Abby Koning – Education

Free Inquiry: All Done

The scarf is complete and now is fully dry as well. Take a look at some before and after blocking pictures:

It’s difficult to see in the photos, but in real life there is a big difference between the two, so I’m glad I gave blocking a chance. I can definitely see how on certain projects it is almost a must to ensure you have a good final product.

I’m glad I went this route for my free inquiry, as knitting is one of those activities I really enjoy but often can’t find time for – especially when it comes to learning new skills. I will often just go back to what I am most comfortable knitting – scarves and headbands on large straight needles with no fancy patterns, but my knitting world feels a little bit bigger now. I’m most excited that I can use circular needles now, for two reasons. 1) I don’t have to limit myself to projects that are only on straight needles, and 2) I can finally use the circular needle set my parents bought me all that time ago (I’ve been told they weren’t cheap… so I’m happy they are starting to get some use!).

This scarf may be finished, but my inquiry into knitting is not. On to the next project! (I think I’m going to knit my brother-in-law some slippers next…)

Free Inquiry: Throwing in the Towel (not really)

At first I was knitting this scarf as a gift for a friend, but considering that there are a number of mistakes that I made in the pattern at the beginning, I’ve decided to knit a new one for her (hopefully without mistakes) and keep this for myself instead. I’ve decided it will likely be a new addition to one of my bike bags, where I keep an assortment of lights, tools, gloves, and snacks so I can get up and go on a ride without much preparation. I’ve always wanted to add a scarf to the mix, but until now haven’t had one that I’m content to let sit in the bottom of my bag, unused for the majority of the week.

Deciding that this was going to be its purpose, I’ve cast off the scarf to be significantly shorter than what the pattern calls for, as I don’t want it to be too bulky or overly warm when I’m cycling.

In my last blog I wrote about my foray into blocking – and now I’ve actually tried it. Now all it needs is to dry, and (ideally) it’ll be good to go.

Throwing my new scarf on the towel (i.e., a first attempt at blocking)

Free Inquiry: Blocking for Beginners

At the beginning of this project I set out with a few questions that led me to pursue 4 new knitting skills: knitting on circular needles, using stitch markers, trying out some new stitches (and ultimately trying out lace knitting for the first time), and blocking.

I feel confident in saying that I now know how to use circular needles and feel comfortable doing so, and if you’ve been reading these blogs up until now you know that I feel pretty good about stitch markers too.

Finally, I want to learn how to block my knitting.

(For those who don’t know what blocking is, it’s basically a process that shapes your knitting through the use of steam or water)

In my research, I’ve found that there are lots of different kinds of blocking. I have found some useful guides for blocking lace knitting in particular, which is the kind of pattern I’ve chosen to knit for this project. However, this kind of blocking generally requires some tools that I do not have and that I am not looking to purchase at the moment (depending on how this scarf turns out maybe I’ll put that on my Christmas list…).

I have found one method that doesn’t involve any special tools, just a rolled-up towel and some pins, so this is the method I’m going to try.

Now all that’s left is to cast off and then actually block my scarf… wish me luck!

Free Inquiry: Working out the Kinks

Armed with my newfound love of stitch-markers, I feel like I’m finally on track. It took a bit of work, but I seem to have figured out the pattern, and now the actual knitting of the scarf is fairly smooth sailing. As you can see from the photos below, there’s quite a difference between how it looks with all the mistakes I was making at the beginning and the lovely pattern that has now emerged.

One regret I have is that once I finally figured out all the places I was going wrong in the pattern, I should have taken apart the work and started again. There still remains about an inch or so of very messy knitting at the bottom of my scarf, but I’m too far into it now to go back. That being said, I think if I just make sure to tuck that bit in at the bottom, it should be completely wearable. However, I had first meant for this scarf to be a gift for a friend of mine, but I think I’ll knit another one for her instead…hopefully with fewer mistakes now that I’ve honed my skills just a bit more.

Futuristic Education

Before you ask, the answer is no… I don’t think robots are going to replace teachers.

In the 1950s, Isaac Asimov wrote a short story entitled “The Fun They Had” depicting a vignette of what school might look like for students 200 years in the future. Although this may not have been what Asimov actually thought the future might look like, it’s still a fun read and a fun thought experiment. In class we focused not so far ahead, but rather looked at what classrooms and the education system might look like 20 years in the future.

In our small group discussion, we focused on the possibilities of more individualized and skills-specific learning opportunities for students, with high school potentially becoming more like university in that students’ studies would be potentially more career focused and/or students would have more choice over what they were learning.

One image that seemed to encapsulate our thoughts you can find at the top of this page (though try to picture the adults as high school students): https://www.viewsonic.com/library/education/steam-education-preparing-all-students-for-the-future/

(What the article discusses also mirrors a lot of our thoughts from that discussion.)

That was one thing Asimov did get right about the future, or at least was on the right track:

“But my mother says a teacher has to be adjusted to fit the mind of each boy and girl it teaches and that each kid has to be taught differently.”

Individualized and inquiry-based learning is something that really excites me about the more recent changes to our education system. Although also somewhat daunting as a teacher, I think Asimov’s quote does depict an ideal learning situation, although not with all students at home alone with a robotic teacher.

Maybe in 2040 I’ll have a look back and see if we were right…and then start looking toward 2060.

Photo by Possessed Photography on Unsplash

BCEdAccess and Inclusive Education

I really appreciated Tracy Hummphries’ talk on BCEd Access and accessibility in schools more broadly.

