The Joy of Literacy 511 and MTA 599-30

82 hours

2007-12-10T04:56:00.000-08:00

82 hours later and I am DONE with my observations for this semester. What have I learned?

Firstly, I learned that no matter how much education a teacher may have this does not mean they will teach well.

Secondly, I observed and I learned that the students just don't care. It is not totally their fault. The teachers convey the lessons in such a way where it is hard to make them care.

Thirdly, to be a teacher really means to be a babysitter with some tests thrown in to add a little spice.

What am I going to do because of this knowledge?

Firstly, I am going to take what I learn in my education classes and chuck it out the window. Your either going to be a good teacher or your going to suck.

Secondly, I am going to some how put a spell (maybe take up vudo) and make the students want to care about English. Some how, some way I am going to have to engage my students . . . by opening the door to WANTING and NEEDING to learn.

Thirdly, I am not a babysitter--I will not get paid enough to be a baby sitter. I am a Professional Educator. Thereofor, if a student does not feel that they need to do anything in my class...then they will kindly be excused.

Teaching is an amazingly crazy profession.

LET YOU’R GOOD BE BETTER AND YOUR BETTER BE YOUR BEST

2007-12-07T12:32:00.000-08:00

I cannot wait to observe in the lower grades

I have been reflecting on my observations: Seeing the students totally not care what is going on—

And I wonder….are the younger kids the same? I am really frustrated because I am not sure if I want to teach any more. Even though I don’t doubt my ability to reach the students… I am scared that they will be totally apathetic to what I want to teach.

I am in love with English. If it were a man I would marry it. During my observations though, it doesn’t seem like the other teachers are “in love.” There is one teacher who appears to really enjoy what he is teaching, but he doesn’t follow through. What I mean by not following through is he fails to reach the students.

I am not okay with FAILURE. Maybe that is the first thing I have to learn—failure.

I am the type of person who feels that anything is possible if one just tries hard enough. Key word “try.”

Trying was not something I noticed to many students doing.

Why have we failed as instructors?

Religion in schools?

2007-12-07T12:17:00.000-08:00

I was in the faulty room when all of a sudden a teacher storms in. This particular teacher happens to teach English right next door to the room that I observe in. She comes in swearing and obviously upset. Her friend (the teacher I am observing) asks her what is wrong. She says:

“My students are doing speeches and the other day one of the girls spoke on how she has been ‘saved.’”

This is an English 11 Honors class, and the teacher figured that the students would be able to handle controversial topics.

Well, she was wrong.

After (and I assume during the girls speech) two boys were really upset. One boy believes in God, the other one couldn’t understand why/how someone could believe in God. The debate got really heated and the teacher felt that she “handled” the situation well. She explained how everyone was in titled to their own opinion and that the point of the speeches was to inform different view points—not enforce a view point.

Well, the student’s decided to take matters into their own hands and got into a fight in the hall way later on.

What made the teacher upset was the fact that one of the parents emailed her, condemning her for allowing the girl to speak about a “religious topic.” In reaction, the teacher decided to cancel all the student presentations and give them the “unit from hell.”

I tried to give her my advice on the situation, but she didn’t want to hear it. She couldn’t separate the parents’ reaction from her students. Instead of sitting down with the parent, she took her frustration out on the students.

I would have handled the situation very differently. Not only was the outcome of the one speech unfortunate for the teacher, it was also unfortunate for the students. They worked hard and long on their speeches and never got to present them. I would have discussed what happened with the class and asked them to write a paper on why it is important to respect opinions and diversity. I would then give them historical situations where opinions and differences were not respected. I would NOT have cancelled the other speeches.

I don’t understand why people get so uptight about religion. I am a very religious person and I do not take offense to other view points. I recognize them as such: just differences of opinion.

Amazing

2007-11-02T08:56:00.000-07:00

From doing my observations, I sometimes feel like-- "What am I getting into?" Its not that I don't believe I am capable of teaching the students...I am terrified that they won’t want to learn. This, as silly as it sounds, makes me really sad.

I had a great experience yesterday while observing an 11th grade regents English class. There is this kid who I remember from last spring who is coined as a “waste case”—no one wants to work with him any more.

