Deep Discussion

Yesterday I attempted something new: deep, menaingful converstaion about real-world issues. I know, I know, sounds too much for sixteen-year-olds to handle, but it worked well! It was time to talk about racial inequality (since I chickened-out and never had a discussion with them about the use of the n-word in the book). I gave them horrifying statistics: 44% of all US prisoners are black, while only 12% of the US population is black. I had to explain what a census was, which I didn't expect. First period was much quieter than third. I imagine they are still sleeeping. Third period had a great discussion that quickly turned to the legalization of marijuana, which I had expected. Fifth period was upset with me for not having statistics for Latinos and Mexican Americans.

Spring is in the air

I forgot to mention that before I left on vacation my kids convinced me to teach class outside for a day. We were just reading the book, so it was simple. It was a beautiful day out and I did not blam my kids for wanting to be outside in the spring. I was substituting for my CT, or else I would have never done it. One girl suggested it and then the rest of the class ganged up on me. They were well-behaved. I read the chapters to them instead of us listening to it on tape. It made me really glad that I did not have to read to the kids every day, my throat would be so hoarse! One boy asked me to read in a Southern accent and I couldn't, so I suggested he read instead. He made it about two pages with his little girl Southern accent before he gave up and let me finish reading. The novelty of being outside really inticed the kids. I think I will teach outside often! I remember the few times when my high school teachers took us outside as a special treat. Good idea, class!

Plan to Grade

I am buried in papers! I am realizing how incredibly intellegent my CT is. For the last book her classes are reading, she assigned literature groups. Each group is responsible for teaching a section of the book to the rest of the class. She grades one group a week and does not have to worry about taking home projects or getting behind in her grading. This is such a wonderful way to assign projects! I will have to think about this more as I plan future units.

A-ha!

Today I was lucky enough to witness an "A-ha!" moment on a student's face. She figured out that it was Boo Radley that saved Jem and Scout from mean old Bob Ewell at the end of To Kill a Mockingbird. I asked her a question about the story and she thought for a minute, and then the realization washed over her face. Her eyes got big and she started squirming in her seat. It was so amazing! It is moments like this that make me realize I really am making a difference in students' lives.
After reading the predictions and repsponses from the students, I realized how beautifully hopeful they are. So many of these kids, even though they are 16 or so, still believe that good will overcome evil, that humans are essentially kind and that the world is a beautiful place. It makes me so happy to have these kids in my life on a daily basis. I feel blessed.

Closing In

Back from a week of fun and sun in California. I know people don't believe me, but I really missed my kids! I was saddened by not being able to travel with them through the exciting climax of To Kill a Mockingbird. We only have a few chapters left in the novel and I am glad we have another month to proccess it all before school is out. The pace of the class feels much more managable without trying to stuff another book into the last six weeks, which started last week. It seems like the year is over already!

Do and Don't List of Parent/Teacher Conferences

After a week of student-led parent/teacher conferences, I have created my own survival list:

DO:

Remain humble. You may be an expert at school, but parents remain the expert of their children
Listen more than you talk. You talk all the time during class, let someone else share how they feel.

Stay positive. Focus on the future and stress that you’re main goal is the success of the student.

Create an atmosphere of openness. You have the home advantage; you’re on your turf. To make up for that, you must be extra welcoming and understanding.

Come prepared with students’ grades, examples of work, issues you have observed and (most important) suggestions for solutions.

DON’T:

Judge families or assume things about families. You only spent about an hour with them, you do not know them.

Ever talk bad about other teachers, parents or students in front of families.

Focus on negative aspects about the past. Even if this student gave you hell last semester, this is water under the bridge and it is time to move forward.

Waste parents’ time with explaining things that are unimportant or irrelevant. If the student does not have an attendance problem, don’t go over the attendance policy again.

Humanization

“I’ve come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It’s my personal approach that creates the climate; it’s my daily mood that makes the weather. As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child’s life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture, or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated or a child humanized or dehumanized.”
- Haim Ginott

Pedagogy of What?

