letter to the editor

As future teachers, cyberbullying is an epidemic that is taking control of our schools. Cyberbylling has caused many to take their lives in extreme cases, and causing many other problems that affect students in the classroom as well as the teacher, and the school itself.  Something has to be done, in order to protect those affected. What should be done? Parents should teach their kids what is appropriate behavior when it comes to the internet. The parents should also monitor what their child is doing on the internet. The internet can be a great tool when used correctly, but when it is misused it becomes a hazard.  

                The topic of cyberbullying has caused numerous problems among today’s teens and young adults.  Suicides, depression, and isolation are few of the many problems that are associated with cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is an unnecessary form of harassment that takes place via the web, cell phones, I pads/ pods. People aren’t afraid to say what they want, and aren’t aware of the consequences that can follow. This is where intervention needs to start. Young adults should be educated about cyberbullying, and the effects it has on people involved. This education should start as early as possible. The more we teach our children the more lives we can save by early intervention. Some states like New Jersey, New Hampshire and Massachusetts, are taking steps in the right direction to fix this problem. They are viewed as models because they include provisions allowing school officials to address off-campus actions that disrupt school operations.

                Although some states are taking steps in the right direction to stop, or prevent cyberbullying, this is not enough in some cases. Educating the children in our school systems has to be our number one priority. Hopefully in time other states will pass laws just like the ones that already have, to  prevent this from happening to any other young adults.

Field Experience Reflection

Field Experience

This semester I completed my first field experience in a classroom.  I was placed in a first grade class at Clearview Elementary in a Spanish Immersion class.  I had never actually worked or volunteered in a classroom when I wasn’t a student in the class.  I was very excited and nervous at the same time.  I chose to work with a math curriculum because I am currently taking MATH 330: Teaching Elementary Math and I thought it would be a great use of what I’m learning and use it in the class room.  After going to the training session I quickly realized that my MATH 330 class would be very little help since we were suppose to be using Fermi math.  

                        My students have taught me so much over the past weeks that I would never have learned if I did not experience it myself.  You have to be put in situations to know how you will actually handle them.  There is always “role play” and “what should you do if?”  But when you are on the spot with 24 eyes starring at you, you don’t always remember what you practiced before.  These children think the world of you and saying one wrong thing could break their hearts.  When I walk into the classroom now I get bombarded with hugs from almost all the students, and when they have to leave at the end of the day I have to tell them to get in line for the bus.   They see me as a role model and are always asking questions about my life.  I even had one little boy ask if he could marry me when he gets older.  It was very cute but I explained I was much older than him and that it was not possible.  Respect has to be earned by the students.  They will not listen to you until you prove to them that they should and that it is worth their time.  Disciplining the students is a hard line and knowing whether or not you can do that or if the teacher allows it is tricky.  I had to let my students know that when I am working with them that they have to listen and follow directions.

            While I was in the classroom I would work with the students about 4-6 kids at a time.  There were different stations in the class that they would rotate their groups every 10 minutes or so.  The teacher was very organized with materials, supplies, and where everything was located in the class.  I think this really helped the day go smooth and was less stressful for the students and the teacher.  The teacher also had several ways of getting the students attention when they would change activities or if students were being too loud.  Professora Kari (what the students would call the teacher) would either do a loud pattern of claps that the students would repeat exactly how she did or she also had a small set of hanging chimes that she was ding.  I think those were very good tactics used to control and get the attention of students.  Another thing that Professora Kari did was acknowledgement of good behavior and incentives.  There were different pins and prizes that students would receive for these things.  I think it is very important that we praise our kids for the good things they do instead of always punishing for the bad.

            Overall, I really enjoyed my experience and time at Clearview.  Professora Kari was a 1^st year teacher so we related on several levels.  I was very pleased to hear that she didn’t receive a “pink slip” last week.  It was very cool to talk about policies and issues that she and other teachers face that were mentioned in the book.  She gave me many pointers and we discussed many thoughts about Immersion programs, which was very insightful for myself.  I really appreciate everything she has done for me and I am actually planning on attending a field trip with the class in the end of May.  I will miss the students but maybe one day I will see them in another class or even my own down the road.

Philosophy of Education

Philosophy of Education

I believe that everyone has a calling.  I have concluded that my calling is to be a Special Education Teacher.  Through out this course we have studied many different topics and gone in-depth with many issues in the education system and our current educators around the world.  There are many different aspects to the philosophy of education and mine in particular.  We will look into the role of the student, the purpose of schools in society and my specific philosophy of education, teaching strategies and attributes, how we can prepare our students to be globally competent students and how the learning environment and class room management can affect students.

            When a student walks in the door on their first day of school they turn into a fragment of the population that we call students.  There are expectations that we have for our students as they fulfill their duties as learners.  When students are in elementary school they are so excited to be there and learn.  We need to take full advantage of this and help their little brains soak up as much as possible.  As a student gets older the nature of them will change and I want to make sure that they can be as excited about school on their first day of kindergarten to after they have taken their class exam in whatever level of education that is.  I expect my students to be willing to learn and accept the challenges that they will face during their education path.

            A philosophy of education is a set of ideas and beliefs that guides teachers’ actions and provides a framework for thinking about educational issues.  Throughout the world there are many schools that are completely different from each other depending on many things including; the country of school, whether it is a private or public school, the area that the school is located, the faculty, and background of the students who attend.  I believe that we need to focus on the individual student and the success of the individual.  A positive atmosphere can make or break the curriculum and the success of the students.  I also believe that the US needs to change the social reconstruction and what specific things should be emphasized. 

            Have you ever been around someone who is always negative and always bringing your mood down?  Imagine having a teacher be like that every day.  Many students have to deal with a negative environment and this tends to affect the students and create a negative image towards school for them.  I believe having a positive atmosphere in a classroom can really change a student outlook on school and many different life long lessons.  I believe that positive behavior and affirmation can really drive a student to want to succeed and complete that goal.  There are many teachers out in the world today that only teach to get that paycheck and therefore tend to be negative and not really care about their students.  Those students are really getting the short end of the stick and not realizing what is possible.  Being enriched with positivity in school and just positive behavior can really change a person’s life.

            The US has an act of congress called the No Child Left Behind; its goal is to set higher standards and establish goals that will improve individual outcomes in education.  I personally think that the NCLB doesn’t help an individual at all.  We as future educators need to focus on the specific need of each individual.  Not everyone is going to learn at the same rate we have to accommodate each student to what they are capable of and what they specifically need help with.  A positive atmosphere will really inspire and give students the drive that they want and need to succeed in school, the classroom, and for their future life.

            There is a lack of Social Reconstruction in the education system today.  I believe in the educational philosophy of social reconstruction, asserting that schools, teachers, and students should take the lead in addressing social problems and improving the society.  With social reconstruction the primary teaching method would be discussion.  I know from a personal experience that when you discuss things in class vs. reading a textbook you pick up much more information on the topic at hand.  You are going in-depth and have much more critical thinking about the topic when its discussed in a group setting.  Group projects and student collaboration will really help student learn but also develop communication skills that they will need down the road.  Schools and teachers need to comprehend that more discussion time in classes will really benefit the student and isn’t that what our goal is as educators?

