My name is Aaron Luke Potvin. I am the oldest of four siblings, I have two brothers and a sister. I grew up in Edmonton, Alberta and moved to Vancouver Island after high school. I have played guitar since I was nine years old. This has given me the opportunity to play in many bands and develop a strong love for music. I completed my undergrad degree in jazz studies in April 2015. I believe that creativity is an important life skill that should be nurtured in a classroom. Since moving to Vancouver Island I have developed a love for the outdoors and fitness. There is a strong connection between a healthy body and a healthy mind.
My ideal classroom environment is one of engagement, collaboration, respect, creativity and community. My goal is to engage students in the material by finding a way to be passionate about the subject and presenting it in relevant and interesting ways. I want to keep the lessons as interesting as possible to help keep my students learning and motivated. Technology will be important in student engagement because it adds a sense of relevance to what is being taught because it is so ingrained in most peoples lives. Whether it be creating an online community for the class to have discussions or exposing them to different types of ideas that technology has facilitated, the age of digital media is here and students need to be well versed in it to succeed. Students will collaborate to expand their opportunities to learn by getting different perspectives from their peers. As a Constructivist myself, I believe that every student has a unique perspective based upon their own experiences, values and beliefs. The biggest benefit to collaboration is a deeper learning happens when students talk about what they are learning to each other. One students epiphany moment come from an insight provided by another students experiences. I want my students to respect each other so they feel safe enough to take risks in there learning. If a student tries and fails they learn something just as valid as if they were to succeed. A low-risk classroom environment is important so students do not develop negative feelings toward a subject. I want the students to also feel like they can be creative with there assignments. Students should be creative because if they can use their own ideas to make an assignment theirs they will be more likely to take ownership of it and enjoy it . Creativity makes assignments personal and something that the student can take pride in. If I want my students to be engaged, collaborative, respectful and creative as a teacher I need to model these traits in my classroom. All of these things will help build a sense of community for a class.
Some things that will help create my ideal classroom are taking suggestions for activities that appeal to students. By getting to know who they are it is easier to motivate them. Group work helps build community through students working to build something together. It also adds a social aspect to learning because learning independently is great but can be frustrating if one does not understand something. In a group students have other students to clarify things rather than just the teacher. One's peers can often explain things in a way that relates more to their current lives than a teacher could. Group work also helps build a foundation for working with others long after the student is done with school. I want students to be lifelong learners, by being one myself I hope to keep learning about my subject areas so my knowledge is relevant to what is currently happening and not what was happening when I finished my degree. This will help the students be engaged because it will let me bring up ideas or events that happened not long ago.
There is also an interconnectedness to the world that needs to be brought into the classroom. A piece of music is not just a bunch of notes. The song was written by a composer. What was his/her life like? What was going on in society at the time the piece was written? Notes are created through sound waves. How does pitch effect sound waves? How does volume? Music has a strong connection to math. Musical patterns are everywhere. How is a song transposed to a different key? Lyrics are forms of a text. What was the author trying to say? The possibilities to connect subjects to each other are limitless. It is a very important thing to teach because humans do not exist in a vacuum and a students learning should not either.
I am very big on self-improvement and self reflection. If a lesson is taught and some students are not getting it, I want to search out alternative ways to approaching the subject in order for the students to gain a better understanding of it. If students are not engaged, I need to find a way to add value to the lesson. As a teacher one should also be a learner because in order to keep students engaged you need to keep finding ways to be passionate about what you are teaching as well.
My ideal classroom environment is one of engagement, collaboration, respect, creativity and community. My goal is to engage students in the material by finding a way to be passionate about the subject and presenting it in relevant and interesting ways. I want to keep the lessons as interesting as possible to help keep my students learning and motivated. Technology will be important in student engagement because it adds a sense of relevance to what is being taught because it is so ingrained in most peoples lives. Whether it be creating an online community for the class to have discussions or exposing them to different types of ideas that technology has facilitated, the age of digital media is here and students need to be well versed in it to succeed. Students will collaborate to expand their opportunities to learn by getting different perspectives from their peers. As a Constructivist myself, I believe that every student has a unique perspective based upon their own experiences, values and beliefs. The biggest benefit to collaboration is a deeper learning happens when students talk about what they are learning to each other. One students epiphany moment come from an insight provided by another students experiences. I want my students to respect each other so they feel safe enough to take risks in there learning. If a student tries and fails they learn something just as valid as if they were to succeed. A low-risk classroom environment is important so students do not develop negative feelings toward a subject. I want the students to also feel like they can be creative with there assignments. Students should be creative because if they can use their own ideas to make an assignment theirs they will be more likely to take ownership of it and enjoy it . Creativity makes assignments personal and something that the student can take pride in. If I want my students to be engaged, collaborative, respectful and creative as a teacher I need to model these traits in my classroom. All of these things will help build a sense of community for a class.
Some things that will help create my ideal classroom are taking suggestions for activities that appeal to students. By getting to know who they are it is easier to motivate them. Group work helps build community through students working to build something together. It also adds a social aspect to learning because learning independently is great but can be frustrating if one does not understand something. In a group students have other students to clarify things rather than just the teacher. One's peers can often explain things in a way that relates more to their current lives than a teacher could. Group work also helps build a foundation for working with others long after the student is done with school. I want students to be lifelong learners, by being one myself I hope to keep learning about my subject areas so my knowledge is relevant to what is currently happening and not what was happening when I finished my degree. This will help the students be engaged because it will let me bring up ideas or events that happened not long ago.
There is also an interconnectedness to the world that needs to be brought into the classroom. A piece of music is not just a bunch of notes. The song was written by a composer. What was his/her life like? What was going on in society at the time the piece was written? Notes are created through sound waves. How does pitch effect sound waves? How does volume? Music has a strong connection to math. Musical patterns are everywhere. How is a song transposed to a different key? Lyrics are forms of a text. What was the author trying to say? The possibilities to connect subjects to each other are limitless. It is a very important thing to teach because humans do not exist in a vacuum and a students learning should not either.
I am very big on self-improvement and self reflection. If a lesson is taught and some students are not getting it, I want to search out alternative ways to approaching the subject in order for the students to gain a better understanding of it. If students are not engaged, I need to find a way to add value to the lesson. As a teacher one should also be a learner because in order to keep students engaged you need to keep finding ways to be passionate about what you are teaching as well.