"Simply, you can never get enough"

I have the habit of doing two things since I was little; when I am about to start doing a new thing (a new semester at school, a new job or even going on a trip) I always jump to the moment when this thing will come to an end (in my imagination of course). The second is that when I accomplish an achievement or finish doing anything, such as the examples mentioned above, I always go back to the moment where all started. This makes me realize my success before it really happens. Thus, I have the determination required to thrive and rise to prominence. So, when I look back, I tell myself "See, you can always make it. Just keep on having faith in your powers, enthusiasm, determination and strengths as usual"

Going back to my first blog was actually a funny moment. I was very excited back then that I managed technology to create my blog. Then, there is a sentence that read "I am excited to know about Different models of educators". I actually laughed when I saw this sentence. What is "Models of educators"? I didn’t get the expression right.

Approaching the end, I now know that there are different models of educators' professional development. I have now ample information on teacher education programs, mentoring, assessment, diversity, social justice, reflection and technology in education.

Going through the 1o blogs I wrote over the semester, I noticed that my development showed in my reflection; subconsciously. Every time I started a new blog, I wasn’t thinking that "Now, I will write about my second improvement, or I will now pinpoint my development". No, it just happened smoothly and naturally.

When I was reading articles for my final individual research report (which tackled practicum), I came across many studies that talked about reflection as a self-assessment tool for student teachers. To keep track of their progress during practicum (their practical teaching experience before becoming in-service teachers), student teachers, in many programs, were asked to keep journals of their daily practices. Then, when half of the practicum period is over, they go back to their journals so they can identify the strengths and weaknesses of their teaching practices. Accordingly, they will be able to continue the second half of the practicum duration improving and developing skills to reach a certain level of proficiency. This approach tends to achieve the equation of developing long-life self-learners. So, when student become in-service, full-time teachers, and when they encounter real-life situations and teach a diverse group of students, they will have the ability to develop themselves and don’t rely entirely on their mentors or supervisors (if they had the chance).

 I believe that the blog experience is pretty much a similar experience. I kept writing my entries weekly trying to stimulate my mindset to think critically, creatively and thoughtfully. We live in a busy, fast-paced world where we might forget about things we have done, in the process. I am a keeper. I read my blogs and felt proud of my-self, proud of the amount of information I have acquired and invited into my mind for 4 months. The more knowledge I have, the more doors open in my mind and more empowered woman I become. I feel, yet; more humbled because I realize that the more I swim towards the ocean of knowledge, the more I have to swim harder to reach it. Simply, you can never get enough!

 

The Self Reality Check

As we are approaching the end of the spring semester, we are supposed to submit a final paper by April-end. My colleagues and I chose subjects that are of interest to us to investigate. I chose to talk about Practicum in faculties of education or teacher colleges. I will check to what extent practicum is reflected in real class room practices. It is a very interesting topic. While I was working on my seminars on Egypt and Singapore, I realized the huge gap between the two systems with relation to the application of practicum. And that was when I came up with a title for my paper "The rhetoric-reality gap".

Yet, when I started arranging my thoughts to write down the outlines of my paper, a thought flashed through my mind. I will talk about the rhetoric-reality gap of educational practices but what about OURS as INDIVIDUALS!!!

There are frequent stories of people who did something which is the total opposite of what they said. Sometimes you meet those people who make you startled once they open their mouths to talk. You feel like "Wooow…this is truly inspirational. That is exactly what we need to fix the society". Days, weeks or years later, their actions REFUTE their rhetoric.

As educators, it is crucial to have what I call "Self Reality Check". What you tell your students in class or whatever policy you write down to be applied at schools nationwide, should be what you originally believe in and do. I believe that our actions define to a great extent who we are. Actions speak louder than words. So, be sure that if you ran into your students in a store or at movie theater, they will see what they usually hear from you. This practice shouldn’t only be adopted by educators, it should be universal.

If you tell people that the rich should help the poor then you should be the first one to do it. If you tell your students don’t lie then you should be the first one to be honest. I am not saying that we are angels or that we should be. We are humans and this is our saving grace. I am only saying what I try so hard to remind myself with every time I start talking or giving advice to someone "Practice what you PREACH".

"The Rich VS the Poor"

When a "Less Wealthy" people watch a "More Wealthy" people riding a Porsche, living in a mansion, dressed up, eating all kinds of food, they assume that this is undoubtedly the kind of life everyone should or aspire to have. The "Less Wealthy" think that the "More Wealthy" definitely have no worries, no burdens on their shoulders, their biggest problem could be when they are thinking where to spend the summer vacation; in the Bahamas or Bora Bora Islands. May be they are still confused where to go shopping, in Paris or Dubai. It is really very interesting how people tie their happiness and the amount of problems they could have to their fortune; or "not fortune". Mother Teresa said "Even the rich are hungry for love, for being cared for, for being wanted, for having someone to call their own". You know why this saying is very true, because we are all human beings; at least we share simple facts drawn by physics and biology.