            I believe that a highly qualified teacher has certain qualities and attributes and these are called teacher’s philosophies.  Having a spark inside you to want to educate and make the world a better place one student at a time has to be on the top.  You must be able to teach all type of students and not give attention to certain students over others.  Also being able to teach the same thing but multiple ways so that a student who learns differently from his/her classmates can all learn and understand concepts at the same time.  A great teacher needs to be organized, educated, caring, respectable, understanding, reliable, charismatic, smart, engaging, and fun!

            A teacher is the barrier of knowledge.  They should be student centered, pushing students to achieve more than they had imagined.  You can never stop learning things and many forget that.  I believe effective teaching strategies that I use would be to bring more critical thinking into the classroom throughout each lesson and not just here and there, if it is constant the student will gain much more knowledge.  I also want to have a great relationship with my students and I want them to know that I am always here for them in any situation.  I plan on working with EBD students and typically there are much more outside of school issues with these students and they need to be able to trust me and understand that I am there to talk and support them with whatever issue may arise.  Teachers also must have a strong communication with the parents.  Education and learning goes outside of the classroom walls and making sure that the student, parent, and teacher are on the same level will help everyone in the long run.  I will always do what is best for my students and sometimes parents will not agree but I am willing to take that chance if it means that they will have a better future because of it.

            We are in the 21^st century and that consists of a different type of educating and learning as students.  I want to prepare my students for the world now and what they will come across and make sure they are prepared for these situations.  The US unfortunately is behind the rest of the world in global competence and I want to change that.  I grew up in a public school in suburbia and rarely would we discuss or even go over global issues.  If you go over to China the students there are globally informed and know what is going on in the world around us.   I hope one day our students can get to that level but there is so much work to be done.  Tony Wagner writes in his book The Global Achievement Gap about how students from across the world are much more prepared that American students and will be taking the jobs that we have worked hard for.   We need to step up our game and define new survival skills for the future.  This includes the 21^st century skills such as critical thinking, problem solving and learning and working with people from other cultures, understanding other nations and languages, and being globally competent.

            Another factor in being in the 21^st century learning is technology.  There have been so many drastic movements in technology that sometimes it can be hard to keep up.  We need to teach students how to write emails and letters that don’t contain “text vocabulary.”  I believe that many teachers were have been in the field for quite some time should really learn themselves about this new technology and understand that students can learn easier with it.  I know I personally have a much easier time doing this on a computer because I am so comfortable on one and use it so much.  We can’t live in the past we need to move forward to the future and that consists of new teaching tools and strategies that are up to par with this fast world paste. 

            To have a good learning environment a teacher must be organized.  This doesn’t always mean that every little thing is neat in their classroom.  A teacher’s philosophy impacts a learning environment and your classroom management.  I’ve learned from working in a first grade class that if you aren’t organized and prepared the students are going to take over and get out of hand.  As we saw in the Science Express each station had their own everything and it was also clearly labeled and color coordinated.  The teacher I had my field experience with had the exact same concept.  There were 5 group tables in the classroom and the students were assigned to a group or table.  Each table had its own tools and utensils so that when doing an activity the students weren’t running around the room or waiting to use something.  There was also a cubby or box for each students to hold their take home mail, homework, assignments, or anything that needed to be kept safe.  At the end of the day the teacher would pass out each students’ folder and they would go over to their cubby to grab the things they would need to bring home.  This helps the students and teachers not loose things and stay organized.  There was a lot of structure and routine in the day’s activity and this really helps students stay focused and keeps the teacher sane.

            I want to become an educator to change students’ lives.  Everyone deserves that chance and opportunity.  I want to change the education system today and break the cycle of failure that we have some how come across.  I have learned that I was placed on his world to help people and change lives.  I want to break the cycle of students who come from bad homes and families and show them that they don’t have to be like that.  There are many more options out there then what they have come from or know and they just need someone to believe in them and show them the possibilities.  I know I can do this by my teaching philosophies and I hope that other teachers will realize this as well.  My purpose in life is to change lives and I am more than excited to have the opportunity to do this and am excited to change the world one day at a time.

With Crises, Universities Worry About Students Abroad

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/18/nyregion/18campus.html?ref=internationaleducation

The New York Times recently published a story about studying abroad that I thought was very interesting and related directly to our class discussions in the past weeks.  Over 250,000 students travel from the US across country to another country to attend school.  It has been a very popular idea that I know many of my friends/family have done and I eventually would like to do myself.  It is now possible to go to all 7 continents and study abroad.  Recent issues across the world have caused some serious problems for American students attending school in other countries.  Universities all over the US are starting to pull some of their programs and send for current students overseas.  At Temple University in Tokyo 100 American students have left out of the 3,300 students they currently have because of the recent earthquake and tsunami.  Cornell University is worried about their 500+ students they send across country every year.  "Much is at stake for colleges with footprints in other countries: not just students’ safety, but also the schools’ properties, liabilities and reputations."  Some schools are decided to end programs that they have had for many years because it isn't safe for their students and is also not helping the reputation of he school.  Boston University is ending its 20 year-old program in Niger after two French citizens were kidnapped from a local popular bar.
I am surprised that I haven't heard more of this in the news lately.  It scares me a little bit because so many schools are pulling their students out of these programs and sending them back to the US.  It's a pretty serious deal when that happens.  I am very interested in traveling abroad for the future and this could really impact my decision and what I end up doing.  I know this all could change in a matter of days depending on what is going on across the world politically and physically.  I hope that the world can pull it together so that these programs and students can continue.  I guess we will just have to see what happens.

Global Achievement Gap: Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Motivating Today's Students- and  Tomorrow's Workers
"What does it take to bring out the best in young people today, both in school and in the work place?"  Wagner asks this question at the very beginning of the chapter.  Many including myself are very worried about the work ethic of young people today and how it continues to decline.  I have noticed this over the years that we are caring less and less about our work ethic and some don't even have a work ethic.  I have had a job since I was 15 and always have taken it seriously trying to my best ability.  On the other hand my brother is 16 years old and my parents are struggling with him to get a job.  He has no motivation to work or even fill out applications and its rather pathetic.
Another impact of this generation is how differently we have grown up.  I grew up in a digital world.  There is not very much time out of the day that I am not on my blackberry or macbook or have my ipod on.  We have so many more distractions now that my parents ever had.  Because we grew up in the digital world we also learn differently.  I know I am much more comfortable doing tasks and finding information on a computer vs hard text.  We multi-task so much that we have to learn the same way which doesn't always work.  Parents need to step up their game and help their children with more critical thinking.  Simple conversations weekly can really help students with these skills.  If no one is pushing them and testing them then how will they get better?  We need to engage ourselves and our children to become all that we can be :)

Global Achievement Gap: Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Reinventing the Education Profession
Wagner talks about the path to a teacher a lot of this chapter.  The experiences of making it through college of education.  Most teacher prep programs are all the same.  We take courses and tests then we are "ready" for the real world.  We don't always develop the skills needed to be an effective teacher and receive enough experience with effective supervisors.  We need to come up with a new program where there is much more hands on training.  And where we can get good feedback from day1 instead of the very end of your last semester of college where bad habits are hard to break.

