I Believe Statement

Eternity Effects

            A square room, window shades from fifty years ago, small wooden desks and a chalk board, is usually the typical picture that comes to mind when thinking about a school classroom. Sitting in class listening to the teacher talk while you would write notes and stare at the chalk board must ring a bell for most people. Going to school and learning is such a crucial part in developing and shaping a child’s life. So tell me how sitting in a plastic chair and wooden desk while only taking notes is effective in any aspect? Through the eye opening experience of Education 100, I finally was able to develop my thoughts on education and the school system.

            The big question I have is: What makes an education outstanding? In my previous schools, I either had amazing and caring teachers or “chalk and talk teachers”, which Educational Foundations refers to as teachers who only teach and give notes. Before Education 101, I was puzzled about the education system and schooling. I had so many unsolved answers before entering Education 100. I was very angry because so many of my teachers never understood me and my learning style. From formulating my thoughts, I had 4 main questions about education: What makes an honorable teacher? Is the banking concept acceptable? Is behavior a key influence on education for not only the student but also the teacher? Then due to stimulating class discussions, activities and observations I finally was able to put the missing pieces in my puzzle together. I firmly believe that a good teacher does not have a stir- and-serve recipe for teaching, teachers no doubt should personally know their students, the banking concept is not acceptable and behavior is a key in the education system.

            Teachers are the artists molding students into a complete sculpture. Therefore, teachers should be inspiring, innovating, caring and accepting. Susan Ohanian in chapter 9 of Educational Foundations touches on the subject of stir- and-serve recipe for teaching. Ohanian states, “Different children require different methods, different materials.” I agree one- hundred percent with this statement. There is no stir-and-serve recipe for teaching; one way of teaching cannot feed all of the student’s needs. I believe a teacher is not instantly going to be the best. It takes much time and preparation. There is not one effective way to serve students. Experimenting in a proper manner or catering to the students’ needs is necessary to make a good teacher.

 Also, an honorable teacher will not discriminate or exclude students. Chapter 5 in Educational Foundations discusses racism and discrimination believe there should be absolutely not racism or discrimination because, it discourages and negatively effects a student’s behavior. Furthermore, Marlow and Page in chapter 6 of Educational Foundation discuss how schools have a pull- out basis and leave the classroom if a student struggles or is not strong in a certain subject.   Marlow and Page state, “Students who don’t fit the mold, for whatever reasons, need good teachers who understand that the questions students ask are the most central issue to knowledge construction and active engagement”. I agree with this. An honorable teacher will never exclude a student because they cannot keep up. Robert Marazno in, Planning for What Students Don’t Know, ties in directly with teachers excluding students and discusses what it takes to be an honorable teacher. He discusses how students need to understand the basics of relationships before a teacher gives a lesson. Marazno asks, “What mental model do I assume students already have, and what is my plan for students who don’t have them?”  I believe this is a killer question because many teachers move on so fast at times thinking students know the information. A good teacher should realize no one is the same and no recipe for teaching pleases everyone’s taste. Personally, I struggled in school when I was younger. I constantly was being pulled out of class to go to the mobile unit which kids called the “dummy box.” This always discouraged me to learn. Also, a child may fear school because other students are constantly bringing them down. Through many positive and negative experiences, I no doubt think a teacher must hold all of the statements above.

On a similar train of thought, I believe behavior directs how a teacher and student will interact. Behavior is the most important part of education because it will make or break it. Behavior of the student and teacher reflects the type of education they will give and get. I believe a teacher must understand the student and their behavior. Many teachers do not dig deep into their students’ lives. John Spenser’s article We Hide The Best Parts discusses how teachers sometimes do not look beyond the mask that a student appears to wear. I agree and believe an effective and caring teacher will get to know their students beyond their mask.

 Knowing students’ behavior lets a teacher find the student’s interest, rather than being able to spark their imagination and eagerness to learn. In the school system there is bound to be misbehaving students. This can be a great obstacle for a teacher to overcome. Instead of scolding and punishing the student, I believe a teacher must understand and guide the student. Steven Rummell’s article, The Moral Poverty Issue, suggests looking into the student’s home life or problems in school and this may help determine why a student is acting up. A teacher should deal with bad behavior in a learning experience. Talking through what a student can improve on is much more effective than having them sit in detention. Lastly, a teacher digging deep into why students behave a certain way can help guide the students through the year. I believe without understanding how and why a class acts, one will never be able to really connect with students. A teacher can be more than a person who teaches at times. Being a mentor or someone to talk to is an important factor in a student- teacher relationship. Behavior should never be an excuse not to learn.

