Yesterday, I talked about the balance in thinking logically and emotionally. Today is a new day.
Up until that point no matter how much I'd model the structures or ask her to do things she'd take a long time before she'd utter anything. It'd get to a point where the other kids would say the answers to her so she could repeat them to me. She's the kind of student that makes me wonder if my teaching is trash or if she's just not able to understand it. For the longest time I thought it was the former. I'm the type that thinks that there aren't any bad students. If the teacher is no good then the students won't learn. As a result I just assumed that I wasn't doing enough to make everything click with her.
As we went through the exam I observed her thinking about her responses to me and I thought about how as a kid I didn't like speaking up in class because I just wanted to learn and not be tested. Then I wondered if she was similar to myself. During her exam she really surprised me by being able to answer most of the questions and without much help (with the exception of one or two questions). That's when it really made me wonder: maybe she's just really shy? I realized that my initial assumptions were wrong.
I thought maybe she was just self-conscious and didn't want the other kids to think she was dumb or slow. I'm now starting to think that maybe she's just the type that wants to think and soak in information instead of putting it into practice. I don't know what she's like outside of my school so it's really hard to say. Now that I'm considering this as a possibility I have a lot more I want to try with her to see if she'll be more willing to participate in class.
Today was a reminder for me to not jump to conclusions and always question why something could be the way it is. Although I have a long way to go as a teacher I at least know what I hadn't completely failed her. She helped remind me why I shouldn't give up on anything and that it's important to strive for understanding so that I can continue to improve at whatever it is I'm doing.
Peace
"Be curious, not judgemental." - Walt WhitmanI had oral exams with my younger students today and I was a bit worried about one in particular because she was extremely hesitant to speak during her presentation and I had to help her out a lot. These few short months I've been trying to figure out how to get her to open up and every time I try something it seems like nothing works and I'm getting nowhere with her. One thing that kept me going with working on her was my curiosity. I wanted to know why she seemed to be struggling so much.
Up until that point no matter how much I'd model the structures or ask her to do things she'd take a long time before she'd utter anything. It'd get to a point where the other kids would say the answers to her so she could repeat them to me. She's the kind of student that makes me wonder if my teaching is trash or if she's just not able to understand it. For the longest time I thought it was the former. I'm the type that thinks that there aren't any bad students. If the teacher is no good then the students won't learn. As a result I just assumed that I wasn't doing enough to make everything click with her.
As we went through the exam I observed her thinking about her responses to me and I thought about how as a kid I didn't like speaking up in class because I just wanted to learn and not be tested. Then I wondered if she was similar to myself. During her exam she really surprised me by being able to answer most of the questions and without much help (with the exception of one or two questions). That's when it really made me wonder: maybe she's just really shy? I realized that my initial assumptions were wrong.
I thought maybe she was just self-conscious and didn't want the other kids to think she was dumb or slow. I'm now starting to think that maybe she's just the type that wants to think and soak in information instead of putting it into practice. I don't know what she's like outside of my school so it's really hard to say. Now that I'm considering this as a possibility I have a lot more I want to try with her to see if she'll be more willing to participate in class.
Today was a reminder for me to not jump to conclusions and always question why something could be the way it is. Although I have a long way to go as a teacher I at least know what I hadn't completely failed her. She helped remind me why I shouldn't give up on anything and that it's important to strive for understanding so that I can continue to improve at whatever it is I'm doing.
Peace
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It's important not to judge a book by its cover. Understanding comes from being open-minded and the desire to know more. |
What are some conclusions you've jumped to without considering what you still have left to understand?
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