Group 8 Presentation

Group 8 presented on chapter 12 Creating Productive Learning Environments: Classroom Management.  The group shared valuable information that was not in the book.  They shared a website: www.dailycafe.com which is a great resource to have.  They also spoke about classroom management which I think it vital to the learning experience.  As we learned today in the Science Bus being organized can make such a huge difference.  We need to make learning easier and  accommodate for the students not necessarily the teachers.  There are many tools that this up and coming teachers will have access to that can make a huge difference such as smart boards.  There were several tips and ideas given during the presentation that will be very valuable as we continue our journey to teaching.

Revolutionizing Education in Ethiopia

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/international/2011/04/25/av.bruktawit.tigabu.bk.a.cnn?iref=allsearch

Brooke T is a childhood teacher in Ethiopia.  The education system doesn't start there until 1st grade where the students come in on the first day expecting to have already known the basics such as ABS's.  Brooke wanted to be able to help these students before they got into first grade learn because many do not have anyone to teach them.  Then the students are already behind when the start school.  Brooke and her husband came up with a program called Education Media to help children learn while they are watching tv.  It is on the only network in Ethiopia called National TV.  The show is a puppet show with the main character names Sime.  During the different shows they go over key things that children need to be taught like: cleanliness, being truthful, honesty, eating healths, how to prevent diseases and that reading is fun!  The audience for these shows is preschool age to prepare them for when they enter 1st grade.
I think it is great that Brooke created this show.  There are many educational shows here in the US and it is very vital to our learning experience.  Kids are getting much smarter and part of that is because they pick up on what they are watching at a much younger age.  Other countries need to pick up on that and create more shows so that we can reach out to these children.

UK Could Look to Poland, Where Private Universities Educate 30% of Students

http://www.educationnews.org/global/153333.html

The number of private universities in Poland has grown and now educating 30% of students.  Since the time of the communist party over 30 schools have opened and over 630,000 students are not enrolled.  Private schools require fees and tuition.  Private universities tend to be more focused on areas that directly feed the job market.  Smaller class sizes and less beauracuracy gives these schools an advantage to quick-moving world and are more ready for the work world.

Global Achievement Gap: Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Testing 1, 2, 3
No Child Left Behind has students preparing for these tests starting in 2nd grade.  If all these tests are not passed by 12th grade students do not graduate reguardless if they have taken all the required classes and received good grades following.  Wagner showed examples of tests given by states and explained what he thought of them.  For both tests most individuals now would fail the math part.  How many actually use algebra on a daily basis?  Obviously there are some professions where algebra is used regularly but for the rest of us its never used.  So why is it on these tests?
Wagner asked college students questions about their high school experience and the answers they found are exactly how I feel as well.  We didn't learn anything in high school to prepare us for our college courses.  We basically start all over in the learning process once you walk into your first lecture hall.  Its not such a bad thing because you don't remember much from high school because you are just memorizing things for tests then forgetting them weeks later.  The students were then asked about how they could have bettered their time in the high school class room.  Most said that there would be more time spent on writing, research skills, time management, and working with students in groups.  I work with fellow group members on a weekly basis, I never did that in high school once.  It sucks attending college having to learn all these skills on your own and usually failing the first few times.  This causes us to be less motivated in the long run.  Of course its all going to run you down and there is so much going on that motivation is going down farther and farther from earlier years.

Global Achievement Gap: Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Old World of School

We as students are lacking direction in school.  There are many skills that are essential for college that no one is taught and that becomes a huge problem during the first semester of college.  Some of these skills are: the ability to think critically, read complex material, apply knowledge to new problems, and write well.  Having these skills would have really put me in a much better situation starting college and I think if more students had these skills there would be much higher completion rate in colleges.
Wagner then goes on by visiting several different school and sits in the classroom to compare what differences across the US students are seeing.  Most of the elementary schools were teaching basic reading and writing skills.  Because of the NCLB students are being taught only what is on these tests, it is limiting their learning.  Many schools would cut the time of other subjects and material just to focus on the NCLB tests so that the school doesn't receive a "improved progress" in the results.  It is very clear that the US school systems are more worried about what the test results will en tale rather than the knowledge and information taught in class.

Global Achievement Gap: Chapter 1

The New World of Work and the Seven Survival Skills
Tony Wagner starts off by pointing out what the global achievement gap is and that there is two of them.  The first one is the gap between  the quality of schooling that most middle-class kids get in America and the quality of schooling available for most poor and minority children- and the consequent disparity in results.  The second one is the gap betwen what even our best suburban, urban, and rural public schools are teaching and testing vs what all students will need to suceed as learners, workers, and citizens in today's global knowledge economy.  No Child Left Behind was well intended but clearly isn't doing much for students today and not preparing us with survival skills for learning, working and citizenship.
Through out the chapter Wagner outlines the Seven Survival Skills that we need.
1.) Critical Thinking and Problem Solving- We as students need to learn how to think outside the box and not be able to answer a question only if it is in test question form.  We need to look at the way we look at questions and the prospective on them.
2.) Collaborations Across Networks and Leading by Influence-  Global awareness is laid out by the Partnership as using 21st century skills such as critical thinking and problem solving to understand and address global issues.   Learn from and work collabloratively with individuals representing diverse cultures, religions and lifestyles in a  spirit of mutual respect and open dialogue in personal, work and community contexts.  Understand other nations and cultures, including the use of non-English languages.
3.) Agility and Adaptability- WE have to think, be flexible, change, and be adaptive, and use a variety of tools to solve new problems.  Everything changes constantly and you have to be able to adapt and work with it.  You have to be able to take on these tasks and going above and beyond the status qouta that was given yesterday.
4.)  Initiative and Entrepreneurialism - Being able to go out and take the inititave over and over and trust your thoughts.  You have to keep going above and above.  "Leadership is the capacity to take inititave and trust your self to be creative."
5.)  Effective Oral and Written Communication-  In the work force today communication is done through email and memos and there is a effective way of doing that.  We aren't able to communicate up to standards.  We as teachers also need to teach our students how to write.  I know personally I am a horrible writer and that is because I was never really taught.  I know how to write a 5 paragraph essay but that is about it.  And that is also about the only thing I remember about any of my English classes in high school.  Teachers need to focus much more on the communication in the world today.
6.)  Accessing and Analyzing Information-  In today's world there is an incredible amount of information that is constantly changing.  We need to be consistent on having the most recent info and keep it stored in our brains.  We can no longer read the front page of the news paper to be informed and understand.  There is much more research, access and evaluate information.
7.) Curiosity and Imagination- We need to start thinking out of the box.  Using both the left and right sides of the brain.  Now days you must be on the top of your creative game because the competition is high and someone else will scoop up your prize.

Waiting on Superman Reflection

Watching the film Waiting on Superman was very touching.  There were many great statistics and facts I never knew about.  Some of these were rather disturbing.  This movie watched several students and their journey to getting into a better school.  I never realized the difference some schools can make.  I never thought about the people who lived in bad neighborhoods and just want their children in a better education system.  What would it be like to have your fate rely on a lottery system.  There was a grate quote that tells it all.  "Schools haven't changed but the people around them have."  I think it is horrible that tenure is saving many old teachers who don't know about the 21st century while new fresh teachers are getting the boot.
Every student deserves an equal education and depending on where you live that won't be true.   The video says that it is more expensive for someone to live in prision than to attend a private school.  We spend millions of dollars on convicts yet they might be able to prevent that by sending them to better schools.
This video really touched me.  I never want a child to be left behind because of where they live.  Many children get a horrible education in bad schools.  Obviously there is much to be done in the US.  You don't ever hear about the range of good to bad schools in other countries.  There the students are excited about school and care what is going on and the teachers help their students down a path to succeed.  This video really opened up my eyes to the world around what I know.  Since I have never lived in a area like this it was good to become educated and see whats going on in the world around me.

