Monday Night Lecture

During Mondays lecture, we were split up into three uneven, seemingly random groups. After we were in these groups, there was a lot of good discussion with everyone in the class. I was in the blue group, which had the most people. The blue group was in the back of the room, didnt get as much attention, we talked when we weren't suppose to talk, and didnt have enough supplies to go around (oreos). To me, we seemed to be the "C" kids, where average was ok, because everyone else in the group was average too. Since there were so many more of us, than the other kids, we seemed to think it was ok to talk when the teacher was talking, or not try very hard during the activity becasue it was good enough just to show up, since maybe that was all that was expected of us.

It seems as though, lots of times this would happen in an acual school setting aslo. The average kids are only expected to show up, and do middle of the line work. And since this is all that the teachers expect of them, the kids don't see the purpose of trying any harder or exceling in an activity, becasue no one expects that of them.

So... as teachers , we can hold the bar high for all students, and not be OK with prior "C" students just grazing by. We should chanllange all students, even if what would be challangeing for 1 student may not be challanging for another. Because, it is part of the teachers responsibility to increase and improve the students knowledge, and to help the student "reach their full potential".

Letters to a Young Teacher

Here is the link to the movie that our ed psych group made to demonstrate what we learned from Jonathan Kozol's book "Letters to a Young Teacher". I really enjoyed reading the book. Sense the book was put together with the use of letters, it was easy to follow and understand. Many good points were made through out the book and could be tied into our text book. Kozol also seemed very personable, which made the book easier to relate too. Its comforting knowing that, although there will be struggles, many teachers go through those same struggles and overcome them.

SChool Board Members

It's always interesting to hear from members of the community that are also involved in the school system because they have so much to say and comment on. However, whenever a students mentions something about NCLB or standardized testing, there seems to be little else discussed. I understand that NCLB is a big deal right now, but I also feel like I am not usually presented with any new knowledge or opinion about it. I guess I'm just tired of hearing the same thing over and over again.

I did agree with one of the members when he mentioned that although academics are important, that doesnt make a well rounded student. He seemed to think, and I agree, that students need social and athletic involvement also. So, although other countries may push education into a higher priority, often the kids are just getting the acedemic side, and don't always have to social skills to be able to interact with their peers and have fun. It reminds me of what we talked about in class; I.Q. will get you the interview, but E.Q. will get you the job.

High Stakes Community School

There were a few good and bad things about the lecture tonight. First, I did like the idea of doing a lecture in small groups; it got everyone involved so different opinions could be shared. And, the teacher- school board- parents set up is an actual situation that we could experience one day as teachers. Also, I thought that the 2 profs. did a good job at presenting the new change for the schools and did a good job with coming up with answers to questions on the spot.

On the other hand, people seemed to take the debate very personally. People were so defensive when someone else in the lecture or a board member would ask a question that seemed to contradict their point. People got so worked up about a fictional situation that it almost seemed ridiculous. Although, I did think it was good practice and forced people to think about different topics that they could be dealing with in the future, I also think that some of the groups needed to not take the contradicting questions and counterpoints so personally.

Library and Database

The lecture was fairly repetitive to last year since we learned about searching and the library database last year in Paidia. And, although the fact that we had already learned about this through Paidia was brought up multiple times, we were still lectured about it... I didn't get a lot out of the lecture except that I now know that there is a tool to use that shows you how to site your sources.
I think that instead of talking about it in lecture, it would have been more beneficial to used that time to actually find articles or do research that would help us out later in class.

Chalk and Wire

The lecture on Monday was in regards to the e-portfolio "Chalk and Wire". I like the idea of having the online portfolio because it will force me to be more organized and I will have it with me wherever I am.
The idea of completing the competencies however, seems overwhelming. Since the artifacts and entries are what future employers could be looking at, I want them to be the best that I can make them. However, I'm not always in the mid set that 'ok, this is for a future job and graduation, this has to be perfect'... The competencies do help keep a standard for the students. With out the standards, there is the her-prof-is-so-much-easier problem.
Anyway, overall I'm not thrilled about the competencies and e-portfolio, but I do understand why we have them.

Lions for Lambs Reflection

The movie "Lions for Lambs" caused me to think about the issue of inspiring students. Part of being an effective teacher, is the ability to inpsire the students in your class. The problem, however, with this idea, is that what you think the student should do or become, may not necessarily coincide with the plans of the student. What I, as a teacher, think would be best for the students and their talents, could be very different than what the student thinks. When there is a situation like that in a classroom, it seems as thouhgh it would be hard to balance the idea of being supportive and encouraging toward your students, while also inspiring them. Which, then, also brings up the issue of how much support a teacher is or isnt obligated to give her students. It would be hard for me to show support, for example, a student joining the military (similarily in "Lions for Lambs"), but should I still be encouraging? "Lions for Lambs" brought up a lot of issues that are important for teachers to consider when building a relationship with her students.