BLOG #7

I can’t believe I’m sitting down writing my last blog for this course. The Lifelong Learning Processes course has both challenged and inspired me in so many ways.  While I’ve enjoyed our assigned readings and class discussions, I must say the learning process of creating and contributing to a blog for this term has been the most influential part of the class. It has been such a great learning experience reading everyone’s insightful and creative blogs. Looking back at my own blog posts I have tried to write about topics I simply wanted to learn more about or seemed relevant to my professional and personal interests. I even took the opportunity to reflect on my past experiences as a student, a proud member of a community of practice, and now given our recent discussions around identity and self-analysis, I feel compelled to reflect on how I came to be in this class.           

When I applied for the Master of Education in Lifelong Learning program my primary goal was to become a better educator in my field of diabetes education. It can be quite the challenge to motivate, inspire, and in some cases, persuade people to want to learn the knowledge and skills they need to better manage their diabetes and improve their overall health.  I believed that in pursuing my Master of Education in Lifelong Learning I would be able to learn effective teaching practices and methods that would enhance the learning experience of my clients. I was seeking practical, hands-on examples and learning opportunities that I could incorporate into my everyday practice. To be honest, I questioned whether this Master’s program was the right fit for me.  

However, when I was reading Bracher’s book, “Pedagogy: Identity, Generativity, and Social Transformation”, he introduced a chapter with a quote by Parker Palmer that really stood out for me:  

“Good teaching cannot be reduced to technique; good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher”

At our next class, Dr. Plumb reiterated the meaning behind this quote and I had my A-ha moment!  Will I achieve my intended goal of becoming a better educator as a graduate of the Master of Education in Lifelong Learning program? My answer is absolutely. Without any hesitation, I believe I am where I’m supposed to be. The difference is what I believed the learning process should be versus what it needs to be. I realize now that I can only achieve my goal if I am willing to learn, understand, analyze, and apply the underlying theories and practices of lifelong learning to develop and support my own pedagogical aims and practices rooted in a deeper understanding of my own identity needs and the identity needs of my clients.  

Bracher (2006) tells us that as educators we need to be open to questioning our own identity and teaching practices to allow us to embrace alternatives that can provide important identity benefits for students while considering the fundamental aims of education. He implies the most effective way to achieve this is through “a process of self-analysis” (p. 135) proposed by Lacan.  In Chapter 10, he encourages us to engage in a form of free-writing responding to several questions, identifying who we seek recognition from, and prompting us to examine various experiences where we felt satisfaction and dissatisfaction in our teaching.

Even though I am not a teacher in the traditional sense of the word, I could easily relate my teaching experiences over the past ten years to the activities outlined in the chapter. While I can’t share all of my answers as this is a blog and not a short story, I can offer a summary of what I was able to take away from this exercise.

As a diabetes educator, the identity-bearing signifiers that are important to me would include, “intelligent”, “good listener”, “empathetic”, “non-judgemental”, “practical”, and “dedicated”. My main reason for wanting to pursue a career in diabetes education was to help people like my best friend who has had Type 1 diabetes since she was 10 years old and at a young age is already experiencing serious complications related to her diabetes. I hope that by taking the time to really listen and acknowledge the challenges people face in managing their diabetes I can use my expertise and practical nature to work collaboratively with them to develop a plan of action that not only fits clinical practice guidelines but meets their learning needs. I am reminded on a daily basis of the impact you can make in someone’s lives through their success stories and simple gestures of praise and recognition such as a hug or a sincere thank you. In my career, I am committed to being a lifelong learner, respected and reputable educator, and advocate for change in funding, program development and teaching practices.   

Everything we learn from our readings, class discussions, conversations, and blogs brings us closer to our individual and collective goals as current and future educators. I want to thank everyone for making this such a great class. I feel like I’ve gotten to know each of you through your blogs.

To the graduates….congratulations! To the rest of the class, I look forward to learning along with you in other classes. To conclude, I would like to share a quote that I will remember as I continue on my journey in the lifelong learning program:

“The only person who is educated is the one who has

learned how to learn…and change”

 -Carl Rogers

References

Bracher, M. (2006). Radical Pedagogy: Identity, Generativity, and Social Transformation. New York:  Palgrave Macmillan.