2 Million Minutes

2 Million Minutes is a video we watched in class.  It compares United States, China and India's school system.  It is estimated that each student spends 2 million minutes in school.  There is such a large range of differences on each student's 2 million minutes in school throughout these different countries.  Students in China and India act very different from our schools.  They see school as a privilege and take it very seriously while we complain about going every day.  In the US we focus so much on sports.  These other countries did not spend nearly as much time, money or effort on sports.  They would rather be doing other activities that work their brain and are proven to help with academics.  I also noticed that families play a huge role in the education of the children.  The parents are there every step of the way making sure they are succeeding.  The families are much closer and care much more about how their children are doing.  There is a huge cultural difference between the two countries and it makes me want to move to another country to raise my family.  The US rated number 1 in confidence.  Maybe that is because we are always competing in sports so we know that we need the confidence.  Hopefully in the future we will have more than just confidence because the populations from other countries are going to come and steal the jobs we are competing for and they WILL WIN.  They are much smarter and overall much more prepared that any student from America.

Philosophy of Education

We took a short quiz in class that was to help us with forming our own personal philosophy of education.  We were asked 16 questions and then we would be scored in the categories of: Perennialism, Essentialism, Progessivism, and Social Reconstruction. I scored the highest on Progessivism and Social Reconstruction.  Which means I view goals as dynamic and emphasizes that learning should be experience based and relevant to students lives.  A teacher involving students in the problem-based learning activities would be applying progessivist philosophy.  Also that I see schools and other institutions in need of restructuring, with marginalized people and their works elevated to more prominent positions in the content of schooling.
These test results are exactly how I feel about the Philosophy of education.  I think that there need to be some major changes because its clear what we are doing now isn't working.  Students aren't learning like they use to.  These stupid tests need to go out the door because it the real world they will never need to know the stuff on those tests.  Teachers spend way too much time preparing for the tests when they could be teaching other things.  Also students do so much better when what they are learning relates to their lives.  When they can see that it is going to effect them in the future and be apart of the change now.  I honestly don't know if schools will ever be restructured to where they should be but I know as a future teacher that I am going to do my best to help the situation.  I won't be going out of the books and standard lessons that teachers have used in the past.  I also know that I won't let any student fall behind.  I want to become a teacher for those students whose parents don't care or the ones who don't have parents.  These students need us the most because they are more or less "forgotten."  I want to help break the vicious cycle in many families lives that will change their lives forever.  I want to be that change. :)

Ideal Teacher Prep Program

There are many things that as a student I wish were different for my education and goal towards being a educator.  First off I really feel that "gen eds" would be changed.  I am currently finishing my last gen eds and I have no motivation for these courses.  There are many of these classes that I am taking just to fulfill my requirements but am not gaining any knowdlege in them.  I think we should have a different type of "gen ed" where its similar but relates more to a teachers point of view.
I also think that we should be required as college students to take a second language.  It could be Spanish or Chinese or even sign language.  I am currently taking sign language but SCSU only offers 2 courses so after this semester I will be done.  In high school you are told you take a language because most college require that but then after high school you forget everything you have learned because you are not using it.  If college students were forced to take a language we would learn more about the culture and we would also remember things from high school so you don't have to start at ground zero again.
I think we should also have more on teh job training and practice.  In the education field we have to do many field experiences which is great because you learn so much working in the field vs learning in a class room.  I know many other programs do not require this field work and students are not learning as much as they should.  They get thrown out into the real world job with no help and experience in what they are actually doing.  Learning and studying is one thing but reacting and doing a job is another.

Group 4 Presentation

Group 4 presented on chapter 7: The Educational Philosophy: The Intellectual Foundations of American Education.  They talked about the Philosophy of Education and its different sectors.  They gave us the Philosophy of Education test to see what our thoughts were on that.  This information is a huge part of what our final paper will be on.  They also showed many movie clips on each aspect of the philosophy which kept me interested ad involved in the topic its self.

Group 3 Presentation

Group 3 presented on Chapter 6 Education in the United States: It's Historical Roots.  There was a lot of information presented in this chapter.  We discussed the difference over history on what and how teachers teach.  There are many things that are the same in the way we teach but at the same time its a new era.  Technology has to be a part of teaching and is daily with students of all ages.  I have a 1st grade class right now that uses smart boards and many years ago that would have never happened.  They also had a interview with a teacher that has been in the field many years and how they have been able to change they way they teach over the years.

Group 2 Presentation

Group 2 presented on Chapter 4: Student Diversity: Culture, Language, and Gender.   We talked about the different types of cultures and diversity.  Also about ELL and different transitional programs.  They asked questions about how we would react or what we would do in different situations.  We also talked about what it would be like to have single-sex classrooms.  I really enjoyed hearing about what the other students in class thought about this topic.  The group did a great job getting the class involved into the presentation and discussion questions.

Group 5 Presentation

Group 5 presented on chapter 8 in the book; The Organization of American Schools.  We discussed the different types of schools and how they are organized.  The goals of American schools were: academic, social, civic, and vocational.  They spoke about 4 day school weeks and the pros and cons and how that would effect us.  I brought up how in high school we were on the block system which meant we had 4 quarters a year with 4 classes per day, 5 days a week.  I really enjoyed this because we were in class around 90 minutes and we could discuss an entire topic and have time to work on homework and questions.  If I had homework I could usually get in done quickly after school.  My senior year they switched and went to a 6 period day.  It really sucked because I wouldn't have time to go over home work assignments and you could possibly have up to 6 subjects of home work after school.  I really enjoyed the longer classes. Anyways I think that the group did a good job teaching us about the topic and the class had very good discussion on it during presentation.

Group 6 Presentation

Group 6 presented on Chapter 9, Government and Finance: Regulating and Funding Schools.  They talked about the different ways that schools are run and some of the political aspects of schools.  I learned a lot about where money comes from for these schools and how it is distributed.  They had great interviews and discussion questions.  They also presented the website: studentsfirst.org which is a great website for students and teachers.  I learned a lot about the schools and government in this presentation and I thought they did a great job presenting.  Very knowledgeable on the topic!

State ignores teacher licensing violations

http://www.startribune.com/local/119537854.html

I actually found this article on someone's facebook page that I went to high school with.  The article talks about my district in particular so I thought it'd be a great article to share!
Over the past few months we have been discussing the new teacher laws that were passed on being able to teach but not necessarily have gone to college for that particular subject.  Well this article goes into detail about that and ranks some of the schools on their performance of that.  There are over 900 Minnesota teachers who have violated rules in their class room.  41 teachers in my school district #622 have racked up more than 150 violations in the past 5 years.  I graduated 4 years ago in May but these violations were still very much present while I attended school.  We as students are getting punished here.  We aren't choosing for these things to happen and there isn't much we can do.  I have no problem saying that I received a crappy education from my high school.  I had to work a lot harder in college because I was not prepared and didn't know lots of the "basics" I should have already been taught.  It has been a struggle to get to the level that students are in my grade because I had to go above and beyond what everyone else has been doing.  My brother is a sophomore in high school right now and I know they have been making changes to the curriculum which has been much needed, but some of the chances aren't the best decisions.  They have FINALLY changed the math ciriculum to "normal math" algebra, geometry, trig, etc.  When I was in high school we had "integrated math."  It was very frustrating as a student because you would get little bits and pieces each year but never fully understood the concept.  Students graduating around my time (2007) were basically screwed for the ACT's and college entrance exams and first year college math.
They also changed the schedule of school from a block period (4 quarters/year, 4 classes/day) to Trimesters and 6 period days.  This creates much more homework for the student and too many things going on.  I hope that the state of Minnesota can change these violations sooner the better so that our future students get the education they deserve.