I spent last night in the library, busily researching a paper I'm writing. I just learned about Paulo Freire, the godfather of critical pedagogy. He wrote The Pedagogy of Opression, which plays a large role in service learning education. Apparently, there are three main camps of education: conservative/traditional, progressive/liberal and critical. Dewey, the father of experiential learning, criticizes both traditional and progressive education . Dewey says that education is inseprable from democracy.

So, when my professor mentioned Dewey in class and received a room full of blank stares, I knew something was wrong. I had only encountered Dewey briefly in my Special Education class, and did not know his story. I feel like the more I learn, the less I know.

How are we going to be good teachers if we are not aware of the great philosphers who shaped our educational policy?

How are we going to defend our teaching methods when we cannot name them correctly, or comprehend them within the greater sphere of education?

I have been teaching on gut instinct. My college courses gave me a toolbox of methods and practices I can use in the classroom. But I have no idea where these come from or on what ideals they are based. I used to cling to the idea of teaching critical thinking. Our future is uncertain and by teaching kids to think critically they can learn to adapt. Now I am so unsure of the purpose of education.

I do not see students as empty vessels to fill, but as young people who need guidance. Literature is a place where they can find some guidenace about how to interact with others and be happy in their own lives.

I feel lucky to have another year of schooling. I think I'll just go for my PhD actually...

One Bone at a Time

From the Web site: "One Million Bones is a fundraising art installation designed to recognize the millions of victims killed or displaced by ongoing genocides occurring on our watch.

Our Mission is to increase global awareness of these atrocities while raising the critical funds needed to protect and aid displaced and vulnerable victims.

One Million Bones will represent victims of genocide, creating a visual demand for solutions to this issue. Ignored and therefore permitted, genocide continues today, while widespread awareness of it remains buried. One million people will each create one bone to represent one victim. Installed together, these million bones will flood the National Mall in Washington, D.C., unearthing the memory of these victims while calling citizens to action: mourning yesterday’s casualties, caring for today’s refugees, saving tomorrow’s people."

This is so amazing! I am beginning to create a unit plan for a paper incorporating the book A Long Way Gone: Memiors of a Boy Soldier with this wonderful project: One Million Bones.

The creater of the project even has a video on TED. I will share more as I collect information.

Student-led Conference

I just had my first official student-led parent/teacher conference! It went simmingly. The mother is invloved in her son's life, and that makes all the difference. We discussed all his classes, his strengths and weaknesses, and his goals for next year. Parent involvement is so important to the success of a struggling student. It was nice that I had called her a few weeks ago and we spoke on the phone for a bit about her son. She was comfortable speaking with me about her worries and her son's performance. The student was extremely nervous, which was adorable. I am guessing all conferences will not go as smoothly. It is great to start off on the right foot though!

I thought this was pretty funny, so I stole it from another blogger.

"TIPS TO SURVIVING PARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES

1. Diet Coke

2. It's best not to laugh at the kids who you get in trouble while their parents are still sitting there.

3. Eat garlic before hand...parents tend not to linger.

4. When talking to parents avoid phrases like, "You look so familiar. Did I see you at the bar last weekend?" or "I'm not sure why your kid is failing. Maybe you should just stick him/her in special ed."

5. If a parent tells you that their child is too smart for your class--agree. Then send them directly to the principal to tell her how smart the kid is and demand that they be transferred out of your class and into honors English. Nobody likes those know-it-all kids anyway.

6. Be extra-nice to the parents whose kids are idiots...after all, they are stuck with them forever. You are only pulling a 45 minute shift a few times a week.

7. Never admit that you really have no recollection of ever seeing their child before.

8. On the day of P/T conferences make your kids feel sorry for you because you have to be there all day, and tell them to bring you stuff when they come with their parents.

9. NEVER eat anything homemade they bring you.

10. Make sure you've planned an easy teaching day for the day after because post parent/teacher conference hangover is a beast."

S-S-S-O-F-M-M-M-O-R, S-O-F-M-O-R Sophomores!

