Happy International Day of Education

 

Education is more than just a store of knowledge; it a process of learning which never really ends. 

Most people have confused education with just being within the four walls of a school, and acquiring some knowledge. Although this is not far from the truth, education goes beyond that.

When education influences, choices and judgements, then the goal is achieved. In other words, until knowledge finds it's way to the decisions people make, until it affects the way people think, until this process of learning called education, helps you build your critical thinking skill, education has not taken place. 

What then is education in summary? Education is not teaching the mind what to think, it is teaching the mind how to think. This is a continuous process, and every authority involved in the development of young minds, is a team player. Let's raise intellectuals who would solve future problems, let's expand the scope of education.

Happy International Day of Education! 

Beyond a Teacher

 

A teacher is one who traditionally imparts students with knowledge, and nothing more. Although this is good, it is not enough, because the school system has gone beyond that threshold, and demands for more.

 The extra attention that the educational system craves for can only be  given through effective school leadership. This is why every teacher should not just see themselves as teachers, but as school leaders. A school leader, is one who  motivates students, other teachers and parents, to achieve a common educational goal. They strive to encourage a team work in raising 21^st century students.  

Aside being a school leader, a teacher is also a learning facilitator, who helps students to be a part of their own learning experience, and to use the knowledge they have acquired, to deal with real life issues.

A teacher as an agent of change, is  also expected to be a curriculum developer. A curriculum developer is able to identify the educational needs of students, and develop a teaching plan on how to meet   those educational needs, and school standards. This is beyond being knowledgeable in various areas, it is about proffering relevant solutions to educational problems. This leads to the next Skill a teacher should have.

Any product that doesn’t solve any problem, will not sell. This is because problems naturally gravitate towards their solutions. Every teacher is a product, that should solve a problem. To attain this height in the teaching career, a lot of other factors must come into play. Some of these factors are soft skills, such as decision making, negotiation, creativity, team building, communication, and many more.

Being labeled “More than a teacher” entails that a teacher exhibits more than the traditional qualities of a teacher, and emerges as a 21^st century teacher; one who is equipped with different relevant skills, for their teaching journey.  A skillful teacher will always be sort for, because there is always a problem to solve in the educational system. The call is to skill up, and move one more mile.

Finally, teachers are models, who must mentor their students, and other teachers. What best way is there to do it, than being a mirror that reflects agents of change . The key is keep up with continuous professional development, diligence, and consistency.

 

Learning Blocks

Building anything requires a deliberate consistent effort. In other words, it takes some time to actually build understanding on any subject.

It is not a surprise then that a child goes through a period of time, to acquire knowledge and understanding in various subjects. This is because every new knowledge is building on a previous understanding.

Skipping any process in the academic milestones, is detrimental to the mental development of any child. This is the reason why most kids struggle in their present classes. While it is expected that they should have certain knowledge having spent some time in school, the reverse most times is the case, as we keep having students who are struggling.

How do we solve this problem then? It brings me back to the topic: let every new understanding build on the previous, that way, a child goes through a clear process of acquiring knowledge gradually until full understanding is established.

I would like to use the example of teaching grammar across the grades:

Year 1: A noun as a naming word, with examples and how to use them.

Proper and common nouns, with examples on how to use them

Year 2: Types of Nouns: Countable, uncountable, abstract and collective, nouns with examples

Singular and plural nouns, with their rules.

Year3:  Forming sentences with types of Nouns.

Replacing nouns with pronouns.

Using adjectives to describe nouns, with examples in sentences.

Year 4: Using comparison of adjectives to describe nouns with examples

Introduction to noun phrase

Year 5. Adding suffixes to root  words to form abstract nouns ending with  ‘ness’,  ‘ment’, ‘tion’

Forming abstract nouns from verbs: (correct, invent, teach,)

Year 6: Relating nouns with other parts of speech.

John(noun) is a good(adjective) boy. He lives (verb) with his(pronoun) family in a small town. John responds quickly(adverb) when given a task. This is because (conjunction) he doesn’t like to fail. He finds his way into (preposition) people’s heart by making them happy. oh!(interjection) what a unique boy he is.

Differentiating nouns from other parts of speech.

I strongly believe that working any learner through these stages of understanding the subject of a noun, would reduce the challenges in understanding the topic.

 

 

 

 

Teach the Concept

Meeting learners' need is a strong motivator in achieving set out goals in teaching. As a result, teachers should be intentional in delivering their content to ensure that every learner’s need is met at the end of the day.

This is why a focus on the various concepts of topics should be drilled in learners. Until your students understand a given concept, they have not really gotten it, and cannot apply it.

