Inspiring students

 
Otago Polytechnic has made a commitment to quality teaching and learning. Consequently everyone has to hold a qualification in tertiary teaching.    I’ve just done my Grad Cert Tertiary Learning and Teaching (Level 7) by assessment of prior learning. It is a reflection on 10 years of teaching software engineering, capstone projects, Simpa and Sustainability.

It starts with a core statement:

Everything I do is about inspiring students to take that leap of courage and creativity, commitment and craftsmanship.

It then goes on to present six principles:

Empowerment.   a) The teacher and students both teach and are taught by each other…g) The students are actively engaged in meaningful experiences that the teacher facilitates

Evidence based teaching practice: Teaching as scholarly activity and critique own practice in relation to literature

Engaging:  Borrowed from Senge’s learning organisation to provide experiences that foster aspirations;  develop reflective conversations; and are based on understanding complexity

Embrace change: Borrowed from Agile Manifesto.  An approach to teaching that values:

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

Working software over comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

Responding to change over following a plan

That is, while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on

the left more.

Excitement: Working on areas that light us up.  Projects should be fun, exciting and have a bit of magic.  

Everything: Like the toilets at the Museum, everything is a learning opportunity. 

 

 

 

And then examines the ongoing development of my teaching according to those principles.