Looking Back...

The big questions from this semester are:

1. Where am I?
2. Where do I want to be?
3. How do I get there?

I wish the answers to these questions were as simple as 1) Arapahoe HS, 2)Home in my sweatpants, on the couch, and 3) the trusty Honda. However, in terms of my teaching and classroom, the answers are a little more complex.

Where I am...
I feel that in the last few years, I have re-evaluated my whole teaching philosophy and previous practices. I have moved from lecturing most days, to planning more constructivist activities. The students in my classes are actively engaged in the material instead of copying down the notes I have on a PowerPoint.

Where I want to be...
Although I use a variety of teaching methods and activities, I want each day to be meaningful to ALL of my students. Maybe I'm being unrealistic, but how awesome would that be to have all of your students be excited to come to class and learn about science!

How to get there...
I guess just by re-evaluating my activities, sharing best practices with others, collaborating within and outside of my department, etc. I still have so many questions about meaningfulness, grading, homework and assessments that my head may start spinning soon. But I have to remind myselt that "Rome wasn't built in a day". These are big questions with very complex solutions that may take years to figure out...maybe I'll never find the "answer". However, the main piece of 21C that I always fall back on is that it's not so much about finding the correct answer, but the process used to get there.