Eight Theories Behind the World of Teaching

The eight different theories that fall alongside the different philosophies are as follows. Essentialism disctates that there is a central set of information that everyone should be taught and should know in order to functionin society. Behaviorism says that one's actions depend on environment not upon genetic make up and heredity. Positivism says that laws of matter and motion dictate everything, therefore spirituality and consciousness are null and void. Progressivism encourages student freedom and inquiry. Humanism looks to better the individual and contemplates goodness of each person. Constructivism looks at what things mean to the individual through experience and how experiences relate to life. Perennialism dictates that there is a set of important topics that should be understood by all. Reconstuctivists attempt to pass on a culture while adapting it for future generations. We as teachers tend to be either teacher-centered or student-centered. Teacher-centered philosophies such as behaviorism, positivism, and essentialism, are highly focused on controlling what students learn, how they learn it, and the procedures that should occur in the classroom. Student-centered philiosophies such as progressivism, humanism, and constructivism, however, place greater importance upon the meanings that students take away from what they learn and how they can apply it to their own life.

In my own opinion, I feel that I am far more student centered in my philosophy. I feel that while it is my job to choose what students will be learning, it is also my job to apply it all to their lives and make it meaningful to them. When students feel disconnected from what they are learning it makes learning seem trivial. Students that feel as though they are being taught something "because the teacher said so" will take far less from what they learn. Due to my opinions, I feel that I am a foremost constructivist. Following this, I would say that I also hold true to humanistic philosophy as well as those applying to the progressive side of things. I feel that these philosophies all hearken to what I want to instill and uphold in my classroom. When students have the freedom to explore within a subject, it becomes easier for them to construct personal meaning and be motivated to continue learning whether in a hands on way, or in a traditional setting.

Discipline

Students have been acting out and misbehaving since the beginning of school. The one thing that has changed is how we deal with this issue. What is the best way to deal with disciplining our students? I believe that in my classroom it makes the most sense to make a set of guidelines that students need to follow. Students should have a hand in putting them in place and they should be agreed upon by students and myself. I feel that there should not just be punishments, but rewards as well. I feel that there is only so much that disciplining students can do. I would love to read a book on effective discipline, and perhaps creative discipline, because I honestly don't believe that the run of the mill detention holds much weight anymore, especially for repeat offenders. I feel that when we empower students to take their behavior into their own hands and allow them to decide what is and isn't appropriate, that they will have a higher level of respect for the classroom and the time they spend within it.

Empowerment

Why are there always teachers that give up? All of us are handed challenges. Whether that comes in the form of the bratty clique of girls, the jock who does only enough to stay on the team, or the kid who has been stuck in the same spot because nobody has faith in him, we need to face each of these challenges with the same passion. In enty 139, the teacher has a student who has been told all of his life that he will never succed. He has already repeated the 8th grade 3 times and each time has watched as his peers move on while he is stuck in the same spot. The teacher in this instance knows that while every other teacher and administrator has said this boy will not succeed in anything, this student is perfectly capable of anything he damn well pleases. The one thing that is holding him back is that these teachers have made it known that they don't believe in him. What the hell kind of teaching is that? It is in my opinion that you should always have faith in your students even if they are the most unlikely underdog. Each student with a little encouragement and faith has the opportunity to succeed. It is our JOB to give them the tools with which to do so. I hope that I never allow my colleagues to get inside the head of my students and make them believe that they are incapable. Don't give up. Stand up, do your job, and watch as your students grow.

Philosophies in Education

As with any profession there are many different basic philosophies that apply to those that work within them. Education  no different, having 4 basic philosophies that apply to teaching. The first philosphy, Idealism, believes that ideas and concepts are the most important things to know and understand above all things. Everything else is an inaccurate depiction of what is "out there". The next philosophy, realism, believes that reality, knowledge and value exist whether we know it or not. Realists oppose idealist beliefs in that they don't adhere to the point of ideas being the most important aspect of reality. The third philosophy, pragmatism, believes that evolving is better than just generally being. Pragmatists are unique because they believe that change is always occuring and that we should "become" rather than "be". The final philosophy, existentialism, argues that our reality is only existing. Nothing is inherently true, false, or in between; it just is.

I feel that as a teacher I relate most to the Idealist and Pragmatist schools of thought. I believe that we should learn the concepts that are out there in order to learn more about what is around us. Yet I also believe that in doing this, we should always be working to better not only ourselves but the wrold around us. I want my students not only to learn the ideas and concepts that they must learn in order to successfully complete high school, but to learn about that which they need to understand in order to go out into the world and make a difference. I want to be able to use a book in my classroom that teaches friendship, metaphors, and symbolism; yet I also want that piece of literature to stand as a window into the larger world in order for students to possibly see that they can go out into the world and change how things are in order to create a better experience for someone else.

A Multicultural Education

Wow. This presentation kind of brought out my passion for teaching. I suppose I don't understand why we are not all educating our students with a multicultural perspective? I understand that currently it is more difficult (with most curricula) to teach this in certain disciplines, but in at least English and History classrooms this must be addressed. The fact that we are all different in so many different ways must be addressed by students any way possible. Students should understand that people believe different things, feel different things, are treated differently, experience different things, and are generally different. Their view of diversity cannot be limited to the fact that their best friend is a brunette when they are a redhead. It must extend tot he fact that across the world there are people going to bed when they are waking up, and those people have a different belief system than they do. In my classroom I will strive to use literature that shows viewpoints of different religions, sexual preferences, genders, nationalities, haircolors, skin colors, shoe size.... ALL types of differences. Students need to understand that not everyone in the world is like them. Allowing them to think so just allows for a generation of ignorant people that will hate those different from them once they figure out about them. Could I live with myself if I passed through my career in education teaching only white anglo-saxon literature? No. Shouldn't we all make a pledge to teach our students with multicultural perspectives in mind? Yes. Yes, we should. I hope that throughout my career I am able to have a hand in creating a curriculum where this is both possible and required across all disciplines. Won't our children be better for it? I'd like to think so.

