Finding the Spark - Are you Interested?

Interest, in my view, can start with something very small. Situational interest, based on my readings, happens when there is something stimulating in the immediate environment. It might be a question, an activity, a surprising fact, a picture, a story, or something else that catches the attention. But is situational interest restricted to these examples only?

Could situational interest also arise in the event of an urgent need? The need itself is not situational interest, but perhaps the spark happens at the moment you find a possible solution to a problem you’re facing. Imagine being stuck on the side of a countryside road with an engine problem and you suddenly find a solution online. Would you feel that spark? I personally think I would feel a rush, and I would be focused on the solution and motivated to resolve the issue. Is that the spark of interest we’ve heard so much about? Is that the same kind of spark mentioned in the definition of situational interest?

I remember a kind professor telling the class about a situation where he faced an issue with the toilet, and he had no recourse but to resolve it himself. And as he scoured the vast database of YouTube videos, he came across a video that targeted the exact problem. And even though said video was in Russian(!), he watched it (presumably more than once) and managed to resolve the issue. I wonder if there was a spark of interest in that situation. Maybe that’s also a form of situational interest? Because frankly, if I were in such a situation, I would feel a rush of excitement and an upsurge in energy when I finally find what I am looking for, especially when in need. So, situational interest, in my view, is that temporary spark; that excitement of finding what you need; and that wow factor that may cause you to become more focused, motivated, and engaged with the situation.

Moreover, while preparing our presentation on interest, I thought of a question that stayed with me: Do students always need to begin a lesson with a vested interest in the topic? And if somebody does not like the topic at all or “hates” it, what is it that a teacher should do?

In my view, a student may not like the topic of a lesson initially, but if that student continues to have positive experiences with said topic, I believe that the student can gradually develop interest. Perhaps the teacher can create an experience that helps spark situational interest? And if such positive experiences continue, the student’s situational interest can gradually grow into a stronger type of interest, namely individual interest. This made me think about how often students may say things like, “I hate math,” “Science is boring,” or “I’m just not interested in reading.” As teachers, it would be easy to assume that some students simply do not like certain subjects. But maybe that is not always the full story. Maybe they just have not had the right experience yet, and it is up to the teacher to take on this challenge and help develop the student’s interest.

I also read that when interest is present, students are more motivated to learn, while disinterest can make learning much more difficult. My readings also described interest as something fragile that can appear and disappear quickly. I think that this aspect alone makes the teacher’s role very important. A teacher might not be able to force a student to become interested, but we can create opportunities for interest to develop. For example, a student who does not care much about science might become curious after looking through a telescope or watching an experiment. That one moment may not turn into a lifelong interest, but it can be a starting point.​

As a future teacher, I want to remember to look for those small moments of curiosity and those little sparks of interest. And then, instead of merely asking, “How do I teach this lesson?” I sure hope to think of other useful questions too, like: “What could make a student want to know more?” or “what could pique the students’ interest in the topic of my lesson?”

Perhaps that small spark is enough to motivate the learning!           

IjazA@OTU

Is AI good for teachers but bad for learners?

 Why AI Helps Teachers

Reduces workload: AI drafts lesson plans, quizzes, rubrics, and feedback, saving hours of routine administrative work.
Customizes instruction: Teachers use AI to quickly adapt materials for different reading levels and learning styles.
Focusses on human connection: By automating repetitive tasks, teachers have more time for direct student interaction and emotional support.

Risks for teachers: Overreliance on AI can introduce algorithmic bias, data privacy issues, or administrative pressure to replace human judgment with automated grading.

Why AI Challenges Learners

Dulls critical thinking: Unsupervised use—such as letting AI write essays or solve math problems—bypasses the cognitive struggle required to actually learn.
Creates a false sense of mastery: Studies show students who use AI just to find quick answers perform worse on later closed-book tests than peers who used traditional methods.
Spreads misinformation: AI tools can hallucinate false facts or present inaccurate data that students may lack the subject expertise to spot.

How AI Can Benefit Learners

Acts as a Socratic tutor: When programmed to ask guiding questions rather than give direct answers, AI helps students brainstorm and grasp difficult concepts.
Increases accessibility: AI provides real-time translation, vocabulary support, and alternative text formats for diverse learners.

                                              Brought to you by: Karim@OTU-417

Fake It Till You Make It: Authority and Classroom Management

Classroom management is a real challenge. Having routines and structure is important for commanding attention and establishing authority, but that is not the only way to do it. These are good strategies, but as teachers, we also need to have confidence and self-belief while teaching. Otherwise, students can quickly lose respect for us, and we may struggle to maintain control and authority in the classroom.