Other than the fact that we're teaching our sophomores to spell incorrectly, the spirit assembly was a blast. Today was my first assembly at AHS. It was a Spring Spirit and Sports Assembly. Which means it is an attempt to recognize student athletes and raise student involvement. About a third of the school was absent, since it is the first day back from a long weekend, and only juniors have to be at school for testing the rest of the week. Everyone else gets a second spring break. The assembly was chaotic and very, very noisy. The juniors won the Spirit Stick for being the loudest and rowdiest. The juniors and seniors rushed the floor and nearly trampled several people. I was glad to be up in the sophomore section, away from all the action. It was nice to see my students recognized for their commitment and acheivements to school activities. Attending the assembly made me remember a lot about my high school years. It was fun to see kids being kids -rowdy, loud, and disorganized.

A Short Clip of Me Teaching

Rootology

After learning about vocabulary in our Professional Development meeting, I realized how mcuh my classes were lacking in this area. Yesterday, a student asked me what a list of words meant that she had made during out reading. I explained them to her and she asked if certain endings and beginnings of words meant certain things all the time. I explained to her about prefixes and suffixes. I realized I needed to teach these kids about words.
So tofay I started a bellringer called "Rootology." Everyday, I will introduce two or three root words to the class and together we will think of examples and decipher what they mean. I will record these on a chart so the classes can use it as a reference. These words will be on their final exam.
I think that this practice will not only help them on standardized tests, it will help them become better readers in general. It will teach them to pick apart words to find meaning.

This is a good Web site with a very complete list of common roots to pull from.

Certified Sub - not a career path

I completed my substitute training last Thursday. I learned that APS is short 100 substitutes everyday. And now with APS cutting teacher positions and enacting a hiring freeeze, the lack of teachers in schools will only become worse.

It doesn't make any sense that schools fail AYP and then instead of increasing the teacher to student ratio to ensure student success, school must cut teachers. Although subbing might be my only option for a job in the school system next year, I have been warned by many teachers that this will only cause me to burn out as a teacher. Subbing is harder than teaching. You have to deal with misbehaving students everyday and do not get the chance to make an impact on the lives of these children. I would like to sub some for experience, but I really want my own classroom. We discussed other job options in my UNM classes: Teach for America, DODD schools, Silva tudoring. Dr. Bryant suggested we go to grad school. Since I was already planning on finishing grad school, this advice was not too helpful. And since I am finishing my schooling, I have to stay in Albuquerque -which means I cannot take any teahcing jobs that require relocating. I really want to move and thought that teaching would help me stay put for another year while I finish my Master's. It will be much harder if I do not get my own classroom. I have been working on my cover letter and resume lately. And I am meeting with Mrs. Dawn Moore to get some interview tips. With luck, I will land a job at a local charter school. If not, I must be flexible -like a true teacher.

Thanks Gary!

It is always informational to observe Gary's classroom. He has such a calm, collected style of teaching. He also knows how to make his class relevant and connect with kids. He really knows each of his students and is able to meet them at their ability level, while still encouraging them to try harder, push for more. He is in inspiration.

Essays and Tests

My spring break consisted largely of writing papers for UNM, so it was a joy to take a break and read my students' Compare and Contrast Essays. The difference from student to student in writing and comprehension was astounding. Some kids really "get" this book. They push past the superficial details and relate to the core of the story. Other kids don't even realize Scout is a girl. Some students think Calpurnia is a slave and started talking about the Civil War (instead of Civil Rights Movement), while other did not realize she is black. One of the most challenging things I have come across is to teach each student at his/her particular level. By taking time to grade essays and write lots of comments, I am pushing the kids who already undertsand to look deeper and helping those who are behind to catch up a little. By this time in the year, I feel like I know my studnets and what they are capable of. Only sometimes do I worry that this student or that student is capable of doing more, they are just lazy and have me fooled into thinking they cannot produce really excellent work. I looked at students' DBA scores, hoping it would help me understand my kids better, but the scores were all over the board. Some kids who turn in awesome work did poorly on the test, while others who never turn in anything in class scored extremely high. I think this only confused me more. Talking to the kids and getting to know them is much more beneficial than looking at any test scores.

