Reaction to "Chalk"

My initial reaction on Monday night after viewing the first part of this movie was mixed.  I couldn't decide if it was believable, and whether or not I could take it seriously.  I found myself laughing quite a bit while watching it, and it definitely kept me attentive and entertained.  But after class, I was wondering if these were really the appropriate responses for me to have, and what my reaction meant.  

It was really almost painful to watch the portions of "Chalk" where the social studies teacher was attempting to teach his lessons, engage his students, and keep classroom management under control.  He seemed to fail miserably at every single one of these things.  I was thinking to myself while watching this, how could this situation even happen, because it seems that any person who could make it past the student teaching and out into the real work force, would at least have a vague idea about how to handle these situations.  However, as I thought about it more, I realized that almost every one of us has experienced a teacher like this first hand.  So it has to be real.  Now I see how extremely crucial it is for us future teachers to learn effective classroom management, because it can literally make or break a classroom of students, or a teacher.  

In connection with "Chalk," I read the article "The Building Blocks of Positive Behavior" that was linked to our homepage. This gave me a new perspective on how to approach discipline and management in the classroom.  It talked about PBIS, "Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports," which is a system for improving student behavior that has been implemented in several schools in Alabama.  It is a school-wide approach that focuses on reinforcing positive behavior, so you catch the behavioral issues before they happen.  Two really important ideas that I took away from this method were the fact that the entire school is on board with this system, and that it really concentrates on the positives of behavior and not the negatives.  With the whole school operating on the same system, the children know clearly what is expected of them, and won't be able to get away with different behavior depending on whose class they are in.  This is a huge deal because it is CONSISTENT.  Concentrating on the positive is always better than concentrating on the negative because it takes the ATTENTION away from those doing the inappropriate things (which is what they are seeking by doing those things), and puts it towards those who are exemplifying the right behavior.  Both key ideas for successful classroom management.

Mr. Steve C's presentation

I thought that all of the advice that Steve gave us was pretty valuable in one aspect or another.  He talked about a lot of things but several specific things caught my attention.  First, I was intrigued by Steve's background in teaching.  He did some of his teaching in a suburb of Chicago and discussed how different and what a difficult experience this was.  This especially interested me because I have always thought that I would want to start out my teaching career in inner city Chicago.  I know that this would be a very ambitious and somewhat daunting task, especially in the first years of teaching, when many are likely to discontinue.  But I have lived in St. Paul, Minnesota all my life and coming to college in Decorah, Iowa has made me realize how much the city atmosphere means to me and how much it influences me.  I would really like to return to a city to teach, and I know that I could impact lives by teaching in a very low-income area.  In contrast to the panel of young local teachers that we had last week,  it was nice to hear that Steve had actually gone and had all of these experiences.  Despite the undoubtedly many obstacles and hardships involved in teaching in an area like inner city Chicago, I was able to see that it was possible and that he gained many valuable teaching experiences from teaching in an extremely needy area.   This gave me hope for accomplishing something that not many people really think I can have success with.

Another point that Steve made that I thought was really important was that he told us how important it is not to do the same thing for 40 years.  He emphasized that it is crucial to switch grade levels, schools, teaching positions, and administrative positions in order to continue to grow and learn throughout your teaching career.  This was quite important for me to hear because I tend to be someone who gets very comfortable with routine and will sometimes be scared of change.  I see now that I need to stay active in my career and open to learning at all times because it will ultimately continue to make me a better teacher, which will allow me to better prepare my students, which is what truly matters in this profession.

Teacher Panel Reflection

The Teacher Panel was very interesting for me.  One of the things that really caught my interest was when the question of how much technology should be allowed in the classrooms was brought up.  I am all for using and integrating new technology as much as is helpful when it comes to teaching, but I was really, really surprised when one of the teachers said that every kid in his classroom had their own laptop.  From my own personal experience, having my own laptop is extremely convenient, and it is a great resource.  However, I am a college student, not an elementary student.  I find the fact that each student has their own computer in an elementary/middle school setting, kind of disturbing.  From what the teachers said, every spare minute of time that the kids get, they are glued to their computer, playing games, on the internet or on Facebook.  

