Learning and Nurturing

       There is one question I would like to ask. Is there any child who could grow on his/her own without the love and care of  a mother. Well, the answer , I would give is, no. Each and every child requires the love and care of a mother or a care-taker. In the same way, a little child in the classroom requires someone to teach him and guide him throughout the learning process. Through this picture, I would like to bring in some traits that a mother and a teacher share. 
          Like a mother, the teacher takes care of the mental and intellectual growth of a child. Therefore, in the classroom, the teacher teaches  and guides the students in the way a mother guides her little ones at home. The teacher also guides her students and corrects their mistakes and shows them how to do something in the right way.The teacher also provides food for the  students' thoughts which is similar to the way a mother provides food for her children at home.
         What I would like to point out here is the fact that little students look up to their teachers as a mother. For them the teacher takes the place of the mother in the classroom.  Therefore we can say that the school is the second home of every student and it is very important for them to feel safe when they are in  one. 
       The learning environment for students should unarguably be one in which students feel free to learn . An environment in which  students can explore and learn more on their own will be conducive for students of the present day. However, the needs and requirements of each and every child must be looked-after by their teacher. The teacher must take the role of a guide or a supervisor in the classroom. The teacher must not pressure any child to learn.S/he will learn on his/her own if s/he finds the topic to be interesting. But pressure on a child will only prove to be disastrous to learning as the child will learn not out of positive motivation but out of a negative one. Therefore respecting a child's feeling toward what s/he wants to learn will go a long way in motivating a child to learn.
         Hence in trying to make the young ones in the classroom learn, teachers must take and play the role of a  mother who every child loves to be close to. Taking this role will help teachers realize that they do not only have students to learn from them, but  young ones who needed someone to take care of them while they are at school.

Activities for the different types of learners

             There are different types of activities for the different types of learners. In this post I would like to talk about a few activities which could be implemented by the teacher in the classroom. Some of these activities could be used to train the students in the acquisition of the four basic language skills. In this post I will try to deal with the activities related with the different types of learners in different paragraphs.

          The activities which are related with the first type of learners, the verbal-linguistic learners or the word smart learners are activities in which the learners could connect vocabulary with pictures or symbols.The learners could also put ideas into a graph or a picture.In order to train the reading skills of these learners, the learners could be asked to underline prepositions in the story they are reading. They could then be asked to write sentences by using the same prepositions that they have underlined.To train their speaking skills, the learners could be asked to read out the sentences that they have written. While the other students listen to the sentences, they give themselves some training in their listening skills.New vocabulary could also be inferred from these sentences.

            The activities which could be used in training the basic language skills of the logical-mathematical learners are activities like reading a mathematical problem in English and then they could try in groups of two to answer the problem. This will help the students in giving their cooperative skills some training as training in this field is largely needed in the present day learning context.In this way the weak and the below average learners could learn from the above average learners. To train their listening skills. the students could be given some mental arithmetic and they could write down their answers either in words or in figures.The speaking skills of the students could be trained when students try to explain to their partner why s/he has arrived at a particular conclusion.

            The activities which could be introduced while teaching the visual/spatial learners are those in which students could describe a picture or write a story by looking at a picture.Picture stories could either be written which will train the writing skills of the students or they could be done orally in which the students could be asked to come up with a story by looking at a picture. This could be done in groups of four or five.Cooperative learning is initiated in the classroom and learners will learn to respect the views and ideas of the other learners in their group.In this way students will come up with new vocabulary either by inferring words from the picture or from their peers.

         The activities which could be used in teaching the bodily/ kinesthetic learners include activities like writing about an event, an article, a story and creating a slogan which will improve their writing skills. In the classroom, students could be asked to read a story and act out a part of the story for the class.This will help students to improve their reading skills. To improve their listening skills, students could listen to a song and do an action song.Students could also move around the classroom to ask questions from their peers and to improve their vocabulary, the students could run around the classroom and touch the objects as the teacher will call out the names of the objects.

          Musical learners could train their listening skills by listening to the lyrics of a song.The learners could also read the lyrics as they listen to the song.Students could also be motivated to write down their own lyrics. As they listen to the lyrics, the students could be asked to count the number of times a particular phrase is repeated in the song and also to listen to new words that they  come across in the lyrics. Writing their own lyrics would expand the imagination of the students from their classroom and take it outside the classroom.

          Some of the activities which could be implemented in the classroom for interpersonal learners  are reading together in a group of ten students and discussing the themes of the story. As the students take turns in reading the story, the others will listen as the story is being read. The students could be asked to come up with the different themes that could be found in the story. They could be asked to write down the different themes and they could discuss each theme with the whole class. The students could also do a role-play by taking the identity of the characters in the story.

