Final Blog!

I had taken this course as an EDU elective because it seems pretty important to know the premise of school as a future teacher. I had learned a lot throughout the semester in this course. Like the short clips of Waiting for Superman showed me that the United States needs a lot of work in their education program, no child should have to be deprived of an education. Also, I learned more about how to deal with new students entering the classroom from another country, or even city.

 With the blogs I had learned more about other people’s educational philosophies and other hot topics in education that others had done in their blogs. I had learned about learning theories from theorist that I haven’t heard about before by other people’s blogs along with my own. I highly doubt I will keep blogging just because it’s not my thing, not saying it’s a bad thing just not something that I like to do. Overall I did learn a lot from this course and wish everyone the best of luck!

How can we prevent violence in schools?

School violence can be defined as any type of wrong activity or harm done by students against classmates and teacher. Putting psychological pressure on the students can have them start doing mischievous behavior that lead to school violence. In order to prevent such behavior teachers and parents need to take certain measures and provide proper guidance and support to the children.

There are various reasons can lead students to become violent in school. For instance being in poverty, family breakdown, domestic violence, child abuse, drug culture, immigration from places where education is less valued, violent imagery, high parental expectations and competitiveness to name a few reasons of why they act out in violence. Schools have responded in many different ways to prevent violence from occurring. Some ways they have responded include alternative programs, suspension, expulsion, locker searches, metal detectors, mentoring programs, closed lunches, dress codes, support groups, security guards. With these ways of preventing violence it all depends on the schools budget of course and which solution depends on how severe the type of violence is. I think anyway in preventing violence in the schools is the way to go because no one in their right mind would think it’s okay to have violence in their child’s school. I get some measures are more intense than others, but isn’t it worth it in the end with your children safe from harm?

There are other preventive measures for school violence. Students with a violent attitude can be reduced if certain measures were being used. For students who have this attitude most are from lack of love and affection from parent, teacher or both and tend to become violent. So the parent and teacher need to provide proper affection to that particular student. If the parents of a student are fighting in front of them can lead to the student acting out because of what they see at home. So parents should avoid fighting in front of their children. When a student becomes frustrated because of some sort of difficulty that they can not solve the teachers and/or parents can prevent violence by giving full guidance through their difficulties with the problem. Effective counseling can help with student’s violent behaviors and having parents monitor what their child is playing or watching can help prevent violence in school as well. Parents need to keep an eye on what their child is doing and give them attention because not knowing and neglecting their child can lead to a bad impact on them. Also, by having guards checking bags and lockers as well as taking strict actions with students who are showing violence in the school can help decrease violence. With all these various ways of preventing school violence hopefully one day this will be something of the past and students will not become violent while in school!

http://www.nssc1.org/putting-a-stop-on-school-violence.html

Gregory Cajete

I decided to research Dr. Gregory Cajete. I chose him because he was not done yet and I have never heard of him before. What I had found on him was that he is a Native American educator whose work is committed to honoring the foundations of indigenous knowledge in education. As of now he is working at the University of New Mexico. Cajete has written many books, on of which being Look to the Mountain in 1994. This book has been influential among holistic educators because it contrasts modern “Western” forms of knowledge with indigenous, meaning Native American, epistemology and education. Cajete had described this as nourishing a meaningful, spiritual relationship between the individual, the community, and the natural world. Some other books Cajete wrote include Ignite the Sparkle: An Indigenous Science Curriculum Model, Native Science: Natural Laws of Interdependence along with others. Cajete is also one of the foremost scholars in the field of sociocultural studies as it relates to Indian education and curriculum and native science. He has been a recognized figure in Indian education. He also has become a popular speaker in the mainstream science and education academy conference circuit. As disciplines such as ecological and environmental studies have broadened to indigenous knowledge and pedagogy, Cajete and his work have gained mainstream attention. Cajete is the principal investigator for many well-known studies relating to native science and education. These are supported by grant funding from institutions such as the National Science Foundation, New Mexico Endowment for the Humanities and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. He has also received fellowships from The Newberry Library’s D’Arcy McNickle Center, the U.S. Department of Education and The School of American Research.  I agree with him about honoring the foundations of indigenous knowledge in education, because without the original knowledge in education where would we begin?

http://www.pathsoflearning.net/articles_Holistic_Ed_Philosophy.php

http://diverseeducation.com/article/11850/

http://www.unm.edu/~nasinfo/faculty.html

Social Justice

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/social+justice

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1549544,00.html

http://www.pbs.org/now/society/immhistory.html

What are the views on immigration?

Social Justice is the distribution of advantages and disadvantages within a society. Immigration is the topic I chose to do for this week’s blog. There are various views about immigration in the United States. I myself am for legal immigration because they came here the right way and just want to live in a country with freedom because there are so many countries where anyone would love to just leave and have a much better life for themselves and their families. But of course many people are against immigration because it is taking away jobs from non-immigrant people, the room for the immigrants will eventually run out and many of the immigrants are not coming here legally. Many people look down on immigrants coming into this country for those reasons. I feel as though immigration has a bad reputation mostly due to the people coming here illegally, making the people who came here legally look bad.

