For the purpose of this criterion I will reflect on the following: Teaching theory The student as a learner Understanding of learning Assessment methods
We learn not by formal instruction, but rather by example. I come from a family where education was not an option to me, it was a requisite. My dad has engraved this philosophy in me “Having the ability to learn will carve a successful pathway for you” and therefore from a tender age education and the ability to learn has always resonated with me. My name is Tasleem Hassim. I started my educational career in 2005 at the North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus. I enrolled for the degree, Social work and Psychology. My interest in teaching began during my honours year of psychology where I was given the opportunity to present facilitation to first and second year students. This opportunity opened a new direction for me. This is where I could utilize creativity in the classroom to enable students to learn effectively. After having completed my honours degree, I enrolled for a master’s degree in social work. During this time I lectured part time for a lecturer who had taken up other responsibilities. This was the first time where I could display creative teaching methods in a formal classroom with a big group of students. My interest in students stemmed from when I was a student myself. I was always interested in the dynamics of student life. One of the reasons that I decided to pursue a career in academia is because I wanted to help form future graduates and qualified social workers and at the same time, I wanted to take my qualifications to the next level. Passion, sharing and learning; these are the three words that I encourage in my classroom. I believe that a person chooses a career path based on their passion. Social work is a profession based on commitment and the interest of working with diverse populations. Social work is about sharing ideas and feelings to colleagues by means of supervision. In social work, one is a lifelong learner, attending courses and conferences to keep abreast of new developments within the profession is a needed to enhance quality of services. I believe that the classroom should be a world where learning and interaction takes place. "If a student can't learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way he learns". The current generation of students were born into a digital world and it seems that they learn better by means of technological platforms. Therefore, I make use of technology for learning in the classroom. Integrating technology and creating means of interactions helps students stay engaged and simultaneously promotes learning and learning is a process of active engagement. I view the student as an umbrella, an umbrella has many sections to it and it is made of different materials such as rubber, fabric, wood, steel and aluminum, all this together this makes the umbrella useful to use. When a student enters my classroom for the first time, I view them as a closed umbrella and upon learning, sharing, interaction and integration, the umbrella slowly opens, while it opens the student participates more in the classroom and they gain self-confidence. I also believe that a student comes with their own of experiences and knowledge that contributes to each section of the umbrella and all these sections makes up the student. If one of the sections of the umbrella is impaired, the whole umbrella is impaired and this happens with the student as well. If I notice students who are at-risk I would encourage them to seek assistance either from academic support or the health centre, depending on their needs. As the nature of students evolve, so must the teaching methods. In terms of my teaching philosophy I make use of Vygotsky’s Social Development Theory which states that social interaction plays a fundamental role in the process of cognitive development (Gregory 2016). By Using this theory I make use of group activities and social media to encouraging interaction between students. In addition I also integrate cooperative learning whereby students learn from each other (Cohen 1994). I believe that in the classroom it’s not so much about the teaching aspect, it’s about the learning aspect and that this learning should be student centered by encouraging students to engage and using their potential in different ways. We are currently living in a challenging university environment; where one can lose their focus and concentration with a tap on their smart phones. It is important to create an environment that is interactive, collaborative and accommodating for the student to engage in; and this would also encourage problem solving and critical thinking skills. Social work is a profession whereby social workers choose to make a difference in the lives of others and I am if the opinion that lecturers have a big role in what type of social workers students become. It is necessary to facilitate learning so that students can gain the necessary skills to take control and become effective social workers in the future. I believe that the knowledge gained by the interaction and collaboration in the classroom will always stay with the individual and therefore I have made use of social interactions and social platforms to engage students in their own learning. I regularly solicit feedback on twitter by use of polls with regards to the module, because evaluation and feedback is of such a sensitive nature, these polls are anonymous and the results of these polls indicate what I need to add, reduce or amend in future. While the classroom is a platform for learning for the students, it provides a platform for myself to create new ways of engagement and new forms of teaching. Teaching is a learning process and one needs to be a lifelong learner to make positive changes in the classroom.
Gregory, H., 2016. Learning theories in plain English. , 1. Available at: http://www.learning-theories.com. Cohen, E.G. (1994) Restructuring the classroom: Conditions for productive small groups, Review of Educational Research 64: 1-35.