Rejuvination

Throughout this chapter of Teaching Hope, each entry told the story of a new teacher and the rays of hope that they get from their job. The success of each teacher or student makes the teaching profession worthwhile against the odds of poor pay, unpaid after hours work, and more "clients" than any high paying lawyer would ever work for at once. I thoroughly enjoyed entry 112. The teacher in this scenario was a teacher with all the odds stacked against him. Working with troubled youth in a live-in facility for little money, he admits he contemplated quitting. I feel that most teachers worth their salt have these moments: they are at the breaking point where nothing can go right, test scores are down, Billy just punched Jimmy and Sally is gossiping about Kelsey, nobody liked the new youtube video shown at the beginning of class, and the list goes on. It is when that one student has a break through that it becomes worth all of the pain and strife to get there. In the case of the teacher in #112, the break through came in the form of a break down. His student goes absolutely crazy and flips out, throwing things, punching walls and people, and pouring water across the room. In a moment of mutual amusement, they connected to diffuse the situation. In this case the teacher was able to sweep the assault under the rug, choosing the best for the student. The teacher made sure to make the student aware of his lucky position. I feel that this instills a great deal of respect between the student and teacher. Where many teachers in a normal school would hand out a detention or ISS and not think twice, sometimes it is best to take a moment to create a teachable moment. Reach the student and teach them that there are better alternatives to certain classroom behaviors. I feel that students get discouraged when they are constantly harshly punished but when they feel that they are respected they are more likely to behave during class. Why don't we take a minute to try to understand why our students are acting out instead of just writing them off and immediately punishing them? I know I will try my best.

Welcome to the Future

In the final installment of the Story of School series, we looked at what has happened in schools since the 1980s. Throughout the episode we saw that while we may have made certain advancements, we are in no way living with a prefect system. Since the beginning of the American education system we've seen m any things that have improved schools and learning in general. This includes things such as movement throughout the school during the day, professionalization of teachers and teacher certification requirements, teacher empoowerment, accountability for students, magnet schools with specialized learning focuses, charter schools and other alternative education options. These things have brought us forward in our profession and have advanced education for our students. In the same vein, we have also institudted many ordinances, practices, and laws that have impeded our progress. In brief, these include busing, tracking, segregation, and so many more. What we, as educators, must remember is that we must think of what is best for our students in the longrun. What will help our students just as much today as it will 10, 50, or 100 years down the road? Can we think that far ahead? What should we do to make our schools the best that they can be?

"Three bushels of wheat and half a cow"

This section of "The Story of School" really brought it back. It examined the educational system as we moved out of the founding of our country and what formed from there. Originally, only larger towns were required to build schools. If you didn't live in one of those towns, there was no free/public schooling available and only the wealthy were able to attend. Noah Webster decided that he wanted children to learn the great legends of the origins of America such as that of George Washington chopping down the cherry tree. He took everything that it meant to be American and put it into one book: the Blueback Speller (eventually becoming the Webster Dictionary). Now anyone getting an education was learning the same stuff. Then good old Thomas Jefferson came around. He decided that it would be a good idea to provide everyone with a small amount of universal education and give scholarships to a few citizens so they might attend college. Well, Jefferson's idea of "everyone" went like this: boys attended school however they wanted, girls were only allowed 3 years of schooling, and slaves were banned from the school system all together. By the time the 1830s rolled around, Horace Mann became the first secretary of education. He standardized the classroom with teacher training, the state bureau of education and free/tax supported schools. This made it so that the impoverished were finally able to attend school free of tuition and only had to rely on taxes for a free education. Around this time, the Irish immigration began to flood the eastern seaboard. The problem here lied in the fact that there was an influx of Catholic students trying to be educated in a system modeled around the protestant religion. This made it difficult for them to learn and they did not feel welcome in the American schools. Finally, the board of education was created and, along with it, so were Catholic school systems. As time marched on, Frederik Douglas stood up and said that black students shouldn't be forced to attend schools outside of their district. They should be able to go to the schools that are closest to them just like everyone else. After some hemming and hawing from the Massachusetts government, they were the first state to outlaw segregation in schools. As our eastern centralized nation began to disperse toward the west, there was a new need for schools. In order to attract residents to a new town in the west, people would build schools. Sometimes, districts covered up to 1,000 miles. Here, it was finally made acceptable for middle class women to travel west and teach because Katherine Beecher said that one day teaching would be among law and medicine for the male professions. Hopefully someday this comes true.

Nation at Risk

This article looked at what was happening in American education throughout the 1980s.  It was bluntly stated that American schools were crumbling around the nation. Statistics showed that students were achieving at a lower and lower rate every year. This was unacceptable and the report stated that the nation should be looking to correct the trend. 25 years later a second report was written that looks at what has occurred in education since the findings were published. Despite the fact that things have clearly improved across the board there is some belief that the original article was out of line. It will most likely always be unclear as to whether the publishing of this article was a help or hindrance to the education system.

I would have to argue that the one thing these articles lack is some sort of advice, or even a call for advice. For all the criticizing they do, they don’t offer the educational system and thoughts or musings upon what could help to improve the failing system in America. I’m not sure what impact this article had on the system. Sure, schools are doing better, but there is always room for improvement. Would schools have figured this out on their own, or did they need this abrasive wakeup?  This was definitely an interesting group of articles and I am curious to see how we continue on in this Nation at Risk.