BRIANNA WALE
FUTURE TEACHER
JOURNAL
A big part of teaching is REFLECTION. Looking at yourself. Looking at students. Looking at other teachers. Looking and THINKING ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A TEACHER.
This is my thinking space. The spot where my thoughts and ideas about teaching come together to form an idea of WHO I AM AS TEACHER.
September 10, 2012:
In the foreword of his book "Against Common Sense," Kevin Kumashiro writes that we need to "[prepare] teachers to teach in ways that disrupt, challenge, work against, and critique the status quo." This sentence really struck me. Teachers so often just go with what they have been shown, which is often notes and lecturing. This could greatly disadvantage some students who are unable to learn that way. If they are unable to read or write quickly they may fall behind in notes and will desperatly try to catch up, causing them to miss out on things that are said while they are focused on writing.
Teachers should go against what they have always been told is "proper." Desks in rows, notes and lectures, and tests are often the way school is carried out, but it can be detrimental to student learning.
This sentence made me realize that it is incredibly important for teachers to improve and change their ways of teaching and find ways that can reach all students. Ways that break the molds set by past teachers. By changing the ways they teach, teachers can potentially change the way education and learning are carried out.
September 11, 2012:
Wow. Curriculum is WAY more complicated than I previously thought. I already knew a few definitions of curriculum, like the fact that it is the documents the school board gives you teach from. But it is SO much more than that. It is the stuff the students learn from you behaviours and beliefs. It is what they learn from the society, media, and social media. It is the items you choose to teach them and that which you do not. If these are all the things curriculum includes, the the students, parents, and other staff are all involved in teaching the curriculum to the students, not just the teacher and the school board. That is actually pretty ovewhelming to know.
September 17, 2012:
The first thing I noticed when reading the chapter Three Teacher Images in Kumashiro's book, was that they are all true, even in my own teacher education program. Teacher as Learned Practicioner talks about how the student teachers need to learn about their fields of study, or subject matter. This is true, as we all have to take classes in our respective subjects in order to become "experts" in that subject. But we also have to learn how to teach our subject matter properly and about how the types of students we may have in our classrooms.
The second part, Teacher as Researcher, talks about how teachers have to be ongoing learners. Through processes like reflection and discussion, student teachers (and in-service teachers) come up with new and better ways of doing things or better methods of teaching.
However, I feel the ways in which teachers are taught are always the same ways, and they then teach their students in the same ways. I think, if we want our teachers to teach outside the box and teach in new and exciting ways, they must be taught in "outside the box" ways. Teaching them to teach in new and exciting ways is the best way for them to pass this information onto their students.
September 18, 2012:
Suzuki Speaks was incredibly moving. I always knew the planet was in trouble, but I never knew just how much trouble. If we are already way past the "59th minute" then what are we going to do to save it for our future generations?
I found it really interesting though that the argon atoms we breathe in would have been in breaths taken by dinosaurs and Joan and of Arc ad Jesus. I also noticed that when it said that the things we place value in are different than what actually has value in our lives, just how true that was. People place value in in terms of money, not sentimentality. This is true in most things I have seen people own. People want the biggest house and the nicest car, not the one with the most family history.
If we keep living this way we will lose the sense of belonging we have with each other and the planet, and then we will have nothing left.
September 20, 2012:
I never realized how important the difference between "space" and "place" was fro students. If schools are simply spaces, students may have a more difficult time learning. They will not feel comfortable and like they belong, which can hinder learning. But if schools are places, students will likely feel more connected to it and will feel safe and accepted, which is beneficial to positive learning.
Teachers need to work towards making their classrooms places rather than spaces. They need to create memories and feeligs in their classrooms and then their students will learn well.
September 24, 2012:
I noticed while reading the three stories in "The New Teacher Book" that I can very much relate. All three of these stories say different things, but have the same underlying message - you need support when you are teaching.
The first story mentions how she struggled to find supports, but eventually did, and how beneficial that was for her. The second talked about how you have to be many things, including a decent parent, a community member, and a good person, which you cannot exactly do without help. And the third mentions that you have to get involved with both your classes and with otherteachers.
I hink the more help you have when you're teaching the better. That way you always have someone to turn to when you get stuck or when things get hard. Connections to other teachers (and parents) is essential to becoming a good, competant teacher.
September 25, 2012:
Wow. I know this terrible to say, but I hope I do not teach like that. So unengaging and so uninteresting. It was incredibly difficult to pay attention and I had to occupy myself with other work just to keep myself awake. In her defence, her time was cut short and she hasn't given a presentation in awhile, but still, it was not the best lecture.
But it did show me how important it is to keep students engaged. didn't learn very muc from her lecture and I know my students would be the same. So I am going to try my best to ensure that my students stay engaged so they can learn as much as they possibly can.
October 1, 2012:
In chapter two of his book, Kumashiro talks about students in a state of crisis. Crisis in this case being "a state of emotional discomfort and disorientation that calls on students to make some change" (30). Students who are in crisis are able to challenge their previous ideas that support the status quo ideas. It also mentioned that teachers need to help students work through these crisis states.
I found this really interesting, as I would not previously have thought of crisis a good way. I would have viewed crisis as a bad thing that we wanted to help our students avoid, but he portrays it as a good thing that helps them make changes to things they find unjust or wrong.
I also thought the stories about "M" and "N" were really interesting, as we will most likely have students with those same "problems" in our classrooms.
* I say problems not in terms of them being problem students, but rather that they pose a problem to our traditional views of teaching that we must overcome.