We teachers shape the world; so, we’d better shape it as best as we can. We need to foster education that open minds, broadens horizons and challenges beliefs. First and foremost we, as teachers, have to be learners, and to take advantage of opportunities for learning/re-learning through CPD.
Summers camps for teachers can, and, in our experience, do lead to the creation of learning communities that enhance not just lifelong learning but also promote lifelong friendships. These networks of friends/colleagues continue to motivate their members, inspire them and help them to grow both as professionals, and as people, beyond the life of the camp.
Becoming better teachers, however, does involve reviewing and revising not only what we do in the classroom but also how we approach life in general. It means being on top of various methodologies/technologies that have developed over the years, and also understanding how different students learn. Some of these issues (NLP, learning styles, multiple intelligences etc.) are controversial, but only by a thorough consideration of the way our students learn, and by respecting them as human beings, allowing them to take responsibility for their learning process, and by taking care of our own well-being, can we ensure the kind of education envisioned above..
The Bridge Camp comprises a carefully thought out programme that takes into account many of the aspects mentioned above, including yoga, meditation, fresh vegetarian food, workshops and evening activities to fill you with energy and creative ideas so that you are ready to kick start the new academic year with renewed enthusiasm and vigour.
The curriculum (content) of the course will be partly determined by the strengths/weakness (and the needs) of the participants, and there will be ample opportunity to learn from one another. The final programme will emerge when the participants have returned their application forms.
There will be opportunity to address issues re ‘mind, body and soul’. The aim is that by the end of the week, you should feel relaxed, energised and able to go back to work armed with new/novel ideas and, more importantly, with a willingness to try them out.