I have decided to create this blog in the hopes of not only sharing my own amazing experiences, but to also touch on the ideas and thoughts educators have when it comes to more effective teaching. I believe it is our ability to innovate, communicate, and relate to the students in our classrooms and in our school communities that will drive this increase in the effectiveness of student learning.
In a recent document from the Ministry of Education in Ontario titled, Achieving Excellence: A Renewed Vision for Education in Ontario, it speaks about a renewed set of goals for the system in becoming a system that we could all call “excellent.” The current priorities for our education system are: increasing student achievement, closing gaps in student achievement and increasing public confidence in publicly funded education. The new goals derived from these priorities are:
- Achieving Excellence
- Ensuring Equity
- Promoting Well-Being
- Enhancing Public Confidence
Here is a video that the Ministry has produced to explain these:
What is great to see is the acknowledgment that the document gives to the need for entrepreneurial skill sets and emphasis on creativity that will help our students prosper in a more competitive workplace.
As we look to being a system of ‘excellence’ we also should look at the ‘greatness’ that educators bring to work each and every day, to the administrators who bring ‘greatness’ to their schools in ensuring they are instructionally sound and managed, and the support staff who hold it all together. There are parents and families and organizations who bring ‘greatness’ to our system and build the character in our students we see each and every day.
I enjoy this quote about greatness from Anatole France in 1896, “To accomplish great things we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.”
So let this blog celebrate the greatness in what we accomplish and share in what we believe, as we are on our way to greatness.
