Just in time!

 The idea of transforming our idea of teaching from just in case, to just in time, is something that stuck out to me after the first day of class. I have been trying to find meaning for a lot of things taught to me when I was growing up, and most of them are based off of just in case. Just in case I do not have a calculator, just in case I have to write a 5 paragraph essay in cursive, just in case I get lost in the woods I will know that Montana is green on the map I colored. These are all what ifs and just in case, instead of just in time. I want to transform my teaching to incorporate just in time teaching. I can not test my students on Friday on things taught Monday because it is too late. I need to be more interactive and more purposeful with what I am teaching and how I am teaching it. Things change in an instant and I need to evaluate if I am adapting and teaching or teaching what I was taught only. Google gave so many resources for researching different points of view that really got me thinking about how my classroom can incorporate these tools. Instead of just looking at a war or conflict from the United States perspective, I need to challenge my students to look at the other side of the argument. I saw this played out during COVID. I was living in Canada and even though we are very close, I was getting a lot of different perspectives and news than my family in Washington and Idaho was receiving. Having students start to understand, discuss and research many different viewpoints will lead to a deeper understanding of the knowledge. Knowledge is no longer defined by ‘knowing something.’ It is defined by one’s ability to learn, unlearn and relearn in the moment knowledge is needed. This definition shows a growth mindset in action. Students need to be constantly constructing knowledge by not being told the answer, but by being guided to learn, unlearn, and relearn the material presented. Technology was always presented to me as isolated, but the use of technology can be extremely inclusive and collaborative. Along with technology being used to create collaboration, it can create inclusivity and endless ways to differentiate our learning. Whether I like it or not I am entering into a classroom full of prosumers, and I need to make the changes, so I can reach and teach all my students. What a day the first day of class was.