I have been sharing this with my current online facilitator. The recent Sabbath School congress introduced a new method of lesson review - more interactive, the teacher as co-learner with the students rather than a lecturer and sage; reading Bible texts; meditating on them, then sharing in two's (vertical and horizontal relationships) and finally application of the text in a personal way (transformation) - all in an effort to increase participation and hopefully attendance in the Sabbath School. Sounds good to me!!! Sounds like a constructivist approach to learning in church!!!
So as the head superintendent I have to introduce this 'new' method in the Sabbath School. I'm game. So last week instead of breaking up into smaller units I conducted the lesson review to the entire adult SS (about 200 persons) to show how it could be done. I asked 2 elders to assist me to answer some of the expected Bible questions. Went surprisingly well. Thank God. Then later the same day I held a training seminar for the teachers so they can take over in their own classes. Not so good!!! "It can't work"; "It's changing up everything" "Is this a proven method" etc. etc. As one of the elders said - They're acting like you're trying to introduce a method from hell!!
Some teachers are willing to try, but not all. Tomorrow we'll see what happens. Perhaps after that I will be railroaded out of the church - having the audacity to try to introduce new things!! And I'm not trying to change doctrine!! I'm only trying to implement a method of presenting the doctrine. Lord help me!!
Friday, 23 November 2012
Saturday, 3 November 2012
Recovering
A little better today. A good friend Skyped me to say that they were having a prayer and fasting day; was there anything I wanted them to add to the prayer list for me? Yes!!!! Yes!!!! Yes please!!!!! There's so much I need prayers for. So much in which I long to see God's hands working.
This weekend we're involved in a Sabbath School congress. The aim - to restore the Sabbath School as the heart of the church - since the overwhelming observation is that SS attendance is down compared to the main preaching service. I noted that this was not true of my church, it is the opposite, so much so that the pastor has been launching a number of initiatives from the SS platform. I was once asked whether a well-organized SS was responsible for unity of the church members. My answer was that it contributed to the unity. One of my daughters said that yes it was - since the SS was really the place where deep study of God's word occurred - not during the sermon time when perhaps only 1 or 2 Bible verses would be mentioned. My other daughter thought that if the Superintendent's role was that important, then it should be a paid position, like the pastor!!! Not likely!!! (I received an award though for leadership in the Sabbath School. Muchas gracias).
The 2 days of the congress so far have been interesting and have provided some ideas that are worthy of being implemented (if I'm asked to serve in this dept. next year!!). We'll see!!!!
This weekend we're involved in a Sabbath School congress. The aim - to restore the Sabbath School as the heart of the church - since the overwhelming observation is that SS attendance is down compared to the main preaching service. I noted that this was not true of my church, it is the opposite, so much so that the pastor has been launching a number of initiatives from the SS platform. I was once asked whether a well-organized SS was responsible for unity of the church members. My answer was that it contributed to the unity. One of my daughters said that yes it was - since the SS was really the place where deep study of God's word occurred - not during the sermon time when perhaps only 1 or 2 Bible verses would be mentioned. My other daughter thought that if the Superintendent's role was that important, then it should be a paid position, like the pastor!!! Not likely!!! (I received an award though for leadership in the Sabbath School. Muchas gracias).
The 2 days of the congress so far have been interesting and have provided some ideas that are worthy of being implemented (if I'm asked to serve in this dept. next year!!). We'll see!!!!
Friday, 2 November 2012
Hitting the wall
No new blog. Too discouraged :( Losing all enthusiasm. Activity in class s-o-o-o-o s-s-l-l-o-o-w-w........ feels almost like being punished. Plus a challenging year F2F. Plus personal matters of concern. Almost like carrying a too-heavy cross.
Monday, 22 October 2012
Mysterious ways
My job description says I'm a teacher of Biology/Marine Science, but I much prefer teaching Biology. Last year my colleague and I worked out a cooperative plan - she prefers to teach Marine Science, and feels less comfortable teaching Biology. So she agreed to teach all the Marine Science in all 3 grade levels (10-12), and I would reciprocate by teaching the Biology curriculum to those same students. Perfect!! Now she's moved on to greener fields!! So I'm the only Marine Science teacher and must also teach Biology to one of the Marine Science classes + Biology to another non-Marine Science class.