I have been coaching for about six years and have been coaching full-time for the past two years. When I first started coaching in 2021, I worked with 9 and 10 year-olds. Coaching this age group was typically easier because I could throw balls at them, teach them the basics, and rely on the fact that they did not have much previous knowledge of baseball. Now, I am coaching higher-level players who have a much greater understanding of the game. Because of this, I have to think more carefully about what I say and how I explain things. This can be intimidating because sometimes players ask me questions that I am not sure how to answer.

One of the biggest pieces of advice I received from a veteran coach was, “You have to be assertive. Even if you are unsure of yourself, say what you think it is because it can always be corrected in the future by you.” This advice really kicked me into gear because it gave me a greater sense of leadership. I realized that I am in this position for a reason, and I have to push my self-doubt to the side and be strong for the players and for my reputation as a coach. To me, this relates to the idea of “fake it till you make it.” Even though I first heard this advice in a baseball setting, I think it applies to the classroom as well. Even if I do not know the answer to a question, I need to be confident and honest in my response. If I am unsure, I can tell my students that I will look into it and come back with the correct answer. I do not need to pretend that I know everything, but I do need to show confidence and demonstrate that I am willing to find the answer.

Last year, I also had the privilege of volunteering with a number of teachers. One of the questions I asked them was, “How do you always have control over the classroom?” One teacher explained that he does not always have control. However, he told me, “You also have to know what kind of teacher you want to be. Based on that, you can start developing your own systems and routines.”

Looking back on that conversation, I want to be a teacher who is known for being fair and just. I want to be a teacher who has fun with students but also knows when it is time to work. With this in mind, one teacher I worked with had an excellent routine with his K–4 classes. At the beginning of class, students would complete a warm-up and then become quiet. One part of the routine was for students to run three laps around the gym and then sit quietly in the middle of the gym while they waited for instructions.

This routine served two purposes. First, it created structure and consistency. Second, it gave students a “home” spot. For example, if a Grade 2 class was learning how to pass a soccer ball and the teacher wanted to split them into teams, he could tell the students to return to the middle of the gym. The students would automatically know that they needed to be quiet and listen because that was what they had practiced every day through their routine.

This experience helped me understand that classroom management is not just about having authority or being the loudest person in the room. It is about creating clear expectations, developing consistent routines, and having confidence in yourself as a teacher. I am still developing my own teaching style, but these experiences have helped me realize that confidence and consistency will be important parts of the teacher I want to become.

BrendanC@OTU-L&D-1301

How do we Spark Interest as Educators?

As a future educator, the topic of interest relating to motivation in learning has always been extremely interesting (pun intended) and intriguing to me. Getting the chance to present this learning key during week 3 was very beneficial for me to have the chance to delve deeper into this topic. 

How do we, as educators, spark interest in our students and eventually have them reach the goal of interest in lifelong learning? Interest isn't something us future teachers can simply "give" students. We can, however, invite curiosity and support those thoughts, helping them become more engaged in the topic, and eventually in more topics along the way. 

I really like the phrase "spark it, support it, let it grow" as a simple but effective statement for motivation in learning. "Spark it": Initially grab students' interest in an engaging manner. "Support it": After the initial flicker of interest occurs, we encourage it and provide opportunities to allow it to be examined further. "Let it grow": We allow students to take ownership of their interest and thus their learning.

I do not have extensive experience regarding teaching in a formal manner (yet!). I do, however, have experience working as an educator at Reptilia Zoo. This position was actually my turning point for becoming a future educator. I was responsible for teaching the kids about animal behaviour, wildlife conservation, and basic scientific concepts. Some of the kids were excited to be "on a field trip" and out of their usual classroom; others, not so much, as they had little to no interest in reptiles. In hopes of initially sparking their interest, I would bring out live reptiles and allow the kids to physically touch them while I was teaching my lesson. They were interested and thus began asking (and answering) questions about the animals or about other scientific concepts. Many of the kids had expressed disinterest in science but after being able to touch and interact with the lesson, they became engaged and were excited to learn about some of the concepts I was teaching them. Great! We could check off situational interest as occurring in this scenario. But how could we move into individual and general interest, and eventually lifelong learning?