         With regard to the activities which are related with the intrapersonal or the self-smart learners are activities which require the students to read a story or an article on their own. These learners could learn on their own with little help from the teacher. The role of the teacher is significantly reduced from the traditional role of the teacher to the new role of a supervisor or an advisor. Students could write down what they think about the story or they could be asked to write down on different topics which fall under their academic purview or on any current topic.These students could also be asked to give their views and opinions and discuss it with the whole class.

          While teaching the naturalists or the nature smart learners,the teacher could take the students outside the class  to the school garden. The teacher could ask the students to observe the different kinds of flowers that they see in the garden.When they return to their classroom, the teacher could read out or do a model reading  of a poem about a flower. The students are then required to read aloud the same poem by  following the correct pronunciation, stress and intonation in the way it  has been modeled by the teacher.The students could be asked to draw a picture of their own garden with the different flowers or vegetables in it. After this is done, the students are required to exchange their drawings with the other students so that each student will get an opportunity to describe their friends' garden. New vocabulary to match their friend's  garden will also be acquired by the students.This will help create a pictorial effect on the imagination of the students.

            Thus we could say that different activities need to be implemented by the teacher in the class in order to have an effective teaching-learning process.Different activities are needed to meet the needs and abilities of the different individuals in the classroom. If the activities are well planned  by the teacher they will no doubt motivate his/her students to take part in the different activities. In this way the students will be able to learn freely as their needs and interests are meted out to them by the activities and learning will prove to be an experience which is full of fun and strategic implementations.

Types of learners and their abilities

         We all know that there are different kinds of learners. Each learner learns differently from another. This is because each learner's ability to learn is different from another. The Multiple Intelligences Theory tells us that there are eight types of learners. In this post I will try to talk about each type of learner and their abilities to learn.
       The first type of learners are the verbal-linguistic learners. These types of learners learn best through reading, hearing and seeing words, speaking, writing, discussing and debating. The abilities of these learners lie in reading, writing, telling stories, memorizing dates and thinking in words. Theses learners like to read, write, talk, memorize and work with puzzles.
         The second type of learners are the logical-mathematical learners. These types of learners learn best through working wirh patterns and relationships, classifying, categorizing and working with the abstract. Their learning abilities lie in mathematics,reasoning, logic, problem-solving and patterns. These students like to solve problems, question, work with numbers and experimentation.
        The third type of learners are the spatial-visual learners. These learners learn best through working with pictures, colours, visualizing and drawing.Their abilities lie in reading maps, charts, drawing mazes, puzzles, imaging things and visualising. These learners like to design, draw, build, create, daydream and to look at pictures.
        The fourthe type of learners are the bodily-kinesthetic learners. These learners learn best through toching, moving and they can possess knowledge through bodily sensations. In other words, such learners learn best through their senses. Their ability to do things is seen through athletics, dancing, acting, crafting and using tools. These students like to move around and use body language a lot.
          The fifth type of learners are the learners who learn through music or musical learners. These learners learn best through rhythm, melody, singing and by listening to susic. Theses learnres abilities lie in singing, picking up sound and rhythm. They like to sing, hum, play musical instruments and listening to music.
           The sixth type of learners are the interpersonal learners. These lerners learn best through inter-communication with each other. Skills like sharing, comparing, relating, interviewing and cooperating are acquired by these types of learners. The students' abilities lie in understanding people, leading. organizing, communicating and resolving conflicts. These learners like to  have friends, talk to people and join groups.In other words, theses learners like to socialize.
           The next type of learners are the intrapersonal learners or learners who learn by communicating with thenselves within themselves. These learners learn best  by working alone, doing self-spaced prajects, having space and by reflecting.Their ability to do things lie in understanding the self, recognizing ones own strenghts and weaknesses and by setting personal goals.These learners like to work alone, reflect and to pursue individual interests.
           The last type of learners are the naturalist learners or learners who learn best through their contact with nature.They learn by working in nature, exploring things, learning about plants, animals and natural events. Their ability to learn lie in their understanding of nature and in identifying flora and fauna. They are those learners who love to be involved with nature.
         Thus we can ssee that there are different learners with different abilities to learn. Their outlook towards learning depends alot on their interests and their individual capacity to learn. Therefore, it is of vital importance for the teacher to be able to identify each type of learner in his/her classroom. as the number of students in the class multiply so will the interests and ability of the students. Effective teaching and learning will take place only when the teacher is successful in identifying the students' interests and the type of learners that they are.

