It’s been a week of questioning and from the reading of
Ravitch I’ve learned that it’s okay to question, reevaluate and retract your
stance. Ravitch writes on page two of The
Death and Life of the Great American School System, “I have a right to
change my mind.” As a teacher I take this to mean that I have the right to try
new methods, explore alternatives to the conventional and shift my stance on
views or practices. If a supporter of NCLB can come to the conclusion that she
was wrong surely I can change my mind about almost anything. The thing that stood out the most to me was Ravitch's emphatic words regarding a "quick solution" to the problems of the American Educational system. "...I have consitantly warned that, in education, there are no shortcuts, no utopias and no silver bullets," writes Ravitch. I think this is the most refreshing and realistic statement that she can make. In a profession where many burn out in less than five years it may help many idealistic new teachers (of which I am one) to understand that only in movies are problems solved in under two hours or the equivalent of an academic year. Ravitch also
states that “Doubt and skepticism are signs of rationality.” I just love the
implication of continuous thought being a sign of evolution and life-long
education.
A well educated person to me is a
person who can think for themselves. ANAR states that, “A high level of shared
education is essential to a free, democratic society and to fostering of a
common culture, especially in a country that prides itself on pluralism and
individual freedom.” The high level of education mentioned in ANAR cannot be
achieved by individuals who cannot think for themselves. What is an independent
thinker you may ask? An independent thinker to me is a person who can sift
through information, analyze how that information jibes with their own
knowledge and values and produce a stance/belief that is their own. I believe
that any well-educated person today should know how to think for themselves and
does think for themselves.
The best part about the MAIT
program and our class discussions is that we are all independent thinkers. We
have taken the same information fed to us by the KSOE in the credential program
and used our personal experiences and ideals to interpret Ravitch’s work. From
our discussion I can say that we have different schools of thought in our MAIT
classroom, but while we approach teaching differently the discussion revealed
we all share a desire to help our students reach their full potential.
Speaking of full potential there is
one thing stopping me from reaching my full potential as a teacher: grammar. I
hate grammar. I FEAR teaching it, because I never blatantly learned it. My
friend (Heather R.) suggested grammaruntied.com for some basic pointers; I have
used the Little Brown Handbook as an
instructor to help my students and myself in a past course. In my efforts to
overcome this obstacle I found an article titled, “Effective Grammar Teaching: Lessons from Confident Grammar Teachers”, which I hope will further guide me in
openly teaching my students grammar.
This is what it’s all about right?
The journey from student to teacher and you can’t be the latter without being
the former.
This week I responded to : Sasha, Ranell and Tanya
This week I responded to : Sasha, Ranell and Tanya
Dear Nora,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your entry today, especially because you made it one fluent answer rather than separating the questions and answers as I did. (Sometimes I am shockingly linear!)
The Ravitch quotes you highlighted are all ones I underlined in my book. My favorite is the one about doubt and skepticism being signs of rationality. I have a poster in my classroom that says "Truth Fears No Questions." I think that adults (including myself, of course) need to be reminded of that as often as teenagers do. Sometimes (especially in American culture, I think), people get so afraid of being wrong that they fear holding their beliefs up to the light and instead grasp them more tightly, lashing out at anyone who would challenge them. There is certainly no room for doubt and skepticism there. But really, if something is true, it's true whether we believe it or not; it certainly doesn't rely on us to "protect" it from doubters.
Now, about that grammar, I think we need to do something to conquer your fear! I know it's intimidating since you didn't learn any in school, but once you get to know it, it can actually be fun, like figuring out a puzzle. If you want, we can pick a book and meet for a few minutes before class each week as a way for you to wet your toes in the ocean. What do you think?
:)h
Nora,
ReplyDeleteI think you have some great insight! Your entry truly resonates with me, as I can relate to some of your opinions. I too am an idealistic new teacher but coming to the realization that the change I would like to see and/or make will take a bit of time. I think it is important that we remain hopeful and motivated, yet manage our expectations.
I respect that you are able to admit you have a specific area in which you can grow, something some teachers have trouble doing. By realizing this is an area in which you would like to improve, you are demonstrating to your students that you too still learn, and are not afraid to admit it! I think it is important for teachers to show their students they are active learners, as it serves as a great model for them to learn from.
Nora if you read this message please call me at 510 691-3852 my work email is down. I would like to send you the cubes and the information on them for our lesson Tuesday. The other email address that can be used for me is burnetts77@yahoo.com.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ranell Burnett
Hi Nora, Sorry for this very late response. The St. Mary's server was down for several hours yesterday, which was most frustrating to me. I appreciate your opinions, and I agree heartily that it's great to have a group in class who have strong opinions and points of view. It makes for interesting discussion, although I think we can do better about staying on topic to reach deeper discussion. I agree with you about Ravitch. She is right to state what she really thinks and sees, even if she has to say that she was wrong in previous judgments. For this Blog, I was hoping you would briefly discuss some of the sources you are finding. I know you are considering multiple topics, but I would still like to read about the sources you find as you research. Patti
ReplyDelete