Lastly, I am very passionate on how cruel the banking concept is. There is not room for this demoralizing thing in the school system. In chapter 8 of Educational Foundations, Paulo Freire states, “Education thus becomes an act of depositing in which the students are the decompostiters and the teacher is the depositor. Instead of communicating, the teacher issues communiques and makes deposits which the students patiently receive, memorize, and repeat. This is the banking concept of education.”  The banking concept treats a person as something rather than someone.  Freire also states, “The person is not a conscious being, he or she is rather a possessor of a consciousness”. This not only degrades a person but treats an individual as something that should listen and soak up information. The banking concept basically is a student sitting and listening to the teacher talk while they take notes. No interaction of the outside world is there to help stimulate their learning. Johnathan Martin’s article, Pedagodgy of the Ailenated ,states, “Conceptualized alienation as constituting a profound separation of individuals from their true human nature—their natural experience of and relationships with themselves, their environment, their activities”. Martin’s article supports Freire’s thoughts on the banking concept. I strongly agree with the two articles that the banking concept does not allow partnership. Also, a person is in the world, not with the world. The banking concept leaves no room for creativity or an eagerness to learn.

The banking concept pulls the strings of my heart. I am a victim of this and I am sure that a lot of people are. Many of my teachers just talked my head off in the past. I retained little of the information. This made me hate going to school. School was boring and did not spark my interest. A teacher at JCU said “This class is supposed to be boring. All I really do is talk and you take notes.” I was shocked, a teacher should never say this. I firmly believe a teacher should have various learning activities. Discussion, sharing of ideas, real world experience are necessary to learn.

Overall, I have grown tremendously in Education 100. I am very passionate about how a teacher should interact with students. Education is a two way street. You should learn and teach. Going to school is an important part of your life. You are with your teacher five days a week. The teacher should be nothing other than amazing and inspiring. There are so many teachers that mold a student into an amazing person but there are also teachers that also are just there. A teacher is the gardener. They take care of the plants which are the students. The teacher must give the plant sun light and water for it to grow. A teacher must possess many qualities. In return, the plant gives us oxygen. It give us life. Students give teachers life and they should use this powerful gift to the maximum.

Work Cited

-          Work is cited in the order of the paper to make it easier to connect with

Ohanian, Susan. "On Stir- and Serve Recipes for Teaching." Educational Foundations: An Anthology of Critical Readings. By Alan S. Canestrari and Bruce A. Marlowe. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2004. N. pag. Web.

Nieto, Sonia. "Racism, Discrimination, and Expectations of Students' Achievement." Educational Foundations: An Anthology of Critical Readings. By Alan S. Canestrari and Bruce A. Marlowe. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2004. N. pag. Print.

Page, Marilyn. "Inclusion." Educational Foundations: An Anthology of Critical Readings. By Alan S. Canestrari and Bruce A. Marlowe. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2004. 61. Print.

Spencer, John T. "We Hide The Best Parts." Phi Delta Kappan 95.3 (2013): 74-75. Education
    Research Complete. Web. 13 MRummell, Steven. "The Moral Poverty Issue." National Forum 81.4 (2001): 38. Education Research Complete. Web. 13 Mar. 2014.ar. 2014.

Martin, J. (2008). Pedagogy of the Alienated: Can Freirian Teaching Reach Working-Class Students?. Equity & Excellence In Education, 41(1), 31-44.+Jackson, S. (2007). Freire Re-viewed. Educational Theory, 57(2), 199-213.

last personal observation

My second experience going to Saint Albert the Great was even better than the first. From observing I got a sense in developing my thoughts on if I teach what I would want to teach or what grade level. From observing Mrs. Beskid’s first grade class, I thought first grade would be a great fit. But then, by chance, I was able to observe Mrs. Halle’s kindergarten class for a little bit of time. I fell in love with the kindergarten class. During this visit of Mrs. Beskid’s class my primary goal was to focus on the setting and her attitude to the class.

Setting

• Even though there was the normal school desks, they were lined up into table formations. This allowed to kids to interact with each other. Mrs. Beskid encouraged interaction so this structure of desks made it easy for her students to communicate.

• Crafts, vocabulary, rules were plastered all over the walls. There was no white space everything was colorful
• Students were allowed to have water bottles on their desks. Mrs. Beskid even encouraged the kids to drink their water to stay hydrated to they could learn their best
• The overall setting was very comfortable. Books, student’s artwork or information on the knowledge was all over the room. There was so many encouraging posters, funny ones and serious ones that made a good mixture of different views. The room was a very child welcoming.

