Ramsey Musallam gives his audience encouraging ways to engage students and spark their learning. He says that teachers must "confuse" students to create questions. He says that "student questions are the seed of real learning". The three rules he uses in his classroom are:
- Curiosity comes first. Students learn through questions
- Embrace the mess. Trial and error is not only necessary, but also a part of everyday life.
- Practice reflection. Teaching requires revision.
This video encourages me as a teacher to use these rules in learning. It is important to spark a students imagination and sow the seeds of real learning into the mind of every single student so they can grow in knowledge.
Rita Pearson outlines the main reasons that children drop out: low attendance, poverty, negative peer influences, and RELATIONSHIPS! She stresses the importance of student connection. Jokingly, she says, "People don't learn from people they don't like!" However, this is so true. Students need to feel loved and safe inside the classroom. As a teacher, this encourages me to build a relationship with all students. If all students feel safe, loved, and connected, they will listen, engage, and learn! Education isn't just teaching. It's raising self-esteem. It's making students feel like they are somebody. It's pointing out the positives, not just the negatives. Most importantly, it's making a difference.
Diana Laufenberg encourages educators to not always expect right answers. Children learn from mistakes. If children always know the right answers, then what could they possibly learn? They may fail, but failure is instructional. Failure isn't always bad. Students must "fail, process, and learn from" what they did wrong. Students must go out into the real-world and learn from experiences. Through experiential learning, student voice, and embracing failure, students learn.
*More talks from inspiring teachers can be found here: https://www.ted.com/playlists/182/talks_from_inspiring_teachers
