Monday, February 11, 2008
Is school relevant to students?
After reading chapter 4 of Making the Journey I thought the quote that Christenbury uses on page 98 from William Glasser is something that really struck my thoughts. " The problem is that at least half of all students are making little or no effort to learn, because they don't believe that school satisfies their needs." I know there have been many times that my education in high school and college was fustrating because there were classes that I thought were not necessary for what I needed to be successful in my field of work. I think one of the responsiblities as teachers we have to make everything we do tie into real life application. Obviously, this is easier said then done. Within each class as we found in ch 4 that there is multiple types of students in our class, some who do care about learning and some that could careless about being at school. One thing that I believe teachers must do is to to pull all of these students into their class, to making learning a real life experience. Again this task is easier said then done. We face the obstacle of trying to change the mindset of students. Class is not about gaining information to puke up on a test but instead creating a learning experience that can be used again throughout life. These are just a few thoughts that I have. I hope that you will answer my intial question of "Is school relevant to students?"
It makes sense...
I really enjoyed the comparing Gallagher did of knowing the game of baseball you’re your students learning to understand what they read, not just reading it. (And that’s not just because I’m a huge baseball fan!!)
As teachers, I think that we have to step up to the plate (no pun intended!!) and teach our students how to examine and discover the things we teach them. We are responsible in helping to lay the ground work on how this can be done. Something that kept popping in my head was a certain image that I imagine we can all relate too and that we could still observe in many (if not most) classrooms today. We have all had the teachers how made us read a chapter and then answer questions at the end. I might be going out on a limb, but I would have to say that most of us, did not do all the assigned reading and just went straight from the question at the end of the chapter to finding the answer (and there were those times when you would just turn to the back of the book and see if the answer could be found there!). Personally, I was never was taught, in a classroom, how to dig a little deeper and really understand and comprehend what I was reading. And for me, it left me slightly unprepared for the higher level reading and work I had to complete once at the college level.
There is a need for us, as teachers, to get to know our students, know where they stand in terms of reading comprehension and ability, and challenge them to work harder and dig deeper!!
As teachers, I think that we have to step up to the plate (no pun intended!!) and teach our students how to examine and discover the things we teach them. We are responsible in helping to lay the ground work on how this can be done. Something that kept popping in my head was a certain image that I imagine we can all relate too and that we could still observe in many (if not most) classrooms today. We have all had the teachers how made us read a chapter and then answer questions at the end. I might be going out on a limb, but I would have to say that most of us, did not do all the assigned reading and just went straight from the question at the end of the chapter to finding the answer (and there were those times when you would just turn to the back of the book and see if the answer could be found there!). Personally, I was never was taught, in a classroom, how to dig a little deeper and really understand and comprehend what I was reading. And for me, it left me slightly unprepared for the higher level reading and work I had to complete once at the college level.
There is a need for us, as teachers, to get to know our students, know where they stand in terms of reading comprehension and ability, and challenge them to work harder and dig deeper!!
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Corrupt World?
Is it a corrupt world we live in for teachers? I don't think so. I'm ready to take on the alienated students. I want to make a difference in the lives of my students too, but I know Christenbury is giving realistic examples of what teachers face everyday. It's like any job. You have to take the good with the bad. Maybe I'm way too positive, but I think teaching will be great...once I have the hang of it. The examples Christenbury gave of the violent attitudes and actions of some of her students shouldn't be anything that different from our experiences of diversity we've encountered as students if we have been to a remotely diverse High School, in my oppinion. Being an older student might make a difference in my attitude. I have a lot of "real life" experience all ready, so I feel very prepared for teaching. It might even be easier than some of the jobs I've had, to deal with adolescents. In any case, let's not let fear get the best of us. Take it a day at a time and don't sweat the small stuff, and the big stuff will be learned.
