On Becoming a Reflective Teacher

This article is relevant to me as a teacher because being inquisitive is a great teaching practice. In order to continue learning and be adaptable, it is important to prioritize inquiry. Students' cultures and backgrounds are varied in a classroom and it's important to stay creative to best support and relate to each group of students. Further, teaching practice is always changing and there will continue to be new ideas on how to best educate students regarding mathematical concepts as well as social/emotional learning. I appreciated the quote that said reflective teaching is about knowing what we are about. Our course on Educational Psychology as well as this Inquiry course both encourage reflecting on that idea. I think one way this has aged is that this was probably a more radical idea when it was written than it is now. I think many people going into teaching know that fostering inquiry in the classroom and being ready to learn and be adaptable as an educator is an essential part of the job. This is due to social changes, the movement to indigenize education and curriculum changes by the BC Ministry of Education. 

 

I think it is important to reflect on my internalized ideas of learning and the roles of educators and students as suggested in the article. The first step is to be inquisitive about my own ideas and biases.  This article also encourages looking deeper into decisions in the classroom to understand the "why" of an educator's decision. I think this will be an important tool in my practicum as I want to gain the most from learning from other teachers.