Lost The Lottery

Now that spring break is over, the end of the year is right around the corner! I made lesson plans for the rest of To Kill a Mockingbird over the break. Only on Monday did I realize I had forgotten to plan for the upcoming holidays, testing, and parent-teacher conferences. The book is a long one, and I had only left three weeks at the end of the year for our next book, The Lottery Rose. After much consideration, my CT and I decided it would benefit the kids most to just focus on To Kill a Mockingbird for the rest of the year. This way, we can work in discussions about ethics and stereotypes, and show the movie to the class. I am a little sad because The Lottery Rose is such a good book, but relieved because I can spend more time on important issues as they arise in class.

Calling Home

The week before spring break, I got this wild and crazy idea to call all students' parents. I have been told several times by those wiser than me at UNM to contact parents BEFORE kids do anything wrong. So, having missed my chance at the beginning of the year, I decided to take the oppurtunity and call home.
The experience was amazing and rewarding. I called each student back to discuss grades while the class worked independently on essays. I warned kids that I would be calling their parents. Then after school, I set to work. The first call was not encouraging. I had not asked my students if their parents spoke English! The following day, I found out language proficiency information on parents and sent home progress reports to those who did not speak English, about 20% of my classes. I would like to learn Spanish, but this is a long-term goal and cannot be accomplished over night. Although this experience did give me much more motivation.
I set to work calling parents again. Most of my students are doing well so far, so many reports gome were good. Parents were astounded that a teacher was taking time to call and let them know how well their students were doing. For those who were not doing as well, we created a success plan together during class and I told their parents how they can help. The students, parents, and I all have the same goal -to see students succeed. This was my mantra on the phone.
I don't think I spoke with a single parent who was not happy to hear from me. This was an awesome experience and I feel a lot more comfortable speaking with parents now.
On my teacher certification test I took last weekend, the one extended-answer essay question was about how to keep parents involved in student success. I felt like a pro.

You're Welcome

You have one new message:
“Hello this is so and so’s mom. I appreciate the call. Thank you so much! I’m so glad um –thank you so much! I know you guys do so hard work with these kids. So I’m so happy to hear he’s doing good in your class. I appreciate it so much! I know he’s struggling with his math, but I’m so glad he got his English grade up. Thank you so much! And I appreciate the call. I’m going to have him listen to it and I know he’ll be very proud of himself. Um –again if there are any concerns, you have my number. Thanks again so much and have a great day!”

Building a Better Teacher

New York Times awesome article: Building a Better Teacher

Good to see positive publicity!

How not to manage your classroom

Very beginning of class.

Me: Sally, what's wrong?
Sally: I don't feel good, can I call my mom?
Me: During class? No. I can send you to the nurse and you can call from there.
Sally: I don't want to go to the nurse. I just want her to come pick me up. Please?
Me: No, just go to the nurse. That's proper procedure. I can't let you use your phone during class.
Sally: But miss! I don't want to walk all the way to the nurse just to come back here when I could call my mom from here.
Ellie: [Budding in] Just let her miss.
Sally: Please? [Makes sick face like she might vomit at any time]
Me: Fine. Go, do it now, outside. Hurry back in.
Sally: Ellie, let me borrow your phone.

20 minutes later
Intercom: Please send Sally to the front office, her mother is here to pick her up.
Me: You got it.
Intercom: What?
Me: Yes ma'am. Go on Sally.

Lesson:
I need to stick to my guns. Even though this worked out (kind of), I cannot let the students push me around like this. When I say no, I have to stick with it. I just need to learn which battles are worth fighting. And I did not want vomit in my classroom.

I rock!

Yesterday I totally rocked 5th period! The class was about twenty minutes behind my other classes, beacuse a. they're a skinny period, b. they meet right after lunch, and c. those kids are talkers! I had everything prepared to launch right into our work when the bell rang. Then I kept them on track with constant reminders and stern teacher looks (which I have been practicing.) It took a lot of effort, but they are caught up now! Win!

