tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2756083262160238778.post3773995242914988229..comments2020-01-14T02:59:29.187-05:00Comments on Oh, the cheek!: Yes, ok, I do like teachingAnne Losqhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11680075157579280872noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2756083262160238778.post-20413676711416911342009-12-21T16:57:01.504-05:002009-12-21T16:57:01.504-05:00The Touchstone experience (communication is an act...The Touchstone experience (communication is an act of working together to both speak and listen in positive, respectful ways) SHOULD be every child's school experience (and every child's home experience) and IS the experience of those children who have the great good luck of getting a truly professional teacher. In the school setting, this is called "creating a classroom community;" and good teachers do this before they ever begin to teach the curriculum, knowing that, without a classroom community, the hurdles of learning the curriculum become almost insurmountable. The Touchstone outread teaching style that you describe permeates the way a good teacher presents the curriculum, regardless of stresses and strains of what is imposed from above. A good teacher is always a bit subversive, of necessity, because every curriculum, no matter how good, has to be custom-tailored, day-in-day-out, to what students already know and what they are ready to tackle next. Unfortunately, there are too few truly good teachers. Unfortunately, there are too many children who are not listened to, who do not have an experience of conversation (even within their own families let alone in the classroom of a less than great teacher), and who, therefore, first have to learn how to be students. Outreach programs like those at Touchstone are wonderful because they model what is possible when children (yes middle schoolers and high schoolers are still children) trust themselves into the hands of talented professionals who know, understand, and practice the ART of teaching.<br />And a word about parents: a parent's first job is also that of a teacher; and very few people really understand this primary role of parenting. Teachers alone can rarely overcome the privations imposed on children by overworked, unresponsive parents.Christinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2756083262160238778.post-53849619085705046572009-11-23T22:54:02.359-05:002009-11-23T22:54:02.359-05:00Thanks, Cyril! Je pensais aussi à Marie, il faudra...Thanks, Cyril! Je pensais aussi à Marie, il faudrait que je lui demande. Hope you're doing well!Anne Losqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11680075157579280872noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2756083262160238778.post-16303877741984305092009-11-23T14:45:29.372-05:002009-11-23T14:45:29.372-05:00I think that Marie could answer you about this. Sh...I think that Marie could answer you about this. She works with children in hospitals I think, and in other kind of environments. I'm sure she would be pleased to tell you more about this.Cyrilnoreply@blogger.com