While I was observing, the teacher handed him back an essay that needed to be “rewritten.” From an outsider, it looked as if the student was just looking at the essay and not really putting any effort into making it better. Since I have been observing this particular class for a while, I have learned to study this one student’s facial expressions and interactions with others. For example, he doesn’t show respect for the teachers. I don’t think he does it to be really rude, in contrast, I feel that he does it to mask his feelings of inadequacy.

I decided to help him with his essay.
I walked over to his table and asked if I could read it. Surprisingly, it was written very well. Sure there were grammar mistakes—but over all the content showed a lot of personality. While reading it I asked questions about certain parts. I suggest adding in what he said and actually marked where he should add it in. It was amazing to see the light of understanding come into his eyes. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to redo the essay, he just didn’t understand how/what to do.

Same student—same day.

We had to analyze poetry. HAH! The expression on his face was like, “Are you kidding?”

I love poetry, so once again I decided to help him and his partner. We did some great work! They really responded to my prompts and they appeared to really enjoy it once they understood how to do it. Before he left the class that day he came up to me and said, “Miss. Hollister, thanks for you help.”

This thank you, coming from a student who doesn’t like teachers, meant the world to me.

While I was home that evening, I read a book called “Love that Dog.” The book is about a boy student who doesn’t like poetry. Within the first two pages the book reminded me completely of the first student I worked with. I couldn’t resist but buy the book for him.

While doing my observations the next week, I showed the teacher the book before the class came in. He was really excited about the book, because it would be a great tool to use, but said that the student wouldn’t appreciate it. I felt really down after that and decided not to give it to him.

Nevertheless, before I left I changed my mind. I went up to him and said, “I was reading this book and couldn’t help but think of you, so I decided to buy you a copy.”

The look of pure SHOCK on his face was astounding. He looked at me and said, “You bought this for me?”
I said, “ Yeah, I did. You’ll understand why within the first two pages…just trust me.”

He responded with, “So I can keep it?”

I said, “Of course it’s yours!”
He looked surprised. I am glade I didn’t listen to the teacher. I can’t wait to see if he actually read it

Language

2007-10-31T10:58:00.000-07:00

F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck F*ck

Tell me that, that word is not obnoxious and I will tell you that your F*cking crazy. I am SO mad. Why in the world would a teacher say this word in a classroom setting? Talk about unprofessional. I don’t care what his motives were: “Trying to connect with the students,” “being cool,” “getting their attention.” I wanted to throw my shoe at him as soon as he said it.

Another thing that mad me really made was how he introduced the poet Walt Whitman. He happens to be one of my favorite poets. I was excited to see that during class we would read portions from his poem, “Song of myself.” But how does the teacher open up the class? Well he says—“Walt Whitman was a drunk alcoholic and liked sex, therefore, everyone will enjoy reading his poetry because he is just like you.” Excuse me, but I am neither a drunk, nor am I obsessed with sex. He went on and said that literature that had death and sex in it was the only thing that would interest students. HELLO!

Thus, the students only thought about sex when reading Whitman’s poem. Sure, there are a lot of sexual innuendos, but the whole core meaning of the poem goes way beyond the dick.

For example, my favorite line

“A child said What is the grass? fetching it to me with full hands; How could I answer the child? I do not know what it is any more than he.”

There could be so much done in those couple of lines. Do you hear the word dick in it or sex? No, but still its pretty mind provoking—who would of thought?

WHAT ENGLISH 10 AGAIN!

2007-10-16T07:16:00.000-07:00

Schedule is on the black board—which allows students to know what they need to do.
The teacher checks hw, and allows students to hand in the hw late, as long as they bring a note in saying it is done.

I don’t know if I agree with allowing students to hand work in late. Nevertheless, at the same time I remember having to hand my work in later, and I was very grateful that the teacher didn’t take off points. I have not decided how I am going to handle this in my class.
One student has his head down—teacher asks if he is okay and shows genuine concern.
Teacher reads out loud while the students fallow.
She walks around the classroom while reading allowing her voice to travel around the room.
Some students are fallowing along—others decide to take a nap.
Maybe she should have different students take turn reading out loud? This might cause the students to get nervous and not like coming to class. Then again, reading out loud is a good skill to have—to be able to articulate the language.
After the teacher is done reading she reinforces what has been read thus far. Instructs the students to continue reading silently—I never really understood why teachers had students read silently in class. Small amounts are okay, but over 15 minutes students appear to lose interest, or just don’t care to even start reading.
Nevertheless, to make sure that the students are reading the teacher has a series of questions that they must answer before they can good to lunch.
Some student have to leave for extra help—its is good that the school provides for their needs.
I think it is hard to get students “wanting” to read a book. I understand that questions are a key way to asses a students understanding of a writing, nevertheless, doing it with every assignment may get very boring—causing the student become unengaged.