Cathleen Black Is Out as City Schools Chancellor

Article

Cathleen Black stepped down as New York City school Chancellor last week after NYC's mayor Michael Bloomberg urged her to resign after being in the position for only several months.  Black originally worked as a chairwomen for Hearest Magazines.  The position of school chancellor will be filled now by Joel Kline who is a formal federal prosecutor but has worked in the past as a chancellor for over 8 years.  Kline has been involved in many of the education system for many years and informed on what should be happening and is a fighter for kids.
We discussed thing issue a bit in class last week and the topic of being asked to resign or getting the letter that you won't be coming back in the fall.  It is something that every teacher worries about for months coming up to the time it happens.  I can already see myself not sleeping because I won't know if I will have a job.  With the economy like it is today it is so hard to find a job that it's the scariest thing in the world.  I watched my father who is very well educated and has a incredible resume and portfolio get laid off his job he had been at for 25 years.  Then he struggled with and is still struggling with getting a job that was equal to what he was at.
I don't think that a employer should ever urge you to resign but in many occurrences that is the case.  It is easier for them to do that then coming up with an excuse to fire you.  In the long run you know you are basically being fired and that is what will hit you emotionally.  There just isn't that word after your name "Terminated."   In cases like the one this story has it is very clear that the education system in NYC needed some help.  But I still don't understand why they would hire someone like Black when she had no experience in the first place in such a large education system like New York City.

Finland Phenominom

Today's video was a documentary about Finland and their education system.  The author of The Global Achievement Gap, Tony Wagner went and visited many schools in Finland.  He sat and observed class rooms, spoke with students, teachers, professors, and college students who are going to school to become educators in Finland.  Newsweek ranked Finland #1 country on education while the US was ranked #26.  There were many differences that Finland has in their education system that would be really cool to try here but unfortunately I think as a society it would never work for us because it is too hard to break old habits.  The populations are completely different and there is many more issues that the US faces than Finland.  Here are some key ideas I picked up on while watching the film.

CLASS-SCHOOLS IN GENERAL:

-       Discover on their own

-       Only a few lessons a day

-       Knowledge procreation

-       Warm up and cool down in lessons

-       Introducing concepts with other resources like youtube then going back to book material

-       Music or listening comprehensions to “cool down class”

-       Teaching students how to think and engage in learning

-       Early prevention of struggling students

-       Upper secondary: education track or vocational track- 40% choose vocational

-       Very little testing

BECOMING A TEACHER AND SCHOOLING

-       To become a teacher you need high grades to be accepted into University

-       Teaching is a self esteem profession vs. US where if they cannot succeed at anything else they turn to teaching

-       3 years bachelors and 2 years of masters required

-       Teacher education: all have masters, research based education

-       While students are in school they have to create lesson plans and have them corrected before teaching and then after teaching lesson there is a review session with professor and students which is very important

-       Professors coach student teachers

China's Winning Schools

Online Article
A international study was done to test 65 states on reading, math, and science.  Out of all these countries China had the best scores.  Shanghai was at the top of all 3 categories but a good amount.  Nickolas Kristof the author of the article says he has been visiting schools in Asia for more than 20 years.   Every time he talks to the teachers there are not impressed with their school system, saying that they need to be more like America and have more thought on art, clubs and independent thought.  I don't think they realize that maybe American's have too much independent thought.  At a poor school in southern China the students were a year a head to Kristof's children who attend a very good public school in New York City.  They start their students there at age 2 rather than 4 or 5 in America.  The only bad thing about their education system is that their colleges are very weak and some say a disgrace.  Most students there are not worried about being a jock but about being the smartest student.  I think America needs to start picking up some of these Asian habits!

21st Century Survival Skills

Tony Wagner author of the book The Global Achievement Gap has come up with several skills that are needed in today's education system.  I can tell you that in my 16 years of schooling I have not learned these skills successfully.  And these are a must to survive in college or in society today as a individual.

Skills:

• Critical thinking and problem solving skills ( Toilet of Production System) and engaging in conversations with better company
• Collaboration of products, leadership, and influence
• Agility and adaptability- restructuring and learning more
• Affective oral and writing communication skills
• Accessing and analyzing information better
• Curiosity and imagination to a higher level
• The initiative and entrepreneurial-ism

Unequal Education Video

The Unequal Education video shows two schools the in Bronx New York that are contrasting with their education and students.  JHS 141 is a school in the suburbs of the Bronx, with students of the middle class Socioeconomic status.  While JHS 137 is in inter city Bronx, with students coming from lower and working class households.  This video really proves that  where you live will depend on the education you receive.  The two boys were both very intelligent but came from opposite life styles.  The suburbia school 141 had all certified teachers along with very good learning materials and resources.  While the inter-city school 137 did not have all certified schools or learning materials.  In 137's science class they were doing a experiment and it consisted of standing up on a chair then getting down repeatedly.  The students were asked how they felt after they did this for two minutes.  Technically it is a experiement but it seems more like gym or health class.  They also showed a science class from school 141 which was how a school should be.  The teacher had them looking into mircroscopes doing a lab.  The students were much more involved and really enojyed themselves while learning.  Kids like hands on things and when you don't have those resources they won't be as involved or interested in learning.
The principal at the 137 school walked around the school premises when classes would start to make sure the students would actually walk into the building and go to class rather than standing around the corner.  A prinicipal shouldn not have to do this to make sure the students are attending but these students have to drive or motivation to go to school.  I really can't blame them.  I would not want to go to that school either.
After they showed the video footage from both school they sat down to debate a hot topic with Jonathon Kozal and another guy.   The topic was whether or not a certificate should be given out to schools/families and how it should be dispersed.  They both went back and forth on how it should be dispersed but were indifferent on where the money would come and who received it.  This is one of those issues that comes up yearly and I'm not quite sure if there is a right or wrong answer.  You will always end up going in circles with it.  The schools that need it the most are the ones with the worse test scores and drop outs yet the schools that don't need it as much have much better scores.  Is it fair to give more money to the ones who aren't succeeding?  Will giving the inter-city schools more money help them to do better?  I personally think something needs to change.  I understand both aspects of this situation.  It makes sense to give different amounts to different schools but I personally believe that students coming from the more wealthy schools would be able to raise money much easier if need be.  The parents have more money and are willing to give their children money for lab experiments or field trips while the poorer schools that would not be an option for.  I don't know enough about where this  money comes from or how the taxes work but it is clear that something needs to change or we will have this vicious cycle return.