Individual interest deepens that temporary spark of curiosity. These are specific to each individual. The initial interest becomes a personal preference while the student realizes they are interested in the topic at hand. General interest means that as the interest grows, there is the idea that anything can be interesting, not just your individual interests. This belief gradually extends to areas that may be dissimilar to individual interests as their curiosity generalizes. Finally, for lifelong learning, the student no longer needs a classroom to learn as they realize that they enjoy learning as a whole. It is like reaching critical mass; enough reaction has occurred that it sets forward a chain reaction that will continue. 

As future educators, we need to become comfortable with the idea that this learning is progressive and gradual, and to continue to build momentum toward interest in our students. Eventually, it will not be as dependent on us as teachers, but rather driven by the student as this momentum builds. I want my students to feel that my classroom is a safe space to actively participate, sharing their own thoughts and feelings about a topic, rather than passively gain information.

"Spark it, support it, let it grow!"

EmmaS@OTU

What I Learned About the Learning Process

The Learning Process

During the past week in class, I have discovered different aspects of learning and how students can learn in various ways. I have realized that students can learn through thinking, social interactions, emotional, plus physical activities. I have also discovered that although a teacher can teach a lesson it does not necessarily mean that the students have learned it. The students may need more time or practice to fully understand the concept. Therefore, it is the teacher's responsibility to ensure that students learn effectively.

Many things that I have discovered about learning is that a student comes to class with their own background knowledge and experience. If a learner manages to relate something new to their existing experience or knowledge, it can help them to understand what they are learning better. I can relate this to being a first-year education student since I prefer to relate things that I learn to previous experiences or knowledge. For instance, if a professor relates a concept to something that we already know in the class, I find it much more understandable and memorable. Therefore, I would hope to give my future students a chance to relate what they are learning to their existing knowledge or experience.

I have discovered that although there is the teacher who teaches and the students who learn, a student can learn actively through questioning, sharing ideas, collaborating with peers, and discussion. I find that I learn better when I am being actively engaged rather than sitting in a class and listening to someone talk. As a future teacher, I want my students to have the chance to participate during our class discussions.

We were required to do a group presentation which I found exciting. I learned something useful with their presentation, and I found their ideas intriguing. Moreover, their presentation helped me when it came to my presentation since I used their ideas. I found that it made my experience much more exciting.

What I also learned is that constructivism  requires a learner to construct their own knowledge. They achieve this by relating new concepts to their previous knowledge and experience. I believe that this is significant since students like learning in different ways. As a teacher, I can facilitate this by engaging students in discussions and questioning. Another constructivism theory that I found exciting is the scaffolding concept. I discovered that scaffolding works when a teacher provides the right amount of assistance and then later removes it as the student becomes better at the task. I believe that this is essential in my future teaching career since some students need different levels of support from their teachers in order to learn better.

I discovered behaviorism and learned that a student can be motivated intrinsically or extrinsically. I have found that sometimes students need rewards, appreciation, or punishment to get them to behave or work. Nevertheless, other students may be naturally inclined to do something good or become successful. Therefore, as a teacher, I will strive not to rely on rewards to get my students to perform. I want my students to learn to enjoy learning as much as they love to achieve their goals.

Another behaviorist theory that I discovered was that learning is something that takes time. Some students take longer than others to grasp a certain topic or concept. Therefore, students need various levels of practice, repetition, and remediation. I believe that some students can even learn better from their mistakes since it teaches them to work harder or change their learning styles. I want my future students to be able to develop a classroom community where they feel comfortable making mistakes and learning from them.

Being a first-year education student, this week's learning experience has created in me a better meaning of being a teacher in the future. I have learned that teaching is not only about understanding a topic and teaching it to someone else but also knowing my audience and finding different ways to help them learn the concept. Students like being engaged in class. Therefore, I want to be a teacher who asks questions and encourages my students to become independent learners.

I have learned that a student can learn from each other. My experience with working in groups of students has taught me that students can teach each other different concepts and engage into divergent viewpoints when it comes to problem-solving. I like to learn through discussions since I find that I can understand something when another person explains it to me. Therefore, I want my future students to engage in group work where they can share and learn new ideas from each other.

With regard to everything that I have discovered about learning this week, I am excited to become a teacher and help my students to learn. I hope to create a classroom community where my students feel understood and supported throughout the year. I want my students to understand that learning is individualized in which everyone has different ways of learning. I want my students to be able to be comfortable expressing their thoughts, questions, and ideas without being afraid of making mistakes. Although I am new to the education program, I hope to always remember what I have discovered about learning and apply it in my teaching career.

