Tag Archives: School

Education, Singapore

For Good

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At times of goodbye, the song “For Good” from the musical Wicked plays on a loop in my head. When I was in high school, the seven senior girls in my choir sang, recorded, and performed a really beautiful SSA rendition that I’m listening to as I write this. Those words were as true in 2008 as they are in 2016.

Today was a hard day.

Today I said goodbye to my school and to so many wonderful, inspiring educators and friends. They said some nice things. I said some nice things. Except for losing the ability to speak (and breathe) during a goodbye “speech” that I had to give about a particularly close friend, I held myself together okay.

I have done so much growing this year, thanks to all of them.

I’ve heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don’t know if I believe that’s true
But I know I’m who I am today
Because I knew you

Thank you to those who taught me MYP, DP, ATLs, LOs, and SOIs; how to grade out of 7; who to go to for help about this, that, or the other; how map units in Atlas; when to speak up and when to sit and listen; how to avoid crossing the field in the rain; what to do in case of chaos, disaster, or mosquito bites on camp.

It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You’ll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart

Thank you to those who I looked forward to seeing on the mat every Tuesday; who were always excited for the hawker on Friday; who came to lunch with a story, a quip, and a comment for everything; who seriously answered and encouraged even the most naïve questions; who challenged and supported; who laughed at me sometimes and with me always.

Who can say if I’ve been
Changed for the better?
I do believe I have been
Changed for the better

Thank you to those who have touched my life this year.

I am a better person, educator, and friend for having known you. Thank you for the part you have played in this adventure.

The world itself is a big place and I am lucky enough to have friends in a lot of those places. None of us is a stranger to distance, choices, messaging apps, or long plane rides. I’ll see you again, in your country (wherever that is) or mine (wherever I end up).

Until then, thank you, from the bottom of my heart. I’m so glad to have met you.

Because I knew you
I have been changed for good

Wishing you all the best in your lives and your journeys, now and always.

Education

A Message to Students

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On the first and last days of school, there is a script running in my head that I’ve constructed from sixteen years as a student, two student teaching experiences, and five years as a teacher.

I like to watch their faces. There’s a lot of nervousness at the beginning of the year, some eye rolling, a few shy smiles. By the end of the year, the faces are warm and happy, comfortable, excited. The relationship has changed. The message, though the same, has more meaning because it comes from a place of mutuality. Together, we have learned, shared, and experienced.

At the beginning and end of each year, I tell my students that I believe everyone has the power to make a positive impact on the world. Impacts can range from personal to local to global as students grow older and begin to think bigger. For example, students can be more caring towards one another, volunteer in their communities, donate money, set up charities.

The reason I became a teacher, I tell them, is because I believe in their ability to act to improve of the world around them.

This is why, I tell them, they do so much research, work in groups, read, write, communicate, think, reflect, make decisions. This is why I challenge them. This is why I expect them to grow and to learn every single day.

Finally, I tell my students that the only way any of this is possible is if they believe that we are partners in their education. I am not a person who makes promises, but every year on the first day of school I promise my students that I will do as much as I can to help them be successful.

From conversations throughout the year, I know that I have made good on that promise.

At the end of the school year, I remind my students that I am here for them, even though I may not be their teacher any more. When I’ve moved on, I give students my personal email address because I don’t believe that location changes acts of caring. I tell them that they can always ask any questions, let me know what’s new in their lives, or just say hello. Sometimes they do.

At the end of the year, my hope is that my students have internalized the message that I care about them and believe in them and trust that they can make an impact on the world. That’s the goal, above everything else.

Thinking about this today, our last day of classes, has led me to reflect on action. It’s one thing to tell students that I believe they can make an impact; it’s quite another to provide them with concrete opportunities to do that.

For the sake of simplicity, let’s measure impact in terms of “lives saved”. What would an education system look like if we required students to save one life each year? What sorts of actions would they undertake? What would they learn about charitable donation, effective altruism, fundraising, extent of impact based on different actions, earning to give, social enterprises, NGOs?

A friend and I have recently been toying with how to implement real life saving into curriculum. If you have suggestions or thoughts, please post in the comments section below. I’m really excited about it so stay tuned!

Education

More Than Talking

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“I had some really delicious Indian and Sri Lankan food the other day. It was great!”

Silence on the other end of the line.

“Either the call dropped or you’re ignoring me.”

“No no, I’m here.”

So why the lack of response? That’s the question I was left asking myself after a phone conversation this morning. Why the lack of response?

As an educator, I am constantly looking for ways to demonstrate to my students that someone is listening to them. When they speak, I respond. When they tell me something they’ve done or something they’re excited about, I ask questions about it, wish them luck, or tell them I hope they have a great time. If they tell me that something is wrong, I ask what I can do to help. I remind them that they can always come chat if they need to. I leave sticky notes on their desks asking if they’re okay today.

A huge element of teaching is about developing relationships. If my students know that I care about them, they are more likely to learn in my classroom. We can have challenging conversations when they feel that their voices are being heard, their opinions matter, and their ideas will be taken seriously.

When classroom cultures develop around these attitudes and behaviors, real dialogue takes place. Real learning happens.

Last week, my grade ten students wanted to continue a Socratic Seminar that I thought we’d completed. They clearly had more to say, so we went with it. They started off by asking questions about the relationship between religion and violence; over an hour later, we were deep in a discussion about renewable energy.

My students’ questions drove the conversation. As vocal students willingly expressed uncertainty, they encouraged quieter peers to speak up and provide their thoughts and questions. Some students explained that they’d changed their minds over the course of our discussion, while others remained convinced of their own ideas. Some wavered back and forth and laughed at their own equivocating. Others admitted to feeling a general sense of uncertainty and apprehension that hadn’t occurred to them before our discussion.

It didn’t really matter.

The point was that they’d talked. They’d heard each other. They were willing to be open and vulnerable, question their classmates, express their ideas, and respond to challenges from their peers. They didn’t just talk; they listened. Through listening, they learned. They operated in the safe space that we’ve created this year, and they learned as a result.

Cultivating dialogue is vital with students, and equally so among adults.

But why is it so difficult?

One factor that I think makes dialogue challenging is being present. We spend a lot of time with our attention torn between one thing or another – email, social media, back-to-back meetings and deadlines, a pervasive need to “be there” with multiple people at once. We live in a society in which “busy” often denotes “good”. We feel the need to justify spending time alone or with just one other person.

I would like to advocate that we take a deep breath and a step backwards. The students in front of me are enough and they deserve my complete attention. The friend who joins me for coffee is enough and deserves my complete attention. The person on the other end of the line is enough and deserves my complete attention.

When I give you my complete attention and respond to you and what you’ve said, dialogue will take place. If I am only half-listening, if I am only partially there with you, dialogue is simply not possible.

In addition to practicing compassion, I am also working on being present. I want to listen to you. I want to hear you. I want to see you. This way, we can engage in dialogue, affect change, and make the world a better and more peaceful place.