English 10 carbon copy

2007-10-16T07:13:00.000-07:00

Same teacher different class, same grade. This class is a carbon copy of the last. There is almost no deviation from what she says and how she conducts the class.
+ She is structured and fallows the course outline
- This might be a sign that she is losing her enthusiasm for teaching and has not imagination.
I understand that the same material is suppose to be taught for each class, but it would be nice to see some personality.

During the test the students are allowed to keep their head-phones on. I DO NOT AGREE!!

Academically it is clear what the teacher wants done, because she writes it down for the students to see.

One student cheats on the test—she either acts like she doesn’t see it nor does nothing about it. I will not tolerate cheating.
Class is silent: Student throws something across the room—teacher does nothing about it.
She has to regain/demand control of the class room by changing her voice, but does not yell. Instead of switching back and forth between doing nothing—then doing something (in reprimands) I feel that the teacher should always have control of the class and be consistent.
She ends the class with a speech on the importance of grades and how two students used their time wisely in the class
I do not agree with singling out students in front of the class for good or bad. If you want to praise a student do it in private.

English 10

2007-10-16T07:09:00.000-07:00

The Book Night by Elie Wiesel: Introduction—Students appear to really enjoy the teacher. The class is very respectful of her and the order of the classroom.
The teacher demands authority. She has the class schedule written on the board—allows the students to know what is going on and what is expected for that day.
Schedule:
Start with movie
Final exam
Check and go over vocab list
Start Night

The students just finished the book Monster by Walter Dean Myers—are now watching a movie on the book. It is important to implement technology in the class room as long as the teacher supports it with instruction. The students are not paying attention to the movie but are talking to their friends. This negates the purpose of using technology.

The students are allowed to eat in class. First impression: that the students respected the teacher is now being changed for the impression that the students feel the teacher is more their “friend” then instructor. This can have good and bad benefits (How do I want to run my class room?? I def. want authority—but I also want to establish a friendly relationship. There has to be a happy medium).

Before handing out the test after the movie, the teacher goes over questions (which are basically the same questions on the test) and had the students answer them (in preparation to the test). I do not agree with this at all! It is basically giving the students a cheat sheet.

She goes around the class room and grades if the students did it. She does not make a big deal if the they don’t have their hw but records it
--this is the end of the school year. If the students are not doing the hw there is really nothing she can do to promote/motivate them. I wonder how she acted in the start of the school year. I will have consequences to not having ones work done. By allowing students to feel that they do not have to do their work teaches lazy, and does not hold them accountable.

Went over vocab list one:
Decree
Cabbala
Emigrate
Convoy
Encumbered
Expel
Synagogue
Ghetto
Aryan
Truncheon

She goes around the class room and grades if the students did it. She does not make a big deal if the they don’t have their hw but records it--this is the end of the school year. If the students are not doing the hw there is really nothing she can do to promote/motivate them. I wonder how she acted in the start of the school year. I will have consequences to not having ones work done. By allowing students to feel that they do not have to do their work teaches lazy, and does not hold them accountable.

I want ORDER

2007-10-16T06:57:00.000-07:00

Interview

Question: “Do you find me intimidating?”
Answer: “I don’t find many people intimidating—maybe if you stood on a step stool I could take you seriously.”
Question: “If I was to start off my class really hard core, for example, if you dropped your pencil you would have to ask to pick it up, because it is MY Class room. Do you think that is a bad way to start off a class?”
Answer: “I would laugh at you.”

I really feel that being strict is a good way to structure a class room. Many of the students that I interviewed disagreed and I honestly can say I don’t really care. I feel that too many teachers are trying to be the student’s friend. Teaching will be my job. I am not the babysitter.