Teaching some topics on parts of speech, like nouns, adjectives and verbs, would require that learners grasp an understanding of the major concepts of these topics, to be able to use them effectively.

A noun is not to be taught as the name of a person, animal, place or thing, but as a ‘naming word ‘ that is, a word that names a person, animal, place, or thing. The same way an adjective should be viewed as a describing word, and a verb, a doing word.

Once the concept is established, it is easier for learners to identify these parts of speech in writing and would be able to use them correctly.

The next step is how to achieve this. I would suggest that this is taught in three steps:

1.      1. Teach the concept

2.      2. Create activities that help learners identify the  concepts

3.     3.  Use the concept in speaking or writing

If your objective at the end of the day is to make your students apply knowledge, then you must teach the concept, and allow them relate them to real life.

Teachers As Builders

 

 WHO IS A TEACHER?

A teacher is a rich bag filled with many good things. It is that time of the year again, when teachers are celebrated, not just for what they do, but for all the roles they play.

As a model, a teacher shows learners how to behave, and this includes how to read and write.

 As a resource provider, a teacher makes available necessary resources that help learners improve their knowledge.

As a school leader, a teacher helps to make quality decision in curriculum building, thereby giving learners a focus for learning. 

As a classroom manager, a teacher makes the class comfortable for learning and collaboration.

What can we do without teachers?

As the world celebrates teachers today, I would like to echo, on behalf of teachers all over the world, to say that teachers are special and irreplaceable.

To every  teacher out there, HAPPY WORLD TEACHERS' DAY!

Sell Your School

 

I got a call from a parent outside Nigeria, and she wanted an online teacher in Nigeria for her kids. I asked her why and this was her response: “Most times I ask my kids what they do in school, and they tell me, they had swimming lessons, had some time at the gym, or had other activities aside academics.” Then she said again; “I think the attention on the social life is more than the academics.” I related this to what we have in our Nigerian schools, and asked two questions: What is the primary objective of sending kids to school? And what really sells a school?

Although every school has their vision, that guides their operations, all schools still have a common goal. This common goal is to educate learners. So the definition of education as it applies to different schools matters. In as much as different schools have their vision, it must also be noted that parents also have their goals of sending their kids to school, which primarily is so that they can read and write.

Educating a child is not a one side thing, but an all round development thing. So, while trying to satisfy parents, schools must pay attention to the various areas of development of a child. These areas include: academics, social, and emotional. The problem in establishing what a school really should focus more on, comes up, because most schools want to attract prospective parents.

Since education is encompassing, every aspect can sell a school, but most importantly, the academics. No parents would be happy if a child is very social and exposed, but cannot do well in academic work. So, schools should not focus more on activities, which are a means of marketing a school, than academics, which is a major factor.

In a nutshell, pay more attention to the academic area of your school, while you spice up with relevant activities.

The Tech Savvy Teachers

 

A lot of teachers have upgraded their digital skills after the Covid experience. This upgrade became important after the realization that it is possible to practice distant learning among several students from different location.

 It is not a surprise therefore, why the emphasis on imbibing ICT in teaching is viewed as professional development. So every teacher who is interested in moving forward in his or her career, should as a matter of necessity acquire ICT skills.

Blended learning has always been there, but mostly among students in same location. Distance learning, came and went beyond using ICT skills in the classroom, to actually having a virtual class comprising of students from different locations.

What are the areas a teacher should look at, that gives him or her, the platform to still carry out teaching exercise, with a touch of digital experience? We can begin answering this question by looking back at the Covid era.

Two major platforms that schools and private tutors use were Zoom and Google Classrooms. These platforms made distance learning during the Covid period exciting, as they have special learning tools which aid the learning process. For Zoom, you could share a screen with your learners, write on a white board, and even record your class. The ability to record a class, allows a teacher to still teach even if he or she is not present. This is not the best, best it solves a problem for an absent student.

Google classroom is another platform that was very much used during the Covid period and till date. This platform was initially available to just schools, but later made available to individuals, who might still have some personal things to do with teaching. The tools in Google classroom are very useful to schools or private tutors. Asides enjoying the wonderful tools, a teacher can also plan classes, by scheduling them. It means you must not be available to have your class. It also gives learners the opportunity of learning at their own pace.

Most teachers who have gone out of their way to improve on their ICT skills, have not just enjoyed the benefits of being relevant  at their place of work, but have created for themselves avenues of generating extra income. It all begins with a step; set a goal to get a training in ICT, and work towards achieving it. Tech savvy teachers indeed are gradually replacing the non tech savvy teachers. Choose where you belong.