Chapter 10 - Going Beyond the Classroom

Chapter 10 draws the book to a close on a topic that I found somewhat surprising in a book about high school students, it dealt almost entirely with getting students involved outside of school in things that interest the student. Making connections with these activities in school and fostering their independent nature is something that can bring the students that sense of accomplishment that they may be missing, or it can tie them to a whole new outlet. In these respects it makes more sense than having no other options but school and schoolwork, the challenge for us, in rural Maine, is being able to identify those type of programs that our students might be interested in and helping them in those activities. So many students find part-time jobs to earn money for the latest Prada or Coach purse, but how many would be willing to go to a daycare and read books to a child, or go to a nursing home and visit with residents there. As a history major an outing to a nursing home would provide invaluable lessons to students as they have the opportunity to talk to an individual who has lived through some of the most momentous changes in the United States. It would give those residents a chance to talk to a young person again, and maybe that would be the only visitor they have.

In looking forward on my future teaching career this section does present some unique challenges for myself and my fellow teachers. We need to find ways to get our students involved in more than just PS3, WWE and four-wheelin'. We need to show them that there is so much more to the world than what they can see from their front porch. The how to many of these questions and scenarios is where we are going to have keep in the fronts of our minds so we do not fall into the trap that new teachers fall into, that despair and lost feeling when we just can not seem to get anything going our way. We need to remember that it is not OUR way that is important but rather the way that the faces looking back at us every day find.

Chapter 9 - When Things Go Wrong

Chapter 9 probably could have been renamed, "Reality Check" because we as students are simply watching teachers with decades of experience with handling the issues discussed in the chapter. Do I think that the students in my classroom are going to act out and cut up and try to get under my skin, absolutely. I would almost be disappointed if they did not. I look at them harassing and trying to get to me as not an authority challenge, but more of a 'can you step up and show us something more' challenge. Can I rise to meet their challenge, or even better, can I overcome that challenge and get them to learn, much like the math teacher at the end of the chapter. So many things for us now are huge question marks. How will we handle this, how do we balance the compassion with being confused for a chump, how do we draw the students into our lessons and make them WANT to learn, instead of trying to make them learn. As with the previous chapters this one has keen insight into what these students were thinking and trying with the new teachers. I think the veteran teachers will look at it almost as a rite of passage, hazing of the newest member of the society that is educators.

I learned in this chapter that no matter what my background is, where I may have taught before, and what subjects I may be passionate about; I am going to more than likely fall flat on my face a few times. Confucius said, "Our greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising every time we fall", so as we approach the time when we will spread our wings ever so slightly more in the student teaching experience it is important to remember those words. Do I plan on falling flat on my face, either literally or figuratively, no, but I do know that any time that I do I have to pick myself up, dust off the dirt, and make sure I do not make the same mistake twice.

Chapter 8 - Teaching Teenagers Who Are Still Learning English

If anyone plans to move outside of Maine to become a teacher, Chapter 8 is arguably the most important chapter in this book. We, as future educators, must understand that not everyone in our classrooms are going to be first language English students. If we accept a position in the Midwest and certainly down south the majority of our students will more than likely not speak English as their primary language. This presents many challenges as outlined in the chapter, the first being simple communication, ensuring that the teacher is being understood and the students are being understood when they have questions or concerns for the teacher. This issue is critical when considering the overall comprehension of the section by the students and tying the information into a previous lesson as well as being able to interpret the information and utilize it in future learning. If the students can not demonstrate an accurate knowledge of the information that leaves the teacher with the even bigger challenge of making sure that student has that knowledge. There would most certainly be a higher level of stress in a classroom with ESL students and students who speak English as a first language. It will be our challenge to ensure that the ESL students are not ridiculed or looked down on in the class, but rather the teacher should empower the English speaking students to provide peer assistance to the ESL students.

As a person that has lived in the southwest section of the United States, the ESL students are more of a reality than here in small town Western Maine. After spending time around that demographic it is a challenge that I look forward to being a part of. I think that it is as important to reach out to these students and ensure that they are given the same educational opportunity as students that speak English as a first language. In the classroom it would be much easier to pass these students forward and not spend much instructional time with them, but that would be the biggest disservice that we could do to our students. As an educator we need to ensure that every student that enters our classroom gets every opportunity to achieve the same feeling of success that we will feel as we cross the stage at our graduation ceremony.

Chapter 7 - Teaching Difficult Academic Material

Chapter 7, like the preceding two chapters covers a vast expanse of material and concepts, but it also continues to make ties to the past chapters and objectives. The major components of the chapter included finding out what the students already know, breaking down complicated material, take different approaches, ask questions that make students think, challenge the assumptions of students, use more than just textbooks, help with research and resources, and give opportunity for revision. Of these topics the parts that seemed to make the most impact with me where taking a different approach and not sticking with textbooks. Although these are quite similar they are different enough that they stuck with me for different reasons. In my practicum classroom the teacher uses handouts, movies, question and answer time and group presentations to present the blocks of material to the students. This would demonstrate both taking a different approach and not sticking with the text books. There are times when the answers will be taken directly from the book and will require the students to read and comprehend, but by following up with a question and answer session or a review session this will provide for multiple instruction over the same material.