IDK

Another issue close to my heart was raised at our meeting today: grading writing. I have not been grading my students’ writing for spelling and grammar. This (apparently) is a horrible atrocity for an English teacher. I have been trying to get my students to write ANYTHING down. I have been exposed to the idea that marking kids’ papers up excessively only reinforces the idea that they are failures and encourages them to not turn anything in and ditch class. I want to support my budding writers. I think that understanding concepts is much more important than being able to spell them. (Although it is amusing when I get "IDK" for "I don't know," "cus" for "because," and "usto" for "used to.") This may be because my father is a wonderful engineer and cannot spell to save his life. He has been successful in his life because of his critical thinking skills, not his grammatical skills. But as an English teacher, I feel like I am failing my students by not teaching them basic English. Teachers in other fields shared how they mark down for poor writing, and wondered why I was not doing the same. Another reason is that I want my students to write more than I have time to correct. I want them to write everyday and I do not have time to pick apart their writing. Hopefully, I can figure this one out soon…

Homewhat?

Today in our Departmental Development meeting (10th grade Academy) we discussed homework. Do we want to have a 10th grade homework policy across the board? Why assign homework? Is it to reinforce skills taught in class? Is it to give students base knowledge about upcoming topics? Is it to teach kids organization and responsibility?
We could not agree.
We did agree that all students should have homework every night in math, reading, and writing. This posed a problem since I have three English classes that do not have homework at all. Period. I wish I could assign the students homework, but they have not been taught the skills to complete it. Homework is giving them another avenue for failure, not success.
I think reading is the best homework that can be given in an English class. Teachers should give book talks and let students choose their own books, which they will write about and share with small discussion groups. SSR time should be provided in class to get students enticed. Then they will be motivated to read at home. Ah, if only things were as easily done as said!

Talk to me!

One of my professional development goals is to engage the students in discussion more often. Too many days the kids are sitting in class like bumps on a log. The first strategey I am employing is to use "name cards" to get kids to anser questions. These are a class set of notecards with each students name on a sepertae card. Whenever I ask a question, I can pull the top card and ask that student specifically. Then I give the student a plus for answering correctly, a check for attempting to answer, and a minus if they did not attempt to answer at all. This takes the pressure off me to choose students to speak in class and takes pressure off students because they know they all have to participate equally.
I introduced this to my students at the end of last week. There was a unanimous groan. But it made my job as a teacher much easier, since I could focus on teaching more than stressing about who will answer the next question. I am only using these cards as scaffolding and hopefully my students will internalize the purpose of the cards and begin to speak more freely in my classes.

Advice from a master educator

A few days ago, I had the privilege of a discussion with Assistant Principal Holly. She did an excellent job of putting my uneasiness to rest by explaining her educational philosophy. I was worried about the difference between the things we're learning at UNM and the things I'm seeing during my field service.

Here are some things we talked about:

• Every student should graduate (or get a GED). Not every student that attends, or every student that speaks English, or every student that turns in their work. Every student. Period.
• Use technology! Meet the kids halfway with what they are interested in.
• So many kids don’t ever come to class because we lose them in the first few days.
• Remember that engaging lesson plans are the best cure for truancy.
• More important than the lesson is classroom management. If kids are not paying attention, they are not learning!
• Testing is secondary –teaching the kids comes first.
  

I need cookies...

New Era

We were lucky enough to begin our new unit with brand-spanking-new books! No one has ever opened these before! I tried communictae to the kids how cool that is.

I'm so happy we're done with poetry and moving on to something new :)

Six Week Grades

I just sent in my final grades for the first six weeks! Hooray! The poetry projects were really interesting to read, although many kids did not complete the assignment and their grades suffered. It frustrates me that the kids who have the resources and abilities don't take advantage of them. The kids who did the best on this project are kids who struggled and needed extra help. For some reason, fifth period is the worst -their class average is almost 60%. First period's is about 65%, and third period is nearly 70%. I wonder why the difference? I know fifth is always a little behind the other classes. I'm guessing this means they receive less time to work and fewer instructions. Today I told them about this problem and I was probably visible annoyed. I was much stricter, trying to keep the class focused. We will see how this works.

The BINDER

Today I used the awe-inspiring, crazy-old, and slightly rusty (but still amazing) BINDER to bind the students poetry books. Thanks to Mr. Bob Gorrell for rescuing this amazing piece of metal and cleaning it up for classroom use. We are lucky to have such a cool machine!

Feel the power of the BINDER!!!

