Good Bye EDU 100, it was great while it lasted...

Though cliché, education really is the key to success. In most cases, the more education you have the better the opportunities and many more chances for advancement. Cliché again, doors are opened with formal education and by educating oneself by reading up on things, and learning through experience. Formal education will get you ahead to one spot, and then experience will bring you higher up the ladder.

As a teacher, I will definitely research the different cultures, and learn about any that I don’t know much about. I will also give my students a chance to ask questions and make sure that they feel free to voice their opinions (in a constructive way, of course.) If students start off young by being open minded, they will continue throughout adulthood. I think the world could use a little more understanding of each other.

I really enjoyed reading all of the different responses from my classmates and getting feedback on where everyone else stands on the various topics. Writing my first blog just might be a prequel. :-D It was great to read from the perspective of future teachers, and the sense of passion that everyone has for children. I don’t have any friends who are going into education, so it was nice to “chat” and compare and contrast all of our views. I want to wish everyone a happy future in teaching (or any other career you decide to pursue!) and to thank you all for a great class! 

You Are His Voice

As a teacher in Massachusetts, you are a mandated reporter.  It is the law for you to report abuse, if it is suspected. If you suspect it, that’s reason enough to have it looked into by a person whose job is to determine whether, or not, a child is being abused. Thinking too long and hard about whether or not to report a suspicion is not only morally wrong, it is illegal and it is your obligation. This all sounds scary, doesn't it? What's even more scary is the fact that 1:604 children suffer from child abuse. In a school, that could be many children. Child abuse is the physical, sexual or emotional mistreatment or neglect of a child or children. And as teachers, we need to learn about how to notice the signs. Click HERE for abuse facts


This link gives you everything you need to know about what goes on in a DCF (Department of Children and Families) report.  Click HERE for DCF Brochure

Child-At-Risk Hotline  1-800-792-5200

“Education is life itself.”

John Dewey today, would be thought of as a prehistoric educational theorist. His idea of education was to have the teacher have 100% of the control of the classroom. You would learn from the textbooks and listen to the lectures, and be able to prove that you “learned” the information by either oral relay or written form. Although at 1^st, he seems to be quite harsh, he did believe that the curriculum should be based on student interests, and that the curriculum should be in an integrated-type setting, so that subjects are intertwined, rather than split completely… just like life. 

Although these ideas are being tried in some areas of the country today, the thought was there in the late 1800s! He is being thought of as “the father of education.” He seems to have laid the first stone in experiential  learning.

I decided to research Dewey because I didn't like the things that I first read about him, and wanted to dig deeper. He gave off a bad first impression, but after reading into him, he really did have a genius concept that students would benefit from if they were in place across the country today.

“Education is a social process. Education is growth. Education is, not a preparation for life; education is life itself.”

What is it cognitivism?

For the most part, parents can try their best to explain to their children about various life experiences. Teachers have the same job. In order for the child/student to actually understand what it feels like, that child needs to experience the experience for himself. This is what cognitivism is. It is "a philosophy based on the belief that people actively construct their knowledge of the world through experience.” (McNergney, 125) Every single student has walked in different shoes than one another. Some may have a comfortable, happy life so far and some might have had some hurdles to jump over. Either way, each student is given an opportunity to succeed, no matter what stands in his way. 

Cognitivism is a learning theory which tries to explain why learners approach learning experiences in different manners but are still able to flourish (Oxendine, Robinson, & Willson, 2004). Through this philosophy, students learn best when their minds are actively engaged. Doing an art project, researching citywide recycling efforts, in dissecting a frog are all examples of students being hands-on. The majority of people I have spoken with say that they learn better visually, and when they are able to manipulate something with their hands. Students who are able to ” their hands dirty,” whether it be a science project or a life lesson, are better equipped to learn and understand through their own experiences. You can read up on the beauty of Aruba, you can be told about it, and you can even see pictures of it... but you can't possibly understand it.. until you experience it for yourself. 

An inclusion classroom setting benefits... who?

Everybody talks about whether or not an inclusion classroom is the best environment for students with special needs, or disabilities. This is a very important topic. I think that students with disabilities should be placed in regular education classrooms and mainstreamed whenever possible. I think that each student should be looked at individually, and placed in his or her least restrictive environment. I do not  think that each student should be placed in an inclusion classroom, because not all students would benefit from this environment.

