SAFINA B. KHUDURUN - BOODOO

CONCEPT:   Obscura

The concept “Obscura”, implies lots of emotions and feelings.  My source of inspiration is blind people.  Why?  Because, during my social service at the centre of 'LIZIE DAN LA MAIN' (Union des Aveugles de l’ile Maurice), the partially sighted and blind people have influenced me emotionally.  They shared with me their way of thinking, likes, dislikes and most importantly their fears, difficulties and challenges that they face in their daily life. 

My interaction with partially sighted and blind people has compelled me to bring out their existence. “Obscura” is the ray of light found at the tunnel, unveiling their deepest feelings, and emotions wrapped in a package of dreams, hope and change leading to autonomy and acquiring all their deserved rights as human beings. It is also a means to express themselves in terms of feelings and emotions, aspirations, expectations and the change they want to see in the mindset of the society so as to become autonomous and be self-actualised.  

Leading a normal life is their dream.

We, as normal and healthy human beings possess all our senses, organs and all parts of our body, sometimes it does not make any difference to us to consider disabled persons.  We forget that they form part of our world and are our co-inhabitants in society. In Mauritius, I have often noticed that Blind people are often rejected by society and are abused due to their impairment.  They are looked down on by society and they are known as the vulnerable or the “autrement capables” which decrease their self-esteem.

This concept will definitely expose to the so-called “normal people” (public), that blind people, also are autonomous, can earn a living, have a family and can share the same sports activities, entertainment or fun as others.   They can lead a normal social life.  They do have the same rights to education, sports, career and most importantly they do have feelings and emotions which need to be valued, nurtured and prioritised.

Nowadays, in this fast-developing country, due to modernization, the students’ needs are also altering.  I believe that Continuous Professional Development (CPD) is a fundamental aspect that the teacher needs to acquire as an asset.  For this reason, I joined the PGCE, in order to further develop my competencies as an educator to meet the learning needs of students of different cognitive levels. Teachers must develop expertise in the subject so as to impart knowledge and skills to students through the content effectively.  Definitely, the teacher needs to keep abreast with the latest development in the field of Art and Design.  

In my Subject Didactics I, II and III (Art & Design), I have been able to refine my practice and at the same time prepare myself for any challenge of teaching in this new era.  For example, during this pandemic of Covid-19, online and blended teaching and learning have made their apparition, where both teachers and learners had to adapt to this new model.  

In this module, I have learnt how to encourage and implement new strategies in my class like the example, group work, discussions, projects presentation, learning by doing, discovery learning etc…Hence, through good communication skills, I can easily instil teamwork among my students by working in constant collaboration with their peers as well as the teacher.  Collaborative learning is encouraged due to social interactions among peers.  Peer teaching and learning has proved to be very effective in my class as students participate actively.  

As a result, by implementing the innovative teaching and learning strategies learnt at the MIE, I have been able to render my teaching effective, consolidate my relationship with my learners as well as colleagues.  This module has helped me to shift from traditional to innovative ways of teaching.  I must be honest to say that indeed I was teacher-centred in my teaching approaches rather than student-centred.  

To cater for the mixed abilities students, I could henceforth plan, organize and design the appropriate adapted lesson plans.  Henceforth, I take into consideration the learners’ learning styles, cognitive skills, manipulative skills, capabilities and interests whereby the implementation of different learning and teaching strategies and approaches of differentiated learning would be the best way to reach and satisfy the learners’ needs.  Thus, they do not feel bored and their experiential engagement promotes lifelong learning.  Using the ICT, I can now prepare interactive teaching aids where the students can manipulate with designs and colours on the software, for repeat patterns and it is more time-consuming.

This course has indeed transformed me into an innovative, creative and professional educator.  Teaching and learning become more interesting when new ways of presenting it are being manipulated by the teacher.  I have been empowered with the essential pedagogical knowledge, skills and attitudes to sustain a conducive teaching and learning environment.  It has also been a platform for interaction between peers and teachers on pertinent issues that shaped our personal identity and practice.  

I strongly believe that we teachers must continue to upgrade our Professional Development and reflect and learn on our self-critical analysis of our practice so as to be in line with the new trends of the educational system.  Hence, I am being able to develop their 21st-century skills and competencies in this technologically advanced era.