This takes me to our presentations about the "More Economically Developed" countries and "Less Economically Developed" as described in the syllabus. Having listened to all of the seminars, I recognized that of course the "More Developed" countries allocate a higher percentage of its GDP or National Budget to Education. In Singapore, the budget allocated to education comes right next to the armed forces budget. So, this means that education is held up high and put on a pedestal; so to speak.

I had this feeling that vibrated through my body and I asked myself a question "Why do not our country or the other less developed countries give due care to education?" I believe that education is the backbone of any nation. It is the road to spreading peace and awakening countries. Is Money the only reason why these developed countries have better education system, well-prepared teachers, highly equipped educational facilities, proactive teacher education curriculum and ongoing professional development?

On Wednesday, we were gathered to reflect on our seminars and what we think of the content we presented. Dr Joyanne asked a question "Do you think it is the governments of these countries that helped the reform to happen"? Caroline and Othman agreed to great extent that without the policies and the approaches adopted by these governments, reform wouldn’t have taken place. Yet, I saw it differently. I believe that it starts from the people. If the people were not open to change, to develop and have a brighter future for them and their children reform wouldn’t have been realized. Othman and Caroline said that they should go hand in hand. But, I say that it’s the peoples' will in the first place then the governments' guidance in the next place that could bring about transformation.

When Singapore first thought about reforming education, the first step taken was towards the investment in Human Capital, the Singaporean People. They catered education based on their diversity and the different needs of every child. So, they guarantee that no one would be left behind or overlooked. They nurture the sense of belonging to Singapore since the early years of the child's education. They want to grow Singaporeans who are concerned with their country and will not save effort to make it better. And because they were aware that it all starts with education, and because Teachers as Educators are key to this development, they were careful that whoever gets in the teaching profession should be passionate and welling to make a change in a student's life. It is never easy to be a teacher in Singapore. The first question they ask you "Are you the right one?".

It is not money, believe me, it is our will for change and to be better. I know it is easier to accept the status quo. And I think we are witnesses to that now in our beloved Egypt. After seeing what happened after the revolution, most of the people now say "we wish we go back to Mubarak days. They were calm and better". I know it is hard to take the decision to change. I know it is extremely painful to make yourself step out of your comfort zone. All we need is a leap of faith. We, "the less economically developed" countries should believe in our capabilities and not to wait for any other country to make it better for us.

That is why I referred to people with the terms "Less Wealthy" and "More Wealthy". Because being rich or poor is not ONLY determined by the amount of money you have, but with your powers as a person. So, BELIEVE.

Don’t use it until you prove it!

In fact, the issues of religion, diversity and social justice are of extreme interest to me. When I was preparing for my case study of Islamic education system in Egypt, it was a very exciting exploration journey. I found out that it is not recent and that it goes back to the time of Prophet Muhamad (PBUH). Actually, I was impressed by Dr Joyanne's answer to my question "When do you think the first form of Islamic schools started?" She said that most religions started with the sending or the existence of their holy books which is related to reading and writing.


Allah (SWT) commanded His Messenger, in the first verse to be revealed to prophet Muhamad, to ‘Read! In the Name of thy Lord Who Created’ (Quran, 96:1). The word ‘Iqra’ literally means to ‘read’, or ‘recite’. And Prophet Muhamad didn’t know how to read. I think this gives a powerful message about the importance of education in Islam. Education is held up high. It is the passage to enlightened minds that could embrace diverse ideas and perspectives to evaluate without prejudice.

As much as the search journey was such an eye-opener, it ended with disappointment. I found out that the "NAME" of the system has nothing to do with its "VALUES". I saw carelessness, corruption, and indifference. What struck me the most is that Al Azhar was basically built as a mosque then a university that aims at graduating individuals who are callers for Islam, its values and become useful and productive citizens, yet; that wasn’t reality, not even close. This may not be the case in other departments but that is how it is in EDUCATION which is basically the base of everything else!  

When I was talking about my interview with the principal of the Islamic private school, I mentioned that the vision of the school is to prevail a "Moderate" Islamic way of life. That is when Mrerriam asked "How can you know it is moderate Islamic view? How can you be sure?". I have been thinking about an answer to this question and it turned to be very simple. "Moderate" way of life is the way of living where our actions don’t infringe on the freedom of others, respect our diversities, and keep the balance of coexistence. I should say that our concern about "Moderate" should not be exclusive to Islam or religions; it should be our pursuit in life.

Going back to the title of my entry, I would like to urge any government, authority or person not to give "tags" to their "products" without really applying them. Accordingly, don’t use it until you prove it!

