Being the Learner as Well as the Teacher
Over the past few weeks, I've been reading your observations of tutors and teachers of writing, and the one thing that intrigues me is the description of the teachers you've observed who take on the role of the learner, right alongside students, as well as that of the teacher. Many of you have written with wholehearted admiration for those people who dive into the learning and demonstrate their love of exploring new topics and having new insights by being there with their students, thinking about real questions, analyzing texts together, wondering out loud, and in the process enjoying the journey.
This, to me, is the only viable way to really enjoy teaching, and this goes back to the root of authenticity. Are the questions we ask authentic in their inquiry into unresolved issues? Have we looked for those aspects that go beyond the black and white of right and wrong and instead delve into the truly rhetorical, indeterminate, unresolvable grey areas of real issues?
This is why I like to assign in-class writing prompts and write along with everyone else. I like to share what I've written and read what someone else has written in response to the same question. I like to hear the endless variety of possible responses, especially when I consider the many nuances of their responses.
I know, of course, that there are many levels of comprehension and that content questions confirming students' understanding of the key points made in a text and various methods for ascertaining students' grasp of the material are necessary. Still, we need to be able to prepare for our classes with genuine wonder in the questions that we pose to our students.
What about you? Have you experienced classes where inquiry was more than just a way of checking to make sure your comprehension of subject matter matched that of the instructor? Have you worked with an instructor who really challenged you to think and made the opportunity to find out about a new topic an occasion for authentic discovery?
This, to me, is the only viable way to really enjoy teaching, and this goes back to the root of authenticity. Are the questions we ask authentic in their inquiry into unresolved issues? Have we looked for those aspects that go beyond the black and white of right and wrong and instead delve into the truly rhetorical, indeterminate, unresolvable grey areas of real issues?
This is why I like to assign in-class writing prompts and write along with everyone else. I like to share what I've written and read what someone else has written in response to the same question. I like to hear the endless variety of possible responses, especially when I consider the many nuances of their responses.
I know, of course, that there are many levels of comprehension and that content questions confirming students' understanding of the key points made in a text and various methods for ascertaining students' grasp of the material are necessary. Still, we need to be able to prepare for our classes with genuine wonder in the questions that we pose to our students.
What about you? Have you experienced classes where inquiry was more than just a way of checking to make sure your comprehension of subject matter matched that of the instructor? Have you worked with an instructor who really challenged you to think and made the opportunity to find out about a new topic an occasion for authentic discovery?
posted by Gerri McNenny at
6:25 PM
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