Episode 10 - Life Story, The Education System, Eastern vs Western Teaching and The Future of Westwood ft. Maher Ahmed

Hey Everyone! Welcome back to episode 10 of The Drawing Board. We have a very special episode this week, because of one very special guest. We are pleased to host a 20-year veteran of Westwood Community High School, a passionate physics and math teacher and above all a personal inspiration and hero of ours, Mr Maher Ahmed. Mr Ahmed was our physics and math teacher during high school and is one of the most passionate, capable and engaging teachers we have ever had. His physics lectures left us captivated and intrigued all while being some of the most memorable and enjoyable classes we attended. From his infamous blackboard to the breathtaking electroscope demonstrations, he never failed to create unforgettable memories. Mr Ahmed is also quite passionate about the education system and teaching as a whole, and would often give us pearls of wisdom during classes about how to best proceed in the professional and academic world. Today we began by diving into Mr Ahmed's personal journey to teaching and how he came to be a teacher at Westwood and got a final word on when he is going to retire. We dove deeply into some of the problems in the education system today, how he believes we can best address them, what makes a good learner and teacher, and some of his personal beliefs about the future of education in light of ChatGPT/AI. We also talked a bit about Westwood itself, how it's evolved over the years and its future within Fort McMurray. Hope you all enjoy! P.S. Unfortunately our cameras did not end up being recorded, so there is, unfortunately, no camera footage but we will have it up and running for all future guests and episodes! If anyone has any ideas for topics to discuss or any other suggestions feel free to email us at [email protected]