Posts (page 2)

Just a few comments from a variety of my students this week...  I'm still laughing.

Speaking on my thermos that I take to school with coffee in it every day.
"Mr. Gray, whatchu got in there?  Some liquor?" -Student
"Yeah, T.  That's what it be." - Me

Two students talking to each other in my class displaying their not so subtle puppy love.
"You need some acne medicine." - Guy
"You need a bath." - Girl

Referring to a test question that asked: How many states are there in America?
"Sir, you wrong on this.  It's The United States, not America." - Student
"It's the same thing." - Me
"No, it's not." - Student
"Yes, it is." - Me
"No, it's not." - Student
"Yes, it is." - Me
"No, it ain't." -Student
"O.k." - Me

A reply to me telling a student that he needs to get some glasses for the third time.
"Mr. Gray, I can't wear glasses... I'M SOOOOO HOOOOOOOD."

One of my students talking to another student that will have me next semester.
"He be a cool teacher?" - Future Student
"Yeah, he real cool, but if you sleepin', he be wakin' you up." - Current Student

A conversation with a student after he would not stop singing "Crank that Soulja Boy" in my class.
"Now, SUPERMAN that ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh." - Student
"I'm about to superman you down the hall to Mr. Jackson's office." (Principal)
"OOOOHHHHHHHHHH." - Every Other Student

A student talking to me after I would not stop laughing in class...
"Mr. Gray, you goofy." - Student

To end, I'm legally changing my last name to Uhh.
Every single student of mine, every day:
"Mr. Uhh... Mr. Uh... Mister, I can go to my locker?" - Various Students Throughout the Day
"No. Plus, that's not a question." - Me

    When pondering on the field of social studies, it is easy to come to many definitions of what the curriculum could entail while teaching a class within the field to one hundred and fifty separate teenagers in a secondary school.  There are many things that need to be covered, but there is only a limited amount of time available.  Personally, social studies is in fact one of the most important subjects taught in school, but competition between countries in other fields including math, science, and other technical areas, fuel our leaders within the education system to think otherwise.  Therefore, having a sense of where you are, what has happened in the past, and how we can learn and progress from these facts in the future, is in my opinion the best way to define social studies itself.
   
    It was shocking to hear, that contrary to popular belief, social studies is the most disliked subject of all other secondary curricula.  Looking past dates, events, and other various occurrences, and focusing on people, like our text mentioned, is crucial.  Bringing the material to life is what is most important when dealing with any class within the field of social studies.  Teaching moral aptitude and civics is at the forefront when dealing with any social studies class full of thirty under-privileged youths in a critical needs school district.  Responsibility, accountability, and dependability or integrity, effort, and trustworthiness must be confronted before we are anywhere near able to learn from the past, live in the day, and prepare for the future.

Today, September 6, 2007, was an ordinary day, until 2nd block began...

I was standing in front of my door like always, and a kid walked up to me.  "I'm a new student," he said.  I did the normal routine and asked to see his schedule, initialed it, and told him that he had missed a lot of school already, and that he we had a lot of catching up to do.  I asked him whether this was his first day of school or if he transferred, or whatever.  He told me that he had just transferred in from Forest Hill High School.  "Umkay, here is your assigned seat, fill out this student information sheet for me, and look over the syllabus while I begin class for the other students," I said. "Yes sir," he replied politely.

A few minutes passed, and our principal barged into my classroom for the first time ever.  "Is there a V in here,"he asked.  V was my new student...  "Yes sir, he's right here," I replied.  "Come with me son, and bring your things," he said sternly.  I stepped back to look outside my door and saw 3 or 4 JPD police officers.  My principal then walked up to me and said, "They have a warrant for his arrest."  That was that.  Later that day I spoke with my mentor teacher, who's classroom is right next to mine, and she told me that they escorted him out of the building in handcuffs.

Sad.  Perhaps the kid was trying his hardest at a second chance...  Then again, perhaps he was hiding at Murrah so they couldn't find him at Forrest Hill.

Hmmmmmm. I'm going to have to disagree.  Giving my, and probably everyones else in the program's students money, would not solve anything.  Yes, it would buy them groceries, clothing, and a better living condition, but it wouldn't give them more knowledge.  Money only perpetuates problems, especially when thinking in terms of individual, psychological resources.  Sure it buys material things, and even the things that are needed for survival.  Welfare takes care of that.  But saying that money will solve every problem of "poverty" is not true.  You cannot buy wisdom.  You cannott even buy common sense.  Those things are needed on a daily basis, even if you are a multi-millionaire.  Knowledge of law, reason, and the rest of humanity cannot be bought with paper.  It can only be bought with education.  Free market capitalism is the best path to prosperity, both financially and psychologically.  Socialism is not the answer.     

After reading Improvisation in a Persian Garden by Mary Catherine Bateson, I took many things away from it while ignoring most of the jargon from the over-analytical author.   Seeing this many things in a span of thirty, forty, or even sixty minutes blows my mind.  Some of the things that she did see though, while witnessing a religious ceremony with her young daughter, are very relatable to some of the things that I have noticed in my short term as a full-time teacher.  One of the most important things that she mentions, in my opinion, is the assumption that it is never a bad time to teach.  In every situation, good or bad, something can be taught.  This is something that I have tried to do at all times in my classroom.  Not only do I inform my students on content of the subject that I am teaching, but I teach them about life as well.  Am I doing too much?  Maybe, but I like to think it is part of my job.  As a positive, male role model, I like to set my standards for my students high, and hold them accountable.  To do this, I must teach them what is, in my opinion, acceptable. 

Another point that hit home is the fact that as a teacher, I am learning as well.  On a daily basis I learn about the factors that influence my students' lives, negatively and positively.  I learn about geography, the very subject that I am supposed to be a professional at teaching.  Daily, I learn how my students learn.  I see what works for them, and subsequently, what doesn't.  Not only is there always a time to learn for my students, but for myself as well.