When I heard all of this, I kind of related it back to our discussion on development last week.  In my personal opinion, I feel that elementary and middle school kids should not have their own laptop computers.  It is just not developmentally appropriate at that age.  It seems to me that it takes away from their hands-on learning activities, and their ability to learn some basic skills like calculating math problems, problem solving and imagining, and establishing a good use of vocabulary.  These are things that we can't afford to lose in education.  I feel especially strong about this coming from a future art teacher's point of view.  Creating art is an extremely imaginative, hands-on, original process. This cannot be done on a computer.  Sure there are computer programs that can assist kids in learning about how to make art, and in making graphic design pieces, but they are still just that, computer programs.   I feel that these days kids are being rushed to grow up and be tech savy.  In this we are taking the simple pleasures like developing imagination, playing outside, and reading books away from them.  I see this as very unfair because these kids don't even know what they are missing because they have never experienced childhood as anything different.  I think that part of our responsibilities as teachers is to make sure that these kids still get to be kids while they are young. 

Paper Clips and Chapt. 2

Paper Clips

I wasn't expecting this, but watching Paper Clips was inspirational for me.  As I have just recently decided that I wanted to teach and have begun to take Education classes, I feel myself questioning my ability to become the kind of teacher that is successful, and that I want to be.  I am the kind of person that likes to have a plan and be prepared for everything.  I guess I am afraid of the high degree of spontaneity that is undoubtedly involved in teaching.  Sure I will have to have all my lessons planned out and follow certain structures, rules, and curriculums, but everyday in the classroom will be different.  Many people enjoy this aspect of teaching, whereas I feel kind of threatened by it. What happens if I don't have an answer to a child's question, or I am unable to "get through" to a student?

The Paper Clips project helped me to see and understand that even though I am going to eventually have the label of "teacher," that does not mean that I still can't learn or be taught.  I was really impressed to see that the teachers at the middle school were equally involved in the project as the students were, and they as well were actively learning about the Holocaust, right there along side the students.  There were many times when the teachers themselves did not have the answers, but this did not stop them, or hinder their ability to teach the students.  They simply kept going and figured out a way to find an answer or solve a problem.  From this I see that everyday will be a new learning experience for me, but because of that, I will become a better teacher everyday.

Reading on Development -Chapt. 2

One major point that seems to come up across the board surrounding the teaching profession is the key goal of being able to motivate the kids to learn and to put in the work that goes with it.  I have found that this is probably most important in the subject area of art, which is what I plan on teaching.  There is this huge misconception that you have to be talented or "good" at art in order to be successful at it.  I truly believe that people have a hard time thinking of art as something that can be taught.  For some reason, many people believe that this ability to be good at art is only give to some people, and those are lucky people.  For the rest of us, we just don't have that gift so why even bother because we will never be able to create anything comparable to the talented people.  It is true; some people do have a natural talent for things like drawing, painting, or pottery.  However, this DOES NOT mean that you are automatically incapable of creating "good" art or learning how to do so.  I found that our development discussion tied in really well with this.  Developmentally some people are ahead of others.  During my J-term clinical experience in the classroom, I heard a lot of kids saying, "This is too hard," "I am bad at this," or "I can't do this."  It is not that they can't do it, it is just that they haven't tried or practiced enough.  I think it is important to be aware of the early-later experience issue when looking at these kids.  They may not be the best at art now, but maybe that is because they haven't had an earlier opportunity to learn, or to be taught the basic skills that others may have already had.  As teachers, we need to know that every one of our students has a gift/talent.  Even in the art classroom.  It will be my job to build on those strengths and create a niche for each student.