Middle school
During my studying in a middle school the situation with international literature course impressed me very much, because it showed two absolutely different approaches to the learning process.
We had a course of international literature taught by an old lady. In her class we read all books approved by ministry programs (mostly depressive Russian “classics”) and wrote essays about each book. In an essay she wanted to see thoughts and decisions corresponding to her own vision. All alternative points of view didn’t have any chance to get a high grade. She basically taught literature as like it is Math or something formalized!
In the middle of the course she retired and school replaced her with a young lady. This young lady didn’t make us to read Dostoevsky and Tolstoy. Instead, she gave us their briefs and organized voting for what books we really want to read. Even those students who thought they hate reading rushed to her class to discuss Tolkien and Sapkovsky. She didn’t make us know and understand Russian classics, but she made us love reading and express own thoughts.
High school
I recall in memory the course of Computer Networks that I learned in the university. It was taught by the associate professor who was also a practicing specialist in this area. However the learning experience at that moment seemed me awful – he didn’t give us simple well-structured lectures in our native language and basic tasks to dive into the topic, instead he gave us articles in English and complicated guides about solving real practical issues. The exam was a real nightmare – almost all group failed because he demanded the deepest understanding of each topic and asked tricky questions.
And several years later when I needed that knowledge to make next step in my career, I discovered that I literally remember everything, and in my mind, I thanked that professor.
At the end I turned it into my hobby, but I think that gaining deep knowledge shouldn’t be so painful, that’s why in my work I’m trying to combine both theoretical and practical content shared with students, and I hope this Instructional Design Course will help me to improve it.
Professional Career
After I got my Master degree I decided to continue studying and get PhD, but studying process was expected to start in autumn, so I had about 9 free months. I decided to find a full time job for this period to improve my skills and get some practical experience. I sent my CV to some companies and got an invitation to the interview.
For the interview I prepared a rich portfolio with projects, which I made in the past. But when I arrived, the interviewer barely looked at my work. He asked me how many professional books I’ve read for the past year. I said that none, because the area is quite specific, and best experience you can get during practice. Then he said that they were looking only for professionals, and asked me to leave.
It was a huge shock for me as I thought I was worth something, and he said I was not. Luckily, my mom persuaded me to go to one more interview. In that company nobody asked me theoretical questions, they looked through my portfolio, asked me to do two test tasks right there in the office, and informed me that I’m hired.
I ended up working there for 5 years and then quit because I decided to continue working as a researcher, but I’m still thankful for judging me not for number of books read, but for real knowledge.
