Jeff Cufaude, in his TED talk “Life’s A Great Teacher. Are You A Great Student?” shares his perspective on life-long learning. How can you increase diversity, as Mr. Cufaude describes, to help you become a better teacher? How can you engage in ongoing discovery, as Mr. Cufaude describes, in your role as a teacher? Can learning from other teachers help make you a great teacher?
My school is only 50% white and the other 50% is a mixture of a number of races. Diversity is all around us--we can do more with it, for sure, but our school does try to incorporate different cultural items throughout the year. How I can go about continuing to discover...taking classes, workshops and what not that take me out of my comfort zones. Sometimes provided by our school, but other times, I have sought these on my own.
ReplyDeleteHow can you engage in ongoing discovery, as Mr. Cufaude describes, in your role as a teacher? Can learning from other teachers help make you a great teacher?
ReplyDeleteIn the English classroom, we try to explore constantly. We go into Book Love to explore new books students get to pick out each quarter to read in any extra time in class. We use new poetry from new authors across the world.
I'd like to bring in more non-fiction texts with news stories in this next semester. One thing I love to do is bring in TedTalks. It's been funny with this book study. Several of the videos I have already seen. So they were repeats. Through my searches, I end up exploring a ton of Ted Talks. My students groan sometimes, but we have really good discussions. I find readings to extend learning. Then I have them write reflections, or in Speech, I will have them write out their thoughts and record themselves talking about what their perceptions were. It's a good way to extend and explore. It can be hard to get them to think outside of their own world sometimes.
But, oh my, is there an ENTIRE WORLD OUT THERE to explore!
Jeff Cufaude, in his TED talk “Life’s A Great Teacher. Are You A Great Student?” shares his perspective on life-long learning. How can you increase diversity, as Mr. Cufaude describes, to help you become a better teacher?
ReplyDeleteTo increase diversity into my classroom to become a better teacher is to learn about my students’ cultures. In this, I can build empathy, foster an environment where all students feel seen, respected, and valued.
How can you engage in ongoing discovery, as Mr. Cufaude describes, in your role as a teacher? Can learning from other teachers help make you a great teacher?
I can engage in ongoing discovery is to go to training or workshops to grow as an educator.
I believe learning from other teachers’ is very impactful because you can work together and be thought partners. When we work with co-workers, we can get new ideas from each other and trial and error ideas that have been given to us. Instead of inventing the wheel, we can lean on our co-workers for new ideas.
As a preschool teacher, I try to increase diversity by making sure every student and family is represented in our classroom environment. I want every corner of the room to feel inclusive. For example, our classroom library includes books about children with a variety of life experiences, such as children who have incarcerated parents, come from a variety of socio-economic statuses, or children learning to manage big feelings. In the art area, I provide a wide variety of skin-tone colors and materials so children can create artwork that truly represents themselves. In the dramatic play area, we have puppets and dolls with different skin tones and abilities, and during circle time we provide adapted seating so all students can participate comfortably.
ReplyDeleteEngaging in ongoing discovery means continuing to learn and grow as a teacher. This can include reflecting on my teaching practices, learning from my students and their families, and exploring new ideas that help create a more inclusive classroom.
Learning from other teachers can also help make someone a great teacher. Sharing ideas, observing others, and collaborating allows educators to grow professionally and discover new strategies that better support their students.
My school district is very diverse. The main cultures are white, Karen, and Hispanic. I grew up in a different town, with very little diversity. When I moved to the current town I'm in, I knew little about the different cultures. Since being in this town and school district, I have worked with those other cultures and have gained insight into their beliefs, why they do certain things and not do certain things. That has helped me a lot to understand the students in my class more. Every day, I learn something knew about the different cultures that I believe helps me to be a betters teacher.
ReplyDeleteJeff Cufaude emphasizes lifelong learning and living a life where we continually long to learn. He highlights two core principles: increasing diversity and engaging in ongoing discovery. I agree with his perspective that we learn most effectively when we approach situations with an open mind and curiosity. I also appreciate his idea that learning is a circle of life, not a linear path. He encourages living an intentional life of learning, meeting it with ongoing discovery. We don’t have to let go of our own beliefs, but we can gain a deeper understanding of others. I particularly appreciated his advice to ask, “What were they thinking?” as a way to broaden our own perspective and better understand the people around us. From a School Counselor perspective, increasing diversity in my learning means seeking out different viewpoints, professional resources, and conversations to expand my understanding of students’ needs. Engaging in ongoing discovery involves staying curious, reflecting on my practice, and exploring new strategies to support students. Learning from other teachers and staff helps me strengthen my own skills while fostering a collaborative culture where educators learn from one another.
