GROW
yourself
1
Essay: If I were a teacher I would..
...........(What would you like to do and what changes 1
would you plan to implement)
Answers
Explanation:
As another school year finishes up here in the Northern Hemisphere I find myself, like many educators, reflecting on this past school year. As we reflect we start to think about what we would do different if we had to do it all over again and luckily for educators we get that opportunity. We get to continually improve our trade, continually test out new ideas, new ways of doing things and see how they work.
Google created this little video of sound bites from students talking about how they would change the classroom if they were the teacher.
As I watch this video and listen to these students what I hear is that they want to have more control over their learning. Take the technology piece out of it for a second and what I hear is “I want to learn my way” and “I want to do things that excite me”. Technology just allows those things to happen easier than ever in the classroom.
So as I reflect and think about the year to come (I’m no longer in a classroom but I do substitute from time to time). I want to think about what these kids and millions like them are telling us about education and then come up with a list of how I want to teach next year.
If I were the teacher:
Every day, every student would feel special.
I wouldn’t teach from a lesson plan, I would make the whole day up as I go.
I would ask students what they wanted to learn about and find a way to make the standards fit their passion not their passion fit the standards.
I would have a conversation with students about how they want to be assessed.
I would give them the skills that unleash the power of the Internet so that they can learn anything, anytime in anyway possible.
I would give every students a voice in the world.
I would let my students know that I’m human and have bad days too.
I would make it a goal to ask more questions than give answers daily.
I would invite the world into our classroom and introduce our classroom to the world.
We would create and share something publicly daily.
We would all learn together; from each other and with each other.
What is your list….you probably are a teacher so as you reflect back on this year, on a career, or just what are you thinking about for next year what would you do if you were a teacher?