Long Weekend

After the long weekend, I am feeling refreshed and ready to take on the new six weeks! The students are turning in their poetry projects this week and honestly, I'm glad we're done with poems. I'm excited to see their work and looking forward to starting our unit on To Kill a Mockingbird!
In other news, I read all of Shadow of the Wind, the book my student gave me as homework. It was beautiful and enchanting, honoring the art of story telling. I am happy to be able to share in the love of a good book, and one of my student's favorites. I think I'll bring him 100 Years of Solitude, which he is sure to enjoy.
Another update about my UNM friend who had the trouble with her students videotaping her: the students were suspended for a week, and the school officer (a woman) volunteered to come and talk to the class about sexual harrassment and appropriate behavior. It has been a learning experience for us all.

Drug Dialogue

There was a sub for Mrs. Gorrell today (APS is processing my sub application like a sloth full of molasses.) It was inevitably an interesting day.
Two of my male students have been discussing drugs with me. Well, more them telling me about how they smoke weed and writing about how they get chinc-eyed and other things I did not want to hear. This dilemma was also brought up during my seminar class. Apparently the perscribed response is to tell they kids this doesn't impress you and then tell them you don't want to hear about these types of things because you may have to take furhter actions. First, would I really take further actions, or would that be an empty threat? (Let's face it, I don't really discipline my kids...) And second, is it the right answer to just shove these things under the rug? It seems silly not to discuss issues in my students' lives. Third, these two students in particular do not turn in any work and are hardly ever on task during class. They failed the first semester and I don't have any hope they will pass the second, let alone graduate high school. I don't want to seem like I don't believe in my students, I know if they wanted to do this whole school thing, they'd rock at it. I wonder if they have just been shot down so many times by the system that they turn to drugs and alcohol for relief, and then talk about it in class so they don't have to do any work...???

The Gift of Books

I've been thinking a lot about books and children lately -how could I avoid it? I am trying to form some opinions about how to encourage children to become lifelong readers. Now I know there are many, many paper and books published on this topic. And I have read some of them. But I cannot "own" an idea unless I a) come up with it, or b) try it out for myself.
So, I've been reading some fun young adult books in my young adult literature class at UNM: Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie and American Born Chinese, which is a graphic novella by Gene Luen Yang. I have been wanting to share these books with my classes, but we are waist-deep in poetry and it is hard to cram anything else in right now. I have a student aid though, who was in my class last semseter and only needed one semester of English. So I share my books with him. Sometimes I bring in Nation Geographics with cool articles, other times I lend him the short books I'm reading. It is such a joy to be able to share this with him, especially since I am learning, too. I let him read the beginning of American Born Chinese and he like dit so much that he went to the public library over the weekend, checked it out, and finished it before Monday. When I saw him in class, he was dissapointed I hadn't finished the book yet because he wanted to discuss it! Amazing!

In another class, there is a young man who is very interested in books and reading already. We were discussing some books and he was explaining why he disliked Steinback's East of Eden, which I am reading for the first time. I asked him what books he really liked and he wrote down two titles for me. I told him I'd do my best to look them up. Everyday since he has asked me if I've read the books yet. I have been so busy with classwork (and Steinback!) that I did not check out the novels. In class today (one week from when we had this discussion) he asked again about the books. I asked him if the school library might have them so I could check them out later during my prep. As I was eating lunch, he came marching in with a book, "This is your homework," he said triumphantly. "Read this by Tuesday. you have a long weekend to finish it!" I am tickled that a student of mine is so determined to share his reading material with me! I realize he is already a lifelong reader, but the social exchange is rewarding for both parties. So now I begin The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon on behalf of an eager 16-year-old...

Where are the books?

I recently sat in on another teacher's class here at AHS. I noticed his classroom was filled with books. There were books along the chalkboards, on shelves, in cabinets, on his desk -everywhere!

It made me look at my classroom and wonder, where are all the books? It is my goal ove rthe next two weeks to collect enough books to fill these empty places.

Technology in Barrackistan

Our classroom is out in the barracks. This has pros and cons. We don't have to breath the recycled air in the building and we get windows. When the weather is nice, we open the door and listen to the bells at a nearby church. However, we don't have any wireless out here and access to technology is limited.