I'm going to follow the guidelines of the contract -- with mutual respect of course. Be reasonable. Articulate. Listen. Remember. (p116) This was a great outline to begin with. The ones to handle alienated student's was also very good in giving me motivationg thoughts to handle situations; always speak to them (every day), remind them of things, contract rewards, and make deals. Flexibility in curriculum are a must! And, last but not least, structure to engage the student. I think the sad part of the alienation scenerio is that teachers do avoid them which pushes them farther "inside themselves." I wish there weren't teachers who play favorites, but I know it's inevitable because some people have very shallow minds. There are those teachers who care about people and there are those teachers who "care about the person" and I can't save the world, but maybe I can leave an impression on someone. Maybe I can shed light into the lives of a few students and help change the way their life would have been for the better. I grew up in a single parent home, so maybe I can relate to someone who is. I had friends that made the mistake of getting into the party scene, so if I can stop someone from doing it...that would be great. I'm very aware that the "at risk student could be gifted, or the average student, but have a huge heart for the alienated student.
I think I'll start by teaching them to think more critically about their decisions by what they read. And I'll do that by trying to get them to look "deeper" at the literature they read...to look beyond the surface. Then, ask them what they really see. I'm excited about teaching! That's half the battle, I think. I already think I'll love it. I totally agree with Gallagher that student's are not taught to read effetively sometimes, because they are not taught to succeed through effective evaluating, analyzing, and synthesizing techniques. Maybe the new generation of teachers can change this. We need to implement brainstorming, collaborating, and revising techniques, as Gallagher suggests.
Personality will be the test. Not all students will relate to my personality type. But, I will be excited about teaching and I sinerely care about the students, so maybe they will see that I trully care about them as an individual. One thing's for sure, kids know when you don't really want to be there for anything other than the paycheck. My son, David, who's in eigth grade told me one day that very thing about one of his teachers. I told him, naturally, that he can't say that for sure and he shouldn't judge people, but he did sense that for a reason. His teacher gave the impression that they didn't genuinely care about the students.
Priscilla
I'm going to follow the guidelines of the contract -- with mutual respect of course. Be reasonable. Articulate. Listen. Remember. (p116) This was a great outline to begin with. The ones to handle alienated student's was also very good in giving me motivationg thoughts to handle situations; always speak to them (every day), remind them of things, contract rewards, and make deals. Flexibility in curriculum are a must! And, last but not least, structure to engage the student. I think the sad part of the alienation scenerio is that teachers do avoid them which pushes them farther "inside themselves." I wish there weren't teachers who play favorites, but I know it's inevitable because some people have very shallow minds. There are those teachers who care about people and there are those teachers who "care about the person" and I can't save the world, but maybe I can leave an impression on someone. Maybe I can shed light into the lives of a few students and help change the way their life would have been for the better. I grew up in a single parent home, so maybe I can relate to someone who is. I had friends that made the mistake of getting into the party scene, so if I can stop someone from doing it...that would be great. I'm very aware that the "at risk student could be gifted, or the average student, but have a huge heart for the alienated student.
I think I'll start by teaching them to think more critically about their decisions by what they read. And I'll do that by trying to get them to look "deeper" at the literature they read...to look beyond the surface. Then, ask them what they really see. I'm excited about teaching! That's half the battle, I think. I already think I'll love it. I totally agree with Gallagher that student's are not taught to read effetively sometimes, because they are not taught to succeed through effective evaluating, analyzing, and synthesizing techniques. Maybe the new generation of teachers can change this. We need to implement brainstorming, collaborating, and revising techniques, as Gallagher suggests.
Personality will be the test. Not all students will relate to my personality type. But, I will be excited about teaching and I sinerely care about the students, so maybe they will see that I trully care about them as an individual. One thing's for sure, kids know when you don't really want to be there for anything other than the paycheck. My son, David, who's in eigth grade told me one day that very thing about one of his teachers. I told him, naturally, that he can't say that for sure and he shouldn't judge people, but he did sense that for a reason. His teacher gave the impression that they didn't genuinely care about the students.
Priscilla
Chapter 4
Wow. Yeah I am in agreement with many of my classmates, that Chapter 4 was depressing and the last page or so didn’t really save it. I really enjoyed reading this because I felt like they were giving a pretty realistic perspective on what to expect which is better than being lied to right now and being utterly shocked when we are in the classroom for the first time. I can say that my uncle has taught in St. Louis for as long as I can remember and he has told me many stories similar to the ones we read about, and I also have a family member who teaches that had a student kill his parents and then come to class (only to be escorted out later that day). There is some crazy stuff in the world, but isn’t that why we are becoming teachers? If all of our students were excited about school, where would the challenge be? Who is more fun to have success with: a student who eventually comes around, or a student who is already super-psyched to be there?
