Summary of Summer

So, I have written four blogs but not one inspired by an edublogger. What I love about the internet is ability to meet people from all around the world. Through our twittering assignment I was able to connect with a lady from Great Britain who is the head of language. I was able to be linked to her blog and she had a wonderful post on how to manage one's time and schedule when dealing with all sorts of internet items like email, twitter, blog posts, facebook etc. Which was helpful because I have a great fear of facebook and the drama and/or waste of time that program can be. While I was reading her suggestions, I noticed that which each post there was an attached podcast thing. When I clicked it, thinking that I would hear her voice, I found that it was some new podcast service that reads the text assigned to you out loud through a computer generated voice. I was thinking about why she would have that on her blog. I wondered at first if she was making it easier for people who were deaf to connect with what she was saying, however they would be able to read, and if they were blind how could they become connected to her blog?

Well this got me thinking about how the technology class has not addressed students with disabilities such as deafness and blindness who would not necessarily be able to use these resources.

But I finally came to the conclusion that since the computer generated voice was clearer and slower than the average person's voice, I assumed that this was a way to help reinforce English skills for foreign speakers.

Overall, a great deal of things to think about.

Working with diversity in the classroom and teaching controversial topics...

Am I insane when I ask if teaching or maintaining diversity in the classroom can be done without causing rifts and discomfort to other people?

I guess where I come from respect and ethical considerations are universal absolute truths which I feel are necessary for dealing with issues socially. I also have this sneaking feeling that my high school education was probably unique and excuse me if I brag, but really a good experience.

There were some bumps as there are at all schools but I remember being mostly respected for my religion and having principals that immediately addressed issues of concern like harassment and were very easy and fun people to talk to. Though I should qualify that and say that I didn't really have many brushes with authority where I was combative so that might factor in as to why I got along so well with them. But seriously, it was a very good experience and I think I should consider how those schools were run when I look for a job. So here is a list of things I remember them having.

1. A school code of excellence that promoted respect and was integrated into all classroom expectations introduced that the beginning of class.
2. Having debates on topics where the teachers had control over the classroom and students had to carefully word their responses to make sure they weren't offensive.
3. A unspoken policy of being generally neutral. One history teacher made it a game for the students to try to discover what his political views were. With the impute of the class he was able to see if he was presenting a neutral stance. We only found out his political views after we graduated. Many of the students were surprised.
4. Respect and accommodations were given to students for whatever reason without much mumbling from the teachers. Many embraced the opportunity to have students learn and become aware of opposing ideas.

Maybe I'm airbrushing my school but because it was such a positive experience for me and others, and because I am stunned to see a lack of what I would consider professional academic standards of ethics, I think I am painting a clear picture.

The main point that I wish to get across is the idea of academic standard of ethics that I think is a necessity of the practice of education on all levels. It is the policy of conveying and teaching information in a neutral, non-opinionated and respectful way. Points of contention will occur but when the teacher is not stating her opinion or conveying her point of view as fact, there is less of a chance that students will act negatively when discussing contentious issues. Academic standards of ethics also includes a substandard of critical analysis and objective criticism that questions even accepted norms, qualifies opinions or views with factual evidence and attempts to portray a full-fleshed-out opposing opinion. Just like in a good persuasive essay, it should be the job of the teacher to teach students to acknowledge the validity of having an opposing opinion, to know the argument and to systematically using factual evidence and persuasive techniques to demonstrate the holes in the argument.

This purely demonstrates academic standards by which students learn critical thinking by questioning all opinions and creates students who develop a deep understanding of philosophical means of persuasion and professional debate techniques to intelligently, rather than emotionally, address these controversial issues.

On student's social conditions

During our discussion, I brought up the idea that the social aspect is most centrally located in the social interactions between the students. I noticed that in most of the talks about how to change the NCLB and in general about the social well-being of the child, it has always been about trying to get them out of poverty. I understand the reasons for the interest; no one would want students to come to school poor or unhappy because of their home situation. But without the government taking over the entire raising of children, this cannot necessarily be stopped by social programs. I believe in extra help programs for these issues like shelters and free breakfast from the local social science groups to be connected to the school so students can use these resources if need be. However, all students deal with the social aspect within schools and therefore it is important to deal with that issues, especially since the school environment is easier to control than the environment at home. Students deal with drama with friends, fighting, bullying, stalking and romantic drama. All of these effect what a student is doing in class, especially on their ability to pay attention. Students are strongly affected by the interactions with students and sometimes really negative experiences with other students can cause really big problems.

I was told that it is really difficult to get rid of these problems in the classroom, that if a teacher is focusing on that aspect as a teacher it might detract with teaching regular information. I don't believe that is true. If you reinforce the idea that all students are respected in your classes it is relatively easy to keep correcting wrong actions while focusing on the academic aspect of the school. For instance, the teacher could assign people into the groups for small group projects rather than the students themselves to make sure that the students aren't leaving anyone out. Or the teacher could talk about how if students leave someone out or don't agree to work with certain people that the students would be kept after the bell. No kid wants that so everyone would quickly get into groups and to make sure to include everyone. Even if this is an affective way of stopping students from excluding people, it would be better for the students to reason out why this is right and work hard to follow the idea to respect their classmates.

Motivation and detrimental effects of labeling children's achievement levels...

This poem has been one of my favorite poems. Though after reading it I tend to get teary eyed.

It is called "The Average Child" by Mike Buscemi,

I don’t cause teachers trouble;
My grades have been okay.
I listen in my classes.
I’m in school every day.
My teachers think I’m average;
My parents think so too.
I wish I didn’t know that, though;
There’s lots I’d like to do.
I’d like to build a rocket;
I read a book on how.
Or start a stamp collection…
But no use trying now.
’Cause, since I found I’m average,
I’m smart enough you see
To know there’s nothing special
I should expect of me.
I’m part of that majority,
That hump part of the bell,
Who spends his life unnoticed
In an average kind of hell.