There is nothing that fits into the category of right and wrong. This plurality gets confusing and often contradictory. My recent confusion stems from certain observations made over the past few weeks. Being a parent, I suffer from the syndrome of thinking too much about my child’s future and as usual, the main topic is education.
The recent turmoil has been on the question of sincere feedback. If the intention is to make a tree but the end result looks like an amoeba, then, someone needs to say that it is not a tree (remember the story of the King who had his portrait drawn). Are we being cruel and insensitive by telling the truth? Are we crushing the child’s creativity? Of course, the question can be posed as to why force the child to draw a tree in the first place (see how we come back to that first point of every statement having two sides to it), however, that is for another day.
One of the most important things about feedback is how it is given. Constructive feedback tells us what was good or bad about it and why it was so. Our feedback needs to focus on this. Furthermore, in these times of virtual classrooms, when body language and facial expressions might not come to the aid of the feedback provided, it becomes important to convey what is actually meant.
Like this, there are numerous aspects of teaching that one needs to be aware of. The need to update oneself constantly and to engage with the latest technology is crucial. This is something that is focused upon in the integrated BEd programmes here at CVV. Be a future-ready teacher, join CVV today.