Bateson says a lot on improvisation.  She goes as far to say that human nature is guided by it.  She presumes that improvisation is a cornerstone in teaching, learning, and even in living.  I agree on many levels.  I improvise in my classroom constantly.  I must.  These kids are smart, and not every one of them is on the same level, intellectually or emotionally.  Improvisation therefore, is key.  While I see an opportunity to teach in every situation, it is sometimes hard to decide on what model to use.  Am I always a teacher?  Am I a role model at times?  Am I taking over the role of a parent when dealing with discipline problems?  When deciding on what model to use, as Bateson puts it, improvisation is necessary, and at times, difficult to do.  Then, of course, there are times that I must improvise when it comes to the simple content that I am teaching.  I don't know everything, and I am by no means an expert in the field of geography, but I must at least seem to know what I am talking about at all times.  My thoughts on this are simple.  I will refer to a quote that I have previously used on this very blog site:  "The secret of teaching is to appear to have known all your life what you learned this afternoon." --Anonymous

In dealing with education in a broader sense, Bateson says that improvisation is essential as well.  In my case, I have to do it on a daily basis.  My lessons change.  My procedures alter in their order.  It depends on each class, and even on certain individuals within each class, as to how my lesson will eventually work out.  When looking at improvisation and the educational system overall, what applies to me at least, is that I must improvise in dealing with each child's level of ability/rate of comprehension.  An open ended lesson/education is the best solution to this problem, as Bateson also recommends.  I cannot decide for a student whether or not to care about what he or she has just learned, all I can do is help them learn it.  I leave it open for them to decide whether or not they can apply it to their daily lives.

Finally, something the Bateson touches on is experience.  Yes, the ultimate factor in life.  Experience is an individual process, but it can be fostered and guided by others, and that is what I ultimately intend to do.

Disclaimer:  I am not an expert by any means.  All of the information/opinions/occurrences within this blog are from my personal experience after teaching this summer in Holly Springs, MS, and a mere 2 weeks in Jackson, MS.

Poverty.  We all know what it is, and most of us know that people who come from poverty are entirely different from those fortunate enough to grow up in a stable financial environment.  I for one had not thought much on the subject in the past beyond the obvious differences and challenges that many children face when maturing in a world filled only with poverty and the negativity that stems from it.  One thing that I took to heart this summer in our training with MTC though, is the small piece of advice to smile at your kids when you first see them.  When you think about it, most of these kids are yelled at and/or looked down upon from the moment they wake up.  If I were a single parent working two jobs and had 3,4, or 5 kids to take care of all at the same time, I probably wouldn't be smiling first thing in the morning either.  That is beside the point though.  Also, this advice conflicted with our other advice to not smile before Christmas, but that is also another subject to be discussed at a later time (Christmas maybe).

What I've done, and so far has seemed to work, is treated my kids with respect.  They are already in a school that has to be run like a jail because they cannot behave on their own.  Do they act this way because there are so many rules?  Would they behave more maturely if the rules weren't so plentiful?  I don't know.  Maybe these situations aren't even occurring at home, and maybe these kids are just being kids, but there are going to be discipline problems nonetheless.  Personally, I've only given two warnings  during my first two weeks of school, and really, the only reason why was to make an example of unacceptable behavior.  One kid mocked me because my answer was, "No," or the more frequently used, "Because," I can't quite remember.  Either way, I had to make an example of him.  "Get up,"  followed by, "Step outside," was my response.  It was easy.  Another time, one of my students was acting up in the hall before lunch with another student.  "Stop," was my response of choice on this occasion.   It was followed by playful insubordination by the student.  "Come here," were the next words out of my mouth.  In both cases, these kids are smart, in more ways than one if you know what I mean, but they were just kids being kids.  I did it too when I was younger.   In each situation, I gave each kid a choice, that they can either handle their behavior with me, or they can go to the principal.  "If I ask you to do something, you better do it.  Don't argue with me, don't question me, and don't explain yourself.  Just do what I ask you to do."  I then explained to both students in each separate situation that they get to choose how they would like to handle themselves. I gave them the option of doing what I ask of them, or doing what the principal or any other administrator tells them to do.  The choice is theirs.

What I'm getting at is the fact that these kids have to be treated differently.  Not all of them, just some of them.  Some of them are used to being ordered around forcefully, and others are used to being asked to do something, and do it.  In my opinion, if you are treated "badly" when you are growing up, you are in turn going to treat others badly.  Some of these kids are yelled at and disrespected by their parents, guardians, and friends on a daily basis.  Why should I expect them to come to school cheerful and respectful.  You have to treat kids differently because of this.  Some seem to only respond to forceful orders.  Others respond well to polite instructions or requests.  The problem is though, will I have to continuously be strict and unapproachable with those that only respond to negativity for the rest of the school year?  Will I ever develop a good enough rapport with some of those students that they will simply do what I politely ask them to do?  I'm not sure yet.  Until then, I will have to treat and approach every student differently.  Plus, the situation mentioned above, might not even be the case.  There is no way of telling what is going on in each student's life. What I found interesting while reading A Framework for Understanding Poverty was the part that mentioned punishment at home followed by a reward.  It stated that most people from poverty punish their children, often with a spanking, then follow that consequence with a reward, such as his or her favorite meal.  Punishment and penance, as the author called it.  This sequence only reinforces the negative behavior that the punishment was supposed to curb.  Once again, the cycle continues, and like I said, if they are treated/raised that way at home, they expect the same thing in public. 

One thing I am sure of, is that education can curb poverty.  Slowly, but surely.  Efforts must continue nonetheless. I'm doing my part.