Final Learning Glossary

 

Innovation

Innovation is implementing something new to an existing product or process. As time goes by, products and processes need to be updated. Innovation is the advancement of these products and processes. Innovation keeps things “hip”, elevated and relevant in a given time period.

I think a fitting example of innovation are the constant new features of the iPhone. In order for the iPhone to remain relevant and up to date, Apple must be innovative and come up with new features to meet the needs of its customers. As time goes by, advancements must take place. Teaching is no different! Teachers need to be innovative to motivate and inspire their students. Old and traditional methods of teaching like non-stop lecturing and only writing tests for assessment does not work in today’s world of education. We have to stay up to date with the current teaching methods! Most of this reflection/explanation was a part of my working definition. That being said, I completely agree with everything I wrote. I did change some of the definition – I added the word “hip” because I believe that innovation requires individuality and genuinity. Innovation is different for everyone!

 

Creativity 

Creativity is the development of genuine, authentic, and unique ideas that are practical and influential. Creativity can be both reactive and proactive. In addition, creativity can find the root of a problem or solve its entirety. Creativity is often associated with risk taking.

Being creative requires genuinity and originality. Creativity is not a one size fits model – it is different for everyone. That being said, I believe that creativity requires risk taking. If we don’t take risks and challenge an idea/thought, we may never know the outcome. Hence, I think it is imperative for teachers to motivate and inspire students to fail and take risks. In my opinion, students are way too complacent and just do whatever they are told. Personally, I don’t think this is learning. Wow, I honestly believe that my definition and reflection/explanation of creativity was spot on, again. One thing I do want to note – teachers have the ability to instill creativity in their students. It is our job to come up with meaningful assignments that inspire our students to think outside the box. If we continuously give worksheet after worksheet, our students will only understand how to do a task. This is not the end goal of education. 

 

Teaching

Teaching is not a one size fits all model – every learner is different. We need to find a modality of teaching that works best for that specific student. Hence, teaching is the process of helping people acquire knowledge and an abundance of skills through educational processes, interactions, reflections, and experiences. 

In my opinion, old and traditional methods of teaching would not fly in today’s world of education. The processes, experiences, and interactions we provide today are much more complex and student friendly compared to the old modalities. Of course, some of these old modalities of teaching (i.e., non-stop lecturing) might be beneficial for some students. However, this is not the case for the rest of them. A podcast from the Wharton school of the University of Pennsylvania podcast indicated that teaching is only teaching if students want to learn about it. Hence, through using innovative methods of teaching (i.e., implementing technology, group work), it may motivate and inspire our students to engage in the process. It is our job as educators to introduce these modalities to reach the needs of our students.

 

Learning

Learning involves the acquisition of knowledge and skill through experience, discussion reflection, instruction, and study. Learning is different for everyone. It is imperative to identify the ideal environment the learner will strive in. Learning is an on-going process that never stops. Learning requires the learner to be engaged and willing.

Learning requires a positive environment in which a person can learn in. Without inspiration, motivation, and the willingness to learn, learning may not be achieved. In my opinion, the learner must be intrigued and somewhat eager to learn. As teachers, I believe we need to find some personal relatability and tie that into what we are teaching. Hopefully, this will keep them intrigued and will assist in identifying how that learner learns (i.e., kinasethic, visual, auditory). Throughout this PME I now understand that learning is a unique experience. To note, I think it is important to recognize that learning doesn’t only occur in schools. Learning happens everywhere. As educators in schools, we need to teach our students how to learn efficiently. As stated previously in the description, learning is different for everyone. We as teachers need to assist in the discovery of their preferred learning styles. Hence, they can be lifelong learners in any given situation/scenario.