When we need computers we have to use a computer lab in the building (which takes extra time to walk to and the temperature in there is often equivalent to a meat freezer). Alternatively, we can bring out a computer rolling cart. This neat little cart has 15 laptops, a printer and an airport allowing internet access. Although we have about 30 kids in each class, 15 laptops isn't bad.

We have been bringing out this rolling cart for the last week. This entails showing up early to get the cart, wheeling it out to our classroom (over the potholes and asphault -it always takes two people) and then waiting for our students to come and help us lift, yes lift, the whole cart up the stairs (usually takes about 4 big guys to do this). We have no ramp to our classroom. So this is all fine and dandy, but at the end of last week a computer slid off and broke. The new decree is no rolling cart in the barracks: its just too dangerous! So this put a damper on my plans for this week. I immediately tried to sign up for a computer lab so my kids could use some computers, but all the labs are booked this week for testing! It is so frustrating that getting teachnology to my kids seems like an uphill battle.

I guess it is a valuable lesson in felxibility. We're still trying to figure out a new plan...

Teaching Philosophy

As a budding teacher, I’m often posed with the question, “What is the purpose of the American education system?” And although it is worded differently, this is the same as another question I hear often, “Why do you want to be a teacher?” The purpose of the education system, and of the teachers that create and uphold it, is to help children learn how to think critically. Free thinking is the basis for not only a democratic government, but also civil interaction with others. I realize that emotional intelligence differs from intellectual intelligence, but both can be classified under critical thinking, and both should be taught in the classroom.
After with food and shelter, a sense of belonging and attachment is a basic human need. Without meeting these core needs, a person is unable to move on to higher goals of creativity and self-realization. That is why creating a strong classroom community is of utmost importance. Once students feel safe, their natural curiosity can be harnessed and learning can begin.
So much of life is presented as rewards-based, especially to children. This “be good and get a treat” ideology only increases students’ drive for meaningless instant-gratification. A child who learns for the sake of learning instead of for the good marks has a life advantage over other students. Students who realize the value is in the journey and not the prize are more likely to lead fulfilling lives. Although I accept that most of society trains children to be consumers above all else, my classroom will encourage individual thought as the highest form of achievement.

Poetry in the PAC

Today we were lucky enough to got to AHS's Poetry in the PAC. A few community slam poets performed as well as our own poetry club. It was amazingly inspirational! I'm so lucky my students were able to see their peers really owning poetry. I think my kids were inspired and will have an easier time writing their own poetry now.

The reading was hosted by AHS graduate, Daniel Flores.

Hormone Haiku

Haiku

Ms. Hurst Looking nice
In class giving me a wink
Beautiful all day

One of my students wrote me this Haiku in class yeaterday. I had just heard a story from one of my fellow UNM students about an experience she had in her classroom: she turned around to find two boys videotaping her bending over (with their phones, of course.) I told myself how lucky I was I never had to deal with any of those problems from my students, my students are little angels. Then I read my Haiku. Boys will be boys... At least they got the form right!

DBA Testing

We gave DBA testing to all of our students yesterday. My UNM teacher showed us this video and I thought it was so fitting.

Somehow, we managed to get a few 11th grade tests in with our 10th graders. We only found this out after everyone had finished their tests. We have no idea which students took the 11th grade tests, but we'll find out when their answers are all wrong. Poor kids...

Addicted to Amusement

What can I do to change the future of society?
This is the question my UNM professor posed to us today in class.
Teach students to think critically! No one can take anything seriously anymore –especially anything on TV. How can we watch a political debate seriously when it’s interrupted by commercials of doughboys selling cake batter? The human brain does not work that way. The television has taken over. The advertising that sponsors television has taken over. Television is understood as entertainment and cannot be taken seriously. Further food for thought: Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business (1985) by Neil Postman. Is our culture oppressed by an addiction to amusement? Is this something that can be addressed in schools?

Video Response

Feb. 2, 2010
I videotaped myself teaching last week and finally got up the courage to watch. I felt so embarrassed! I could not believe that is what I looked and sounded like in front of my classes.

