Was Ms. Watson similar to Mr. MacFarland?
In many ways I see numerous similarities between the two teachers. The first is a sense of liberalism. Both teachers had plans to put aside the typical expectations of your average students to create something greater, that will benefit them more so in retrospect. Ms. Watson however came into the school with the ideas that she would give her students a different perspective on their futures, while Mr. MacFarland didn't try to mold the minds of his students per say, he let his teachings mold their minds to form into something that would benefit them on their own terms.
Another similarity between the two was encouraging education beyond where they stood. Ms. Watson printed out a Yale application for Joan who was on the fence of pursuing her own career and marrying the man she loved, not even considering the option that you can do both...
Mike had no intentions of completing any higher education because he didn't feel he had the background or knowledge to apply for any type of college, but Mr. MacFarland reached out to his own old professors and worked out a spot for Mike to attend his Freshman year of college at the same place where his teacher learned.
Both of these teachers showed great examples of selflessness as well as simply wanting the best possible future for their students. And when it comes down to it, that is the most important key for determining a good teacher.
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Mona Lisa Smile
If I had the opportunity, I would be a teacher just like Ms. Watson trying to persuade conservative young women to pursue their dreams instead of marrying the most eligible man they can find. She is all about the movement of women's rights and she wants people to know that there is so much more to women then being a good wife and I definitely admire that in her. Although not all the girls see eye to eye with her in the beginning, they slowly begin to see her guiding light and realize themselves that there is more to life then marrying the finest man and becoming the finest spouse.
Audre Lorde's Essay
Lorde's essay was fascinating to me and actually a little shocking, until I think about what was actually expected in classrooms back then. In her essay, Lorde doesn't specifically state who is a good and bad teacher. Instead she allows us to decide by telling us a little bit about the backgrounds of the teachers and her own experiences with them. She talks about behavior and expectations and how the two coincide, as well as Family vs. Classroom expectations.
She shows the contrast between What you are able to do and What you are asked to, especially during her experience in a Kindergarten classroom where her abilities outweighed the expectations and as a result , was punished for knowing too much and not following simple direction.
When she attended Catholic school, the nuns separated the Good and Bad kids in the classroom and by ACCIDENTALLY breaking her eye glasses, she was forced into a dunce cap in the back of the room with no aid or guidance in her scholastic life, as if it was her fault for being born with bad sight.
She shows the contrast between What you are able to do and What you are asked to, especially during her experience in a Kindergarten classroom where her abilities outweighed the expectations and as a result , was punished for knowing too much and not following simple direction.
When she attended Catholic school, the nuns separated the Good and Bad kids in the classroom and by ACCIDENTALLY breaking her eye glasses, she was forced into a dunce cap in the back of the room with no aid or guidance in her scholastic life, as if it was her fault for being born with bad sight.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
What makes a good teacher?
Being a teacher is one of the most important jobs there is because they are the hands that mold us as children to become who we are for the rest of our lives. I never understood the impact they actually make on us as people in a society that is always evolving. Without my teachers, I would have never evolved into the young woman I am with the ideas that I have and the things that I know. I think a great teacher begins with an open mind. You can't expect every student in a classroom to learn at the same pace and a good teacher knows that. A good teacher helps you in areas where you need it and break down the subjects that you're not understanding. They are not worried about payroll or their hours, they genuinely want you to understand the material so that you can leave that class feeling confident in what you learned. A good teacher simply wants to make you the best you can be and they put in the equal effort to make it happen.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Post Essay Questions
1. I'm content with the finished product of my paper. It was difficult at times to write about such personal experiences, but I got most of it down on paper. Its finished for the class. I definitely could have gone more in depth but I'm not comfortable sharing such dark parts of my life with the world so I held some things back for my own preferences. Had I been writing to myself or someone I knew on a much more personal level, I may have added more but it's just fine given the circumstances.
2. Reading everyone else's papers actually helped me out a lot. I wasn't sure which standpoint to write from, but after I read everyone else's drafts, they were all speaking from their own personal viewpoints so that was definitely helpful to shape the voice in my paper. I wasn't sure how safe it was to enter such a personal topic but in reading the other drafts, I became comfortable writing to the class because I could feel the personal aspect in their own papers.