Big-Bucks. Yes since everyone else seemed to have mentioned this, I feel the need to throw my 1 cent in as well. I think Big-Bucks is an awesome idea. Someone previously said their boss would not reward them for doing a good job, but I beg to differ. Unless your do your job as a volunteer I think it’s fair to assume that you get paid by your boss (or his boss), so essentially that is your reward. Now many would disagree and say students payment for doing well are their grades, but we must remember that grades are extremely important to some students, and not at all important to others. Sure this is only a half-real world mentality, but high school students are often not long term thinkers, and grades are only for the long term for students who have no repercussions to face at home in their immediate future.
(edited)
And while we're on the topic of "teacher movies" I have to say that any movie that over-glorifies anything (for example: Freedom Writers) automatically gets docked a full star in my imaginary book. For a movie that is inspiring but also a bit more realistic (and in my book, awesome), I highly recommend Pay It Forward for those of you who have not seen it. I know a teacher who shows it in class every year (with very little fanfare from her administration). It's in my all time top 10, so watch it.
Big-Bucks. Yes since everyone else seemed to have mentioned this, I feel the need to throw my 1 cent in as well. I think Big-Bucks is an awesome idea. Someone previously said their boss would not reward them for doing a good job, but I beg to differ. Unless your do your job as a volunteer I think it’s fair to assume that you get paid by your boss (or his boss), so essentially that is your reward. Now many would disagree and say students payment for doing well are their grades, but we must remember that grades are extremely important to some students, and not at all important to others. Sure this is only a half-real world mentality, but high school students are often not long term thinkers, and grades are only for the long term for students who have no repercussions to face at home in their immediate future.
(edited)
And while we're on the topic of "teacher movies" I have to say that any movie that over-glorifies anything (for example: Freedom Writers) automatically gets docked a full star in my imaginary book. For a movie that is inspiring but also a bit more realistic (and in my book, awesome), I highly recommend Pay It Forward for those of you who have not seen it. I know a teacher who shows it in class every year (with very little fanfare from her administration). It's in my all time top 10, so watch it.
Readings
Chapter 4 of Making the Journey is one of those chapters that makes you look at the reality of all the things you'll see and experience at some point or another in the classroom. As I was reading about all of the problems she ran across during her teaching, particularly the student that murdered someone, it made me wonder how I would deal with all of those issues. Up until reading this chapter, I haven't really put a whole lot of thought into situations like that, but those are the situations that I should really focus on more in order to be better prepared in case something like that happens in my own class. While it would be impossible to be 100% prepared for every bad situation that might come up in my classroom, it is foolish to have the mindset that it will never happen to me. At some point it might.
I also liked the analogy that Gallagher used in Chapter 1 of Deeper Reading with the Puzzballs. I was one of those students in high school that only read the material one time before being tested over it, and in high school, that was all right. It got me through with A's and B's all through high school. Now that I'm doing college coursework, though, it's made it more difficult to study, because I don't have the concentration that I need to read something more than once. I really have to push myself to "study" the material that I'm presented with as opposed to cramming the night before and losing anything I might have learned the day after the test. My teachers in high school didn't really push the importance of thorough studying, and it's still haunting me as I try to study now.
I also liked the analogy that Gallagher used in Chapter 1 of Deeper Reading with the Puzzballs. I was one of those students in high school that only read the material one time before being tested over it, and in high school, that was all right. It got me through with A's and B's all through high school. Now that I'm doing college coursework, though, it's made it more difficult to study, because I don't have the concentration that I need to read something more than once. I really have to push myself to "study" the material that I'm presented with as opposed to cramming the night before and losing anything I might have learned the day after the test. My teachers in high school didn't really push the importance of thorough studying, and it's still haunting me as I try to study now.
Chapter 4 Depression
Wow. If someone handed me a teaching contract this afternoon after having read Chapter 4, I would probably sit down, rock back and forth and cry. I have always appreciated Christenbury's honesty and practicality, but this chapter was an invitation to reconsider everything I ever thought about teaching. I guess the hopeless romantic in me always thinks of the troubled class/student with the "Freedom Writers" mentality. Sure, they will be bad and mean, but if I just make them write in a journal, they will be forever changed and we'll all hold hands and sing Kumbaya at the end of the school year. I guess deep down I know that's not the reality, but its certainly more comfortable than this chapter was.