Immediately, I noticed the negative things:

I sounded like a small child –I spoke too quickly, too high pitched and too much

I acted like I was nervous (even though I feel like I’m used to teaching by now) –I noticed myself twitching a lot, adjusting my clothes, fixing my hair, etc

I snacked on candy while the kids were working and it looks very unprofessional

I do not give enough positive feedback or pause long enough after my questions to give students time to answer

I said “uh” a lot and stumbled over words some –even though it was the third time I taught the lesson

After watching the video a little more, I also came up with a few positive things:

I can see I interact with the kids on their level

I could see my enthusiasm and excitement for the lesson, which I think the kids appreciate

I liked my lesson plan and thought it flowed well and included many different types of learners

Although I am still very embarrassed, I think this is a great opportunity for me to learn and grow as a teacher. I plan to work on speaking slower and enunciating my words. I also plan to be more aware of my physical twitching while I’m teaching since it is probably distracting to many of the students. I think just by doing these two things, my class will be able to follow the lesson better. Many of my students are ESL and bilingual, and I did not realize how fast and jumbled my words come out when I’m in front of the class. The video also showed me how awesome my cooperating teacher is! I need to watch her more closely and see if I can pick up on her good habits –like being clam and still in front of the class and enunciating clearly all the time.

Teaching Poetry

This is a short video of me beginning a lesson about poetry!

A Sense of Purpose

High school was a hard time for me, as it is for many teenagers. It is a time when you decide which paths to take in life. The youth is thrusted out into society, forced to make choices that dictate the rest of their lives. These decisions create not only their future, but the future of our country, our planet.
Late in my senior year in high school, I had a teacher put up an American flag on his wall –but in place of stars, the flag had white business logos. This piqued my curiosity and I began talking to this teacher about what the flag was meant to represent. He introduced me to a magazine called Ad Busters. When I read my first Ad Busters, cover to cover, my life changed forever. I was always socially conscious and interested in politics, but I was also interested in many other things, especially newspaper. Sometimes the two dovetailed, but as a teenager, I did not like the dry, political commentary often found in the press. This magazine was like an answer to a question burning inside of me that I couldn’t communicate to the world. I knew I wanted to study journalism and be a part this media counter-culture.
A career in teaching was always in the back of my mind while I was earning my journalism degree. I realized I wanted to teach media literacy to teenagers when I took my first media theory class in college. Once I learned about how the media works and the impact it has on people, the mysteries of my youth began to unravel. It finally made sense why all the cool kids in school had expensive, brand-name shoes and why I had an impulse to buy Coke even though I thought it tasted like bug spray. The logic behind the banal fifteen minutes of daily required Channel One in high school was revealed to me. It made sense to me why I was so frustrated in high school, like I was bottled, fizzy water waiting to explode.
These unveilings changed the way I relate to the world and how I contribute to society. I was initially outraged at how mass media and advertising brainwashed people, especially vulnerable children. And why was no one doing anything to protect our youth? I then became involved in non-profits whose goal was to enlighten the youth to the ways of the media. I created a personal goal: to mandate the teaching of media literacy into high school curriculum, nationally. As it turns out, it would be easier to move the Sandias to the West side of Albuquerque than accomplish this. I could go to Washington to lobby for change, but I would rather be in the classroom, helping kids. I will do everything I can to educate youth about how we communicate and how we interact with media. The key is to open one mind at a time, with patience and love.
As I finished my journalism degree and began my education degree, I began to pin down exact goals I hope to accomplish as a teacher. I would like to make students more aware of how the world they live in works, especially focusing on how people communicate. I want to give students the tools they need to become productive members of society, to make choices based on their own opinions, not opinions that were carefully created and fed to them through media. I want to encourage students to find their own voice and not feel like they have to follow what was laid out before them. Overall, I want to teach students how to think.
I know this is going to be a tough job. There are so many other parts of teaching that must be taken care of before a student can grow in the way I hope for. But working with kids has always been a pleasure in my life. I want to say that if I touch just one life, it will all be worth it. But I know that is naïve. I know I will be frustrated and aggravated dealing with school boards, other teachers, parents, and even the students. But now it is my turn to help students question society. And although I will probably never put up an Ad Busters flag in my classroom, it is my time to be the teacher that helps answer the burning questions my students can’t communicate. The noblest purpose I can imagine is helping kids learn how to think for themselves.