WORKSHOP REPORT

Name/s of the teacher/s: Ms. Sumedha Sodhi

Topic: Thinking about learning

Date: 29/03/16                                                     Duration:1 hour

Venue: IT lab (Middle School)

Brief Description:

Experiences are critical to learning. Just as learners need knowledge to think with, they also need experiences to think with. Therefore the emphasis should be on thinking ‘skills’ – learning how to think effectively and creatively. Keeping this thought in mind a workshop on thinking about learning was organized for the teachers of middle school to acquaint them with the fact that a teacher must ensure that students are thinking while they are in the classroom. Almost 30 teachers from middle school attended the workshop and shared a positive feedback about their experiences during the workshop. The key points of the workshop were as follows:

Thinking-centred learning', can happen through:

• ·         emphasis on pupils explaining to self and to others
• ·         classroom discussion around thought-demanding questions, and pupils' questions
• ·         use of authentic problems that have real-world significance
• ·         peer teaching, where pupils must think through a topic carefully in order to teach it to other pupils
• ·         problem-based learning, where pupils study content by learning to solve problems
• ·         project-based learning, where pupils gain content knowledge through complex,often socially meaningful projects
• ·         engagement in ‘performances of understanding' which ask pupils to demonstrate their understanding
• ·         critical and creative thinking infused into learning a subject, where pupils analyse, critique, defend, ask ‘what-if’ questions, and explore alternative points of view.