The part I appreciated the most was early on (probably before the panic set in) when she comments on the desperate need of young people to have authentic, real and effective relationships with adults - that at the heart of every classroom is an interaction with students and the challenge to motivate them to learn, to be better and to make something of themselves.
I want to be the kind of teacher that is able to reach all of my students. I want to make an impact on the alienated student. I want to know the right things to say, the right "assignments" to give, the right ways to really connect to them. But the honest truth is that I have no earthly idea how to do it. I wasn't an alienated student. I have a hard time identifying with the mentality of an alienated student and I don't know how to meet them where they are. And on top of it all, I don't know how to do that AND interact with all of my other students.
I liked Christenbury's ideas such as Big Bucks and some of the others on how to reach difficult students. Like Stan, I don't want to make excuses for lazy students or pamper them into doing what I want them to do, but somehow we have to find ways to motivate them. I guess its hard to know what I would do in these situations until I'm actually there, crying tears of frustration b/c I can't get someone to even stay awake for 5 minutes.
Btw, I hated the baseball analogy.
The part I appreciated the most was early on (probably before the panic set in) when she comments on the desperate need of young people to have authentic, real and effective relationships with adults - that at the heart of every classroom is an interaction with students and the challenge to motivate them to learn, to be better and to make something of themselves.
I want to be the kind of teacher that is able to reach all of my students. I want to make an impact on the alienated student. I want to know the right things to say, the right "assignments" to give, the right ways to really connect to them. But the honest truth is that I have no earthly idea how to do it. I wasn't an alienated student. I have a hard time identifying with the mentality of an alienated student and I don't know how to meet them where they are. And on top of it all, I don't know how to do that AND interact with all of my other students.
I liked Christenbury's ideas such as Big Bucks and some of the others on how to reach difficult students. Like Stan, I don't want to make excuses for lazy students or pamper them into doing what I want them to do, but somehow we have to find ways to motivate them. I guess its hard to know what I would do in these situations until I'm actually there, crying tears of frustration b/c I can't get someone to even stay awake for 5 minutes.
Btw, I hated the baseball analogy.
Chp. 4
Stan, I was thinking the same thing about the teacher spending her own money. It reminded me of Freedom Writers. I'm expecting teaching to take up most of my life, especially when I first start out - Will I have to get another job to pay for school supplies and other materials that I need to engage my students?
One of my Geometry teachers did something like "Big Bucks" my freshman year of high school. I remember having tons of money at the end of the year and being able to spend it. It was fun but I don't remember people sharing their money. ;)
This chapter made me uneasy, as well. You hope to have a positive impact on all your students and you want them to see that they can become someone truly great. It is going to be hard to reach those students who do not care and put little effort. I hope that I do not reach the point that Christenbury describes on pg. 106:
"Most of us will tend to avoid the truly alienated student because he or she is often not rewarding to be with. We can make a number of efforts but it is not axiomatic that they will be successful. And, in fact, some teachers, fearful of burnout, make it a point to be less than fully engaged with such students."
Hopefully that "D" that our student recieves (and a grade that is a step in the right direction!) is enough to keep us motivated to reach out to those alienated students.
One of my Geometry teachers did something like "Big Bucks" my freshman year of high school. I remember having tons of money at the end of the year and being able to spend it. It was fun but I don't remember people sharing their money. ;)
This chapter made me uneasy, as well. You hope to have a positive impact on all your students and you want them to see that they can become someone truly great. It is going to be hard to reach those students who do not care and put little effort. I hope that I do not reach the point that Christenbury describes on pg. 106:
"Most of us will tend to avoid the truly alienated student because he or she is often not rewarding to be with. We can make a number of efforts but it is not axiomatic that they will be successful. And, in fact, some teachers, fearful of burnout, make it a point to be less than fully engaged with such students."
Hopefully that "D" that our student recieves (and a grade that is a step in the right direction!) is enough to keep us motivated to reach out to those alienated students.
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