Atomic Learning

As a class we visited the computer lab and learned about some programs and features I never knew existed.  One of those is the Atomic Learning.  I was blown away by all the features that it offered and were free.  It offers tutorials on almost any programs or website you could think of.  There are tons of videos that show and tell you how to create something or just use the program in general.  There are many different training programs on Atomic Learning that can get you ready for anything you may need.  There are also work shops to give you a little test run and make sure you are understanding them.  This is hands down the best resource I have ever been given in college.  I even used it for my own personal use on how to use my Entourage email on my mac.  I never knew how to set it up or what it offered but I watched the tutorials and understood and got it set up right away.  I really wish I would have had access or known about Atomic Learning years ago.  It's a one stop shop on learning that is convenient and easy to use!

Group 1 Presentation

The first group presented a couple weeks ago on Chapter 4: Student Diversity- Culture, Language, and Gender.   I think that group did a great job at equally presenting the topic within the group.  It was spread out enough where not just one person was talking, and through out the presentation they would jump in and add things.  They started off with a video which is good to catch our attention and get us interested in the topic.  Through out the presentation they asked questions and had discussions which is great especially if any of your students have attention issues like myself.  The class did a good job at responding to the questions and discussions that they asked.  It can be hard and frustrating when you are presenting something in front of the class and ask questions and everyone stares at you like deer in head lights.  At the end they played a game of jeopardy which is fun!  It got all the members of the class room involved and it tested our knowledge of the topic and also helped the teachers know if the students were understanding the concepts.  Plus what student wouldn't want to win jeopardy? I think the first group did a wonderful job presenting especially for having to be the first group to go they set the bar high :)

Chinese Immersion/ Speaking in Tongues

The video Speaking in Tongues looked at several students who were in different immersion programs.  Some Chinese and some Spanish and I believe one was both.  These kids start out at kindergarten coming into the class and from day 1 their teachers were speaking the language of the program.  They would try and use hand signs and repeated words to open up the student's minds to what they were trying to say.   One teacher wanted the students to put backpacks on a hook and would show them what to do while speaking Chinese and repeating words over and over so that they would recognize the word with the action.  One of the Chinese immersion teachers said that she tried to make her class believe that she didn't speak English and her students would try and catch her speaking English.  There were students on the video that came from either a Mexican or Chinese background but were in these programs because their families wanted them to be able to carry on the legacy and be able to read and write unlike themselves.  I believe this is a great way to keep family traditions going on for many years.
During the video there were many great facts shared.  They said that before the age of 13 if you become bilingual it makes your brain capacity much larger which I believe because at that age you are learning so much.  Your brain is like a sponge and you can soak up so much more than when you are older because there is so much more going on.  I think immersion programs are a must in today's society.  By 2025 1/3of students won't speak English going into kindergarten.  That is huge!  We need to be able to communicate with the people we interact with daily and having a language barrier stops proper communication and is a hassle.  I wish I could have been placed in a immersion program growing up, I know I would be much more culturally diverse.

Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI)

In class we took the Intercultural Development Inventory test.  From that they gave us back a individual profile report with our personal results.  It provides information about our own orientations toward cultural difference and commonality.  When I took this survey I figured I wouldn't do very well since I am very uninformed with the world around me. I always have known that but since taking this class it was really shown much more.  When I received my results I was much more shocked at the difference between what I actually scored and what I perceived I would score.  My perceived orientation score (PO) was a 119.95  Which means that I think I adapt to cultural differences within acceptance.  My Developmental Orientation score (DO) was at a 74.6 which means i'm in the polarization stage.  It also indicated that 82 % of my resolution of Polarization perspective is more from a defensive view and 18% from a Reversal orientation.  My Orientation Gap was 45.35 points away from each other which is really the huge part that shocked me.  I overestimated my level of intercultural competence.  My Denial Trailing Orientation is at a 3.4 which is closer to the resolved side.  Disinterest in Culture Difference Trailing Orientation was at a 3.75 which is almost resolved which is good.  And my Avoidance of Interaction with Cultural Difference Trailing Orientation was at a 3 which is in the middle of unresolved and resolved.  My leading orientations will be minimization through acceptance.  I scored a 2.6 on the cultural disengagement meaning that I sense of disconnection from culture group.
I think this was an eye opener for me to take this.  I would have never done it on my own with out this class because I would never have even known about it.  I am starting to realize there is so much more out there than my little life I live and I really need to start learning and accepting more cultures.  I have been rather sheltered from what is going on in the world around me and that is all my fault.  I think it would be very cool to take the IDI my senior year and see how much I have changed and grown and to compare the results!

Inside the multimillion-dollar essay-scoring business

http://www.citypages.com/2011-02-23/news/inside-the-multimillion-dollar-essay-scoring-business/

My father sent me an email with this link on the story and wanted to know my thoughts on it.  I thought it would be a great article to blog about.

The City Pages wrote an article about the behind the scenes of standardized testing and some real life stories of a few people who worked for these huge companies.  The article states that in 2009, K-12 testing is a 2.7 billion dollar industry.  The National Computer System was bought by Pearson and made $652 million dollars in profit in 2009.  Over the years there has been some very serious problems with things being "graded or scored" incorrectly and having it really effect the student. Some students were denied graduation from high school because of these errors.

The article then goes on interviewing some people who worked for these scoring companies.  Most were doing this job for the money and not because they wanted to be part of helping make the world a better place.  Most of the employees spoke of rubric’s that they would have to follow when reading essays.  The student would be graded on a scale of 1-6 with 6 being exceptional.  These companies are very political and if they are reaching their quota or bell curve they start grading differently.  Some even keep pencils with them so they can "help the student out."  Some of the rubrics required the essays to contain certain words and if they didn't then the score would be lowered even if they made the same statement with other vocabulary.  This system is to grade as fast as you can and make your quota.

After reading this article and thinking about it coming from my point of view as a college student going to school to become a teacher this scares the hell out of me.  It is not fair to teachers or students when their essays and tests are not being graded properly.  Since when did the value of education have a dollar sign at the end of it?  Standardize testing is suppose to all be the same so no mater which company or employee grades it, they will come up with the same conclusion in the end.  These companies and managers are completely changing the point of the testing in the first place.  I am personally not a fan of standardize testing in the way that every single person thinks differently and shouldn't be graded on whether or not they said certain words.  Also the reader could have more interest in the topic at hand and grade differently.  These tests and essays that are being taken can be a huge part of someone's life and should have a little more care put into reading them then they currently have.  I don't want to be the student who is at the bottom of the pile for the day and the employee who is scoring mine is tired skims the essay and I either pass or fail according to what mood they are in.  First of all if I fail and I actually have a high level essay it will be extremely disappointing and a huge error in the system.  And on the other hand if I were to pass even though I shouldn't have that means we are letting students get by when they are not capable of what they should.  And this problem would get worse and worse because we would be letting students become teachers who can't require all that they are suppose to.

This essay scoring business is a very scary thought and after reading this article I really would like to do some research on how often is really occurs and if our future is doomed.

Radical change needed to education policy

http://www.thestandard.co.zw/letters/28577-radical-change-needed-to-education-policy.html

Zimbabwe Africa has one of the highest literacy rates in the country but is struggling with unemployment rates for these college graduates.  The education ministry has received the highest amount of money in National budget since their independence.  Zimbabwe has one of the strongest economies in Africa but no one is working.   Graduates are not working in their specialized fields rather what they can find.  There are high rates of prostitution and drug dealing.  These graduates are getting fed up with not being able to find jobs so they move on to something else.  Officials are worried it is a waste educating when these students don't use their degree.   They need more investment that creates more jobs.

