Lou

When I attended the Summer Institute, I was nervous because I didn’t feel very confident that my presentation would have much to offer the other participants.  Tom Fox set my mind at ease during my interview after he realized that I had more questions about my teaching practice than answers.  I was advised that it is encouraged to raise questions as much as to try to solve them.  The Writing Project values inquiry. The most useful insight that I came away from the Summer Institute was that raising questions is the first step to solving problems.

I gathered all of my resources and examples, reflected with the rest of the participants upon my practices, presented some specific questions about next steps, and we worked together to come up with some answers to my inquiry.  We all came away from the presentation with some new thoughts and ideas.

Now, whenever I give a presentation, I look for questions that I can raise more so than knowledge that I might impart.  I find that spending time with talented people while working through problems is much more valuable for everyone involved than simply presenting information.

My presentation on Wednesday, although full of useful skills to learn, is based again on inquiry.  I hope that the participants of the Summer Institute and I can figure out some next steps for this coming school year, propose new questions and insights, and each come away with fresh thoughts on developing practices.