Blog Post 4

Lisa Delpit’s quote speaks volumes about student-teacher relationships. I didn’t realize until after I finished reading the chapter that it was discussing ebonic language and the influence that it has over how teachers treat students who use it. I strongly agree with Delpit’s statement because I think that if you made the choice to pursue a career in education you must understand that the children or adults that you are teaching may come from a completely different background than you come from. As a teacher, you have the responsibility of ensuring that your students are capable of excelling by being accommodating to each child’s linguistic form. If I do ultimately decide to become a teacher I hope that I take the time to get to know each of my students and am willing to learn about how their backgrounds have helped shape them as individuals. I probably have looked at kids who use a different form of language than I do like they were weird but I’m sure they thought the same thing about me. I definitely think that Lisa Delpit gave me a better perspective of how I look at my peers in terms of linguistics. I respect her opinion and believe that all teachers should take what she is suggesting. 

Blog Post 3

How did the activities that we completed both inside and outside of the classroom affect our perspective on teaching?

The activities that we were assigned to us this week were what I felt to be meaningful experiences. I felt that they offered me a better perspective of how to approach teaching in a classroom and helped me to produce realizations about how I view the various types of environments I surround myself in. The first activity that we were advised to do was to be done outside of class in a public place. This activity required us to sit and observe what we saw in the particular public place we were at and reflect on what we witnessed. In my reflection, I explained the descriptions of what I assumed to be observing and interpretations of what I seemed to misperceive. Another activity that we completed in class involved exploring how cultural influences may affect your identity. I really enjoyed this activity because it helped me to explore the different influences in my own life that have affected how I approach and handle situations. It was also very interesting to hear some of my peer’s thoughts about their own cultural influences. When we discussed what influenced us to want to become teachers, one of my peers explained how his parent’s divorce helped him decide that he wanted to become a teacher. I found this so unusual and inspiring in a way that something that could have been traumatic or frustrating could affect your decision of what kind of profession you would like to have one day.

Exploration of Mental Filters and Their Influences on Perception

Location: Cafeteria of a University
                                                            Parking Lot
Descriptive                                                                                                                                                     

                                                                                                                                                                                                  

- A big, heavyset young man is laughing                                  

loud and obnoxiously at someone he is                                       

sitting with. He is very distracting, making                                  

it difficult not to look away.

                                                    

- a guy is sitting at a table ferociously eating                            

his sandwhich and is inspecting every part of it.                         

He is very invested in this.                                                           

- a girl sits at a table with three of her friends while                  

she stares and scrolls through her phone for about five               

or ten minutes. Occasionally she will look up and engage          

in conversation until she finally puts her phone down.             

- A guy sits alone at a table, he is wearing thick rimmed          

glasses and a flannel shirt looking like a lumberjack. He sits      

in silence and eats his reuben sandwich with fries looking sad.  

- I sit next to my friend who is staring off into space daydreaming. 

A bunch of half eaten food lies in front of him. Then suddenly he    

snaps back to reality and picks his phone up to check instagram.   

- A young woman sits at a table with another girl and boy who look  

to be a couple. She stares intently at the piece of chicken she is           

cutting and begins to eat in silence. As she does this she smiles at    

the boy and girl next to her who must of made a funny remark.

Interpretation                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     -He must find something in the conversation he is having with the people at his table amusing.

                                                 
- He must be so famished that he hasn't eaten for hours. He must also really be particular about what he    likes to eat.

- She actually really is listening to her friends and cares about what they are saying. She just felt like   looking at her phone to check social media.

- He probably isn't lonely just is stressed thinking about all of the homework she has to do.

- He most likely was thinking about all of the homework he had due the following morning.

-This girl is definitely hungry and wants to sit in peace as she eats her food.

                                                                      Reflection

I learned from this experience that I have trouble just sitting and observing what is going on around me. I tend to think too much and sometimes over analyze everything especially when there is so much occurring at once. I need to focus on one thing at a time rather than focusing on multiple things. Although, it was entertaining to see how different people interact with each other as well as how they interpret information. This observation experience made me realize that I probably make unfair assumptions about people without truly knowing them. Lastly, it gave me a good perspective on how I could become an effective and good teacher because teaching requires you to not jump to conclusions about a situation until you know the whole story.

1:Class Survey

Personal Information

1. My given name is Margaret but most people call me Maggie. If you prefer to call me Margaret I don't mind at all or feel free to give me another nickname!

2. I was born and raised in Westlake, Ohio. Westlake is a small suburb just outside of Cleveland, Ohio.

3. I don't have a particular grade level or subject that I'd like to teach yet, i'm pretty open to the different options available in the education field. I'm very interested in working with kids or adults more so one-on-one rather than in a large class setting so maybe special education or counseling will be my focus.

4. Some of my interests include running, reality television, and shopping. I think I could honestly say that I may in fact be a shopaholic because I really enjoy the trill of picking out new clothes to buy an wear. Running has evolved into a passion of mine over the past couple of years. Reality television is pure entertainment to me and often a stress reliever. I guess I would say that what makes me "unique" in my own way is my sense of humor, positive attitude, and ability to help others break out of their shell. I am a very personable person and I like to make others feel comfortable especially if they have doubts.

Learning Style & More

5. In order for me to feel comfortable to take intellectual and creative risks in the classroom I must know the teacher to an extent that I can trust that he or she will be accepting and understanding. I also must feel secure in knowing that any point stated actually makes sense.

6. a) a mix of both oral and active class participation as I often like to speak my mind
    b) I am responsible for my own work including reading and projects and if anything is incomplete or   not brought to class that was required I will take ownership and accept the consequences.
    c) Sometimes I fail to be honest with myself when it comes to self-assesment but most of the time I am open to critiquing.
   d) I think I have a fairly good sense of the type of learning style that I prefer which is, visual. If something is being explained to me I usually am able to comprehend the material that is being taught with some sort of visual.
   e) My first instinct when I am taught something that I completely do not understand is to ask the instructor or person who gave the explanation for help or to describe it in a simpler way. In some instances though, I might hesitate because I am too scared to speak up.

Education Past & Present

7. I have always had a love-hate relationship with school but I ultimately always have enjoyed it. As a student, I struggled and I succeeded in many different ways but I liked to be challenged. I have grown so much as a person through my academics because I have been forced to test my limits. One memory in particular from my time as a student was in my junior year of high school. I took my first honors class ever: Honors Government & Economics, it was a very entertaining and interesting class because my teacher made it fun. Towards the end of the semester we were required to write a 10 page research paper on a United States government department and from my memory I was assigned one regarding the arts. I don't remember every detail but I know it took some time to write and ultimately my hard work paid off because I received an A. I recall my teacher pulling me aside and saying that it was a "kickass" paper which made me feel so proud because I knew that I had earned the credit.

8. One significant issue or concern that I feel the field of education currently is facing regards inner city schools and how there isn't enough funding being filtered through the system for students to receive a proper education. In result, many children are testing in reading, writing, and comprehension at the level below the one they should be in.

About Dr. Shutkin
9. What different factors made you decide to go into the field of education and how do feel about the current situation of education in America today?