Idea of School uniforms

2007-10-16T06:51:00.000-07:00

I can’t help but be totally disgusted with the way students dress. Where has the sense of self worth gone?

From an academia perspective, there is no conclusive evidence that school uniforms increase positive behavior and achievements. There are many reasons why schools may choose to adopt school uniforms. For example, some districts feel that school uniforms help integrate students. Instead of seeing a certain type of clothing, that may categorize a particular student, school uniforms “allow students to see the importance of character” (Johnson USA Today). I think that too much energy is being put into what should our students wear, instead of what should our students learn. Nevertheless, I do see some validity that school uniforms might “level the playing field” (Johnson USA Today). Realistically, no matter what type of clothing students are thrust into, social and emotion prejudice will still exist. Poet Gwendolyn Brooks writes: “If prejudice is native and it is you/ Will find it ineradicable”; a simple change of attire will not all of the sudden level the playing field and make the jock sit down with the nerd. On the other hand, in defense of school uniforms, it maybe a simple action that schools can take to diminish social tension and prejudicial judgment.

I am totally for school uniforms

From a rational stand point, I would have loved having school uniforms. There have been days where I would run around my house yelling, “I HAVE NOTHING TO WEAR!” Maybe it is just a “girl thing”—but I always felt like I had to look just right. If I decided to wear, heaven forbid, sweat pants to school it was because “I felt sick,” not because I felt like being comfortable. Instead of squeezing myself into the jeans—
that I had to lay down on the floor to zipper up and do a little dance just to get them on all in the name of fashion because they were the cool things to wear— I would have much rather opened up my closet door and taken out a uniform. Instead, my mom would hear the all amazing statement of, “Do you think this makes me look fat?” I would say that 85% of my energy was wasted in the morning trying to find what I needed to wear. When I had a wrestling match, I always experienced less stress. I think that directly connected to the fact that I knew what I had to wear: Dress shirt and a tie (even though I was a girl, since I was on a guy’s team, I had to wear the same uniform as everyone else). The idea behind wearing the same attire was designed to create team unity. Being the sentimentalist that I am, I really do believe that it created unity and sparked a sense of pride. This idea of unity could be applicable to school uniforms as a whole. Nevertheless, there are always going to be the rebels that say, in the words of the band

Green Day:
I want to be the minority

I don't need your authority

Down with the moral majority

'Cause I want to be the minority!
I can see through my observations that being an individual is an extremely important aspect of being an adolescent.

"To be or not to be"

2007-10-16T06:24:00.000-07:00

I am really interested in creating my own personal philosophy of teaching and how my classroom should be structured. From observing different teachers, there are three questions that come to mind. Firstly, the main question that I can’t help but want to ask the students is, “Do you enjoy English class?” I feel that my first objective as a teacher will be trying to get the students to enjoy English. I am excited about English, but most likely my students could care less. That leads into my next question, “Do you think English class is pointless?” I feel that to many students don’t understand the importance of English classes, or any class! This isn’t the students fault, but I feel it is the fault of the instructor. My next question is, “would you prefer portfolio work compared to testing?” I want my students to feel that English can be fun! I remember doing portfolio work in high school and in college. Maybe the students feel the same as I do and would prefer portfolio work? My next question has to do with school uniforms. THE SCHOOL THAT I AM OBSERVING IS SO CAOTIC! The one thing that came into my mind while observing a particular class as SCHOOL UNIFORMS! I really think that would make a difference.

First victim: Likes English, but the classes can be pointless. She didn’t use to like English, but the teacher that she has this year changed her mind. She feels that portfolio work is a good idea! She is also for school uniforms because it would diminish the stress of having to find something to wear every day.
Second victim: Likes English class and feels that he learns from it. He prefers testing to portfolio work. The questions on the test should ignite knowledge. He is for school uniforms.
Third victim: Likes English class. Does not think that it is pointless. Would totally prefer portfolio work because she likes to be creative. She is also for school uniforms.
Fourth Victim: Doesn’t like English class and thinks it is a waste of time. He doesn’t like to read. He likes sports. Would prefer to do portfolio work, because he hates testing. He is against school uniforms but is not really sure why.
Fifth Victim: Doesn’t like English class or school. English class is pointless and a waste of time. He already feels like he knows how to read and write. Nevertheless, he likes the idea of portfolio work. He likes the idea of school uniforms because he thinks that he looks good in a uniform and it would get him more dates.

