Teddy’s Reflection Log 01*26*2010

Posted by on January 29, 2010 
Filed under Reflections

Class Session, Tuesday, Time: 7:20-10:00 p.m./ 01.26.2010

 

In our session on Tuesday, Jan 26, 2010, we observed that there were distinct attributes about teaching and what is considered scholarly work. What is scholarship? What is teaching? Well, according to Shulman, scholarship is public, critical to review and appropriate to be share or reused. The issue of publishing one’s scholarly work is both sensitive and complex. Critical review of the work of others can be rewarding for those investigating and humbling for the authors sharing their research. Some professors may not want to share their work. Others may consider it a chance to become noted in a field of specialty or recognized as an expert of some level. Based on my past learning experiences, I thought of scholarly work as research. After reading the article “Course Anatomy: The Dissection and Analysis of Knowledge Through Teaching”, it was clear that this is far from the truth. There is so much more to the process of creating scholarly work.

 

Shulman’s key components of teaching make such great sense to me when I think about how they intersect one another. He argues that teaching, like other forms of scholarship, is an extended process that unfolds over time. It embodies at least five elements: vision, design, interactions, outcomes and analysis. I believe that like a painter, one must have a clear-cut vision as to where they will start and finish a great work. It will require the artist or teacher to spend extended sets time planning a scope of activities that promote student learning. Such activities must be attractive to students of various learning styles. Lesson design or configuration must pedagogically encourage students to learn in guided and independent opportunities. Their past experiences must coincide with significant learning experiences that are innovative and worthy of further exploration. Student and teacher interactions must yield works of quality and quantity. I believe that outcomes can be favorably increased if we interject best practices that are practical and reasonably achievable within expected time frames. Analysis and knowledge of what we teach, how we teach, who we teach, sequence of activities to learn, how we learn, might be the most dominant determining factors indicating how we see our day to day lives contributing to the greatest plight of humanity. “To seek the unknown and desires to know more!”

 

In conclusion, I believe scholarship, teaching and scholarly work are all acts of academic engagement where teachers and students are educating and making inquiries from each other as they interact and share information and perspectives in peer and student/instructor oriented situations. It is refreshing to be amongst like minds that are not afraid to voice what they think, know and seek. Scholarship is the tank holding the gasoline needed for fueling our investigations of uncharted and charted territories.  Teaching is the work that takes place to produce the fuel needed to fill the tank. Scholarly work is the final product or outcome of the work done, measured in quantity and quality.

This experience has been extraordinary!

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