Kia ora all. This blog is one of my many attempts to begin journalling this amazing pathway of learning that I have been on for more years than I have been in this profession. My name is Morgan Ngata, Im a father of 3 beautiful kids, a very lucky husband, son, brother and a passionate teacher.
I am a Maori with a dash of Bohemian, English and apparently much more. Home is the Tairawhiti region on the Nth Island of New Zealand.
I am a Maori with a dash of Bohemian, English and apparently much more. Home is the Tairawhiti region on the Nth Island of New Zealand.
I know what this must be reading like...I kind of feel like Im beginning the first day at a new school...But the formality is over.
Honouring that "sense" of Discovery
Im a teacher that is fascinated by the act of learning. I recently came across this amazing video clip featuring Noam Chomsky talking about, "what it means to be truly educated?" This insight has struck a resounding chord with me. It simply expresses what I feel my responsibility is, not just as a teacher but in every role I have in this life. I see being educated as having the knowledge and ability to construct new understanding from a range of information & experiences. Clearly this isn't about reciting periodic tables or pi. It is about knowing how to investigate, experiment, analyse, reason and evaluate. In his response Chomsky refers to an MIT teacher that says to his class, "Its not what we cover in class that is important, but what you discover in class that truly matters." In my words Its not the act of acquiring knowledge but the attainment and application of a deep understanding in real life. The sense of Discovery is vital to this philosophy. As a teacher I often remind myself about not stealing the "sense" of discovery from our learners.
What do I mean by this?
I have seen in my own practices and in others a tendency to teach to a very structured predetermined timeframe. As a result questions can be asked and often answered by the teacher. This is "stealing" the opportunity for our learners to gain that discovery. Clearly this may not be the teachers initial intention for asking the question, "...but time is a limited resource therefore i'll answer it and move on....." Obviously effectively denying the learners an opportunity to gain experience & confidence in developing their ideas. Another practice is when Teachers interfere with learning opportunities when the student appears to be stuck on a problem. Students are discouraged to explore their ideas to a deeper level on their own when teachers are over enthusiastic in jumping in to "fix" the problem. Is struggling not vital in learning? Are we too keen to resolve these struggles because of the time struggles take up? How long do I allow them to struggle??
If we don’t step back at these points in learning then how else can we learn essential attributes like resilience? What other learning opportunities are undermined because of time management? It’s not difficult to see the connection between Discovery and student centred ownership, curiosity and intrinsically motivated learning. This article helped me to think about my own practices, the link between cultivating a "struggle friendly" learning environment culture and positive mindsets. I am really excited about exploring Dwecks Growth mindset for this reason as well.
When we teach to a predetermined timeframe we need to consider what is the cost? Are we cutting off our noses in spite of our face? I think we are. I wonder do we teach to help our learners gain a deeper understanding or do we teach to meet our timeframe requirements as teachers?
