Inquiry Project

So Frank, Lauren, and I finished our project and poster for the project. It was a ton of work and very stressful but I guess it was worth it. I learned a lot by doing the project. By working in a group of three it was easier I guess for us to get it done. We split our question up into three different subjects. So each of us had to write about three pages each which is really not that bad to do. The poster part was also easy but the hardest part of that was getting together to do that.

Arts High School Visit

I finally visited Arts high and it was yet another good experience. I was assigned to Mr. Mobley who is a physical education teacher in the school. I only got to see him teach to class but it wasn't really a class he could teach. The first part of the class the students had to write an essay for something. And for the other 45 minutes the students had free time. They could do whatever they wanted. Some played basketball and some did homework. This has really opened my eyes to Newark schools especially Arts. I would definitely consider applying for a job there after I graduate. I think it would be a great experience to work there and have a lot of fun teaching there too.

Field Observation #1

I went to my own public school because I could not get in touch with the teacher from Arts. The experience I had there was very helpful, especially for the Inquiry Project. The field observation gave me an inside look at a Physical Education class in a suburban public school and how it was run and how many students were in the class. It also gave me a look on how over weight students are these days. This is one reason why I want to become a Physical Education teacher, to help get kids back in shape and healthy again. The field observation was supposed to be done at Arts but if I can't get a response from a teacher then I can not go and refuse to make a trip up there not knowing if I will be able to get in a observe for a day. Even though the field observation I went on to my public school was very much pointless for this class I gained some knowledge in the Course I want to teach when I am done with college.

Inquiry project

As the end of the semester comes closer and closer the inquiry project is becoming more and more of a problem. I have emailed my teacher from Newark and he has still not responded to them. And quite frankly I'm getting really pissed off about it. I know it was just Thanksgiving and was a short week but is it that hard to respond to an email. This is becoming more and more of a headache. I already set up an appointment at my school from home if he doesn't get back to me by mid week this week because I am done wasting my time with emailing him 500 times. But me, Frank, and Lauren have been getting our information set with the citations and main points are just about ready to sit down and start writing the paper. It might take a couple days to write it and get everything straightened out but hopefully we can get it done before the last day of class because I personally cannot afford an incomplete in this class or else I will not get into the teacher program which will set me back yet another year.

ed.gov website

I think the ed.gov website is a really interesting website. It gives you a chance to look for anything that relates to education in the United States. One topic we had to look at was the No Child Left Behind Act. It let us look into all different articles about it. It has tons of information about it and some interesting facts. It talked about that the funding for the arts is being cut. They are testing reading, math, and more subjects in schools. They also talk about the Title I funding. Which is free or assisted lunch in schools. And that is the % of students living at or below the national poverty level. It also talked about the Abbott Decision which is from Abbott vs. Burke. The case referred to school funding formula that was inequitable and Universal Pre-School.
Also in the article we found differences from the old law to the new law. One difference is the qualifications the teachers need. You can not teacher with out an Associates degree like you used to in the old law. Another difference is the raising of the standards. A lot of school districts are changing the standards to have better schools and having the children learn more.

Annenberg Reading

I think this reading was very interesting. The A, E, I, O, U concept was also very interesting. The exercise we did in class proves that this concept applies to most schools. When we came up with questions we had about Arts High and had to put them under the specific category it fit. I agree with all of the AEIOU concepts and what they say about all of them. I too also think that the promise is in the urban schools because thats where most kids need the most. I also think that diversity does bring creativity. The more diversity the school has the more the students can do with that like; plays, musicals, and many other things. Another important thing that was mentioned in here was that you have to acknowledge the students strengths. This is important because to know what they are strong at makes it easier for you the teacher to teach them the material.

Arts High School

I thought that this school was very interesting. It was definitely a great experience to go there and just listen to the people who spoke to us and also the kids who took us around the school. If and when I graduate Arts High would be one of the schools on the top of my list to teach at in an inner city area. It seemed like the kids had fun while in class and the other teachers that we saw and talked to were all very nice and really seemed like they cared about the kids in their classes. The opportunities that can come for these kids are tremendous. If I get the chance to student teach there I would take it in an instant

Inquiry Project

The project itself looks difficult, but I think once I actually sit down and get to it, it will be a lot easier. The researching part might be hard at times but other times might be as easy as just looking around. The length of the paper I don't think will be that much of a problem even though most students would complain that 8-10 pages is way to long. If you get the right information and actually sit down and think about it hard 8-10 pages will be really easy. I think the most difficult part of the Inquiry Project will be answering the one of the four Essential Questions from the syllabus.

