“To describe teaches me that the subject of my attention always exceed what I can see…I learn that when I see a lot, I am still seeing only a little and partially. I learn that when others join in, the description is always fuller than what I saw alone.”
Descriptions are a part of a teacher’s daily life. Describing vocabulary words, describing concepts, describing homework assignments. By describing, the teacher continuously learns things about him or herself, and about the students. The teacher realizes things that he or she never realized before, just by explaining it out loud to a student. When others join in, i.e. when the whole class joins in and participates, the description is always more meaningful and full of more content than if the teacher were alone. It is the idea that the teacher teaches the students, and the students teach the teacher. This could not be more true. You definitely learn more when you are all together discussing the same topic because you can share different ideas and work as a team. Teaching is one of the greatest jobs there is just because of this mutual learning experience you share with the students.
I really liked your comment on how describing makes a teacher realize what they don’t know. I currently babysit for 6-year-old twins and I try to use as much realistic language with them as possible rather than dumbing it down. Obviously sometimes they encounter vocabulary they don’t understand and ask for me to explain – many times I’ve realized that I know the word or the concept but having to explain it to someone leaves me speechless! I’m so grateful when I start, and they are able to grasp the concept, giving me something to work off.
In the classroom, I agree that having students contribute helps the learning become more meaningful! It’s also a great informal assessment to see what the students’ bring to the classroom from their previous experiences; it’s important to consider and validate their backgrounds to help build community and trust in the classroom.