Those are just examples of some of the students that I interviewed. I think that I will do portfolio work, but I will not make that my only way of assessment.
I really want to be a great teacher. In the words of Shakespeare’s Hamlet “ To be or not to be, that is the question.”

I hope that I will be able to see each student as a wonderful individual

2007-10-04T07:13:00.000-07:00

"There never was in the world two opinions alike, no more than two hairs or two grains; the most universal quality is diversity"

--Michel Eyguem

High school. It is a place filled with diversity. In the classrooms that I am observing, by "normal" definition--it isn't diverse.

I am white. I am a woman. I am 21 years old. I want to be a teacher. I love English and I have a sincere desire to convey my love to students. It would be nice to say that diversity in classrooms does not matter, and that it does not directly affect school atmosphere. Not necessarily unfortunately but more so realistically, diversity is real and should be taken into consideration when presenting any information in any content area.

Marva Collins gives a great answer to the question of “Can Anybody Teach These Children.” She simply states that she “deal[s] honestly with children.” Honesty is such a powerful tool that if implemented correctly can cross over barriers. I feel that another important aspect of teaching is to see students as they are: Human beings, little boys and little girls. We can get caught up in Kathy is black and John is from Japan, but if teachers first took a deep breath and saw each of their students as equals, it would be a lot easier to then addressing their differences. This might appear conflicting, and maybe a little backwards, but the idea is actually very pragmatic and easy to fallow through. For example, when I was younger I had a hard time seeing people, girls particularly, in a positive light. I always prejudged them according to how they looked, dressed, talked and acted. One day I was really getting frustrated with myself for being so judgmental, so I decided to change. Instead of seeing one girl as a “snot” or seeing another girl as “popular” I decided to look at them differently. I would try to picture them like myself: A teenager, a daughter, a friend, someone who feels pain and happiness, someone who might have cried at the same movie, and who might also like pizza with pineapple. By taking away their apparent differences, I was able to bring those that I prejudged onto neutral ground. Once everyone is on neutral ground, inhibitions can be let go and walls can be taken down. I really believe that the mind change that I experienced can be applied on multiple levels and that it is a perspective teachers could really embrace.

Diversity in the classrooms is more likely to occur in urban schools. It is almost impossible, once thrust into these situations, that student’s extracurricular lives will not directly affect classroom attendance and instructional retention. For example, students are not only ethnically different but their home lives may set them further apart from each other. Some parents might be drug addicts, many may come from single parent homes, and some may have a parent who is in jail. All of these differences and diversity will affect how a student learns. Unfortunately, knowledge is not always measured fairly. A student’s performance may only be determined by standardized testing. If one does not do well on these tests they are often coined as “disabled;” another diversity issue to add to the table. Therefore, the question is what can be done? I really believe that teachers need to be educated on the importance of understanding multicultural education.

It is imperative to make sure that multicultural educations are not being “shoved down” the student’s throats. For example, in the movie Freedom Writers, an AP English teacher singled out a student because she was black, saying: “What is the black perspective of this story? I am excited to see what your type has to bring to the discussion board.” The student did not particularly care for the way the teacher addressed the situation in singling her out and categorizing her as a “type.” Pedagogically, this was a horrible way of addressing diversity into the class room. I believe that the purpose of education should be in instructing the students on a variety of content and allowing them to bring in their personal experiences, beliefs, and desires. By promoting an open classroom where differences are expected and accepted programs like the TFD—“a program designed to prepare teachers to teach effectively in a multicultural, social-reconstructionist ways—may help teachers create a multicultural pedagogy, and help teachers feel comfortable in supporting and highlighting differences appropriately.

Michel Eyquem, born in 1533, once said: “There never was in the world two opinions alike, no more than two hairs or two grains; the most universal quality is diversity.” It may appear contradictory to call diversity a universal quality; for if something is universal it would negate that chance of it being divers. Nevertheless, by looking at the fact that every student is different, in some way—then the every student is brought under the collective cohort of being divers. Not just anybody can teach children. It takes someone who is aware that there are important differences. It also takes someone who can address the differences in a careful, understanding way. Being honest with ones self and also with the students is a recipe for success.

