Diversity is the one true thing we all have in common. Celebrate it every day. ~ Anonymous.

•Why is it important for a teacher to understand the issue of student diversity?

There will not be a blanket effect when teaching carried out. Every student has a different way of learning/attitude towards learning. A teacher has to know that there will be students at the tail ends which require special attention (bell-curve).

•How could student diversity impact upon a teacher’s ability to manage his/her classroom and student learning?

A teacher will have to ensure that most of the students are able to fall within the “net” of what they are trying to teach, and also making sure that additional resources/time are available to help with the tail-ends. A teacher would also have to utilise several methods of classroom management and know that some students can simply be unresponsive no matter what he/she does.

•What is the concept of ‘unconditional teaching’?

Unconditional teaching entails that we look at the child as a “whole”, and that we have to be those who encourages them even in the face of failure/misdemeanour. The child must be able to understand that a teacher’s care/concern is not related to their academics but is a genuine action towards treating students as human beings too.

"I do, therefore I am" - A look at authority bases and issues of misbehaviour.

My own Authority Base(s):

I believe that with my current experience, I am using much more of a Referent Form of authority.

In these present times, it is very difficult to use a Legitimate form of authority, as they will not conform if you pressure them with a position of power.

I prefer to relate to my students personally, and even if that fails, I will respect their wishes to the best that I can, but also explaining how certain things have to be done in a way for their own good.

I use warmth, a very patient listening ear, and lots of personal relations to control the class. They know that I am trying my best to reach out, and that my objectives are planned in consideration for them as well.

I will continue to keep this form of authority as my main form of class control, and only reverting to Legitimate or Expert Authority at times when the class needs an extra form of convincing/or to change wrong behaviours which are not encouraged.


Why do Students Misbehave?:

In my opinion, there are too many reasons that could lead to a student misbehaving, but from a teacher's responsibility kind of view, there are things that we can do in class which can lead to a less likely chance of misbehaviour.
We may not be able to control what happens outside, or at home, but within the class, we are the pillars which we believe the child may rely on.
Thus, no matter how difficult their lives may be, if we can offer some respite for them in class, I believe that misbehaviours will be kept to a minimum/not so disruptive.

Things that we should NOT be doing.

What I Should and Will Be:

Our hopes, our dreams, our aims are one.

If you agreed with the idea of the picture below, raise your hands!

My expectations of being a teacher

- To always have the interests of the students as my topmost priority.

- To garner the best resources available and to present it in a manner which will make students look forward to learning more during my lessons. 

And not like --------------------------------------->

- To behave both in and outside of curriculum time in a respectable manner which does not convey any negative values that my students might possibly learn.

- To have good relations with colleagues and solving issues within ourselves like adults.

- To believe in myself that I will give my best efforts for my students, but also not forgetting that educators also have their own lives, albeit in a much smaller scale than other professions.

and another picture here to illustrate more examples:

The most important thing here which will affect ALL other aspects, being a REAL person to my students.

Educational Psychology: The analysis of students and educators alike.

Lect + Tut 1

Educational Psychology kicked off with a lengthy introduction of various snippets of each other's lives.

Here are mine. Finding out a person's likes can reveal a part of a person's character.

Favourite Color: RED

Here are some other colors for contemplation:

Food:  Pizza

A place to go: Smithsonian Museum

My Teaching Philosophy at a glance:

I believe that every student has the propensity to excel, and that it is my duty as a teacher/educator to support and see it through for each and every one of them.


Can't wait for PBL to start!!! Always heard of it in my contract teaching times but I never really had the chance to look at it in detail.

The ICT-enhanced classroom.

Lect 1

After today’s brief lecture, the take home message about ICT sank in deep, and allowed me to reflect upon my own practices during my contract teaching where I attempted to use some form of ICT.

A Meaningful Use of ICT:

• Keeping students intrigued (focused).
• Affording students the chance/ability to participate (anonymously/on behalf of a group).
• Making lessons enjoyable.
• Practice of their own ICT abilities (Finding pictures, information, navigation of internet tools etc).

Also, my group has been assigned Learning By Doing as a reciprocal teaching activity, hope to have great fun teaching my fellow trainees on this!

Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction ~ John F. Kennedy

1. Why did I come to NIE?

After doing some contract teaching at the secondary level, I realised that I did not have the necessary skills to fully engage my students, and I also lacked the background knowledge to add weight to my explanations. I have to be the role model and know what I am doing, before I can expect my students to listen to me. The students will look to me for help, and if the teacher feels inadequate, what is the student to do? I always admired my mentor for being able to command the class so well, and making them feel happy and excited in every single lesson, while delivering the necessary content required. I believed that by going to NIE, I would be able to fill in these gaps and add on to my current abilities, in order to be able to bring out the best in my students J

2. Do you think the reason will influence your behaviour?

I came here with a specific purpose, to learn how to be a better teacher through both my teaching techniques, as well as to improve my content knowledge.  I feel that I would be very focused and dedicated in my approach towards teacher studies here in NIE, and to give my utmost in all my projects and assignments, big and small. As someone who is teaching English but has no official training in the language, I feel that my determination to learn as much as I can to make up for my lack of knowledge will be my driving force for my stint in NIE and beyond.

I could come across as someone who is cold, calculative and only thinking about work, so while striving for academic excellence, I would also learn to treasure the relationships forged here in NIE, and gain a broader perspective on interpersonal relations which are invaluable when teaching in a class with so many different personalities.

3. What does it mean to be an autonomous thinking teacher?

My mentor once again appears in my recollection. My mentor was a quick thinker on his feet, and even though he was dogged by technical difficulties and a restless class, he was always able to figure out some activity that could give the students an interesting yet concise lesson about a certain concept. He was also sensitive to the demographic of the class, and knew how to shape the supposed lesson into something that would get the class moving and engaged. This is my core interpretation of the idea of an autonomous thinking teacher, in that, a teacher should be able to shape the concepts that have to be imparted in a way that matches the demographic of the class, as every class is different in their likes and dislikes of teaching methods. A teacher like this should also be able to understand their classes and be confident in their way of handling the class. 

Let's strive forward together and GESL ! :D

This is GESL group 21, comprising of 16 PGDE(Sec) trainee teachers.

We are known as OHANA, which means family, and that nobody gets left behind. It is a tall order to follow, but I believe that we will do just fine in our journey together as a GESL group.

Our first "competition", the Runway NIE and the Logo Presentation, yielded challenges which allowed us to bring out our personalities, to understand how each one of us had a different style of working.

Being a part of the Logo/Placard group, it was refreshing in the start to see everyone giving suggestions and actively participating. However, as time passed, it seemed like I was struggling all alone, and ideas upon ideas of mine were shot down and progress was never made. I admit that I was quite despondent at that time, not knowing how I was to complete the placard/logo in time for the judging.

We made our placard on 2 separate days, and the time in between those 2 days were rough. It was difficult to find a compromise between those who had wild ideas and those who were taking a laid-back approach to the placard, straddling ideas back and forth seemed fruitless and an exercise that threatened my own identity as an individual.

We managed to complete our placard, and although it was watered down from the initial complicated idea, and took slightly more effort than what we had imagined, we were satisfied with our creation. It felt good that everyone was able to compromise and create something that was so beautiful.

The costume group was also facing problems, in terms of manpower, resources and ideas. I attempted to help a little but it didn't feel significant to me. With Andrea's leadership and resourcefulness, she managed to get the group to pull through, and made a poster and costume that made everyone in the group proud.

All of this made me think about the time when I was contract teaching, where there are so many individuals with their opinions, that really makes a teacher's opinion waver. Sometimes it is okay to compromise and make the best of the situations, but at times you will have to believe that your decision works best for the class.

And, everything did work out fine in the end.

National Day 2013, our poster did not win anything, but our costume managed to garner a consolation prize of $50, which was no mean feat as being a finalist meant beating at least 20 other GESL groups in terms of costume design and meaning.

Our placard won a position in the Best 3 Placards/Logo designs, and we secured $100 more to add to our GESL fund. I wasn't expecting such a good result but it just shows how rewarding the experience is when there has a been a good amount of collaboration and the smelting of ideas/hard work together.

All the best for our future endeavours! Long live Ohana! :D