Honoured guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, my fellow colleagues…
Credit: hotpot.ai image generator.
As we come to the end of our 3 months of learning together, I just wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to 2 groups of people.
First, thank you to the organisers of this ONL journey. It has been eye-opening to say the least. I have learnt so much I never knew that I never knew. I can honestly say that ONL is like a port from which I have set forth on a new journey of discovery.
Second, I want to thank my fellow members of PBL04: my friends. Our journey together has been full of challenges, triumphs, and moments of growth, and I am so proud of what we have accomplished. I must admit that, after the first session, I was slightly worried about what our journey was going to be like. But along the way, we came to open up to one another, sharing both our ups and our downs, our thoughts and our hearts, learning and growing together each step of the way. Today, at the end of these many weeks of meetings, I am truly grateful for the opportunity to have worked with such a talented and dedicated group of individuals. I will always cherish the memories we have created together. Anna-Lena, Emely, Ziad, Mostafa and our wonderful facilitators Nicolette and Bianca: I wish you all the very best in all your future endeavors!
If I must highlight 3 takeaways from our shared experiences, the first would be that I now bring with me Widened Horizons. I have been exposed to such a diversity in our group that I know now that I know less than what I thought I knew before! We are of different ages, from many different countries, with many different life stories – and this makes me think about the diversity hidden underneath the surface in my own classroom back in NUS. Who can know what lies beneath the smiles of our students? I take with me a determination to do my best to cater to them all in my lessons, that no one shall be left behind!
Second, I also carry Emboldened Spirits to try new things! It’s easy to get stuck doing things the same old way (after all, they’ve always worked!), but seeing all the different worldviews and approaches in our group has inspired me to step out of my box and take the plunge. I have more courage now to try new tools and new pedagogies (sorry my future students, but you shall be my guinea pigs)! Only time will tell what may result, but I’m sure that I’ll come out on the other side a wiser (if not better) educator.
Finally, I hold within me Inflamed Passions to never stop learning and improving. I mentioned above that I never knew what I never knew, and this is so true for my journey in pedagogy. I am a young educator and my map is mostly still a fog of unknown adventures (like a Huge map in Civilation VI)! I am determined to read more, a little bit each week, to explore this new and exciting world, and hopefully grow into a better (if not wiser) educator.
I hope that you all also take with you useful lessons and fond memories from our shared ONL journey. There is a song I used to sing when I was in the choir a long time ago:
No man is an island, no man stands alone;
Each man’s joy is joy to me, each man’s grief is my own.
We need one another so I will defend
Each man as my brother, each man as my friend.
I am grateful and proud to have shared this journey with you all, and I am grateful and proud to call you all my friends.
Kieron Barclay May 12, 2023
I found this blog post moving and inspiring! Your heartfelt thanks to both the organisers and your fellow group members encapsulates the collaborative spirit that makes such learning experiences so enriching. The three takeaways you mentioned – widened horizons, emboldened spirits, and inflamed passions – resonate deeply. It’s wonderful to hear how this experience has opened your eyes to the diversity within your classroom and inspired you to keep trying new things and keep learning.
Nicolette Karst May 16, 2023
Dear Ian,
After having read this post, I can only say: congratulations on graduating with flying colours! Also, thank you for your heart-felt warm words about our PBL group – it is a wonderful experience to see total strangers become colleagues and friends during a common learning journey.
I wish you all the best in your teaching endeavours and would love to stay in touch.
Mostafa Yossef June 2, 2023
Hi Ian,
This is really inspiring, I agree with you, on widening horizons and inflamed passions. This course started as a mysterious puzzle, that you play with strangers, but as time progress, you start to get a piece by piece of this puzzle by somehow figuring out how it works, not only that, but you get people getting a piece of the puzzle that fits perfectly although it is not part of the original game, I guess that what I can refer to as Widening horizon. In the end, the experience we all went through flame our passion to continue the journey, thank you, Ian, Nicolette, and anyone who has contributed to this journey.