Otis Graham had stated that “we today have 300 million and ought to be asking how many Americans is best for America, and, if immigration is driving it, we better get an immigration policy that gives us the numbers we want. He goes on to say that we've always been of mixed minds about immigrants, and that's because immigrants bring both bads and goods. It's a strong theme in American life to be ambivalent about immigration because there are benefits that we see and there have always been costs paid by the locals.” According to PBS “a majority of the public, 54 percent, believes that most recent immigrants are in the country illegally and nearly three-fifths of non-immigrants say illegal immigrants have hurt the national economy.”

With all the pros and cons of immigration we need to realize that we, the future teachers, are supposed to show children not to judge people, but with society that’s just what is happening. People are judging others even if they came here legally. Becoming a teacher you need to open the students’ minds and teach the children about immigration, because in the end we all came from immigrants, unless you are Native American of course!

Education is like a bicycle

Education is like a bicycle. In order to ride a bicycle you need it to have training wheels. This is like the beginning of school. You have so many people helping you out with your education, your teacher and parents/guardian, especially in elementary school, and they are your “training wheels.”  Once you feel okay riding the bicycle you take off the training wheels, but you’re still a little shaky while riding the bicycle. This is like going into Middle School.  You now are not depending on your parents or teachers for as much help as you needed in elementary school with the “training wheels” but you still seek them out at times for help. Then you feel stable and are a lot better at riding the bicycle, which would be like entering High School. You are now more independent, you don’t need you parents or teachers reminding you to do homework or school work because it’s your responsibility and no one else’s to get it done.  Three things I have learned more about are the various types of curriculum, various philosophies and the teachers roles.

What is Pragmatism and how is it used in education?

What is Pragmatism?

Pragmatism is a school of philosophy, which was leading in the United States in the first quarter of the 20th century.

Pragmatism is a philosophical movement that gave a first systematic expression by Charles Sanders Peirce and William James and later taken up and transformed by John Dewey.

Pragmatism is based on the principle that the usefulness, workability, and practicality of ideas, policies, and proposals are the criteria of their value. It stresses the main concern of action over principle, of experience over fixed principles, and it holds that ideas borrow their meanings from their consequences and their truths from their verification. Therefore the ideas are essentially instruments and plans of action.

How is Pragmatism used in education?

The American educational system is founded on the foundation of pragmatism. The outcome based education is an ever present saying that’s connected with modern schools. The Goals 2000 program had described some very good goals or outcomes for education. This definitely ensured that all children are ready for school, had a higher rates for the high school graduation, and  had expecting competency in challenging subject matter are excellent goals. This makes it clear that the philosophy of pragmatism, devoid of objective moral standards, is a major philosophy guiding much of our nation. 

I think pragmatism being used in the classroom is useful. It's a hand's on curricula, group work and experimentation which gives many ways for the student to understand what is being taught to them. It was what the educational system was founded on therefore it's important to have in the classroom.

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/473717/pragmatism

INCLUSION

Are their cons in having inclusion in the classroom?

I always thought inclusion is a great idea in the classroom because students with disabilities will feel more of a part of the school community and  they feel like they belong among their peers. What I found out was that inclusion isn't always the best for a child with disabilities. Putting these students into a mainstream classroom can make the student frustrated because they might feel as though they are competing with the other students. Also the classrooms are bigger than what they are used to and their isn't enough time spent on a subject for the student who needs repetition and review and they might feel intimidated to ask the teacher questions because they might think that they will be judged by their peers. Having inclusion can make the students with the disabilities rush through their work, where they usually would not, because they can see that everyone around them is finished. 

Another setback of having inclusion is that the teacher can lack the training, resources and necessary supplies to adequately teach these students with disabilities in their classroom. Learning disabled students can also not feel like they fit in with the other students in their classroom. Teacher time is taken away from other students and the teacher has to take even more time while making their lessons so that the lesson will include the student with learning disability. The classroom management can also be harder for the teacher because of having more students in their classroom. Overall, having inclusion of course has its pros, however there are cons with having an inclusion classroom.

http://www.slideshare.net/DeeARoss/cons-of-inclusion-education
 http://xruffrydr9.tripod.com/inclusiontherightanswer/id18.html

Gender Bias in schools

  

In today's society would you say there are gender biases? In my opinion indeed there are, whether people want to believe it or not. Gender bias in education is a risky problem that causes very few people to stand up and take notice. Students of the gender biases have been taught through years of schooling to not speak up and to be submissive when the biases occur. They then are reluctant to stand up and say something about how unfair their treatment is that they are receiving by the teachers.
In our text book it does state that during the elementary years both genders are equal, however by the time they reach middle school that seems to change. Girls are doing better on reading and writing tests whereas the boys are doing better in math and also doing better on their self-esteem. This of course could possibly be due to discriminatory treatment because of someone’s gender. Having the socialization of gender in schools assures that the girls are made aware that they are not equal to the boys in the school. According to Woodward boys are 12 times more likely than girls to talk in class and five times more likely to get the teacher's attention. Why is that? They say it is due to the girls having a low self-esteem.