In 5 words "Sensitively Embracing All Learners' Differences"

For a person who likes to convey the meaning of her words to others in details to ensure that people got the message she wants to deliver clearly and with no confusion, it was CHALLENGING that I conclude my presentation on Diversity in ONLY 5 words!

That made me think about an old program that used to be broadcast across the national radio station, presented by the famous comedy actor Foad El Mohandes, called "In only two words". This program used to critique the bad behaviors and negatives in the Egyptian society in brief.  He used to choose his words carefully and with wisdom. So, they can leave the influence he wants in people's hearts and mind.

The week before our first seminars, we asked Dr Joyanne "Do you want us to send you the presentation?" and her answer came "No, you don’t need to do that. Yes, these seminars are to show your knowledge about the content but more important is what will make this presentation alive; namely, your performance and presentation skills". Which gain made me think about the saying that goes "Actions speak louder than words".

I can conclude from the above that, the less you talk, the more you act, the more influencer you will become. It is a very interesting equation and how intriguing it is that we, most of the times, realize this fact. Yet, we find it easier to keep talking, yelling at each other, shutting our ears to what others say and close our eyes to what they are trying hard to make us see. We were basically created to cooperate and live in peace and understanding. And to be able understand and STAND each other, we need to improve our "Listening" skills. We need to open our mouths to say the wise words and complement all that with our ACTIONS.

In five words I say "Listen, talk wisely, understand, COEXIST"

The Missing Puzzle PIECE

After listening to all our presentations about teacher capacity for many approaches in education, I came up with another theory that builds up on my "Fit to Survive" theory and that is "Teacher Capacity for HUMANITY". I know that it is the name of my country and I like this paradox. I believe that all the various disciplines we tackled in our seminars should all be an integral part of any teacher preparation degree or professional development. All educators mindsets should meet on the same wave length and receive the same frequency that no matter who they are or where they come from, they are dealing with HUMAN BEINGS who are Exactly the SAME but at the same time Contrasting.

We may adopt a method of teaching for a long time, yet, the people who receive it are different and that means their way they absorb the information vary. You can undertake the same action; yet, receive various responses. In winter, we blow in our palms to feel warm and at the same time we blow in the tea to make it colder. Then, it is not only about how an excellent educator you can turn out to be; but, how an extraordinary sensitive transmitter you can become.

Variety is not only seen in the ethnicity, skin color, religious beliefs or affiliations. It is also vivid in one's attitudes and I think that is what really matters. Our actions and reflexes define who we are and how we seek to live. Excluding a certain group of people from your life means that you are cutting off part of your affiliation to Humanity. I am well aware that it is not that easy like pushing a button and TA DAAA…here we are all living in harmony and embracing each other's differences.

No, it is not like that, not even close. It takes a lot of time, effort practice and understanding. Sometimes you feel like "Why would I care?" or "Whatever…it is taking much energy". Yet, it is worth fighting for. The globe is nothing but a number of puzzle pieces put together to form the final shape of the world we live in. Having a "missing puzzle piece" means that this world will never be complete and eventually will fall apart taking down with it every single goodness humans could have. This world is congested with wars, destruction and plights and if we zoomed in to touch on the reason why…the answer simply is "Because I am not willing to ACCEPT your Difference!"

The Process of Processing

Every day, you gain knowledge through different channels. Either through the people you meet at work place, at the university, your families or you even can gain knowledge from some casual situations. You can walk in a store to buy anything and still have some information about something you have never known before. You can hear 2 people having a conversation and you catch some words by chance. It is wonderful the amount of knowledge we receive; but, most importantly it should be PROCESSED. This is the most important step in the knowledge gain process is to filter, process and absorb it. "The ability to perceive or think differently is more important than the knowledge gained", David Bohm.

 

Last time, we had three distinct presenters, Michael, Philip and Merriam. They talked about teacher preparation for reflective practice, teacher preparation for social justice. I had that comment and when I was about to speak it out, Dr Joyanne looked at me and said "I know what you want to say", and I went like "Really, then tell me". She said "You feel that all the disciplines we are talking about in all seminars are interconnected". I looked back at her and said "You literary read my mind". I felt at many points in these presentations that they are talking about the same thing I will be taking about next week. Actually, this is very positive because that means that they all serve the same end. And if we are able to prepare teachers who can encompass all these qualities, we will have a cohort of mind enlighteners!

 

What really grabbed my attention in the Reflection process is that you should question the "norms of your life". We should be inquisitive about what we regard as NORMAL. Also, Michael's photo of the teacher who is hitting the boy with a stick was provocative and received different views. Personally, I am a total believer that injustice breeds injustice and you can NEVER teach someone about justice while you are holding a stick in the other hand. It is no body's right to practice violence upon anyone else; especially when you are en educator (a role model for your students).