I would summarize Mr. McClung’s post with four values: listen, be flexible, be positive and never stop learning.
In these are valuable skills to use in everyday life as well as in the classroom. Everyone wants to be heard. Often, you can disagree with someone and still work together as long as you acknowledge that their viewpoint has value.
Children, especially young children, have limited ways to express themselves. We must be aware and listen to this feedback. Whether as an individual student or a class body, if we pay attention to the feedback, we can modify the message to connect more.
No one likes working with a sourpuss. Not even other sourpusses! When we emphasize the positive (what we CAN do, what we DO have control over) we can affect other people’s outcomes in a positive way.
Never stop learning is the final point Mr. McClung makes. I try to remember that everyone you meet can teach you something and many times those “somethings” are valuable. A good administrator can teach you leadership. A student’s viewpoint can be insightful. With our technological resources we have no excuses for handicapping our students or ourselves by not using them to further our own education.
Excellent post Rachel!
ReplyDeleteGreat summary statement. As Mr. McClung says we must listen to our students. This is all a part of one of our resounding themes in EDM 310, that we should be willing to learn with the students. If we think we are always right then there is no way we could listen to the students. As long as we are open minded and willing to learn then listening will come automatically. This is also one of the reasons reflection or "reflecting" as Mr. McClung has demonstrated in this post is an important part of being an effective teacher. The mindset of reflection invites openness and a willingness to listen for useable feedback or new ideas. SS
I really like your response to Mr. McClung's post. I think he made vital points, and you did a very good job on summarizing them!! From the looks of your blog you will make a great teacher!
ReplyDeleteLaura Scott