Sucks!!!! Not really!!! Since the Marine Science is a Magnet Program, I'm based in the Marine Science lab all the time - even for the 2 Biology classes!!! Most teachers have to 'float' at some time!! Not only that but this magnet program can have a maximum of only 24 students - so my 3 classes have 18, 19, and 24 students respectively, and 32 for the two Biology classes. Compare this with most of the other Science classes which have 36-40 students!!! And this is for every Science class!!! This school has too many students!!! And they're so big!!! Bigger than the teachers!!! My colleagues are really stressed!!!
Today I walked upstairs to find an item in the Biology lab I had last year. There was a group of noisy unruly students outside and a larger number of similar students inside!! Apparently the teacher was absent and a student prefect had been sent to supervise them!!! The poor girl could not manage!!! It felt like there were about 50 students (14 year olds) in the group!!! No exaggeration!!! She finally went to complain to the administrators who advised her to bring the entire group down to them. The only thing I could do was to help her to herd them there, before returning to my own small class downstairs!!!!
The Lord does work in mysterious ways!!! So I'm isolated downstairs in the Marine Science lab. So I have to find the resources by myself to instruct these students - but there is so much on the Internet and so many innovative ways to present it!! The students are enjoying the subject!!! They even prefer to remain in the lab with me during lunch break, rather than going outside with the rest of the noisy student body!!! Thanks HFU!!! So we have to go out for field activities - we enjoy this!! Since the classes are small, and behavioral concerns are virtually non-existent, I can do HFU work while they are working quietly on their own assignments, or when I have a non-teaching period, but still based in the lab!!!! Thank you Lord!!! How did you know just what I would need!!! Doing a rigorous online program while trying to teach 6 large classes for 3 periods/week each would have been a killer!!! And my first impulse was to say no when I was asked to take the Marine Science classes this academic year!!!!!
Sucks!!!! Not really!!! Since the Marine Science is a Magnet Program, I'm based in the Marine Science lab all the time - even for the 2 Biology classes!!! Most teachers have to 'float' at some time!! Not only that but this magnet program can have a maximum of only 24 students - so my 3 classes have 18, 19, and 24 students respectively, and 32 for the two Biology classes. Compare this with most of the other Science classes which have 36-40 students!!! And this is for every Science class!!! This school has too many students!!! And they're so big!!! Bigger than the teachers!!! My colleagues are really stressed!!!
Today I walked upstairs to find an item in the Biology lab I had last year. There was a group of noisy unruly students outside and a larger number of similar students inside!! Apparently the teacher was absent and a student prefect had been sent to supervise them!!! The poor girl could not manage!!! It felt like there were about 50 students (14 year olds) in the group!!! No exaggeration!!! She finally went to complain to the administrators who advised her to bring the entire group down to them. The only thing I could do was to help her to herd them there, before returning to my own small class downstairs!!!!
The Lord does work in mysterious ways!!! So I'm isolated downstairs in the Marine Science lab. So I have to find the resources by myself to instruct these students - but there is so much on the Internet and so many innovative ways to present it!! The students are enjoying the subject!!! They even prefer to remain in the lab with me during lunch break, rather than going outside with the rest of the noisy student body!!! Thanks HFU!!! So we have to go out for field activities - we enjoy this!! Since the classes are small, and behavioral concerns are virtually non-existent, I can do HFU work while they are working quietly on their own assignments, or when I have a non-teaching period, but still based in the lab!!!! Thank you Lord!!! How did you know just what I would need!!! Doing a rigorous online program while trying to teach 6 large classes for 3 periods/week each would have been a killer!!! And my first impulse was to say no when I was asked to take the Marine Science classes this academic year!!!!!
Friday, 12 October 2012
Education for all ...or not?
Okay I accept the mandate that education should be for all students. So I teach in a senior high school with a very large student population (approximately 1500 students in grades 10-12), and this year has been particularly challenging so far. The classes are very large since we are experiencing a shortage of teachers, and we are already really stressed. But nevertheless education is for all!! Remember this!!
So this year I notice we have a student in a wheelchair. Okay. So the entrance to the school does have a ramp - good. But the school is constructed on 2 levels, with no elevators - only stairs! And of the classrooms and restrooms downstairs, only a few have ramps! So where do administrators base this child? You guessed it - in a classroom without a ramp!! And some subject areas are situated on the upper level - e.g. Science, Math, Business Studies, Art. So how is this child supposed to do these subjects? And the child needs to have bars in the bathroom to be able to swing herself into/out of her chair. There are no bars!