I am going to switch to script a bit. Most people (I think) am more concerned about students with disabilities in their transitioning. I am concerned with the welfare of students with disabilities, as well as students in the regular education classroom.  Are the students with disabilities who are mainstreamed into a regular classroom interfering with learning for the non-disabled students? In the majority of cases, I not only think that students with disabilities benefit when mainstreamed... I also wholeheartedly believe that non-disabled students benefit just as much with having students with disabilities in the classroom with them! 

Students with disabilities can use the extra support from teachers and fellow classmates, as well as learn to have high expectations of themselves, as well as become accustomed to proper social etiquette.

Students without disabilities learn patience, gain a friend and become more accepting of people who might be a little bit different.

Even teachers can learn a lot from students with disabilities. They will learn new teaching techniques that can be used for everyone, and achieve a better understanding of various students abilities and disabilities throughout the years.

It's a win/win!

Is the two-way bilingual immersion program successful?

What is it? A two-way immersion, also known as two-way bilingual education, is becoming more and more accepted in schools across the United States. Students who speak English are put in the classroom with students who speak another language, such as Spanish. A typical classroom with this program will be instructed by two teachers. one teacher will only speak English, together teacher will only speak the other language, and in this case will only speak Spanish. (Other languages include French, Portuguese, Japanese, Navajo, Russian, Cantonese, and Korean.) This program allows for all of the students to learn another language, and be bilingual in the best way possible. Learning another language from a book takes far longer than learning from a native speaker. In this example, the Spanish-speaking student will learn English from English-speaking student, and English-speaking student will learn Spanish for the Spanish-speaking student. Genius! Constant exposure to both languages benefits everybody involved. They do not only grow appreciation for language, begin appreciation of a whole other culture. 

What are the concerns? Though there are few concerns, one concern is that after the language has developed, ongoing support will be needed to maintain it, in there are only a few two-way programs that continue on through high school. Also, without the community and parental involvement, these programs would not continue on.

A little extra? "Various reports and statistics reveal that the two-way approach is effective not only in the teaching of two languages to both language groups but also in the development of academic excellence."(Lindholm and Gavlek, 1994).

There's so much more to learn about this topic: A program started in nearby Cambridge, MA, statistics about the program, cost for keeping it up, etc.

What do I think? I think that this program is absolutely genius. There seems to be only positive results from it. I wish that there were something like this when I was growing up. I think that schools should adopt this program for the benefit of everyone. 

Click here for more info on two-way immersion :)

Pink Slime in Schools

There has been a whole lot of controversy about this "pink slime" that has been served in our schools for decades. I'm pretty sure I ate it, and I think I'm alright :) but there are a lot of people who are against it. In the meat industry, it is called lean finely textured beef, but has been recently named as pink slime in a New York Times article about the safety surrounding meat processing. An outrage over the supposed harmful effects it can cause has been heard loud and clear by anyone who has a pulse in America. According to USAtoday.com, all fifty states are now given a choice about whether or not to serve this to students. All but three have opted out, and have decided to buy beef that has less than 15% of this "slime." Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota are still opting in to buy the trimmings. 
What's the big deal? This filler is made up of fatty portions of beef that are heated to remove much of the fat, then treated with a puff of ammonia to kill any bacteria. Yummy, huh? 

One of the companies that make these products has had to shut down three of their four plants, but is this product unsafe for students? According to Craig Letch, who deals with quality at the company says that this product is safe to eat. He created www.beefisbeef.com to show the truth of this so called "pink slime." 

The media can say anything they want, and eventually a whole bunch of people will believe it, even if they aren't sure. You decide. Educate yourself :)


In the News
Beef is beef?

Why teach, you ask?

There are many reasons why a person decides that he/she wants to become a teacher. Reading through a bunch of websites, some of these reasons that repeated most often are listed here:
- to see children progress, knowing you are helping them do so.
- because you love kids.
- because you want to make a difference.
- you like to be in control.
- to transform minds.
- to never have to (fully) grow up.
- hours great for a parent.
- to have varied days, definitely not cubicle work.
- summers off.
- because family has been in the field.
- you care about people
... and the list goes on.
I found it helpful to read Yahoo answers and other people's blogs where people have commented and given their opinions. There are many blogs and forums where teachers have commented and given their educated responses. People choose to teach for different reasons, and as a first choice, with some coaxing or as a second career. Either way, every teacher brings something different to the table... er chalk board.


http://www.worksheetlibrary.com/teachingtips/becomingelementary.html
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/sustaining-passion-reasons-teaching-elena-aguilar
http://www.unc.edu/uncbest/teacher.html
http://www.teacherssupportnetwork.com/corporate/KnowledgeCenterArticle.do?id=5