I was reading up and looking around online for a friend who is in the ESL program at a school in providence, and I found this video on youtube. Check it out its a great tool

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ub0NJ6UClI

Gender equality in the Classroom- Discussion

We spend so much time studying equality in the classroom, and I feel that we spend far more time addressing cultural difference in the classroom, far more than gender difference in the classroom. I mean stop and think about it...its only been about a hundred years since women  began there climb up the ladder of equality and actually obtained what we would deem "Equality". Boys are often labled as trouble makers, girls easy going and energetic. Boys are rough and tough, girls are weaker than boys. It really echos in such areas I feel as physical education, where girls and boys have sports which people may view as appropriate and inappropriate. Girls, for example, dont usually play football. And boys, typically, dont like cheerleading. Yet I feel that as we talk about equality in the classroom, and especially the LGBTQ community, that we must begin to fade these lines and realize that perhaps the remnents of seperation and inequality, truely arent gone. I even see it in the classroom that I am placed in. Kids are seperated by boys and girls when they go to recess (I actually got them to stop this at my elementary school I was so excited!!!!) I dont know I mean.....even down to holding the door open for girls. I was creeping around online and I found this project a student made about sexism in the classroom and it made me stop and think.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfQRVeOlrUM&feature=related

Finn- Reflection

I thought that this article was amazing, definately one of my favorites. Just the way that Finn writes alone I found favorable in my heart to other authors that we have studied. Essentially, Finn focuses on the fact that we as educators, must realize that we too are learning in the classroom, and that sometimes we make mistakes as well. Instantly, I thought of when we were in class and Dr. Bogad told us about what she referred to as, the "do over".

I had a "do over" moment in my class, in which a student was not focusing one day and I actually became noticibly frustrated with him becuase i had asked him about 8 times to stop knocking his box off the table. I actually utilized the do over moment the following visit, in which I talked to him and apologized and we had an amazing day. Turns out, we as human beings, just have bad days and the classroom is no exception to when we can have these times. We as teachers have to learn to say "hey listen, I was wrong here, I'm sorry". I felt like this article was just so realistic on so many levels, not just in the classroom. It also shows the stuggles teachers face, and that everyone is a student in a classroom.

A classroom isn't a place for this!!!!!!! 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePyRrb2-fzs

Help your students. Be a friend. Be that person they can talk to, and they will listen to you.

Listen to the students!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHapv0Tv7vM

Promising Practices Conference- LGBTQ

 Oh my God, I dont even know where to begin with this. I wasnt able to stay for the entire conference and go to the booths, but I stayed for my session, and it was one of the most empowering things I have ever seen. I have a really deep tie into the LGBTQ community i feel because my best friend happens to be gay. Seeing the video that they had to present at the session, honestly made me cry. It destroys me to see people hurting each other the way that they do. The group began their session by showing the documentary they made, in which they interviewed people from URI and the surrounding community who are part of the LGBTQ community, and who are activists on their campus. They interviewed everyone from professors, to students, to random people in the surrounding area, and I have to say it was one of the most empowering things. 

One of the students they interviewed in the movie talked about how hard it was for him to come out to his parents, and the constant bullying he endured while he was at school. Yet he had one of the most beautiful stories because he talked about how much he confided in his best friend, his sister. 

 Ive been through so many things in my life, making it through sexual abuse, gaining a residence, and bullying when I was younger. Even though its not because Im gay, I have only come out this year about being sexually abused, and I know how it feels to not be able to talk to anyone about how you feel. The only person I ever confided in was my cousin, so I related heavily to what this man had to say because it made me think of my own situation. I absolutely loved this session, and if they have it again next year I plan on attending again. The whole seminar made me relate to kind of what we talked about when we were reading Christensen. Even though its not oppresing culture, it does oppress how people feel and how they act in their everyday lives (this is what I talked about in an earlier post in which I stated that culture and how people identify are essentially one in the same).