3. I don't feel like I need much help at this point. The revision emails that I received from my classmates did wonders and I was able to make quite a few changes that made my paper even stronger.
4. In paper #1, I wrote about learning who your parents are and learning who you are. And learning that there is a big difference between the two.
5. The main idea that I wanted to convey in my paper was that being vulnerable is being human and it's okay to be human. Don't feel obligated to take all your traits from your parents, because the world has more to teach you then your parents may. Feeling pain reminds you that your hearts beating and doing something about that pain, reminds you that it's possible to heal again.
2. Reading everyone else's papers actually helped me out a lot. I wasn't sure which standpoint to write from, but after I read everyone else's drafts, they were all speaking from their own personal viewpoints so that was definitely helpful to shape the voice in my paper. I wasn't sure how safe it was to enter such a personal topic but in reading the other drafts, I became comfortable writing to the class because I could feel the personal aspect in their own papers.
3. I don't feel like I need much help at this point. The revision emails that I received from my classmates did wonders and I was able to make quite a few changes that made my paper even stronger.
4. In paper #1, I wrote about learning who your parents are and learning who you are. And learning that there is a big difference between the two.
5. The main idea that I wanted to convey in my paper was that being vulnerable is being human and it's okay to be human. Don't feel obligated to take all your traits from your parents, because the world has more to teach you then your parents may. Feeling pain reminds you that your hearts beating and doing something about that pain, reminds you that it's possible to heal again.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Most Important Edu. Experience
My most educational experience happened when I was about 16, maybe 17. Not the kind of experience where you are taught by someone, but rather taught by Life. I was always very cynical about the world, that all people have a very insidious agenda and no one does anything out of pure good anymore. It was something that I really struggled with as a young woman because I didn't trust or confide in anyone due to the fact that I had such a negative outlook on humanity from being screwed over and over by so many people. I was angry at my parents for not being that peer that I really needed. I thought "THIS IS YOUR JOB!!!!! Help me!" But I soon came to find that even my parents were dealing with their own bullshit. I had known them my whole life as Mom and Dad, but as I grew, I realized that they are just people too, dealing with issues of their own. After I stopped blaming my parents for putting me on this crap planet, I came to find that it wasn't so crappy after all. I opened myself up to the goodness in people and let it radiate warmth into me. "GOODNESS EXISTS" i thought. People can be good. Life can be good. It's all about your perspective, having an open mind, and emitting that goodness back into the Universe. Because it will all come back to you.
very ROUGH draft
I never thought I would be the one to fall off the deep end.
Especially because when you’re falling, you’re not really aware of it until you
hit the ground hard. This was one of the hardest things to cope with in the
beginning. Sitting in the waiting room at Peninsula Psychological Center, I was
officially crazy. The girl who seemed to have her head screwed on so tight was
really the one screaming inside, crying for an ear to just hear me. At the table with my entire family for dinner, I was sitting there by myself, drowned in thoughts that I didn't even know I was capable of composing.
I grew up with a good idea of who I was. My parents, two hard-headed semi-egomaniacs raised their children independent, grounded and just as hard-headed as themselves. They divorced when I was a toddler due to "irreconcilable differences" that still have yet to be reconciled, so I was put into a very awkward situation at a very young age. I was 11 when my two brothers cut all ties with my Mom and moved in with my Dad, who encouraged the move from my Mom and set rules for the boys to follow if they chose to stay in his household. This put me in the middle of my Mother and Father's long-time stand off and with my brothers now involved, I was Switzerland in a new World War.
I grew up with a good idea of who I was. My parents, two hard-headed semi-egomaniacs raised their children independent, grounded and just as hard-headed as themselves. They divorced when I was a toddler due to "irreconcilable differences" that still have yet to be reconciled, so I was put into a very awkward situation at a very young age. I was 11 when my two brothers cut all ties with my Mom and moved in with my Dad, who encouraged the move from my Mom and set rules for the boys to follow if they chose to stay in his household. This put me in the middle of my Mother and Father's long-time stand off and with my brothers now involved, I was Switzerland in a new World War.
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