ReplyDeleteMy school is EXTREMELY DIVERSE (primarily African American, Native and Hispanic). I think learning about others just opens the door to so many more things. It almost like traveling- the more you see and hear about the more knowledge you gain/ the more wholesome you become. I 100000% agree that you can learn from other teachers. I have learned A LOT from other teachers during my first three years, and I am still learning from them. I will continue to grow diversity wise- by researching, participating in cultural events and by reading.
ReplyDeleteJeff Cufaude, in his TED talk “Life’s A Great Teacher. Are You A Great Student?” shares his perspective on life-long learning. How can you increase diversity, as Mr. Cufaude describes, to help you become a better teacher? How can you engage in ongoing discovery, as Mr. Cufaude describes, in your role as a teacher? Can learning from other teachers help make you a great teacher?
ReplyDeleteIn my school district and community we have a high Hispanic population. I am white and married into a Hispanic family. I actually do not speak much Spanish at all. I get quite nervous trying, but this is something that I am trying to learn as my husband's family speaks Spanish. I think this also helps me in school, because many of my students speak Spanish. Being able to try and learn Spanish can also encourage the E.L.L students that I teach that it's okay to make mistakes. These mistakes actually help us learn.
I am always trying to learn something new, hence why I am taking this course. I think it is a great life skill to be a continuous learner and wanting to learn more about our world. I think this helps me to be a better educator as I hope that the students can see my excitement for learning and that I can show them that it is fun to learn and discover new things.
I can increase diversity within my classroom by sharing my personal experiences with my students. I was a military kid growing up, I then married a soldier and was in the service for a few years as well. I have been fortunate enough to live and travel all of the world as a child and adult. I love sharing pictures, souveniers, and my experiences with my students. I feel as an educator is it important to share life experiences and how what we do in the classroom does connect to the outside world.
ReplyDeleteI think learning from other teachers can make me a better teacher. I am very lucky to have a supportive principal that also thinks this. She allows us to go into other classroom and grade levels to watch how our coworkers teach, manage behaviors, and create resources. We are then able to use what be observed and make it our own in our classrooms.
Jeff Cufaude, in his TED talk “Life’s A Great Teacher. Are You A Great Student?” shares his perspective on life-long learning. How can you increase diversity, as Mr. Cufaude describes, to help you become a better teacher? How can you engage in ongoing discovery, as Mr. Cufaude describes, in your role as a teacher? Can learning from other teachers help make you a great teacher?
ReplyDeleteJeff Cufaude explained the importance of lifelong learning, especially by increasing diversity in our experiences. He did a great job explained the importance of seeking new perspectives, ideas, and experiences.
Some ways that I can increase diversity to become a better teacher include learning from other teachers, learning from individuals from different backgrounds, and implementing different teaching strategies. I have done some of this already, but I could do more. My school is very diverse, so interacting with individuals from different backgrounds is easily done. Our school has implemented the PLC model and teaming, so learning from other teachers is also achievable.
Some ways that I can engage in ongoing discovery include seeking professional development opportunities, listening to educational podcasts, researching teaching methods, collaborating with other professionals, etc. I need to stay open to learning so I become a better teacher every day for my students.
Yes, learning from other teachers can help make me a great teacher. I have found great value in collaborating with colleagues, sharing strategies, and observing in other classrooms. I am luck to have an administrator that encourages the teaching staff to learn from each other. He makes it easy by covering our classes so we can get into each others rooms. I know the information that I have learned from other teachers has made me the teacher I am today. I see the value in continuing to seek out the great things I can learn from other teachers in my building.
I plan to continue learning by increasing diversity, staying open to discovery, and learning from others so I can be the best teacher for my students.
The school I taught in for six years, had almost no cultural diversity. There was however, diversity in home life/backgrounds of the students. To continue being a life long learner, I tried to really get to know my students, where they came from, and what made them who they were.
ReplyDeleteTo continue being a life long learner, I can seek out professional development that will help me to grow in my knowledge and understanding of students and new classroom ideas. I can communicate with other teachers in different schools, I can research unique ideas to bring into my classroom and to have my students participate in, and I can continually ask questions.
Learning from other teachers is one of the best ways to continue in this path, because you will be continually gaining new information and ideas to bring back to your own classroom.
As a history teacher I think this question is especially important in my classroom. My school is about 98% white and in a small rural school in South Dakota there is not a lot of diversity really anywhere near us. I take this as a challenge in my room when learning about different cultures to help student understand all the different lives around the world. We use this in classes for example when learning about the civil war and the effects that slavery had on the African American communities post Civil War. I would like them to understand that the lives lived by different groups are different from the lives that they live for so many different reasons. History is great in that we are able to learn about the past to improve our futures!
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