I have noticed that the same thing is happening in the US today.  I have a feeling it is around the world and not just in Zimbabwe and the US.  It is very difficult to find jobs post college so people are getting jobs in what they can find and then they keep them.  I know many graduates who have jobs but aren't working or using their degree at all.  With student loans being due starting six months after graduation it is hard to not find some sort of job while you are looking for professional jobs.  People just need to remember that they need to keep searching for these professional jobs while they are working at other jobs.  I can understand it would be hard if you get a serving job and make good money and then find your professional job and you might not make as much money, especially starting out.  We need to remember why we are going to school and to keep improving the world with our education.

First day in my first grade class

Today was my first day in my field experience at Clearview Elementary School.  I found out earlier this week via email that the first grade class I will be working in is part of the Spanish immersion program.  I was very excited to meet the students and learn some Spanish on the way.  When I arrived into the class room the students were finishing up their Science unit.  The teacher introduced me as Senorita Sierra.  I quickly learned that this class speaks Spanish the entire time.  I sat in the back for a little bit while they finished what the students were working on.  The teacher spoke to the students the entire time in Spanish and for the most part they responded in Spanish.   I was blown away by how much these students know and how well they could speak Spanish.  After the students were finished with Science, the class split into two groups.  One group of 12 students would come with me and the other 12 would go with Ms Hackenmueller.  I split my group of 12 into two groups of six.  We were playing Twister so half the students would actually be physically playing the game while the other half would be graphing where the students landed.  The graphs and twister board were done in Spanish.  It was quite a task for me to say right foot green in Spanish.  A couple of the students actually corrected me on some pronunciations which was fun.  It was a task to keep the students focused and understand completely how to graph the game.   Over all the students had a lot of fun.  This first grade class is a little more rowdy that some of the other classes I hear.  After the students left for the day I had about 15 minutes where I could catch up with the teacher and get to know her a little bit more.  This is Kari Hackenmuller's first year teaching.  She did her student teaching at Clearview last year.  She graduated from St Ben's last year and is a double major in Elementary Education and Spanish.  We touched base about the future weeks and I'm really excited to be in this class room!

To Write Love on her Arms

On Wednesday February 16th I attended the presentation, "To Write  Love on her Arms," in Steward hall.  I wasn't sure what to expect going in but once I got seated I figured out quickly what I was in store for.  The presentation was opened up by a guest speaker and founder of To Write Love on Her Arms Jamie Tworkowski.   He introduced the first performer who sang with a guitar music that was written by himself and his band.  It was very beautiful.  His voice is incredible and very touching.  The lyrics were very inspirational and I know touched many individuals. After the music was done Jamie came back on the mic to explain what To Write Love on Her Arms is and explain where it came from.  He talked a lot about having at least one person there when you are feeling blue.  I think it is very important to make sure that you have at least one friend who can listen if you ever need them.  Suicide happens usually because that person feels like they have no one to turn to or talk to. 

After Jamie spoke and explained the story one of his friends came on the mic and talked about drug addiction and how they come hand in hand.  I think the second speaker hit me a little harder because I have had real life experience with some of the issues he was speaking about.  My high school sweetheart got into the wrong crowd and became a meth addict.  It's such a scary life and while he was speaking it brought me back to those memories I had in high school and trying to help the person you love get better.  Addiction can be a disease and you can't force someone to change.  They have to see it in themselves and want to get out of the problems they are faced.  As a outside looker you can show them what their life may be like if they stop their addiction but you yourself can't change them.  In treatments they have step programs and one of those steps is to realize you have a problem, an addiction but you have to realize that you WANT to change it.

I was really touched by this whole thing and think it was extremely cool that they were able to come to SCSU and speak to students about these issues and give stories and information on how to help and stop suicide.  The auditorium was very full which means many students came.  TWLOHA has a website, blog, facebook, myspace and twitter pages that I recommend checking out.  You can also purchase their clothing and other things on this website.  Their website is : http://www.twloha.com
they have videos, blogs, music, and much more information so check it out!!!! 

Saying Good Bye to text books in school

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2011/02/18/sosa.clicked.in.tech.education.cnn?iref=allsearch

The future of American Education.  The iSchool.  A student names Travis Allen has come up with the concept of iSchool.  He was sick of the way he was learning in school and thinks there is a much better way to learn and that is on top of technology.  He believes that we need to adapt to technology in America and move forward.  His mission is to inspire and educate students on how to become life long digital learners in the information age.  He has come up with programs and apps that you download.  You would then only need to bring your iPad (or whatever kind of tablet pad) to all your classes and that would be it.  There would be no need for paper books.  Some schools are trying this out and requiring their students to have an iPad while attending that particular school.  "Students are sick of using plain paper, they enjoy seeing the color and it brings what they are learning to life."

I am very curious about this topic and think is is something that has serious potential.  I am all about the new era of technology and benefiting from it.  I have had some ebooks used in classes and while it was very convenient for me to not have to carry around a book and I could just open up the macbook, I also noticed I didn't obtain as much information.  I think it would be different if I had a iPad where it was a flat screen and not just a window open.  The ebooks I used weren't the best in clarity and I would skim through the material.  I do believe that this idea is good especially at younger ages when you are learning key fundamentals as the video said the kids are more interested and intrigued by the different colors and things you would be able to do on the programs vs a plain text book with plain letters and numbers.

What proposed Pell Grant cuts could mean to the MN State Grant

http://oncampus.mpr.org/2011/02/what-proposed-pell-grant-cuts-could-mean-to-the-mn-state-grant/

The MPR new on campus posted a article today about the proposed budget cuts and Pell Grant cuts.  The House State Officials were warned of a possible $113 million cut in the Federal Pell Grant funding for Minnesota.  The GOP has considered cutting the maximum grant by $845.  If this event occurred it would be catastrophic.  The state of Minnesota would have to make up the difference in State Pell Grants.
  This article really caught my eye because it affects myself.  I receive both state and federal pell grants for the first time this year.  These grants help me pay for tuition and books.  If I wasn't able to get these grants I don't know if I could continue in school because I am not able to take out loans or have my parents co-sign for loans.  I work two jobs just to be able to afford my rent and the necessities.  I can't imagine for the students who have more financial issues than I do.  This would really create a problem for them and not push them to succeed as a individual and continue on with their education.  $845 could be a entire class for someone who goes to a cheaper school for others it could be just a fraction. 
 I am really concerned about this topic because it effects myself and many friends and students around me.  I really hope that the State Office of Higher Officials can figure out a plan for their budget cuts that doesn't cut anything.  They should be focused on how and where they can get more money to bring into schools funding, not get rid of it.

Chinese Language in the schools!

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/studentnews/01/19/transcript.thu/index.html#one

Chinese Language Program

            There is a very interesting program that is going on in Ohio right now that is teaching students in Elementary schools Chinese.  China was the highest increasing economy is 2010, according to the news article.  Chinese culture will be much more profound in the years to come and that is why they are starting to teaching the kids young about the language and culture.  The Chinese government is also paying for this program.  The school shown on clip is receiving $30,000 to pay for American students to learn Chinese.  Some are worried that they should not be doing this because China is a communist country.  I don’t think that teaching students about the culture and language is going to form these kids into communist.  It broadens their horizons.

