What is your responsibility?

As a teacher it is my responsibility to teach every student to the best of my capabilities. In order to be successful there are several variables that must be addressed by every teacher at the beginning of the year. What are my students likes, dislikes, learning styles, language, and what cultural backgrounds do they bring into the classroom. The whole classroom is affected by one student who is not of the mainstream culture. This is a wonderful opportunity for me as a teacher to "tap into" these cultural differences in a positive way. I would learn everything I could about the child's cultural background in order to share it with the other students. I do not believe however that it is my responsibility as a teacher to learn their language. This would be an impossible task within the teaching day because of the needs of the other 30 children in my classroom. I will embrace their differences and yet teach them new things about mainstream culture that they need in order to be successful in America. An example of things to teach about our culture is the language. Until we as a nation declare that we have more than one official language students are going to have to learn English, the sooner the better. Also, it is important to understand that boys and girls are different. Generally speaking, boys need more activity while girls are more content to sit at a desk and "work." It will be important to teach to all sets of learning styles. I will incorporate moving activities and desk time appropriately. Right now students with disabilities are in the classroom right alongside average kids. It will be important to set the tone of the classroom to be safe for every student. No name calling, or ridiculing will be tolerated. It is important to help foster caring and tolerance for each other. In my son's classroom they are all split up into group's and it is great to see the teamwork of the students with each other. The issue of religion in school should be tolerated and respected. It will be important to keep communication open with the parents in order not to offend them. For example, some religions do not celebrate Halloween. It will be important to send out ample notice of a Halloween party or activities relating to Halloween in order for the parent to choose to take their child out of class that day. The diversity in each classroom is what makes teaching exciting and challenging. I look forward to growing in my knowledge of cultural diversity.

REACHING OUT

Poverty affect students many different ways in the classroom. The most obvious effect is their lack of resources. A poor student will come to school dressed differently than the other students. He/she might smell, and have dirty clothes. The lack of money in their home directly affects their emotional behavior as well. The poor student might get picked on because they aren't wearing "cool" clothes. They will be left out of groups and called names because they just don't quite fit in. This will lead the child to lash out in different ways. Some become withdrawn, others become angry and misbehave. The teacher might assign a science project which includes extra materials that the poverty students family can't afford. This will lead to that student failing in class. It is a continual cycle. Eventually the student will either get help from a teacher/counselor or other adult or he/she may drop out of school entirely. As teachers we need to be aware of each students background and take the time to understand the students situation. Communication between the parents, student, and teacher is vital.
In my classroom name calling and segregation will not be tolerated. I think it would be crucial to pair up the disadvantaged student with another student who showed signs of maturity and compassion. I will communicate with the parents to the best of my ability and try to work out the students financial needs so that he/she can be successful in the classroom setting. For example, if the class is starting a reading program and the disadvantaged student can't get to the public library for some reason then I would allow that student to go during recess or break time to the school library. Also, if the students parents can't read English then I would help the student check out books on cassette. The most critical piece in the success of the disadvantaged student is to have open communication with them. If they don't tell you what the problem is how can you fix it?

Student Voice

It is a proven fact that the more involved a student is in their education, the better that student will do academically. Giving students the opportunity to be involved in the administration process is a great way to motivate a students to care about their education. Students often feel that they go to school because they have to. Getting the student involved in a real life situation such as hiring teachers, supervising parent-teacher conferences, and sitting on the district's school board are all great ways to motivate a students to care. However, there should be set limits, and a variable of respect must be present on the part of the student and the teacher. For example, students who are involved in these processes should show exemplary maturity and professionalism. The students could conduct their own interviews and then compare data with the administration who also interviews the new staff. The administration should respect the view point of the students and take it into consideration, but the final say would be up to the adults involved. Not only would students respond positively to the trust given to them, they would also be learning valuable tools they could later use in life.

Quality Teachers Journal.....

