To Jakarta Post

I took a deep breath. 

I looked at the child. 

She was looking back at me with the expression of 8-year child who had just being scolded by her teacher. 

At that moment, I really wanted to go and hug her, telling her yes I do understand that sometimes it is not easy to understand a lesson. I ended up giving her one-to-one re-explanation about Present and Past Tense. I dismissed the class as usual and I went straight to the library finding my personal silent spot. I used to do this to reflect on myself and think of what had happened back then. 

With 21 students in class varied with each learning style, attention span and acquisition of knowledge ability, more has to be done to meet their needs. 

Howard Gardner patented Multiple Intelligences theory has again stroked me in a way that I haven’t put enough efforts to implement those for my students. A set of interesting activities is continually presented, a research on certain issue or topic is assigned and various projects are consigned. I do that. We do that. As a teacher. 

The next day, a teacher can always predict who will come up with a wonderful work, a good work and an all right work or “thank you for submitting” work. Do students actually enjoy the assignment? 

I started to question myself how best and far students with musical, bodily kinesthetic, naturalist, intrapersonal, interpersonal and mathematical intelligence make meaning of their learning when the focus of a lesson is now on verbal linguistic strength.

A student acquires one or two prominent intelligences and others are coping up. They best learn when they are stress free and the knowledge transferred captured their interest regardless their strongest intelligence. These lead to a teacher's teaching methods that suit the learning style of students.

Working in an IB school provides a lot of space for teachers to explore and 'play' with students' intelligences. When a teacher succeed to integrate and manipulate plain topic in such a way to become an enjoyable one, that is when he/she reaps the students' increasing interest and curiosity. 

Hands-on experiential learning is proven to arouse and catch students' interest in study. Lessen the paperwork, limit one-way communication, make the students move, let them watch interesting well-prepared presentation, spoil their ears with comforting music, have a group work, have an individual presentation, 'move' their class outside where they can breathe the air and feel the wind. Given passion, time, dedication and team work, these all can be implemented wisely and successfully.   

Each teaching system has its own strength. Make the best of what you are doing and vary the methods, each meets students' intelligences,  equip oneself with enough knowledge, I dare say that we will reward the best benefit and result from our students.

thelittleofflamingochipsandcrumbs chapter 4