Reflective log
27.09.16:
During this session we examined the different stages of teacher development and the different types of teachers we may be. I reflected on the fact that to a large degree, we as student teachers are expected to ‘play the game’, deliver the curriculum and are, in many cases, not encouraged to develop our creativity in the classroom. As a reflective practitioner, I must acknowledge that I have felt stifled by this approach but have found myself delivering the curriculum by the dictates of whichever placement I have been involved. Some subjects offer more scope for creativity, science, art, history, music and these are the subjects in which I have felt there has been more flexibility for a more creative approach. The lesson
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For me, that means a creative environment with an outdoor focus. On reflection, this is because I feel it is more exciting and engaging for the children and myself if lessons and the teaching environment are creative. I would like children to have the ability to be creative because it enables them to think laterally, become more confident and rise to life’s challenges. In short, being creative helps to prepare you for the realities of life.
We found like-minded individuals and considered the core values of our school, we then created video clips to promote those values. The videos were only short but it became apparent that when we create our video for the assignment we must be careful when naming our schools/project and to ensure that sound and picture quality are at their optimum (some videos were upside down and some we struggled to hear audio).
To finish, we watched a video of a talk from Ken Robinson. He was lamenting the state of the education system and the lack of creativity (amongst other things), on reflection it was decided that our PAT group did not have these issues and the hope was that we would continue to hold on to our values as we enter our teaching
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Grammar school interest me, as I have personal interest in the topic, based on my parent’s experiences. For the main part, my parents have spoken favourably regarding grammar school and their associated experiences, however, there is some indication that my mother’s success at 11+, in comparison to her sister’s failure of the test, may have proven divisive within the family. I want to develop my understanding of grammar schools and establish the pros and cons of grammar school education, particularly in relation to social mobility. I was somewhat shocked to discover that over 100,000 people apply for the 15,000 available grammar school places, meaning that 75,000 children will be disappointed in their quest for a grammar school education. These figures bring into perspective how fortunate my parents were to achieve grammar school places and forces me to consider the implications for those children who are not so
Children are no longer encouraged to be creative in the test prep environment. Instead, they are being taught to perform well on standardized tests and are labeled as unintelligent if they don’t. Young children are born with creativity and we see that when they are playing and pretending. According to Sir Ken Robinson, in Slon’s (2013) article, “by the time they get to be adults, most kids have lost that capacity” to be creative. The fundamentals of creation and experimentation are not part of the standardized testing mechanism.
Although both Greene (1995) and Freire (1998) subscribed to an existential philosophy of the individual, they differed on how said individual’s potential could be attained. In order to implement change, the need for out of the box thinking is paramount for both Greene (1995) and Freire (1998). For the latter, reflection of one’s activities would cause them to restructure that which they already know, leading them to try novel approaches in accordance with the amount of reflection they do. For the former however, no amount of reflection can enable us to think outside the knowledge that has been constructed for us, unless it involves imagination. Without it, we are doomed to reify the discourse that already exists, be it the general dominant discourse, or the discourse, now standardized, that tells us how to reflect ‘critically.’ Because of this, we need to tap into the creative and imaginative potential that resides within every one of us, allowing ourselves to become more attuned to creativity, to different ways of thinking. Once that is accomplished, we will be better suited, as educators, to foster our students’ creativity, creating a curriculum that embraces divergent thinking. This will then enable the students to realize their unique and unbounded potential, unfettered by the constraints of the dominant discourse (Peay,
Creative learning is about how children are actively involved in their own learning and ability to make choices and decisions. This can be achieved through providing a creative environment allowing exploration through play and praising creative efforts. Creativity is about risk taking and making connections, allowing children to
Children’s creativity must be extended by the provision of support for their curiosity, exploration and play. They must be provided with opportunities to explore and share their thoughts, ideas and feelings, for example, through a variety of art, music, movement, dance, imaginative and role-play activities, mathematics, and design and technology.
