I'm learning to become a teacher, but unfortunately I'm spending most of my time doing so sitting in a classroom as a student. There's plenty of analysis, deconstruction, and touchy-feely conversations about our (students') experiences and perspectives, but it seems like, in the end of this program, the result is going to be a lot of really great arm-chair teachers.
It's like... reading all the books about honey in the world. You could be the world's expert on honey - written dozens of papers and a Master's thesis on honey, without ever having tasted it. So many aspects of university seem to boil down to this - the notion that thinking - ad nauseam - is an essential precursor to doing.
I'll beg to differ. People - we're emotional creatures too. Sometimes, to get up and actually do something, especially something new and/or frightening and so experience-based, is just best. Gain skills in-field - of course with supervised guidance and moderated reflection to steer in the right direction. Sure, there NEEDS to be instruction ahead of time for us to become great teachers, and actually, our program is astonishingly short and to-the-point all things considered, but I can't help by feel that the staunch, dusty, pompous and boastfully academic atmosphere of the university isn't the right place to learn anything as skill-based, practical, or human, as teaching.
I guess I should not take my TESL class for granted then. It goes something along these lines:
ReplyDelete1. Study(techniques outlined in text)
2. Observe(teacher lesson demos)
3. Teach (your lesson plan to peers)
4. Get feedback (from teacher and classmates)
5. Repeat steps 1-4
Some theory is involved, but the focus is on practice: applying different teaching techniques and strategies in real time and improving our presentation skills.
Also, judging from the tenor of your blog, I think you would really enjoy the movie I saw on Sunday with my parents: The King's Speech. Besides being a masterfully acted and inspiring movie which I'm almost 100% certain will win the Academy award for best picture next month, the movie also reflects the message of this post near the end.(I hope I didn't give anything away!)
All that being said, your invective against academia sometimes seems a little over the top (makes for good reading though). I mean "Dusty", "pompous", and "boastful"? Why such an axe to grind? Learning for the sake of learning something may not be immediately "practical", but it is definitely as "human" as teaching and every bit as important to the continuation of civilization as any skill-based pursuit. Just thought I'd shake things up a little. lol
Yup, I have fun writing, and don't hold back with playful language =). Sure,it goes over the top sometimes, but my blog is an avenue to do that. Unlike my writing at University, I allow myself to write subjectively here.
ReplyDelete