  You should really use the video in your class Dr. Bogad. It was an amazing time afterwards as well, taking questions and having people share their own experiances. Everyone should seriously attend this seminar if you are serious about teaching, or just want to be a better human being. It will help people move on from feeling like this. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1D891v5YiJU

Wise-Hyperlinks

Lets begin by looking at this-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3Xe1kX7Wsc

I would just love to say that Wise makes an EXCELLENT reference in this clip where he talks about indentured servants, and people who have been in those positions. Today we look at people in intercity workings and, honestly, look we still have people that have to complete these rolls. Yet we commonly talk about minorities filling these rolls in society (lets face it, we've all been racist). So has this whole concept of a people completing what we would deem undesirable tasks nothing more than a change of how the country was originally run???? Someones always gonna have to shovel the shit, and that is the main point I want to make with this post. America really hasn't changed in the terms of how its run, we're simply nicer about it. If your white, even today, you still get benefits. It ties into Brown v.s. The Board of Education.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTGHLdr-iak

This is how our country's school systems were desegregated. One of the most important events in American History. THis is the case with our schools today. We are desegregated, yes, but is there still equal treatment of all students in our schools???? Absolutely not. Its similar to fighting Terrorism. They tell us that we are winning the war, but the truth is that people like that cannot be stopped for good. Sure I can shoot you, but its an idea. An idea that is impervious to bullets, impervious to anything that I may say. Ideas and thoughts that we have are what create the ideas that we will have.

I loved this post, and I love learning about things like this. Just stop the hustle and bustle as a teacher, and take all of this in. We have to try and get the big picture about education. Everything is not as clear and cut as we all think.

Kahne-Quotes

" Educators and legislators alike maintain that service learning can improve the community and invigorate the classroom, providing rich educational experiences for students at all levels of schooling." 

Honestly, I believe that Service Learning is one of the most beneficial things that would could have access to at RIC. It builds classroom experience in a controlled environment, and allows us to give back to the community as well. I absolutely love my placement. I totally back this quote up because its so amazingly true. 

"In the political domain, the intentions of  those  promoting service learning activities draw from two different assumptions about political socialization and what it means to be a citizen. Those who focus primarily on charity believe that, to be properly educated in a democracy. Students must undergo experiences that  demonstrate the value of  altruism and the dangers of exclusive self-interest". 

An important part of this article is the concept of Charity vs. Change. In other words, what is the general reason why people become involved with service learning, and at what point are we going beyond charity in the classroom, and actually trying to change how the classroom is run??? In other words, it acknowledges that there is a point at which volunteerism becomes a movement towards reform. We made the chart in class you probably remember, yet I was offended by having only 2 columns. It should be a ring chart because there are certainly times when both parts are encompassed

. Their grade  depended  primarily on the  number of  hours they  volunteered. Thirty hours  for an A, 20 for a B. and 10 for a C".

Its so easy for us to get caught up in our service learning as being part of our grade. I have done over the amount of required hours so far. I go in for 2 hours at a time, multiple times a week. Its not only part of the grade for me, although it does cross our minds of course. Thats what I was saying earlier about the 3 ring chart though as opposed to the two columns.I encompass both of these aspects I believe. 

This article really made me stop and think about my service learning experiance, and why exactly im here. Is it to only help the community??? I suppose not because I do want that A just like everyone else. But its important for us as educators to stop and realize that there is more to our job than just putting in the hours. 

Christensen- Argument

Essentially Christensen talks about when students fight back from having to suppress their culture.He talks about what he refers to as the "Secret Education" that children receive in the classroom, like things that we read in fairy tales, see in movies and on t.v. In other words, people only have much potential because in the end, the princess is always white. It made me think immediately to when we analyzed Beauty and the Beast in the classroom, and we were all pointing out what was wrong with it (I was laughing so hard because I honestly couldn't believe how discriminatory it actually is).

 This whole thing has really made me stop and think about what I watch and the fact that by supporting and watching things certain people deem harmless, once you know about it we should probably stop because it then sends the message that we are ok with that. Ive officially boycotted all fairytale movies (what the hell was that princess and the frog shit....are you serious??? First black princess and they make her make out with a frog????). They should have had her cure cancer and single handed end terrorism while she was on a 10 minute power walk outside her castle (id say running, but that would just be racist....oops).