Leila Rezaei Somaeh@OTU

Teaching Goal

Something that really touched me during the first three weeks of learning and development classes with our Professor is the “Power of Yet”, “Plan your work and work your plan” and “I do, we do and you do concept”. These are not just the words they have big meanings behind them. These were the words that I have never come across in my life until before getting into the Faculty of Education (OTU).

The power of yet: This sentence has so much meaning behind it. Just adding the simple word yet can actually make you do wonders. The best thing is that, “Yet” is for everybody whether it is a teacher or a student or a parent. As teachers, we should always follow the power of yet, keep trying hard and do not fear failures. This attitude will help our students to foster self-confidence and growth-mindset. 

Plan your work and work your plan: It is important to plan our work ahead of time and come prepared as teachers every time to the classroom with a mindset. This is very exciting as we should work and execute our plan in the classroom to make it more engaging for students and create successful positive learning environments.

I do-we do-you do: I personally find this method of teaching students very interesting with a mind set. The teacher first demonstrates the lesson, then students and teacher do it together as a group in a class and last, but not the least  student will do it alone individually and show the knowledge and understanding of the lesson. 

I am very delighted that I am a part of a B.Ed. Program at Ontario Tech University. I am learning great teaching methods and strategies to make a better future for myself and for hundreds of young students around me. 

FatimaS@OTU

Are We Teaching the Grade or Teaching the Student?

In Week 3’s Learning and Development class, I found myself really interested in the topic of student development and how differently students can grow and learn, even when they are the same age. The Group B seminar presentation on Student Development helped me understand this topic on a deeper level by exploring how physical, cognitive, social, and moral development can all influence a student’s experience in the classroom.

When we hear that a student is in Grade 8, we probably already have expectations about what they should be able to do. They should work independently, think critically, manage their emotions, work with others, and understand that their actions have consequences… right?

But what happens when they can't?

One of the biggest ideas that stood out to me from the Group B presentation was that development impacts learning in many different ways. Students are developing physically, cognitively, socially, and morally, and all of these areas can influence their experience at school. Developmental theories can help us understand students, but they should not be treated as fixed rules for what every student should be able to do at a certain age (Group B, 2026).

I found the discussion of social development particularly interesting. The presentation discussed changes in students' self-concept, relationships, personal motives, and understanding of rights and responsibilities (Group B, 2026).

Think back to yourself in Grade 8. Were you the same person as every other 13 year old in your class? Probably not.

Some students may have been independent and confident, while others were still figuring out where they belonged. Even though everyone was sitting in the same classroom and learning the same curriculum, everyone was experiencing adolescence differently.

This connects to Erik Erikson's theory of psychosocial development. Erikson (1968) describes adolescence through identity versus role confusion, when young people are developing their sense of identity. I have seen this through my own experiences working with youth. You cannot expect every young person of the same age to respond to a situation in exactly the same way. Something that motivates one person might discourage another. Some need independence, while others need reassurance, structure, or additional support. Getting to know the individual has helped me understand what they need rather than simply relying on their age.

I also connected with the classroom implications discussed during the seminar. Students need opportunities to experience success, challenging but achievable goals, and feedback that builds competence rather than shame. 

That really stuck with me.

As teachers, we can influence how students see themselves as learners. A student who repeatedly hears that they are "bad at English" or "a difficult student" may begin believing those labels. Providing opportunities for success and feedback focused on growth can instead help students develop confidence.

As a future high school teacher, my biggest takeaway is that I don't want to teach a grade level; I want to teach the students actually sitting in front of me. Two 14-year-olds can enter the same classroom with completely different experiences, confidence levels, and needs.

My responsibility is to get to know them.

Instead of asking, "Why can't this student do what someone their age should be able to do?" maybe we should ask:

"What does this student need from me right now in order to grow?"

References

Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. W. W. Norton & Company.

Group B. (2026). Student development [Seminar presentation]. Ontario Tech University.

KendalW@OTU

Should We Use AI in the Classroom?

Unfortunately when new technologies emerge, the question that often gets asked is “how can we use this?”, when in reality the real question is “should we?”. In my undergrad one of my favourite classes I took was about designing the interface for a website. I worked many hours with my peers on our project and I felt real passion about the work I was doing. When we got to see the other groups there was of course one that was far superior to ours. This group has used AI and in all fairness they were allowed to do so in this course. I no longer felt passionate about my work, what I was once proud of was outdone by a project that took the other group less than a tenth of the time. 

