Talking Points: At the end of
Shanelle’s blog, she tells about her brother and how he celebrated his birthday
by raising awareness of the homelessness that exists in the world. I thought that this act was so selfless
and makes me want to aspire to be more like him. Does anyone else know of certain
individuals/organizations that do this kind of altruistic work to help others?
What are other schools that send students out during the school day to serve at
homeless shelters, soup kitchens, daycares, etc.?
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Talking Points #6: "In the Service of What?" by Kahne and Westheimer- Extended Comment
Sunday, October 20, 2013
"Unlearning the Myths That Blind Us" by Linda Christensen- Hyperlinks
In
Christensen’s article, she talks about the different stereotypes that are
present in the different movies and cartoons that children watch on a day to
day basis. One stereotype that stood out to me was “the absence of female
characters in many of the older cartoons. When women do appear, they look like
Jessica Rabbit or Playboy centerfolds- even in many of the new and “improved”
children’s moves.” (130) I feel as though the media puts so much pressure on people,
especially girls, to feel the need to look a certain way. Young people are
constantly comparing themselves to models or photo shopped images of men and
women that do not exist. These fake images can lead to many problems in our
society today, such as eating disorders. One of my best friends has an eating
disorder and I think that the constant pressure that society adds to look and
act a certain way definitely helped fuel it.
Talking Points: Are there any cartoons or movies
that you loved but are now relating to Christensen’s article? Do you think
there are any shows that should be kept from children? I loved Disney movies as
a kid and can’t imagine not having seen or grown up with them.
Sunday, October 13, 2013
Talking Points #4 on Alfie Kohn- Argument
Kohn also argues in his
article that constantly praising kids causes them to lose interest in certain
activities or pastimes in which they are receiving the praise. The kids become
bored with what they are doing and no longer wish to participate in the
activity. Kohn also points out that “Researchers keep finding that kids who are
praised for doing well at a creative task tend to stumble at the next task –
and they don’t do as well as children who weren’t praised to begin with.” The constant
praising of a child can lead to tasks being done less efficiently than those who
are not being constantly praised.
Towards the end of his
article, Kohn gives alternatives for the constant praising of children. He says
that instead of saying phrases, such as good job, we should either be silent,
say what we see, or ask more questions. Instead of providing judgment in our
words, we should provide feedback by saying what we see. He also claims that
asking a child more questions can nourish a child’s interests. Kohn argues
against the use of constant praise with children because of the harms that it
can cause and instead promotes asking questions or making statements about what a child has accomplished.
Talking Point: Do you
think that it is a good idea to say things such as “good job” to children? Should we as teachers remove these words from
our vocabulary? I know when I was younger I mostly liked hearing teachers and
adults telling me that I did a good job. It made me feel like I did decent work
and that I did my task correctly.
Sunday, October 6, 2013
Talking Points #3 on Gerri August's "Safe Spaces"- Reflection
I also got angry when
reading this article when it told stories of how teachers were “reprimanded”
for reading books about the different types of families that exist in the
world. My mind was blown when reading about how “seven-year-old Marcus was sent
to the principal’s office and assigned in-school suspension for using the word “gay”
in school.” (95) Marcus was not using the word in a negative manner, but was
instead telling another student about his family. Punishing Marcus for using
this language portrays being gay in a negative manner and also makes Marcus
think that something is wrong with his family.
I think this article is very important and
that anyone who is considering a career in teaching should read it. Learning
different strategies of handling the use of anti-LGBT language in the classroom
will be very useful when we are in our own classrooms one day. I feel that our
generation will be the ones to change how our society thinks. When we become
teachers, I think that we will feel comfortable with discussing certain topics,
such as race or sexual orientation, because we have grown up in a diverse
world.
Talking Point: While
reading both August and Rodriguez’s articles, I thought of the SCWAAMP activity
that we did in class and how they relate to straightness, whiteness, and
American-ness. It made me think of how the people with power usually fall into
more than one of these categories. Do you think that our generation will be
more accepting and welcoming to those who are not seen to have the “privilege
of power?” Will people still have to give up or hide a part of them that does
not fit in with mainstream society?
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