Ryan K

Hi there, my name is Ryan and I'm currently living in London.

My teaching journey can be best described as a meandering river with multiple tributaries! I graduated in 2010 and have taught on and off over that time while also completing 1.5 grad school degrees. I am on a supply list for high school right now and my most recent LTO experience was teaching Grade 9 Geography and Grade 11 Math in Kitchener last year. I can also teach Science and English, but haven't had the opportunity to teach either subject in high school yet.

Science is probably my favourite area! I got to teach part of a university geophysics course on earthquakes a few years ago and enjoyed that immensely. My current role is actually not in a classroom though - I'm working for Let's Talk Science in a program support role for youth outreach (Fun fact: the blue and green colours in my avatar are Let's Talk Science colours - I've used the hex colour codes so much recently that I decided to put them in there when I was choosing colours for my shirt and background). I was a coordinator for multiple years while at Western and took on this temporary role at the national office last year. I'm excited to get back into the classroom again soon!

I really wanted to take this course to learn more about how to better incorporate technology into my teaching. As part of the meandering river alluded to above, I took a few years away from teaching. Seeing the evolution even within that brief time after I returned was astounding! There are so many fascinating and exciting options available to use, but within that, many considerations to make as well (e.g., safety and privacy concerns). I want to learn how to filter through the myriad of options better and ultimately use tools that will best resonate with students. Students now have grown up with technology at every stage of their lives. As a result, it's important that teachers are able to use technology effectively to reach their students and respond to their unique needs to support their learning. In doing so, they can find ways to provide multiple opportunities to make learning fun and enriching at the same time. I would like to learn about some strategies on how I can evolve with students on my knowledge of technology use.

To me, the idea of teaching the 21st century learner is both exciting and daunting at the same time. I want to focus on ways to make it less daunting and ultimately find a way to connect with students effectively via technology.