Funding for Education

Today in class one thing that was brought up was the fact that the govt. spends so much money on jails and other more reactive things while they spend so little on schools. I have spent a lot of time thinking about this problem. Although, I completely agree that the govt. should spend more on schools, I think that as teachers we need to realize that we have four main ways to go about handling it. (there are possibly more these are just four that I see right off the top of my head. I am willing to try other things but this is what I see.) 

1) We continue to do what we are doing right now and complain about it. (this way will not really get us anywhere.

2) Fundraise or ask for donations. Find our own way to get the supplies without spending money out of our own teacher salary. Or if you are willing to you are more than welcome to take money out of your own salary. Or even creating a mass company that gives teachers books for a minimal cost or even for free. 

3) Go to the govt. Write letters, talk to representatives, get the idea out there. 

4) Find a way to work with what you do have. 

I do believe that with any of the first 3 ways, we still need to know how to do number 4. We can't keep using the lack of funding as a scape goat. We need to find ways to give each child an equal education no matter what their circumstance. 

Spelling 101

I just thought this picture was funny and that it brought across a good point that spelling is very important. haha. Thats all really about this picture. Just thought you all would enjoy it.  

Brain Development Lecture

Tonight we went to a lecture about brain development and how it is effected with substance abuse. I thought that the information was very valueable and that middleschoolers could benefit from this knowledge. However, the lecturer's approach was not as effective as it could have been. I did like the animation, however, I felt that she over did it which created a distraction from the topic that she was discussing. I also felt that some of the lecture was too childish for middle schoolers. From this lecture I learned that it is important to not overdue special affects and also to be aware of the age group you are addressing. 

Think Different

Here's a great video I found online about creativity and not being afraid to try new things. It is actually based off of a quote that I have come to really enjoy, so I thought I would share it with you all. So here is a link to it:
Apple - Think Different

I think this is important for us as teachers to recognize originality even if it is in the form of misbehaving in class. I think it is important to not discourage creative behavior but to redirect it into a better, more useful form of creativity. This video also shows the benefit of creativity to mankind. Although some people believe that art is not beneficial to schools it helps foster creativity which will help future generations come up with new inventions to help further humankind. Without this creativity we would not have electricity, computers the internet and all of those other things that make our lifes easier. Hopefully, if we as educators are willing to encourage creativity of all types, we can help the future generations come up with a way to save our planet from our current distructive ways. 

I just thought this was funny and thought I would share it with you all. It does bring up some issues that schools are dealing with now. One big problem in classrooms is the amount of cellphone usage within classes. Also, this instant gratification that has come about from technology is another issue that we as educators have to deal with. Since students are use to getting information quickly, it will make sitting in a class for 60 minutes listening to teachers drag on pretty unbearable. So it is important that we as teachers prevent distractions within the classroom and make sure that we are keeping our classes interesting and fast paced to keep the students interest. 

Autism and Education

Today I read the article "Autism and Education". It was written by a mother who has two children. Her son has autism and her daughter is gifted. She discusses her inner struggle on deciding who to help. She finds it frustrating that her son gets one on one attention and is pushed to excell while her daughter is sitting in class bored out of her mind. Lindsley, the mom, thinks that they should put more money towards the gifted programs. She believes that we are stunting their educational growth. She believes that with more one on one instruction her daughter could do great things, such as prevent the next worldwide flu, invent a new form of transportating or even discover a cure for Autism. Although, this is very true that many kids will not reach their full potential because teachers are aiming to teach the middle level students, I do not know how much additional funding will help. Lindsley wants her daughter to recieve more one on one instruction, however, if the special kids and the gifted kids are getting individual helpers, why not the average students. They should not be penelized for being right where they are suppose to be. Eventually, if this was to happen everyone would just have their own private tudor, however, there are only so many teachers in the world. This would leave more and more students being uneducated. So despite the nice thought, I do not think this is would be the best option. 

I think instead we should be teaching future teachers how to do differentiated instruction. Teachers need to stray away from the lecture model and get involved with the students and give each student more one on one time. 

Effective Teachers

Today Mr. Steve Chambless, who has been working in the schools for 41 years, came to visit. He has had countless jobs within the school including everything from teaching to being a superintendent. From his experiences within the school he came up with some different views on what makes a good teacher. The two main components he found to be important were a liberal arts education and getting away from what you are use to. 

I found that these both had to do with getting as much exposure to different experiences and courses as possible. By looking at all the different learning styles and John Dewey's belief about making connections with the outside world it becomes apparent as to why he finds these so important. By getting as many different experiences as possible it makes you more able to teach to all different types of learners. Along with that, the more you know about the outside world, the easier it will be for you as a teacher to make connections to whatever your students are interested in. Knowing that your students come from all different types of backgrounds and are learning things differently then you are is important as a teacher to know and to be able to identify with. The easiest way to understand where the students are coming from and what they are dealing with is by experiencing it first hand. 

Overall, I would have to say I strongly agree that it is important for teachers to step outside their comfort zones and try something new. It might not be easy but it will help you become a better teacher sooner. 

John Dewey- connections with the outside world. Doing different things makes you as a teacher more prepared to make connections to the outside world for a wider variety of students.