Every day, I make a to-do list. Of course, I never complete it. So, the next day instead of creating a new list, I just add more activities to the list. At the end, I just tried to do the priority activities and I leave the others activities for another day. It seems to work so far.
Something, interesting that I noticed when I saw your to-do list is that mine only has work-related activities.
Author: Diana
Comment on My Action Items for Diversity by Diana
I also agree that anyone who wants to acknowledge diversity in a classroom should first be aware of its issues. Students would definitely benefit a lot when working with people with different backgrounds and cultures. It is always good to get out of the comfort zone.
Comment on Practice helps you deal with digital distractions by Diana
I agree with the idea of doing one activity at a time. When I have a lot of things to do, I try to work on everything during the day. At the end, I do not make any progress.
On the other hand, I really liked your expression “Distraction is only one side of the evil”. The Internet is my biggest distraction, especially as you said when I am writing a paper. When I am struggling thinking about what to write. At the end, I waste so much time.
Comment on Who Knows How to Use a Screw Driver? by Diana
I agree that “forming relationships leads to engagement in the learning process by the students”. Critical pedagogy is an interactive process where both, the teacher and student, can learn. I also like the analogy of incremental learning with cooking. That totally makes sense to me. That’s the way how we can move away from the traditional education approach. Each time, we can add something new to the basics.
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Comment on The What and the How of Critical Pedagogy by Diana
For me, equity is more related to diversity. When developing a course, we have to research our students to figure it out how diverse they are. By understanding their academic skills, background, or previous experiences we can create a more inclusive course that fits students needs.
Comment on ENGAGING Definitions of Critical Pedagogy from Six Different Disciplines by Diana
I really like the work of VT Engage, mainly because I love service. I believe that service work is a learning experience that will make the academic learning relevant and will enhance and/or develop social and analytical skills. Students can apply classroom content to real-world situations while meeting community needs.
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Comment on Does inclusive teaching affect students’ ability to excel? by Diana
About your comment “it is not uncommon for teachers to be more responsive and willing to better explain to the student who is doing better believing that he/she will eventually understand the concept” I agree.
However, my advisor did something that really called my attention. We have a student who is failing the class. My advisor asked him to stop by his office and he would help him to catch up with the class. Then, he told me that he worked with him during one hour trying to explain again the concepts.
This is something I had not seen it before. It was super nice!
Comment on The unnoticed assumption by Diana
Your post reminds my Iranian friend. We were talking about the crazy weather in Blacksburg. She asked about the weather in Colombia and I said: “in my city, it is always warm and sunny”. I said, “we have the same weather all the time”. She was very confused I could see that awkward expression in her face. I did not understand why. I was thinking maybe I pronounced a word wrong and she did not understand what I wanted to say. Then, she told me that she assumed that we also have seasons. She had never thought about. She just assumed that because she also has seasons in Iran, in Latin America, we also have that. So when you say that we make assumptions that are obviously wrong, I totally agree. I do that all the time!
Comment on To fit in or not to fit in… That is the question. by Diana
Your experiences happen to me all the time. I gave up pronouncing my name in Spanish when I go to Starbucks. I “try to fit” and I say my name in English although I do not like it. However, as you said, I do care that, in a conference or whenever I meet a person who I am going to work or I will see often, the person knows how to pronounce my name correctly. I want them to remember for who I am. I am different. Just the fact to pronounce my name in Spanish makes me different.
Comment on DISCOVERING YOUR AUTHENTIC TEACHING SELF by Diana
I think that what you say about “knowing what you want the students to get from the class” is extremely important. I have been in classes where the professor wants to communicate so many things at once that at the end we do not learn anything. I also think that the passion, attitude, and enthusiasm of the professors also influence the student’s engagement.
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