About Mr. Gokarn...
I was born in Toronto long, long ago and moved out west after finishing high school. I attended Briercrest Bible School in Saskatchewan and lived in Banff for several years. I have had many jobs in the past, including burger flipper (yes, at McDonald's), house framer, postal deliverer, landscaper, electrician, and bus driver. I have taught at St Catherine's since 2001, teaching grades 2, 4 and 6. I got married in 1992 and I now have three children, one girl and two boys. I enjoys boating, golfing, hockey, baseball, football, pretty much all sports really, am a long suffering Leafs (and Jays) fan, and I enjoy iced capps and popcorn, but not together, 'cause that's gross. Some things I have learned along the way are:
- As much as you plan, the best things in life are usually surprises.
- We usually learn much more from our mistakes than our successes.
- Human beings were never intended to live above the 49th parallel.
- You can do immeasurably more than you ever thought you could.
- God is good al the time, all the time, God is good.
teaching philosophy....
I drive my students crazy because I rarely give a straight answer. I prefer to respond with a leading question, something that provokes them to think of the answer themselves. I like to encourage my students to be actively involved in their education. I try to vary my teaching style to accommodate different learning preferences (reading & writing, visual, auditory, kinaesthetic. etc...), however they are just that....preferences. I may prefer to sit in my housecoat all day, but it does not accomplish much. We must all learn to learn in many different ways, some of which may require more work. As for homework, I try not to assign any if i can help it. Kids are at school all day and that should be enough. However, when in class assignments are not completed, work may need to be done at home, and there are times when I will assign short assignments as needed. However, I do try to limit the amount of homework to a maximum of about 30 minutes. I do not feel that two hours of exasperation is beneficial to the student, the parent, or the teacher.
Everyone learns differently. We all have learning preferences and I try to vary the experiences and activities in my classroom so that different learning styles are addressed and accommodated.
Following your instincts usually works out fine.
Trial and error works more often than you might think.
After you've given it your best try, you may need help.