In education I think we need to ask this question. Should our students use AI? While it is becoming increasingly widespread in the workforce and is something they will certainly use, does using it replace true passion. As educators we should motivate our students to pursue more than just academic performance but real fulfillment in their interests. Should we encourage future musicians in our class to prompt AI for their songs? Should we encourage our artistic students to use AI for their artworks? Schools are not just institutions to become educated, they are environments to become inspired. 

When we used to dream about artificial intelligence we imagined one day it would benefit the world, that we would be free to pursue the arts while hard labour was taken care of. Now it feels like the opposite, we constantly replace real art with AI and yet the safest careers are the ones in labour industries. Students should be able to pursue their passions, and even if they are not passionate about a subject school is about getting them to try all avenues. If a student is not great at art they should still try to paint. 

There will certainly be times our students will need to use AI and I am not simply saying to not teach them and let them go into the workforce unprepared. What I ask is that are we using AI merely to replace work? Productive struggle is what drives students to learn, it is what gives them confidence in their own abilities once they finally figure it out. An overreliance on AI in the classroom robs students of both their passion and their learning experience. 

I am not  saying to never use AI in the classroom and it definitely has its place in education. What I am remarking on is that for every lesson and every assignment we give our students, this question should be considered: not can we use AI, but should we?

RyanU@NUO

How to Make History Interesting

Interest was a significant part of Week 3’s Learning and Development class with importance directed at how to spark a student’s interest and how to build that spark into lifelong learning. As a future history teacher, there is a common stigma from students that history is boring and it is simply memorizing facts, which I used to believe as well. I grew up with a dad who was a massive history buff, specifically about the world wars, and he would show me movies, documentaries, and books which sparked my interest in history. Him and I would sit for hours and talk about new information that he had learned and how it connected to what we already knew. 

When I began history in school in grade 7, my teacher simply had us read from the textbook and answer questions which continued into grade 8. I found this incredibly boring and I hated having to interact with the topic of history in class. I hoped in grade 10 my teacher would make the subject interesting but all my teacher did was read word for word off of PowerPoint presentations and quiz us on names and dates. That is when I developed a hatred towards school history classes, but continued with my love of history at home. Had I not had a previous interest in history, I would have finished my engagement with history after finishing grade 10. 

This changed when I took grade 12 history and I decided to give school history one last chance. My teacher in grade 12 sparked that interest in me again when looking at history in school since she made the topic interesting and engaging. It was Early Modern European history and we spent time looking at the Renaissance and Reformation and instead of just looking at names and dates, we focused on individual people and the larger themes in society. This made the content fascinating and easier to understand. 

I hope to be the teacher that sparks interest in my students in all history classes. While I may not have personally enjoyed the content in grade 7, 8, and 10 history, when approached differently, the content is actually very interesting and directly related to how Canada is run today. Students are not going to engage with the topic if the only interaction they have with it is reading textbooks and answering worksheets or memorizing names and dates. Showing students individual people and explaining the history through them can make it much more personal. The history turns into a lived experience that students will be able to connect with better. 

Grade 10 history is an easy way to show how this can be implemented. When learning about the world wars, teachers can often get lost explaining battles by focusing on when it happened and where it happened. How can a student properly engage with that? The specific expectations of the curriculum can still be covered when the lesson is made engaging to students. For example, students can cover expectations C2.3 (“explain the main causes of World War II, and analyze Canada’s contribution to the war effort”) (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2026) and C2.5 (“explain some ways in which World War II affected non-Indigenous Canadians, including how the war changed the lives of various groups in this country”) (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2026) through one interactive assignment. Using the website Project ‘44 (https://project44.ca/), students can pick one Canadian soldier who was involved in a battle during the war. 

This site has original war diary entries from soldiers during WWII so students can see how Canada contributed to that specific battle, the soldier’s specific contribution to the battle, and how the outcome of the battle affected them. Using this assignment, students have the power to pick any of the thousands of Canadian soldiers based on their own previous interest. It is not difficult to make history an interesting subject for students but it is very easy to make it a subject that students dread. It is up to the teacher to either extinguish any previous interest or spark interest and allow it to blossom into lifelong learning. 

References 

Ontario Ministry of Education. (2026). History, Grade 10. Curriculum and Resources. https://www.dcp.edu.gov.on.ca/en/curriculum/canadian-and-world-studies/courses/chc2d. 

ElizabethH@OTU