Lighting Up Classes with Literature and Technology
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
No laggers here as Ms Fernandez builds respect and breaks down hurdles in her literature classes
They called themselves the "Lit Laggers."
Convinced that they lacked the aptitude for Literature, one entire class in Catholic High School gave themselves this nickname, to the utter dismay of their teacher Ms Lucy Oliver Fernandez. But Ms Fernandez took on their collective wit and strove to ignite their interest in the subject, introducing afternoon study sessions and study camps.
As she shared with them in vivid detail how literature captures the eloquent truths of human life, it wasn't long before the Lit Laggers "began to identify with Literature more and more", as she says, and, to Ms Fernandez's amusement, they rechristened themselves "Lit is for the Brave!" and finally, in tandem with their growing enthusiasm, "Lit for Life!"
Mr Terry Tan at Anglo Chinese School (Primary) is also familiar with this sort of runaway passion. To make his Mathematics lessons fun and engaging, the self-taught "techie" uses computer games that he has written himself. Not content to just play along, some of his pupils asked him to teach them computer programming. One boy was so keen that when challenged with a seemingly "impossible task", he worked for two months to turn the tables on Mr Tan and come up with a problem-solving robotic mouse. "It was my turn to be amazed!" says Mr Tan.
Be it through tales or technology, Ms Fernandez and Mr Tan are teachers whose abilities to inspire and innovate have made them two of four recipients of this year's President's Award for Teachers.
Finding creative routes to your goal is what drives Mr Tan.
Creative routes to the top
"When work becomes play, more work is achieved!" declares Mr Tan, who is the head of the Gifted Education Programme at his school. His Mathematics-based games such as Finding Nemo, a maze puzzle, help make his classes so compelling that pupils "often request to play these 'games' after they had completed their work, even though it was actually more practice!" Even normally reticent pupils forgot their shyness when "in game mode", and playing the games boosted both their confidence and results.
Digital tools may enliven Mr Tan's classes, but he stresses that the fun must lay a solid foundation for lifelong learning. "The adage, 'teach them to fish rather than give them the fish', is still relevant," he notes. "As teachers, we should encourage students not just to find out more, but know how to find out more."
This belief was put to the test when Mr Tan led an interdisciplinary field trip lesson, dubbed "Trailblazer", to Fort Canning Park, in which pupils explored various stations and answered questions via SMS. He reflects that the best part of this programme "was that the pupils discovered the information on their own at each station, independent of support from the teachers."
For Mr Terry Tan, it's not about reaching the top, but the lessons you gain on your way up.
During a subsequent session, however, Mr Tan noticed that one group was making unusually fast progress. He discovered that one pupil was keying in all the answers without waiting for his buddies. "In the excitement, he had forgotten that it was not about winning," remarks Mr Tan. However, Mr Tan was gratified to see that the boy's teammates realised that he was not giving them a chance to learn and "wasted no time in chiding him on their own."
The same conviction underpins Mr Tan's other passion: rock climbing. "It's not just about reaching the top," he states. "What appeals to me are the myriad challenges and creativity that is inherent in the climb." Mr Tan's pursuit of new peaks mirrors his classroom mantra that the journey matters as much as the destination. "When I finally solve an 'unclimbable' route after weeks, if not months, the feeling is simply indescribable, especially when the solution involves some very creative moves," he grins.
From laggers to lit lovers
As for what became of Ms Fernandez's self-deprecating cohort, she reveals that the "laggers" went on to win trophies in the school's annual Literature festival and many continue to study the subject in junior college.
In her classes, Ms Fernandez shares her love for literature and learning.
"I'm humbled by the number of times the impossible did, in fact, become possible," she muses. Sharing her experience teaching English to another class of low achievers, Ms Fernandez recalls how she "desperately wanted them to taste academic success." But to reach their mind, she had to first work through the heart.
"I had to work on their self-esteem," she says. "While I put in effort for the weaker students, I made sure I arranged time slots for my stronger students too. It was my way of telling them that I had the same high expectations of them, and that they were all equally important to me."
Her efforts paid off when more than half of the class achieved distinctions at year's end. "I was so proud of them." She smiles as she remembers how one boy ran up to her, "saying that nobody was ever going to call him a loser again."
Ms Fernandez has inspired students to pursue Literature further in junior college.
At the heart of it, Ms Fernandez believes achieving results arises from having mutual respect. "Students react when they feel belittled, threatened or unjustly treated - as do adults," she points out. "I aim to be fair and when I am unhappy with them, I emphasise that I have issues with their behaviour, not with them as a person."
On the personal front, Ms Fernandez is a frequent flyer, for both work and leisure. "It certainly broadens the mind and develops the person," she says of her travels to countries such as Israel, Yugoslavia, Portugal and Italy. "It gives you a much wider perspective to life.
Even longer sojourns, such as a year at Oxford University to pursue a Masters degree in linguistics, further reinforced her passion for literature and desire to share the subject. "Oxford gave me a renewed enthusiasm and love for learning, not only what you can gain from it but who you become because of it." She beams. "I hope to continue passing this with my students."
Look out on Friday for the next article about the other two recipients of the 2009 President's Award for Teachers.