In reading Chapter 7 I noticed that the students were reading, and struggling though, the same material, namely Shakespeare, that I struggled with over twenty years ago. This is both a little disturbing and comforting at the same time. Disturbing in that it does not appear that any changes have been made to the Literature reading list in twenty years, and comforting to know that I am not the only person that had a strong dislike for Shakespeare. The reading did offer some keen insight into where the opportunities lie for us as new teachers to connect with students on difficult material. We have to be aware of the pitfall of trying to seem to cool for the difficult material, but also understand where the students are coming from when they have difficulty with the same information that we ourselves struggled with a few short years before.

Chapter 6 - Motivation and Boredom

How many times as students have we sat in classroom or riding home on the bus told our friends how we were "bored to tears" in the classes of the day. Chapter 6 deals with this very issue and how we, as teachers, can change the perception in our classrooms. The one theme that appeared familiar was the theme regarding making the information connect to the real world, which was a key component of the Meaningful Engaged Learning model. By identifying issues in the real world that have an impact on student's lives and make connections with the topics being discussed in class, it will make the information that much more memorable and more likely to be remembered after the test has been taken. The second half of the chapter deals with motivation and ensuring that students stay motivated during the entire lesson. This would be especially difficult in the instant access age and where students can find everything they need at the touch of a button and have no idea how to actually spent time in a library or reading books. The last, and perhaps most controversial, aspect of this chapter is on homework. The reading goes hand in hand with current research that shows that homework is ineffective in producing better grades. The student authors to take to task the inability of homework to make an impact or show relevance.

This chapter covered several major issues such as motivation, boredom, homework, and rationale for work being completed. I believe that motivation is divided equally among students, parents and teachers; understanding that any one of that triad may not provide a full share and others will have to accommodate for that piece. Homework can be a valuable tool in the learning process but, as the students discussed there needs to be a reason for and an explanation for the work. It is as important to revisit the homework and discuss questions as it is to actually look at the assignments and ensure the students see that you will hold them accountable for the work. We need to keep in mind that as we transition from the classroom of learning to the classroom of instruction how annoying it is when we feel that work is given to us in order to fill some time.

Chapter 5 - Teaching to the Individual, Working with the Group

Chapter 5 was a large conglomeration of thoughts and ideas that at first seem to have no common thread, but as you continue reading the threads come together. The authors introduces concepts involving participation, achievement levels, group work, as well as individual progress. In the short time I have been in the classroom as part of practicum I have seen the students described as the eye-roller, wallflower, hand-waver and dreamer. The section regarding group work was important as was the close of the chapter outlining standards for individuals. By following the guidelines for spelling out the assignment, examples of work at different levels, rubric to assess the work, revision. All of these principles combined will lead to a successful classroom that will provide the best opportunity for student success.

One of the important factors mentioned in this chapter was group work and ensuring that all groups are equally represented and engaged. This becomes especially more difficult when considering the multitude of subject areas that students will be placed in during their school years. Trying to ensure that all groups are equally challenged during our individual subject areas is especially daunting when we are just now developing lesson plans. The opportunity to plan out lessons and additionally face the challenge of ensuring that we are reaching all of the students is a daunting task. One that I think many seasoned teachers still struggle with as they get further and further away from learning and spend more time with students teaching the same material year after year.

Chapter #4- Creating A Culture of Success

Trust and Expectations are the two major ingredients for success as outlined in Chapter 4. Teachers are expecting the students to learn and comprehend the lessons, trust that they will put forth an honest effort, trust that the students will keep an open mind when attempting a new type of lesson, trust that the efforts the teacher puts into the class will be reciprocated by the students. Teachers should expect the student to be in class on time, be prepared for to learn, expect the students to put for the honest effort and expect the students to not become a distraction during the class. However, it is important to keep in mind that trust and expectations are not a one way street. The students should have expectations of the teacher. They should expect the teacher to be on time, provide accurate information, provide a conducive learning environment and expect that any questions asked will be treated as an opportunity to provide further learning and not an opportunity to ridicule or humiliate. They should be able to trust that the teacher will keep them safe, trust that the teacher values the educational experience and trust that each student will be given every opportunity to learn and comprehend the material provided by the teacher. The second half of the chapter deals with the outside stress of the classroom for the student, with most of that stress falling on family issues. The chapter closes with the students discussing acceptance and how difficult it is to balance the pressure of school with the pressure of peers.

As we continue in the practicum experience and are placed in increasing levels of responsibility all of these issues are going to become a growing influence. It will be extremely difficult as a student to get a full grasp of exactly how to balance and get a handle on the many different factors expressed in this chapter. The benefit for us is that we are still learning and still have many of the same pressures that the students are experiencing. This is both a blessing and a curse in that we are one day feeling those pressures and the next we are attempting to manage those same pressures from a teenager in our class. We are presented with the unique opportunity to learn as we read and apply what we are learning now, when it is okay to make a mistake, and have that experience under our belts when we begin a teaching career.