 

Even with these bias that boys are called on more and the teachers give more praise to the boys when answering questions girls stay in school longer, cut classes less than boys, and on average earn better grades than boys.  Even though boys usually do better on the math and science tests, the girls score higher than the boys on reading and writing tests. The girls also take more academic classes than boys do and the girls are more likely to graduate high school and attend college.

According to a mother her daughter (who is in Middle School) was sent home for her shorts being only 1/2 an inch too short, but the boys are allowed to look like slobs with their underwear showing and a girl will be sent home for just 1/2 an inch too short? How is that fair? Boys seem to get away with a lot in terms of what they are wearing to school. Girls on the other hand if your bra strap just happens to show or in the woman’s daughters case her shorts being a tad too short is ridiculous. 
Gender biases are not just for girls, boys also are being affected in a negative way with these biases. According to the text, teachers believe that boys are more active, less attentive, less dexterous, and more prone to have behavioral, academic, and language problems than the girls are. Also, boys more than girls, are identified with learning disabilities and mental retardation. Gender bias should be prevented, although it seems as though it would be a tough task to do. How can teachers realize the gender biases and try to prevent them from happening in their classrooms?   



http://www.momlogic.com/2009/06/gender_bias_in_middle_school_charles_orlando.php
http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/papers/genderbias.html
http://www.healthline.com/galecontent/gender-bias-in-education

Bullying in School

Bullying in school is a major issue going on. There are different types of bullying such as verbal, physical, indirect, social alienation, intimidation and cyberbullying. However, this issue is not new whatsoever it has been going on forever, but now being taken more seriously. Why is it being taken more seriously now then back then? Well now students are bringing in weapons to school, children are committing suicide or thinking about it because they are being bullied. Those are extremely serious issues and something needs to be done about it.

These victims of bullying are usually children who are labeled as “nerds”, have insecurities, and lack a circle of friends. Also, bullying peaks during middle school years and tend to decline in high school. There has been a study that had shown that 60% of bullies during 6-9^th grade had eventually got in one criminal conviction by the age of 24. That shows us that it is a huge problem that creates later consequences and something has to be done to stop it and to stop these bullies as soon as possible.

I believe that bullying can be prevented in schools. If the teachers and staff became more aware of what is bullying and stepped in when someone is being bullied I think would make a huge difference.  Students should not have to live in fear of going to school, this should be a place where they feel the most safe yet for many it's a place they fear to go to due to bullying. I believe if maybe they use the guidance counselor for example(which would save on money for the school) as a person students can confined in if they are being bullied will help with the prevention of it. Overall, bullying is a major issuing going on in schools on a daily basis and something needs to be done to prevent it from happening.

Websites:

http://www.stopbullyingnow.com/support.html

            http://www.bullyinginschools.com/Stop-Bullying.html

Why Teach??

There are various reasons why people want to teach. Everyone does have different views on why they  decide that they want to go into teaching children. For instance, on the website http://www.helium.com/items/1058530-why-do-teachers-want-to-teach it had stated a great reason which was that people want to teach because it is a rewarding experience for us. I liked that it had said how teacher and student will benefit from one another because that is a great reason to go into teaching. I personally want to teach because I love the fact that they are learning something new from me! I'm molding the minds of the future which is nuts to think about! I also believe it's very rewarding to see the students faces when they get something right or understand what is being taught to them. 

People want to teach because of the love they have for children according to the website http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/143527/5_reasons_why_people_become_teachers.html. Teachers usually do not care about how much they are going to make, or how far they will go in their career  or even where they stand in their social status. All they care about is teaching their students. Many of the children will benefit from having teachers who love kids. Another reason why people teach is the humor you get on a daily basis. If you're not able to laugh during your job, what's the fun? Just like that show "kids say the darndest things," they really do and you will be able to laugh and not be dreading to go to work. In the website http://712educators.about.com/od/teacherresources/tp/teachergood.htm it had said how people decide to teach for the summers off, which I'm not going to lie that is a plus. Also in this website it had said how people want to teach because it is job security. That is so important now a days where a lot of places are laying off a ton of employees. Of course there are probably a thousand reasons why people decide they want to teach but those are just a few!

Hey, my name is Amanda! I am a super senior at Salem State graduating finally this May. History and Education are my two majors.  I've always known since I was little that I wanted to become a teacher, although at the time I did not know exactly what grade I wanted to teach. Once I came to Salem State, five years ago, I realized I wanted to teach middle school. Everyone that I tell that I want to teach middle school say I'm crazy and that it's the worst age to teach. But I disagree. I've substituted in middle schools in Lynn (where I am from) and I absolutely loooove it!! It feels right, haha. I mean of course I haven't had perfect behaving children, but that's expected in every grade. I just can not wait to have my own classroom and to see students faces when they learn something new!

A few things about myself...I love to sleep! hang with my friends and with my boyfriend. I love the beach and driving aimlessly in the summer blasting music, which I can not wait for. I currently work at a hospital, which is an educational and interesting job. People tend to think that because I work at a hospital I am going to school to become a nurse, which is not true obviously, I just took a job to make money! Well enjoy my blog!