After watching the movie by Dr. St. Arnauld I was excited to see the changes occurring in education. There is a great need for not just teachers, but quality teachers. Dr. St. Arnauld says, "There is an emerging role for community colleges in preparing new teachers that must go beyond the traditional approach and model effective pedagogy and instructional practice." The community college can sift serious teachers from those who just think teaching would be fun. By offering education courses at the community level it allows the student who thinks he/she would like to be a teacher a chance to really see what teaching is like. Thereby making a commitment to being a quality teacher instead of just "a teacher." Problems Dr. St. Arnauld confronts in her video include diversity in the teaching force, poor working conditions, job dissatisfaction, low salaries, and lack of administration support. Some of her solutions include, relocation benefits, signing bonuses, student loan forgiveness, and incentive programs given by the state. I think there is some merit in these solutions, but until we as a society value education these ideas are just a band-aid on the real problem. If parents and society in general want quality teachers, they are going to have to pay for them. Sure, we might have a few quality teachers because they love students and want to better society, but how are they supposed to live on an average salary of $35,000 dollars? The teaching profession may attract female students who want to provide additional income to their families, with the added benefit of having summers off. What about attracting quality male students who want to be able to support their family? In our capitalistic society until this issue is addressed, I don't see any real changes coming in the educational system.

"SO MUCH"

The book "So Much" was a great story about a Hispanic family that was throwing a surprise birthday party for the father. I would read this to my students in a classroom setting because it teaches values that are important in the Hispanic culture. Commonly, Caucasian families don't live by each other. Grandma and Grandpa may live in another state. In this book the whole family from aunties, cousins, uncles, and both sets of grandparents were present. The book teaches that family is important to the Hispanic culture. I would read the story and have a group discussion about why they liked the story. Then we would talk about all of the different characters in the story and how they made the baby feel loved.

Educational Philosophy

I have had a great experience with every institute that I have learned at. In these institutions I had all kinds of teachers, those who lectured the whole class, those who brought the subject alive, and those that were adequate. I have formulated my Educational Philosophy based upon what worked and didn’t work in the classes I attended.
The first characteristic of my classroom environment will be passion about learning. Creating a fun environment where all of the students feel safe to voice questions and brainstorm possible answers. Creating interactive group situations where learning is exciting, but also structured learning time involving student interaction.
School is a place to learn fundamental skills that will be necessary to succeed in life. These include; math, geography, science, reading, health, writing, art, music, technology, and physical education. I do not think that personal beliefs should enter the classroom, however, I do think that all sides of the issue should be presented. For example, in the field of science there is debate over whether the earth was created, already existed, or a big bang created it. I think it is important to be transparent about the fact that we don’t know and all side should be given equal attention.
I am very passionate about the sciences and health. I love these subjects and like to do hands on learning such as dissecting, and activities that take the students outside to explore their world. There are situations were movies can become an asset to the students learning. The discovery channel and PBS have great movies about amazing things that make learning come alive in other ways than a classroom setting.
I care about students and realize that I can do everything right in the classroom and still have a student who struggles. This would lead me to believe that something outside of the classroom is affecting the student. I think my job is more than teaching a subject in a classroom setting, it is doing everything I can to help the student succeed in school and as a person. My greatest strength as a teacher is caring about more than the test score a student receives. Creating an appropriate relationship with each student is vital to their success. After establishing that relationship, if signs were present of an outside problem it would be my responsibility to get the student help. This could be parents, school counselors, or administration.
I can remember every name of my elementary school teachers. Some evoke good memories and others I wish I could forget! The point is teachers have a lasting impact whether good or bad on a human life forever. I feel excited and privileged to be a part of another person’s life and realize that teaching requires more than a lesson plan; it requires dedication to each student.

First posting....

Wow! This is really cool! I have never blogged before! I am excited about this class and can't wait to get started. After reading the first chapter in the textbook, I realize how much I don't know about teaching!