Kodaikanal, Southern India: What I Love About School
What do I love about school?
I love it, because I am going to change it. I love it, because I can change it. And that's how I got here - from there.
I literally got three potential jobs as of the moment. All, of similar nature, coordinating and teaching. All in three different locations, in two countries. This situation doesn't come everday.In fact, this is my first and hope not to be my last.
My job is to oversee the implementation of the International Baccalaureate Curriculum of the Middle Years Program (11-16 y.o.) on Holistic Learning, International Mindedness and Effective Communication. This is through the lenses of Community and Service, Health and Social Education, Human Ingenuity, Environments and Approaches To learning. All these are integrated into all eight subject areas Language A, Language B, Sciences, Mathematics, Humanities, Arts, Technology and Physical Education.
The most exciting part for me here is the fundamental concept of Holistic/ Interdisciplinary education and the lense of Approaches To Learning. That is, making education about connections and in context/relevant at the same time exciting, fun and strengthens learning skills that can be transferred. Now, I find that exciting! And I am very fortunate to be paid in doing what I love to do while I used to pay school in making me do what I hated to do. Now, I'm about to work for a school where kids don't pay to have fun at school!
http://www.ibo.org/myp/index.cfm
Now here is the story...
I am new to pedagogical leadership of a bigger scale. I owned and ran my own school but with only 4-6 staff members, it was just like running a small family.That already being challenging enough. However, perhaps, it was because I was multi-tasking quite a number of things, everything in fact: renting a building, paying bills (assisted by my dad's secretary), hiring and training teachers, advertising and recruitment, managing programs and day to day classes ( assisted by my teachers) and on top of that - teaching as well. The day doesn't end with these, I would teach Psychology in college during evenings.
To make the story short, then I moved to not only teaching pre-school and college at the same, but to teach Middle School in an international school in India. I taught subjects I last read about in grade school/high school or never studied in college (i.e. Ancient Civilizations of the World, Physics, Chemistry and World Literature). Since, I always do have expectations to survive wherever I am, I read until 4 am at times and would wake up to teach what I've read the night before first thing in the morning. Thankfully, I had about 6 years of teaching experience behind me that I no longer had to struggle much with the pedagogical delivery of those subject content.
Anyway, what was I talking about in this title? ON THAT DAY..
Shall I choose, a job..on that day.. I was thinking, how do I start? I would like to start with the following:
a) How I got to where I am today.
- Loved my pre-school no homework, project based school. As a kinesthetic learner into sports, gymnastics and ballet, it appealed to me. I don't remember the rest of the activities that involved either reading or writing.
But then we had to move to another city because of my dad's new job as a lawyer just beginning to find his own niche.
- Hated my new school that was learning from textbooks, textbooks and textbooks. On top of that, I struggled entering into a place with pre-existing cliques. I would lock myself in the bathroom so that the school trike would get on without me and then its too late to go to school when I'm already late. The darkness in that small dark bathroom alone was so much better than a meaningless bunch of black and white printed letters and words on a gray book.
It's been 34 years now, and Philippine education is still textbook driven.
- High School was hardly school. I was out most of the time competing in dance, speaking and declamation or attending girl Scouting, that I legitimately excused myself from writing and reading. Luckily, my dad put me in a vocational school, where we had 3 hours everyday of project work. I loved it and I had friends.
- College was academically a hell for me. I entered an ivy league state university, for heaven's sake after years of no training in academics. A struggling student in grade school and hardly ever attended classes in high school - now the academic Ivy league awaits. It was all about reading. No, it was, reading, reading and reading. It did not end there, it was writing, writing and writing. That was something the rest of my classmates were trained for in public and private school boot camps for years.
I had one last flicker of hope left for college, something that I was trained for, for years and years - and that was talking, talking and talking, as well as leadership. I took advantage of what I was good at, so, I talked my way out of college and became president of the Psychology club for awhile- until the college thesis came waiting at the end of the line. Kaboom! I had to learn how to write or never get out of college. I did not graduate when all my classmates graduated, nor the year after that. The next chapter of how I got myself to graduate is another blog.
I feel that my life journey was all about my journey through school. I spent all my life in school. That's practically from when I was three to until I was twenty three! That's a hefty 20 years of feeling like a failure in the only place I went to from the time I wake up to the time I sleep! I hit rock bottom depression for months. I fought my way out of it and wanted to find answers. I knew that the only way to conquer an enemy is to face it.
I went back to school.
Armed with the wisdom brought by failure, boredom and meaninglessness..I saw the light in the process. I did not care about graduating or getting good grades, I just cared to be really there, just to be 100% there.
I graduated SUMMA CUM LAUDE and never felt pride nor satisfaction on that day that a huge ribbon was hung on my toga. I ALREADY had my satisfaction from the first day I marched into the classrooms of graduate school. That's because I was there, it was me who was there and I gave it my best expression of who I was.
I have redeemed myself from my self. I wanted to provide others redemption from their school experiences in the past as well, as I taught college in the evening and prevented the need to redeem themselves in school by teaching pre-school.
My goal was to make learning a place where school is the first thing you want to go to in the day and the last thing you want to leave out of, because it was meaningful, fun and you felt acknowledged, understood, listened to, developed and above all, loved.
And there ways around these things, and the ways have been invented. I was so delighted, when the IB program shared my visions as a child. I am proud that my daughter is into the program as well.
As a coordinator, I hope to inspire the teachers be energized in doing what they love the most. I wish to share ways in making classes fun and exciting. I will support them in making their content meaningful. And hopefully, also make them feel like teaching is fun, exciting, meaningful as well as school being the place where they are heard, understood, appreciated and loved.
