PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
‘To Teach Is to Learn Twice Over’
Joseph Joubert
The Professional Development Program at Vivek High School continues to empower the teachers. Another interactive &dynamic workshop was organized in the school, to further orient the teachers to the Cambridge International approach to teaching and learning, on 28 January 2023, and well-equip them for the “Paradigm shifts in Learning for Middle School students at Vivek”. The workshop facilitated by Mrs. Manisha, Principal of The Shri Ram School, Moulsari, Gurgaon, Ms. Rabeena Singh, Mathematics teacher and Mrs. Natasha Xavier, the Coordinator & English teacher at The Shri Ram School, Moulsari, Gurgaon, was attended by 134 teachers from Senior Wing and Junior Wing of VHS-38 and VHS-70.
The workshop was divided into two sessions. The first session revolved around the importance of five Cambridge attributes and making the teachers and learners- Confident, Reflective, Innovative, Engaged, and Responsible. It also focused on the Cambridge Pedagogy, which emphasizes on skill building, critical thinking, data-driven, experiential, inquiry-based, Trans-disciplinary & Interdisciplinary approaches. The importance of the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, which outlines the six learning stages- Remember, Understand, Apply, Analyze, Evaluate, and Create, to design learning experiences for students was also highlighted. During the second session, teachers benefitted in many ways. The Language, Science, and Mathematics teachers were exposed to new strategies and skills in their subject-specific areas, as these sessions were conducted by different Subject Experts. The teachers were briefed about the Learning Objectives, Curriculum Framework, Schemes of work, and Assessments. The teachers were encouraged to develop practical and innovative Active Learning Strategies and apply thinking routines for the learners to build explanations and interpretations, make connections, and reason with evidence, before coming to a conclusion. Packed with practical ideas, the highlight of the training program was a wide range of tips and activities shared by the Subject Experts to support classroom teaching, with a deep focus on the skill development of the learners. A better understanding of how to incorporate technology into the classroom while teaching, was an added benefit.