Additionally the child apparently cannot move her wheelchair on her own - she does not have the hand strength to do so. So she has to rely on the good graces of other students to push her around and to lever her into and out of these classrooms without ramps!!!! Seems to me that this child needs to have a dedicated helper to be with her as she pursues her education????? What if the other students don't care enough to push her from class to class or to and from the bathroom????? But the mother only drives up to the entrance of the school, pushes her into the foyer and drives off!!!!! I've seen her do it!!!! What does she expect from the school?????? What kind of education can we really offer this student????
So this year I notice we have a student in a wheelchair. Okay. So the entrance to the school does have a ramp - good. But the school is constructed on 2 levels, with no elevators - only stairs! And of the classrooms and restrooms downstairs, only a few have ramps! So where do administrators base this child? You guessed it - in a classroom without a ramp!! And some subject areas are situated on the upper level - e.g. Science, Math, Business Studies, Art. So how is this child supposed to do these subjects? And the child needs to have bars in the bathroom to be able to swing herself into/out of her chair. There are no bars!
Additionally the child apparently cannot move her wheelchair on her own - she does not have the hand strength to do so. So she has to rely on the good graces of other students to push her around and to lever her into and out of these classrooms without ramps!!!! Seems to me that this child needs to have a dedicated helper to be with her as she pursues her education????? What if the other students don't care enough to push her from class to class or to and from the bathroom????? But the mother only drives up to the entrance of the school, pushes her into the foyer and drives off!!!!! I've seen her do it!!!! What does she expect from the school?????? What kind of education can we really offer this student????
Thursday, 27 September 2012
My Online Classes
I'm noticing something here. The breaks between my online courses are really necessary - I get a chance to relax my mind, get some sleep, read a book and eat a decent meal, rather than just eating the computer. My daughter says "Mom, there are no nutrients in that"!!! Hmmmm. But then I get s-o-o-o b-o-r-e-d!! What does that suggest??? What am I going to do in a year when these classes are done???
Monday, 24 September 2012
Just writing
Another set of courses over and done with. Great! A little break to eat something other than the computer and to have a few more hours sleep before the next round begins! The courses were great though, especially the one on Multimedia in Instructional Design. The new software to be learnt was a bit daunting at first, but turned out to be real fun!! Learnt how to create Flash movies and online greeting cards, how to spotlight images, incorporate videos and sound, hyperlink videos and other multimedia into creating presentations with interactivity, and more! The only problem is being able to use this new knowledge in my FTF Marine Science/Biology laboratory, since the Internet is about 90% unavailable! Very frustrating. Hopefully the problem will be fixed soon.
The best feature of this course though was creating a website from scratch - for the very first time! Despite the initial hesitancy I believe I created a n-i-c-e website of an unforgettable experience in my life - at least the professor thinks it's nice!!! (A tiny confession - whenever I feel a little depressed I visit this website to remind myself I'm blessed! I'm in the master's hand). Feedback from anyone reading my blog is welcomed!! See the website at: http://www.cynthiaj.weebly.com/ Make sure to have your audio on!
An interesting thing in church. An older lady in church - in her 80's, (one of about 4 older persons I have "adopted") gave me an invitation to the upcoming birthday bash of another lady in church. So I'm like "how old will she be?" And she replies "99"!!!! And this is a lady who walks around on her own - no walker, stick or anything! And she knows everyone by name! Unbelievable. I promised to be there!!!
The best feature of this course though was creating a website from scratch - for the very first time! Despite the initial hesitancy I believe I created a n-i-c-e website of an unforgettable experience in my life - at least the professor thinks it's nice!!! (A tiny confession - whenever I feel a little depressed I visit this website to remind myself I'm blessed! I'm in the master's hand). Feedback from anyone reading my blog is welcomed!! See the website at: http://www.cynthiaj.weebly.com/ Make sure to have your audio on!
An interesting thing in church. An older lady in church - in her 80's, (one of about 4 older persons I have "adopted") gave me an invitation to the upcoming birthday bash of another lady in church. So I'm like "how old will she be?" And she replies "99"!!!! And this is a lady who walks around on her own - no walker, stick or anything! And she knows everyone by name! Unbelievable. I promised to be there!!!
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