I think about the expansiveness of this quote. In our readings, this refers to the seventh-grade children being observed and their eagerness to be selected to do various classroom jobs. In our discussions, I expand this to each of us, eager to find our own accomplishments while also wanting to be noticed (somehow) in the process, whether by our parents, our teachers, our coworkers, or our peers. We want to speak out, but we don't want to get stoned for doing so. We want to express our opinions, but we don't want to offend anyone. We know we have a "physical" voice, but we are rarely encouraged to use it -- in fact, some of us were even discouraged by being told to shut up or by being ignored.
And what about those who finally find their courage to speak up, especially in class? How do we respond to that person? Do we try to encourage further participation by acknowledging the courage it took for them to say what they think (even if some disagree with what was said) and responding with a comment of our own, or do we discourage them by staring at them blankly and in silence or by rolling our eyes? Perhaps we should all just sit in silence... class time will really fly by then. How awkward is it for presenters to ask questions and only get silence in return? I admire those who speak their opinions -- at least I know they're capable of thinking for themselves, at least enough to voice them as their opinions even though they may have been formed externally. Thank you to those who contribute; you truly make the class more enjoyable for me.
I sometimes feel bad for not having time to comment on everyone's blogs. Cheryl's comment in class about no one responding to her blog last week made me think about that even more -- people are taking the time to reach out to us with their entries... to finally share with us how they think. I try to check as many as I can, but I am limited with my time because of my classes and my work -- which is why you get a lot of late-night ramblings in my blogs; it's really the only time I have to dedicate to my school work. Not only do I appreciate the blogs from those with whom I agree, but also I value those who present another perception -- it provides me an opportunity to think of things in a different way or to see things from another perspective that maybe I haven't considered.
As has been a recurring comment in class... don't stifle yourself and don't feel like you have to apologize for telling us your background -- either in class or in your blogs. Maybe you feel a bit like people don't really care, and some may not, but there are those of us who look forward to hearing and reading what you have to say -- even if we don't always have time to comment.
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Back to our readings, I was interested in learning more about the World of Opportunity (WOO) School located in Birmingham, Alabama so I wanted to find some more information about it and thought I'd share a few links with you guys about it also. "The WOO is a social justice and civil rights experiment which works at teaching the whole person. This means addressing hunger, homelessness, and domestic violence as well as academic needs." (England, p.85) The first link is from susanohanian.org and provides an overview of the school but also has other interesting information relating to politics and education such as a "$71.40 plan to Stop NCLB." The second link is the World of Opportunity organization website which gives more detailed information about the school organization including news about students and projects. As I (and a few other classmates) have said in class, a good way to address issues in education is to address issues in the home and in the society; this organization attempts to address some of those issues. Do you think this organization provides a stepping stone in leveling the playing field for "pushed out students" and non-traditional students who have already been affected by the inequality and unfairness in the educational system?
So I was going to try to keep this entry shorter, but it doesn't seem like I did a good job with that. Guess I tried to address too many of my thoughts/issues again. Next week I'll try harder to choose just one...
3 comments:
By the way... the book mentioned African-American history month, but did you guys know that we're in the midst of Hispanic Heritage Month -- celebrated from 9/15-10/15? Did any of your schools celebrate it? Mine didn't, but the schools I attended did very very little for African-American history month as well.
Last night I was at a party with three of my friends who are teachers. We were talking about children being pushed out of school or being held back to do kindergarten two or three times so that the district will look good when it comes to standardized test scores. What are they thinking!? They must be thinking that they don't want to be on probabtion. They aren't really worried about their students or how going to preK, kindergarten, and transitional first grade might make a 5, 6, or 7 year old bored to death. In this case these children who are bored might become children with behavioral problems. That's not to mention the fact that their self-image and esteem will be greatly affected as they watch their friends go forward and they are held back. When you tell a child that they can't, you are really ensuring that they won't.
NCLB is causing teachers to be more worried about test scores which is making them feel they have to teach to the tests. I think it should be the other way around. The tests should be based on the classroom. Some teachers are not concerned about the individual children and each of their unique needs. Many of the teachers who are concerned about their children's needs feel trapped. There is not much time to devote to what children want to learn about or even for them to inquire about different things.
The WOO school seems like a great idea, but I just wish they didn't have reason to start such a school. In my opinion, pushing kids out of school or out of your kindergarten class is admitting that you are a poor excuse for a teacher. If you can not help these children to learn what they need to learn to succeed, then maybe teaching is not the right profession for you. If you are trying your hardest and your kids still aren't doing well on standardized tests, then chances are a lot of other teachers are having the same problems. If instead of pushing kids out, each teacher tried her hardest and still had kids failing, maybe then when every school in the nation was on probation, NCLB would be eradicated.
Ok... sorry... Can you tell I am passionte about this?
We should celebrate Hispanic Heritage month in class Wednesday. I had no idea. Obviously, they didn't ask the Latino community before they picked this month to concentrate on their heritage. If they had, I doubt it would be called HISPANIC Heritage month. Ick!
Never mind the governtment's designated times to celebrate everyone's heritage. Let's celebrate it everyday. :o)
You love blogging, I can tell.lol. Thanks for those great links and for your comments on the tension in class. I do believe that the solution lies in fixing the entire "community" as Mike said several weeks ago.
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