Creative learning is about how children are actively involved in their own learning, and their ability to make choices and decisions. This can be achieved through providing a creative environment, allowing exploration through play and
Creative development is important to a child’s learning because it helps them to use their mind and imagination and express their own ideas, and through playing with their friends it also helps them to understand that all family’s and cultures can be different. It helps them to make connections in their thinking and the way in which they problem solve, by doing things over and over again they reinforce their thinking and learning, they develop self-esteem, confidence, imagination & learning to work together in groups. It puts down the foundations for more
Shepard, L. A. (2006, Creating coherent formative and summative assessment practices. Orbit, 36, 41-44. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/213738810?accountid=8194
Teachers are in a profession that requires a lifelong approach to learning; the direction of this unit is at exploring one's own capabilities, and to start scaffolding our own learning. Knowing what one can do, can direct one to further improvements (Dinham, 2014, pp. 62-63). This unit is a great start to personal learning of the arts. There is evidence of improvement of learning and have responded to the above in an appropriate way with in text references, in a creative thinking self-expression meaning making of ideas.
Understanding of creative learning differs from those who see creativity as freedom to express ourselves to those who link it to self-discipline, practice and crafts.
In order for children to be creative the environment and the experiences they are exposed to will determine their creative learning and creativity. This is closely linked with cultural approaches and role modelling.
There are huge class differences within the tripartite system. This consists of grammar schools for academically able pupils, technical schools, and secondary modern schools. Two- thirds of grammar school places are taken by middle-class pupils, and working-class pupils mainly attend secondary moderns. This suggests that being in a higher class gives the pupils more opportunities being at a grammar school, and suggests that they have higher academic abilities. Grammar schools have more facilities and will offer far more opportunities for the pupils, and as the pupils are from a higher class they will be able to afford any extra curricular activities or trips. Secondary moderns may not offer these things or may not have the same facilities so there is a big inequality. This is where material deprivation comes into place and families in the working class will suffer. If families are unable to afford uniforms, trips, transport to and from school, classroom materials and textbooks, it can lead children to be isolated and bullied, meaning their school work suffers. Marketization of schools means that there will be better resourced, oversubscribed schools in more affluent areas, while socially disadvantaged children are concentrated in a limited number of
Albert Einstein once said, “It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.” This quote describes the responsibilities and standards of teaching children. I believe that teachers should be held to high standards for being the foundation of a student’s education and well-being. For my future students, my responsibilities as a future educator include supplementing the growth of a variety of students’ knowledge and creativity, abiding as a role model for students and colleagues, and understanding the issues in the foundations of education.
Inside the classroom, the creative curriculum teacher creates an atmosphere in which children are safe, and they feel emotionally secure, as well as have a sense of belonging. It describes activities and teaching strategies that are challenging but at the same time are within the children's reach. It also suggests giving children choices and a role in determining how they will learn.
A smart man said “Creativity is as important as literacy and we should treat it with the same standing.” (Ken Robinson-“Do schools kill creativity?”). There are multiple studies on how creativity helps improve a student’s mind. Project based learning is a huge creative booster for students. A math teacher from California uses projects to do math instead of using the text book. From doing this, she’s had more students pass her class then from when she was teaching straight from the text books. Instead of having standardized tests, using more creative techniques for students to enjoy the learning they’ve done and for them to show the higher officials what the students are learning. Creativity is the process of turning real world problems into an understanding by extending the minds cognitive processes. In Alabama, kindergartners are studying different ways to be creative.
Creativity is the ability to produce work that is original yet appropriate-something that others have not thought of but that is useful in some way (Kaufman & Sternberg, 2007; Sternberg, 2003b). The significance of creativity for children’s development is very high. Creativity helps children develop the overall areas of development; physical, social, emotional, language and cognitive. A child learns to innovate as well as invent while doing creative activities. Through creative practices child finds multiple methods of looking at various situations, assessing these situations and finding new solutions. Children often desire to be able to express themselves without any