#pragmatics430

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The video teaching scenario I am studying in Issues 420. This example displays a distinct process of inquiry, with steps that are laid out in a strong pattern that involves a series of hands-on activities paired with examples. Although this is a younger class and the students are learning the basics of drawing, I admire the teacher's planning; the examples provided are extremely thoughtful. The steps are broad and generalized (fill a page with drawings of noses) yet clear enough that the lesson fell within the students' Zone of Proximal Development: they all demonstrated improvement and a sense of pride at the end. In fact, not only did the students become better drawers, but they learned additional skills such as listening, interpreting, researching, evaluating/truly looking, and how to receive and distribute constructive criticism. I firmly believe that the process of making any artwork is interdisciplinary in this way; skills must be acquired and honed along the way so that the end product turns out as desired.

Transforming media into collaborative spaces with video, voice, and text commenting.

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Lorien Eck talks about methods of assessment pertaining to art education; she discusses evaluating learners through constructive communal activities such as open discussion, critiques, interviews, and  observation throughout process.

Eck also emphasized the importance of open communication from the very beginning. Teachers must know where the skills of students sit at the start of the semester to make accurate judgements on improvement, and they must be clear on learning goals or else face frustration and anger. Likewise, students must know how they are being evaluated.

Here's a few key buzzwords that loosely reflect my values regarding education and my pedagogy:

communicative, meaningful beyond class, inquiry, interdisciplinary, (teacher/student) awareness, scaffolding, trust, engagement, excitement, success, reinforcement, risks, emotion, change, growth, progress, process, student-centeredness, flexible structure, improvisation, open-ended[ness] learning/questions, critical thinking, cynic with a purpose, creation of own knowledge, group work/collaboration, widening/strengthening understanding, connecting to other material, importance, social injustices, critical pedagogy, capability to function elsewhere, self-actualization, contribution, responsive, constructive, diverge/converge, conjoin, substance,

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Through the adorable metaphor of cats, Sir Ken Robinson outlines the need to structure education within a "model of diversity, rather than conformity". In a true community of learners, individuals are given the opportunity to "discover", "develop", and contribute their own "unique talents and abilities".

Of course this mode of thinking ties directly to my proposed 'open project' lesson structures; I want to encourage students to follow a mode of inquiry, which will help guide them where to begin or go next. Once students realize their strengths, they will feel the encouragement and sense of personal pride necessary to continue to delve deeper. They can also bring those strengths into a community setting, where they can apply them to create the metaphorical big colourful ball of yarn!

"People teach as an act of construction and reconstruction, and as a gift of oneself to others."

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"Make it do something interesting."

"While we teach, we learn."

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While Ken Parker strays slightly from the content of my response in that he talks about the benefits of communal learning in terms of technology, his general ideas around what it means to develop and create understandings within a community of learners is the focus of one of my values.

Through systems of collaboration, students can bring diversity and complexity to the knowledge-building process; active learning with one another leads to greater comprehension and cognitive development.

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Joseph R. Codde's adapted list of concrete principles he feels should be a part of every teacher's practice; along with each principle, he offers several examples.

Many of these values mirrored exactly what has been covered in class (practicing cooperation, active learning, and considering diversity within your specific classroom), and all of them are very sensible. However, I am doubtful these principles apply only to undergraduate education. Many aspects of them could be used for all age ranges and every discipline.