally hectic, but it does feel as if 'the world' is imposing more and more, and AI is the latest technology to promote 'efficiency'.
Wrote about that a couple of days ago re Tom Newkirk's book 'The Art of Slow Reading':
I must admit, it was the first thing I noticed since leaving the traditional teaching role. I didn't have to rush around anymore, I had more time to think, more time to be myself. I stopped feeling that sense of urgency.
I still teach now but it a very different setting/format. I do think that there's too much urgency and pressure placed on teachers. If this was alleviated, I think teachers would be able to plan and deliver a much better quality of lessons.
Absolutely! When I barely have time to eat my lunch, it makes it really challenging to be creative in my pedagogy. I think this is why US schools rely so heavily on standardized curricula; they are scripted and require very little thought in order to deliver lessons.
When I left the classroom for a bit, I was an instructional coach, charged with creating innovative learning experiences in STEM classes. When I had time to think and plan and collaborate with others, my productivity shot through the roof! I was able to come up with great learning experiences because I had time to think about what I wanted to teach and how I wanted to teach it in a creative way.
I love this so much, especially as a teacher who is always rushing, rushing, rushing through curriculum ("can I get through the Haitian Revolution by the end of Semester 1?!?") Let me remember to pause and read them an Edwidge Danticat poem today :)
Also, I am so interested in the "has EduTech failed" question. Like you, I attended all the technology conferences and wanted everything to be online. Now, I too am questioning it all. It seems that technology has been good for teachers but not necessarily good for students.
I'm glad that this resonated with you! The mad rush to "cover the content" is crazy here at the elementary level. The more I slow down, the more I feel like my students begin to act like themselves, which always makes for better learner.
I've been struggling with the edtech question for a few years now. I used to do so much online and in our LMS, but now I'm going old school with journal entries and handwritten drafts. My students hate it!
Very good! School is almost naturally hectic, but it does feel as if 'the world' is imposing more and more, and AI is the latest technology to promote 'efficiency'.
Wrote about that a couple of days ago re Tom Newkirk's book 'The Art of Slow Reading':
https://www.juliangirdham.com/blog/thomas-newkirks-the-art-of-slow-reading
Thank you! I loved your most recent post and ordered ‘The Art of Slow Reading’ from the library. I’m looking forward to reading it!
Hope it works for you!