So help me God.
I love it, because I am going to change it. I love it, because I can change it. And that's how I got here - from there.
I literally got three potential jobs as of the moment. All, of similar nature, coordinating and teaching. All in three different locations, in two countries. This situation doesn't come everday.In fact, this is my first and hope not to be my last.
My job is to oversee the implementation of the International Baccalaureate Curriculum of the Middle Years Program (11-16 y.o.) on Holistic Learning, International Mindedness and Effective Communication. This is through the lenses of Community and Service, Health and Social Education, Human Ingenuity, Environments and Approaches To learning. All these are integrated into all eight subject areas Language A, Language B, Sciences, Mathematics, Humanities, Arts, Technology and Physical Education.
The most exciting part for me here is the fundamental concept of Holistic/ Interdisciplinary education and the lense of Approaches To Learning. That is, making education about connections and in context/relevant at the same time exciting, fun and strengthens learning skills that can be transferred. Now, I find that exciting! And I am very fortunate to be paid in doing what I love to do while I used to pay school in making me do what I hated to do. Now, I'm about to work for a school where kids don't pay to have fun at school!
http://www.ibo.org/myp/index.cfm
Now here is the story...
I am new to pedagogical leadership of a bigger scale. I owned and ran my own school but with only 4-6 staff members, it was just like running a small family.That already being challenging enough. However, perhaps, it was because I was multi-tasking quite a number of things, everything in fact: renting a building, paying bills (assisted by my dad's secretary), hiring and training teachers, advertising and recruitment, managing programs and day to day classes ( assisted by my teachers) and on top of that - teaching as well. The day doesn't end with these, I would teach Psychology in college during evenings.
To make the story short, then I moved to not only teaching pre-school and college at the same, but to teach Middle School in an international school in India. I taught subjects I last read about in grade school/high school or never studied in college (i.e. Ancient Civilizations of the World, Physics, Chemistry and World Literature). Since, I always do have expectations to survive wherever I am, I read until 4 am at times and would wake up to teach what I've read the night before first thing in the morning. Thankfully, I had about 6 years of teaching experience behind me that I no longer had to struggle much with the pedagogical delivery of those subject content.
Anyway, what was I talking about in this title? ON THAT DAY..
Shall I choose, a job..on that day.. I was thinking, how do I start? I would like to start with the following:
a) How I got to where I am today.
- Loved my pre-school no homework, project based school. As a kinesthetic learner into sports, gymnastics and ballet, it appealed to me. I don't remember the rest of the activities that involved either reading or writing.
But then we had to move to another city because of my dad's new job as a lawyer just beginning to find his own niche.
- Hated my new school that was learning from textbooks, textbooks and textbooks. On top of that, I struggled entering into a place with pre-existing cliques. I would lock myself in the bathroom so that the school trike would get on without me and then its too late to go to school when I'm already late. The darkness in that small dark bathroom alone was so much better than a meaningless bunch of black and white printed letters and words on a gray book.
It's been 34 years now, and Philippine education is still textbook driven.
- High School was hardly school. I was out most of the time competing in dance, speaking and declamation or attending girl Scouting, that I legitimately excused myself from writing and reading. Luckily, my dad put me in a vocational school, where we had 3 hours everyday of project work. I loved it and I had friends.
- College was academically a hell for me. I entered an ivy league state university, for heaven's sake after years of no training in academics. A struggling student in grade school and hardly ever attended classes in high school - now the academic Ivy league awaits. It was all about reading. No, it was, reading, reading and reading. It did not end there, it was writing, writing and writing. That was something the rest of my classmates were trained for in public and private school boot camps for years.
I had one last flicker of hope left for college, something that I was trained for, for years and years - and that was talking, talking and talking, as well as leadership. I took advantage of what I was good at, so, I talked my way out of college and became president of the Psychology club for awhile- until the college thesis came waiting at the end of the line. Kaboom! I had to learn how to write or never get out of college. I did not graduate when all my classmates graduated, nor the year after that. The next chapter of how I got myself to graduate is another blog.
I feel that my life journey was all about my journey through school. I spent all my life in school. That's practically from when I was three to until I was twenty three! That's a hefty 20 years of feeling like a failure in the only place I went to from the time I wake up to the time I sleep! I hit rock bottom depression for months. I fought my way out of it and wanted to find answers. I knew that the only way to conquer an enemy is to face it.
I went back to school.
Armed with the wisdom brought by failure, boredom and meaninglessness..I saw the light in the process. I did not care about graduating or getting good grades, I just cared to be really there, just to be 100% there.
I graduated SUMMA CUM LAUDE and never felt pride nor satisfaction on that day that a huge ribbon was hung on my toga. I ALREADY had my satisfaction from the first day I marched into the classrooms of graduate school. That's because I was there, it was me who was there and I gave it my best expression of who I was.
I have redeemed myself from my self. I wanted to provide others redemption from their school experiences in the past as well, as I taught college in the evening and prevented the need to redeem themselves in school by teaching pre-school.
My goal was to make learning a place where school is the first thing you want to go to in the day and the last thing you want to leave out of, because it was meaningful, fun and you felt acknowledged, understood, listened to, developed and above all, loved.
And there ways around these things, and the ways have been invented. I was so delighted, when the IB program shared my visions as a child. I am proud that my daughter is into the program as well.
As a coordinator, I hope to inspire the teachers be energized in doing what they love the most. I wish to share ways in making classes fun and exciting. I will support them in making their content meaningful. And hopefully, also make them feel like teaching is fun, exciting, meaningful as well as school being the place where they are heard, understood, appreciated and loved.
So help me God.
