THE IMPORTANCE  OF EXPERIENCE IN TEACHING AND LEARNING.

My educational practise today is really a mixture of both Traditional and Progressive. My ultimate aim however is to have a Progressive educational approach which capitalises on experience being important both in learning and teaching process.
"Nothing ever becomes real until it's experienced." John Keats.
. It has mainly been traditional in many aspects especially before I undertook the CCTI course.  I was the major source of knowledge in my classes together with the recommended textbooks. The students sat in orderly rows and faced the teacher at the front. My role was mainly directive, I followed the set curriculum and taught in more or less the prescribed way for over 20 years. Assessments were done at the end of the term when my students reproduced what had been taught , crammed and memorised as individuals.

On the other hand to a small extent there was some Progressive approaches in as much as my subject of Geography has many practical aspects which can be done using a constructivist approach. The fieldwork aspect requires the students to formulate their own objectives, go out on the field, carry out the research, analyse the data obtained, make recommendations, conclusions and finally make presentations. I also had collaborative groups which carried out researches and made presentations etc.

I would like to have a progressive approach generally where the students take a more active approach in class, sit in informal groups, learn in ways that are interesting to them, carry out their own research and presentations, learn through experiences especially real life experiences etc as given in the Constructivist approach.

In this context however, I envisage the following hurdles. Instead of only having assessments at the end of the term, I will have continuous assessments for my students but they would still have to sit the final standardised assessment at the end as required by the syllabus. That is compulsory if they want to move to the next level. The formal sitting arrangement can be changed temporarily when in collaborative groups but not permanently since I am not the only one that uses the classrooms . The option of giving students the choice of what resources to use can only be done within limits since many resources especially technology tools are not available or in inadequate quantities.

In as much as the aim is to adopt a progressive approach which I have learnt after studying from the course, there are still some aspects of the Progressive approach which cannot work easily. The curriculum is still rigid with prescribed ways of doing things and until it’s changed nothing much can be done. Giving learners a choice of what they want to learn may cause them to miss out key aspects that are essential but not interesting. When the teacher acts only as a mentor and guide, there is likely to be a lot of indiscipline bearing in mind the large classes due to Universal Primary and Secondary education in Uganda which is free.. The teacher may not be able to keep track of the students’ progress if each learner can choose what they want to learn and how to learn it. The multiple interpretations of doing things would overwhelm the teacher in terms of time unless the class is small. In addition, it assumes a variety of resources being available to the learner to choose from. The range is limited in Uganda and many schools even lack the basics. Relating to real life experiences and collaborative or individual projects are mainly limited by financial constraints since they may require the learners to go out in the environment or field.

In summary, at present I would advocate for a blend between the traditional approach and the Progressive approaches eg in as much as the learner is given freedom to chose the learning path suitable for them there must be a set of rules or guiding principles he/she follows. The final aim would be to move more and more towards progressive approach.

LESSON  2 - FEELINGS ABOUT  TEACHING.

My feelings about teaching at this stage in the course are mixed. If there is to be authentic learning then my way of  teaching has to undergo a lot of changes. Although there is a lot that is outside my control and which therefore will be difficult to change, nevertheless there is a lot that I can do to change the way I teach my classes.

Human beings have different intellectual strengths and minds and this has an important bearing on how people or learners learn. Some have ability to analyse information, others can solve abstract problems, others can create products , others can understand other peoples desires etc. As a result therefore, I need to take this into consideration as I teach. I have to realize that learners all do not learn the same way and must therefore identify and encourage them in those areas where they seem to have a natural aptitude or what can be referred to as their strengths

I must improve on how I pose questions and problems and then guide the students to help them find their own answers. I must change my role from that of instructor to one of a coach, mentor and prompter and just ask leading questions while they find the answers by them selves. This can be through inquiry based learning, role playing, collaborative learning groups etc.

Although in theory I know what I ought to do, It will not be easy to put it all into practice. After teaching for all these years, it’s not easy to stand aside and let students take control of their own learning. Partly it’s because this requires lots of time which may not be available because of constant schedules as also discussed by Richard Culatta. The rigid curriculum, lack of technology tools and the challenges of large numbers make this an uphill task, but not impossible.

 The solution therefore, is to start slowly with those aspects that I am already applying and build on those first. These include collaborative groups carrying out research and getting them to analyse and present their work. I will also give them leading questions to research on based on the topics at hand. I will also encourage them to participate more in co-curricular activities which would help them develop their individual passions or areas that they like. The provision for that is already there except that the time  for that is limited and I cannot increase it easily. In summary, I can say that where there is a will, there is a way and I intend to do my best.