Mrs. Beskid’s Attitude/ Beliefs

• “ Work hard then relax after” was something she stressed
•   Was assertive, not aggressive
•   Would not allow bad behavior
•   Made sure she was clear with her instructions so the students would know what they are doing
•   Wanted to teach common sense in with lessons
• Constantly practicing manners and being kind
• Tied in other lessons with the one learning. Example: tied in parts of a plant with the students poetry lesson
•   “Never give up”
•   Believed greatly in organization
•   Has clear goals
•   Emphasizes not to stress out

Overall, Mrs. Beskid is an amazing teacher. She incorporates many different ideas or techniques into her teaching. She never just has her students sitting and taking notes. She constantly uses creative ways to learn. She does not overload her students with so many ways that they get confused or frustrated. Participation is never an issue in her class. I believe her students adore her so much they are willing to show effort. Her class never looks bored and stares at the chalk board. Constantly, they are smiling, interacting, singing, on the smart board to learn. Mrs. Beskid encouraged healthy competition among the kids. I saw this motivated them and they encouraged their fellow teammates so that they could win against the other team. I did not see any extreme bad behavior. Constantly, the classroom was always in control. Mrs. Beskid demonstrates that teaching can be fun. Learning can be fun. School should not be something you dread, rather something that you are eager to go to everyday.

By chance, when the first graders went to their special, I was given the opportunity to observe Mrs. Halle’s kindergarten classroom. Even though I was not there for long, I instantly knew that I instantly knew that I could want to teach kindergarten. Mrs. Halle’s class greeted me, they were so well behaved, and they were kind and helped each other. Mrs. Halle is probably the most energetic teacher I have ever seen. She constantly made the kids practice their manners and kindness. She only spoke in a positive voice. She looked like she was having fun as long as the students.

The kindergarten class’s curriculum is not so much serious. Rather, it is learning common sense and manners. I was able to work with a kindergarten boy who had a tumor in his brain. He had to circle the hidden butterflies in picture. Even though this was not hard to me, it took him a little while but he found all the hidden butterflies. He had a positive attitude. Then the class sang and danced to learn about spelling and the different type of animals.

I love the simplicity of kindergarten. The students look like they have fun. Even though first grade curriculum may not appear hard to me, I would rather teach kindergarteners on common sense and manners. I love children and would want to help develop them so that they are able to go to first grade very well rounded. I want to sing song, dance or watch the children color pictures. This may be simple but I love to see the children be happy. Just being in the kindergarten classroom for a short time made me realize that if I taught I could not imagine teaching any other class than kindergarten.

Lastly, I observed Newton D. Baker School of Arts in Cleveland. Since I am going the speech therapy route but in the school system, I thought it would be beneficial to observe a speech therapist in a school system. Newton D. Baker is a school for kids with disabilities or who are artistic. I shadowed Mindy Flandera for the day and I knew at that second I wanted to work with kids in a school system.

In the beginning of the day Mindy and I went to a pre- school – first grade class for students with disabilities. In this tiny room many toddlers were playing and interacting with each other. In the classroom there was a little room in the back that Mindy took her speech therapy students.

During Mindy’s time with her students

•  3 students ages 3-5 with information processing/ speech disorders

•   Did many hands on games to help with child’s problems. Playing house, puzzles and board games were a few of the fun ways that incorporated in her time with the student
•      I noticed the kids were having fun and at the same time were improving on the skill they were lacking
•   Mindy was very emotional and personable
•    Gave optional homework so that the student could improve

Mindy is very comforting and does not get angry with these special students. Many of these students comes from poor households and she knew their attention is not the greatest. She is very passionate and loving with her work and wants the students to improve. Lastly, Mindy worked with a teacher to help teach a class.

Mindy and the teacher during class:

•   Mindy worked with a teachers 2^nd grade class on pronouncing and spelling words correctly
•  Many of these children had speech disorders
• Mindy and the teacher made the kids use hand motions when pronouncing words. This truly helped the kids used the right syllables and stresses
•  Mindy and the teacher’s styles complimented each other. Mindy is caring and the teacher was encouraging
•   I personally got to help teach. I showed the students a word and they had to pronounce it. Or I told students a word and they had to write it.

I loved how Mindy interacted with the teacher. It was like she was an actually teacher. I also adored how Mindy did not have to work with one class all day. She got to mix around different classrooms. I saw kids who were severely mentally retarded to those who had little speech impediments. I loved how there was smiles on the kids face constantly. Mindy incorporated such fun things while helping the students. Due to all these observations, I know I want to work in a school system with little children. I have a total new respect for teachers because they can greatly influence ones life.