            I think this program is a great idea and more schools across the country should do it.  I know that for that to happen there would have to be funding for it and I highly doubt China would be able to pay for all of that but in some way teachers need to start adapting other cultures around the world into their lesson plans.  I went to a private school for the first four years of Elementary school and I had to take Spanish class.  By kindergarten I could count to 100 in Spanish.  I can’t even do that now because I have lost that knowledge from never using it.  In high school most students are able to take a language course but it is not forced.  I have close family friends who are from the Netherlands and to graduate high school they must know 5 or 6 different languages.  Frankly American students have it easy but I think that this culture idea needs to be in classes at all ages much more.

            One of my best friends attends the University of Minnesota (tc campus) and her minor is Chinese.  When she told me that I was really thrown off because I had never expected her to take a Chinese class, and further more choose that as her minor.  Her father is in the army and made a huge impact on her and explaining the benefits of knowing other languages.  I was extremely impressed when I visited her and she started saying sentences in Chinese.  It is a very interesting language and hard to keep up with.

            Over winter break I went on a cruise with about 16 family members.  My uncle married a woman from Columbia about 4 years ago and some of her family was there.  My aunt Rocio is very good with English and actually speaks better than one of my professors here at SCSU.  Her family did a great job trying to interact and speak English to have a conversation.  It really made me wish I had kept up with my Spanish from high school and continue on with it besides the two courses I needed to get into college.  Over the weeks time with the Mariano’s (my aunt’s family) I realized that I know nothing about any other cultures besides the US.  And I really don’t know that much about news or government issues in the US.  I wish growing up I would have been more informed and cared about these other cultures because now I have to play the catch up game. 

            It would be extremely cool if the classrooms would start having to learn different languages at a young age and keep learning more and more as the students get older.  I know as a parent I am going to try and put my children in schools that have programs like the one I was in or similar.  As a teacher I am also going to put global issues in my lesson plans.  Learning about these global issues really helps a person be well balanced and informed on the world today.  I think it is great that some Ohio schools are teaching their students Chinese in Elementary schools, now if only that could be a countrywide program!

Freedom Writers Journal

Freedom Writer’s Journal

            When Erin met with the head of her department she had many hopes and expectations.  She talked about how if she were doing her job correctly that all her students would be standing in line at the door to get into class; that they would want to learn and succeed.  I think she knew it was going to be a tough crowd but nothing like reality hitting it on her first day when the students were literally hitting themselves.  She then realized that her hopes would take more work.  Erin expected her co-workers to support her and that the school/district would give her the supplies the classroom needed but that wasn’t the case.  She had to expect less from the people around her and expect more to receive more from her students. 

            Erin took on two part time jobs so that she would have extra money to pay for things that she wanted for her students and thought were necessary.  At the beginning of the year you can see where her husband starts to back away not understanding where she is coming from.  It later turned into a divorce from her husband.  At the beginning of the year she was also confronted with the different gangs in the classroom and no one getting along or getting anything done.  If there isn’t peace you can’t learn.  She had to figure out a way to get classmates getting along and focused to learn.  One thing she did to help keep classroom in order was to move the students seats around and to move Jamal who was making lots of jokes and starting fights right up to the very front seat right in front of her.

            There was a girl in Erin’s classroom named Eva.  She came from a gang back round where she watched her father get dragged to jail for no reason.  She lived the “gang life.”  She always was following what others were doing and had to support them.  This included constantly running from other gangs or protecting boundaries.  She witnessed shootings and was a part of some including one that was at a gas station with two other members from her class.  Eva had to go on trial and either lie and defend her people or tell the truth and stand up for what is right.  Most students in the English classroom 203 had multiple friends die by their freshman/sophomore year in high school.  Some had even been shot at them and survived.  Erin was dealing with a world that she knew nothing about.  One where the color of your skin and where you lived was all that mattered, not who you were as a person.

            Erin gave the students journals to write in.  She had to earn her respect as a teacher and as a white woman with the students.  She was able to learn more about the students’ lives by reading their journals.  It also gave the students a way to vent or share their experiences.   Once the students had better outlook on life and school their grades improved and their drive to learn more.  Erin showed the students that they were all alike.  They all had the same issues and that these issues wouldn’t direct their future.  Erin started being much more aggressive towards the students to get their attention and to do what she wanted of them.  Many of her teaching methods included bringing what they knew and were familiar with into the lessons like Tupac lyrics in her poems lesson.   She also let the students decided if they wanted her to read their journals.  She had a cabinet that was locked and if they wanted her to read the journals they would leave the notebook in the cabinet.

            The teaching methods that worked with the students in room 203 were ones that they could relate to in real life.  The Holocaust was similar to the war the students were facing every day living where they did.  She was able to give them Anne Frank’s Diary and have them read what someone who was their age had to go through as well.  It really helped the students reading about the struggles others had to go through just like they had to.

            The administration wasn’t a big fan of Erin.  Or maybe I should say her department head and principal.  Erin asked a lot from them and when she didn’t get the answer she wanted she kept going.  She was very determined and I think that intimidated some.  They couldn’t understand why she wanted to do what she was doing.  Erin had to go to the board many times starting with the books and curriculum she wanted to teach them.  And ending with her wanted to continue to have the same students past their freshman/sophomore years and onto their junior/senior years. 

            Erin expected her students to do well and succeed.  When Jamal stopped coming to class for a while then showed up with him critique on himself saying that he should be failing; she did not agree.  She took him aside and told him that he wasn’t a failure and that she would not let him think that.  Erin expecting more pushed them to be even better students.

            This movie is a great example of every teacher’s worse nightmare.  I think it showed how much you are able to succeed and become an incredible teacher on your first year when you are inexperienced.  And also to stick up for what you want and desire.  Erin had these goals and dreams for the students and she was determined to make those come true.  Every teacher must believe in themselves and what they are capable of.

Alternative Teacher Licensure

http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2011/01/13/minn-house-takes-up-alternative-teacher-licensure/

In response to this article I am rather split thinking about the Alternative Teacher Licensure.  I can understand why students and current teachers who are in the field can be upset about this issue.  I am currently taking courses at a University to become a Special Education Teacher and I wouldn't want someone who hasn't fulfilled the material I have to take a job before me since I would assume that they would be paid less which isn't fair to me.  I pay lots of money to take these courses to be licensed and then someone in  mid career profession can just come in and take my job.  I know that the flip side of this is that districts and areas of the need for teachers can't control how many are enrolling in the field or are currently looking for jobs.  It could definitely be a better option for some schools that currently do not have enough staff.  It's better to have something than nothing at all.  I would have to do much more research in both areas before I would make any conclusion on the topic.

Why do I want to be a Special Education teacher?

I want to be a special education teacher because I feel like I have the  patience for the job.  I want to work with Emotional Behavior Disorder kids because my brother is one of those people and growing up my parents didn't have patience, but I did and was able to help him with his homework and help him succeed.  My ex boyfriend from high school also had EBD and his SPED teacher made a huge impact on him life and really pushed him to become better and succeed in life and I want to be able to have that impact on others.  I want them to be able to come to me with any questions or concerns they may have about school or any other issues that may rise.  I feel that I have the drive to become a great role model in others life and will be able to help them succeed and have a good time doing it. :)