Week+7

Week 7 – Who are your students and how do you know?

This was a really interesting lecture today. Professor Tanya Fitzgerald was very inspiring to listen to and highlighted the importance of engaging your students. The main point that she made throughout the lecture was to avoid making any assumptions. If we are ever in doubt about anything, ask.

Teachers do more than teach. They are role models for social behaviour and expectations and make a difference in the lives of those who come into contact with them. This is why it is our responsibility as a teacher to get to know every one of our students. A study conducted by Russell Bishop based on how power can be mediated in the classroom, found significant classroom and behavioural improvements from truant students if their teacher could engage them and if they felt like they were part of a group or community. At the end of the study, students who had previously felt disconnected from their schooling, were saying “school matters to me because teachers now know my name.” It surprised me that such a small gesture really made a difference in some children’s lives. Although, it was also stated that we need to make sure that we also have the correct pronunciation as we could potentially be disrespecting the child and/or their family.

With evidence such as this, we need to put forward strategies to make sure that we get to know our students. Suggestions for this included a students making a slideshow about themselves or spinning a web made with cotton wool in the classroom to draw connections between each other. I particularly liked this idea that Professor Fitzgerald put forward as it would help the class to remember this exercise and to feel as part of a group in one way or another, not just an isolated person in a room.

While we make an effort to get to know students, we still need to be careful not to pigeonhole students or to put them into groups according to ethnicity, ‘good girls’ and ‘naughty boys’ etc. Kids will very quickly pick up why you have grouped them the way you have and this may be detrimental. There are many facets to a child and we must not make any assumptions. One child may happen to be a refugee, but there are many other aspects of their lives. We should ask the child questions about themselves and what take note what they are interested in as this will help to engage them. While doing this, we should also think about the voices that we don't hear.

Another way to engage the child is to engage the parents, as there are parents who do not value education and this may be passed onto the child. It was discussed in class that if the parents will not come into the school to discuss schooling, it might be worth taking the schooling to the parents. This may be in the form of a home visit or even a phone call – anything that may bring about the feeling of community and engagement.

Katrina Lee