Reflect on Assessment

REFLECT ON ASSESSMENT: 

HOW CAN YOU IMPROVE ASSESSMENT IN YOUR CLASSROOM? 

       Assessment is the measurement of learning. The purposes of carrying out assessments in the classroom are many. The most general purpose of assessment is to measure how much a student has learned  in the classroom. Classroom assessment is a complex undertaking that means something different to different audiences and in different situations. Assessment has many purposes that sometimes support one another and sometimes compete or conflict with one another.(Earl,1948).

     There are three approaches to assessment. They are Assessment of learning, Assessment for learning and Assessment as learning. Assessment of learning is done at the end of  a unit, a course, a grade or a key stage in which the teacher is the key assessor and the other students are the main or important points of reference. This approach to assessment will place a particular student where s/he stands in the class. Such assessments take the form of tests or examinations where questions are set from the material they have studied. Teachers maintain a record book in which the grades of the students are maintained. Based on their performance, students are awarded ranks and certificates. Assessment of learning emphasises on formative  assessment and not on summative assessment. In assessment of learning teachers use a number of innovative ideas in the collection of materials that could be useful for the students, The students will answer questions in the middle of the class. This will help the teacher understand that the students have understood the topic at hand and will move on to another topic. The teacher could also start the class by posing a few questions to the students based on previous knowledge of the students. Here the teacher assesses the students' work and keep a record of their performance to see who are the students who  need more help, what are their weak points and what are those strong points. Assessment as learning lays more emphasis on the students as they are the links. They are active, engaged and play a critical role in almost every aspect of the learning process. They monitor their own learning and gives feedback to one another in order to improve on what they feel they need to make an improvement in.

                    Since there are three approaches to assessment it would be difficult to ascertain which of the    approaches will work best. Therefore it is necessary for the teachers to accommodate all the three approaches so that every aspect of the learning process is being assessed. Since the students are the learners it is important that any type of assessment must reflect that learning is taking place. Any effort made by the teachers in assessment should be able to bring about the students' progress and development in learning. Hence teachers should make a judicious use of all the three approaches to assessment. It really does not depend on what one uses to assess but on how one wants to assess.

            As teachers we should make use of any material which we think will promote learning in the classroom. Any activity could be used in the classroom. Teachers should create an environment in which the students could learn and have fun in the classroom. They should be motivated to lean. Just as motivation is important in learning, teachers should assess the students in such a way that it will help the students to learn and be motivated by it. Assessment which demotivates the students should be avoided so that the number of school dropouts could be reduced. It  is a fact here in Shillong that most of the students drop out of school because they are unable to cope with the lessons that they found difficult to understand. At the end of the year the number of school dropouts is increasing thereby reducing the literacy rate. The effort of trying to give every child an opportunity to learn and receive education  and the practice of "education for all "will be put to waste if assessing them will demotivate and not  motivate them to learn.

                      Moreover, if one wants to reduce the number of dropouts, The teacher should assess the students on a daily basis and not at the end of a course or a unit. This kind of assessment will no doubt be taxing  for  the teacher but this will prove to be the only way to know whether or not the weak students have understood the lesson. In this way the teacher will be able to address them and clear their doubts. As of now there is a very few number of schools which have started adopting CCE or Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation. Assessing the students on a daily basis will motivate the students to participate actively in classroom activities which  promotes learning.

                     Assessment should be able to bring about some visible changes in the learner. This kind of change can be reflected through education. When a child is educated, s/he will exhibit a change in behaviour. Motivation will help the child to be active and to be a part of all the learning activities. Therefore assessment should be relevant, that is, assessment should meet the needs and requirement of a particular students. Sometimes, the teacher could go outside the syllabus in order to meet those needs which have not been specified in the syllabus. With the use of an analytic syllabus the teacher will no doubt be able to help and meet the particular needs of a  particular student.

                  Therefore it is time we do away  with the traditional type of assessment and try to incorporate new types of assessments in the classroom. This requires for a change to take place . Unless teachers are opened to changes the need to overhaul the old system of assessment in our classroom will never take place. Teachers should not only be receptive to what they do , they should also believe in what they do so that other teachers can learn from them.

                  To conclude, I would like to say that learning is an essential part of life and assessment is an essential part of learning. Therefore  we could only conclude that assessment is an essential part of life . Teachers should understand that assessing students does not only reflect how educated they are but it also reflects how well a student could do in life because of the education s/he has received.