One thing that has really stuck with me since this talk has been the Exclusion Tracker. It is great that this tool exists, as much as we all wish it didn’t need to. Reading through the latest report it is clear that there are many aspects of inclusive education in our schools that need to be worked on in B.C. As an incoming teacher, I view myself as one of many that need to take on the responsibility of ensuring all students are included and that ableism is addressed and not perpetrated in our classrooms.

In order to do this work, I know I have some pre-work to do. To start off this area of preparation in my teaching practice, I’ve started searching for resources that I hope to consult and familiarize myself with before I get into the classroom.

The Teacher’s Guide to Combating Classroom Ableism

https://choiceschool.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/IEP-Resource-Guide.pdf

https://inclusionbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/InclusionBC-AccessibilityFramework-Nov-27-2019.pdf

Additionally, BCEdAccess has put together a list of resources that will also I’m sure be of use to me and many others. Please let me know of any other useful resources you come across, as I believe this kind of learning should be lifelong.

Lastly, I wanted to share this Twitter thread that has given me a lot to think about. While Twitter is not always the best place to go for advice, listening to people with lived experience is an essential role in addressing ableism in our classrooms. Social media can be a helpful tool for this, either through threads like these or the Facebook group Tracy shared with us.

Free Inquiry: An Ode to Stitch Markers

One of the goals I had in this project was to learn about how best to utilize stitch markers. As I mentioned in my post about picking a pattern, one of the reasons I chose this pattern was because there were specific instructions on using stitch markers in the directions. Now with a little bit of circular and lace knitting experience under my belt, I have one thing to say:

I. Love. Stitch Markers.

They seem like a fairly intuitive tool, but they did take some getting used to – once I realized I was just meant to slip them on the needles like a stitch, rather than fasten them to individual stitches, I was off the races. That being said, it was a bit of a rough start.

One epiphany I had – that felt very clever at the time, although most people would likely just see it as common sense – was to link two markers together to designate the marker at the beginning of the row from those mid-row. The pattern does recommend this through the use of different coloured stitch markers, but since I don’t have enough stitch markers of one colour to utilize this method, this was the approach that I took (however, it took an embarrassingly long time to find this alternative solution…which, I’ll admit, has left me with a slightly wonky start to my scarf, but I’m hoping if I just fold that over when I wear it no one will be able to tell).

Free Inquiry: With a Little Help From My Friends

I finished off my last free inquiry update noting that I may have made a mistake in my work, and that I would consult some more experienced knitters to see what they had to say.

And it turns out I had made a mistake.

Thankfully, I wasn’t too far into the project, so I decided to simply start over again, this time also using a different size cable connector on my needles – a choice I am very pleased with (for anyone knowledgeable about knitting out there, I’ve decided to leave learning the magic loop method for another time).

If you’re beginning knitting – or any hobby really – I recommend trying to find a little community of people to learn from. Finding advice on blogs and YouTube can be very helpful, but some of the best answers I’ve gotten to specific questions have been from those in the knitting groups I’m a part of on Facebook. Along with being a great resource for help and advice, I love being able to show pictures of my projects with people who are interested in the craft and encouraging of each others’ progress.

The second attempt is going much smoother…at least for now!

Some Thoughts on Distributed Learning

It felt very apt that I was unable to attend the class on distributed learning in person but was required to call in via Zoom – very much a first-hand learning experience.

There were a few of us that had to attend online, and during the class discussion it was a little hard to participate, so we each spent the time doing personal reflection on the discussion prompts, which I thought I would share here.

The worst part about learning online is…

From my experiences with online learning (I was lucky enough to graduate just as the pandemic started, but I did my grade 9 year online as well), I have two main grievances. First, I found it difficult at times to get myself motivated when I was just sitting at home on my laptop – I really like school, and a lot of what I enjoy is being able to move around and change locations and experience different teaching styles and some of the spontaneity that comes from all of us being together in a room. Also, much of my online learning experience was asynchronous and self-paced, which for me was the perfect combination for low motivation.

The best part about learning online is…

…exactly what happened in this class! Even though a few of us were unable to attend class in person for various reasons, we didn’t have to miss out entirely. Online learning provides an avenue of access that has the ability to open up so many doors.

The pandemic has shown us that online learning…

…and online teaching require their own sets of skills.

…should, in some arenas, be here to stay.

…is not for everyone.

Jeff Hopkins and Inquiry

Jeff Hopkins’ TED Talk provided an analogy that I really liked: “Education is not the filling of a pail but rather the lighting of a flame.”

I appreciated this visual as many of the ideas that he shares in his talk, and similar ideas that I’ve heard from speakers and professors thus far, are ones that I am interested in using to inform my practice. I agree that the shift from an education system that is focused on “knowing” to one that focuses on “knowing about” is important – I think we’re beginning to see this shift happening – especially in the “new” curriculum (which now may just be known as the curriculum, although it’s new to me!), but depending on the classroom or school this transformation may still be in its infancy for some.

Unfortunately, I was unable to attend Jeff’s talk to our class, but from what I know from Jeff and PSII and what I know of other teachers and high schools, there are very big gaps in the amount of inquiry-based learning that students are doing depending on where they are being educated in the province. While a school model like PSII might not be possible everywhere, or potentially even useful everywhere, I am excited to see what lessons and inspirations can be drawn from Jeff’s ideologies and applied to a more mainstream classroom.

Rather than simply filling students with information, I really do hope to be able to spark and nurture and passion within each of my students – in a way that works for them.