I love the idea of learning from your students and going along with them - they have their own culture and you need to be humble enough to admit you know little or nothing about their interests, feelings, and relationships with each other. That being said, we still need to encourage them. But how much is appropriate? How much do you talk about yourself and become buddies with your students, vs how much should we keep ourselves "professional" and an authority figure to the students?
No matter how much we reveal about ourselves, I loved how Frank McCourt talked about following the students interests. In my experience, the most animated discussions in groups of students can be completely off-topic. That doesn't mean they aren't useful or educational - these may be the times they learn the most! But how do we walk the line between following their interests and making sure they learn all the curriculum?
I would really like to see the film he speaks of "The Blackboard Jungle" and also to read his book "Teacher Man".
No matter how much we reveal about ourselves, I loved how Frank McCourt talked about following the students interests. In my experience, the most animated discussions in groups of students can be completely off-topic. That doesn't mean they aren't useful or educational - these may be the times they learn the most! But how do we walk the line between following their interests and making sure they learn all the curriculum?
I would really like to see the film he speaks of "The Blackboard Jungle" and also to read his book "Teacher Man".
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