It is also vital to understand that the best teachers supplied with the best teaching tools are not going to reach everyone and anything. No matter what measures are taken there are going to be children left untouched. I have learned this through my observations. This realization makes me really sad. In the words of Thoreau “I hear beyond the range of sound/ I see beyond the rang of sight” and no matter what differences may occur, I hope that I will be able to see each student as a wonderful individual.

2007-09-12T05:45:00.000-07:00

"They breathe profits; they eat the interest on money. If they don't get it, they die the way you die without air, without side-meat."

-Chapter five “The Grapes of Wrath”

Class presentation! English 11 honors students were very different from that of regular 10th grade English. I personally think that anyone could be doing the work that the English Honors where doing. It depends on how the teacher presents the requirements. This teacher…I call him/her MR./iss WRATH—definitely pushes the students. Which is a good thing! Mr/iss Wrath used a lot of sarcasm though—but the students appeared to be use to it. He/she spoke very…lets say “unfriendly” about ELA standards and authority in general. Though he/she uses humor a lot he/she maintains order in the class room. The presentation given by the students was great! Well maybe not great…it was good? Vivid. Interesting…O wait according to Mr/iss. Wrath is was “lacking.” Thus, the teacher takes over after the students talked about: Fruit, death, Life, decay, Christians, Machines, Rose of Sharon, The Dust Bowl. Mr/iss.Wrath himself/herself goes into the use of language throughout the story. I think that she/he should go over the language she/he uses in class! (What a potty mouth *tisk* tisk*).

Nevertheless, the students like Mr/iss.Wrath and the are learning about a great book.

The problem of WANTING

2007-09-11T12:40:00.001-07:00

“Get up a voice inside says there’s no time for looking down

only a pound a word and you’re talking to the town

but how do you coin the phrase though that will set your soul apart…”
-The Sundays

Observation of a 10th grade English class. The book Night by Elie Wiesel is the topic of choice, at this moment in time. Questions like: Why does Eliezer pray and why does he cry when he prays?—are used in an effort to try and provoke critical thinking and response…but to whom!? A group of 10th graders who could care less why some guy, who’s how old—who lived when? Cried. Eliezer even writes he doesn’t know why he is crying! Simple, on an abstract metaphorical level—he is crying because “something” inside him felt the need to cry. How is a teacher supposed to teach that? Or teach it in a way that a student will understand. The teacher walks around the room, trying to involve every corner—every eye, breath, face, person; unfortunately, the eyes just stare back at her/him (have to keep anonymity! Should I call the teacher IT?) IT reminds the students/subject/children/obervers/learners/people/boys/girls/sons/daughters/THEM that they have HW and a test for next class.
Sadly the more I do observations the more I realize that my first job, once I become a teacher, is not going to be instructing the students, but creating a passion—a desire to know why Eliezer cries when he prays.

"How will you [ I ] coin the phrase though [?] that will set your [my] soul apart [?] "

The First Of Many

2007-09-05T04:35:00.000-07:00

"It is curious . . . but I feel quite warm now, although it is so cold"
"That is because you have done a good action"

-Oscar Wild "The Happy Prince"

I would be lying if I didn't admit that I am excited for this up coming year. Interestingly, I have never dreamed of the advantages that technology can provide for teachers! When I came home, I had such a headache at the thought of having to use the dreaded computer...hyperlinks...bookmarks...who knows of such things?! Obviously, not me. Nevertheless, I am up for the challenge

I have already done about 27 hours of student observation. After about ten minutes in my first class, on the very first day one kid already stood up and screamed "QUICK WHO CAN TAKE OFF THEIR PANTS THE FASTEST!" I had no idea what to do, or how to respond. I think I at lest didn't laugh to noticeably. The same kid proceeded to pass around a picture of his nipple. *sigh* the joys of high school.

I went running this morning and I couldn't help but be overwhelmed with how much I have to do this year--but how amazing it is all going to be! I love to learn new things. The air was cold, the morning was bright; I am happy to be alive.

Much love to you dear blogger.com