Idiocy Revised

Teaching Against Idiocy

Question: What roles should schools and schooling play bin the United States?

The quote I chose from Walter C. Parker, Teaching Against Idiocy is, “An idiot is one whose self-centeredness undermines his or her citizen identity, causing it to wither or never to take root in the first place. Private gain is the goal, and the community had better not get in the way. An idiot is suicidal in a certain way, definitely self-defeating, for the idiot does not know that privacy and individual autonomy are entirely dependent on the community. As Aristotle wrote, Individuals are so many parts all equally depending on the whole which alone can bring self-sufficiency. Idiots do not take part in public life; they do not have a public life. In this sense, idiots are immature in the most fundamental way. Their lives are out of balance, disoriented, untethered, and unrealized. Tragically, idiots have not yet met the challenge of “puberty”, which is the transition to public life” (2005, pg344).

Schools today play a huge role in children and introducing them into different situations. One example is that schools are integrated and now children are faced with children from different races. They also learn how to think for themselves when they are in school through different classes and different types of work. From reading this article it comes off to me that Walter C. Parker thinks that the schools raise the child into puberty. I do not agree at all with this statement by Parker. I think it is the parents that nurture the child into puberty and the schools are just there when they are getting an education. The transition to public life does not have anything to do with the so-called “puberty” he is talking about. Idiots do take part in public life even if they are challenged in their own ways. But they mature over time and even if it takes years they are still considered part of the public life whether you like it or not.

Aristotle states that, “Compared to home life, schools are like village squares, cities, crossroads, meeting places, community centers, and market places” (Aristotle in Parker, 2005, pg348). I do not agree with this little thing he says. School is nothing like village squares or even market places. School is where the children learn things for them to get jobs later in their life. A village or market place cannot teach children these skills that they are learning in schools. Therefore the idiocy is in the quote is where Aristotle said that.

Teaching Against Idiocy

Teaching Against Idiocy

Question: What roles should schools and schooling play bin the United States?

The quote I chose from Walter C. Parker, Teaching Against Idiocy is, “An idiot is one whose self-centeredness undermines his or her citizen identity, causing it to wither or never to take root in the first place. Private gain is the goal, and the community had better not get in the way. An idiot is suicidal in a certain way, definitely self-defeating, for the idiot does not know that privacy and individual autonomy are entirely dependent on the community. As Aristotle wrote, Individuals are so many parts all equally depending on the whole which alone can bring self-sufficiency. Idiots do not take part in public life; they do not have a public life. In this sense, idiots are immature in the most fundamental way. Their lives are out of balance, disoriented, untethered, and unrealized. Tragically, idiots have not yet met the challenge of “puberty”, which is the transition to public life.”

Schools today play a huge role in children and introducing them into different situations. One example is that schools are integrated and now children are faced with children from different races. They also learn how to think for themselves when they are in school through different classes and different types of work. From reading this article it comes off to me that Walter C. Parker thinks that the schools raise the child into puberty. I do not agree at all with this I think it is the parents the nurture the child into puberty and the schools just there when they are getting an education. The transition to public life does not have anything to do with the so-called “puberty” he is talking about. Idiots do take part in public life even if they are challenged in their own ways. But they mature over time and even if it takes years they are still considered part of the public life whether you like it or not.

Compared to home life, schools are like village squares, cities, crossroads, meeting places, community centers, market places.” I do not agree with this little thing he says. School is nothing like village squares or even market places. School is where the children learn things for them to get jobs later in their life. A village or market place cannot teach children these skills that they are learning in schools. Therefore the idiocy is in the quote where Aristotle said that.

Haiku

In Memory Of
My Good Friend Greg Ofenleger
Rest In Piece My Brother.

I'm sorry but this has little to do with class but I felt like I had to right this one for my friend, my brother and my fellow fire fighter. He died this Saturday and have little information on how. But he came from a good neighborhood that was not poor but was not rich. He graduated from a school who is known for having a good reputation for having good educators, but some know the town to be racist. So this I felt that I needed to write and did so. Rest in peace my brother. You will be truly missed.

Martian Assignment

What our schools are like?

School districts provide education for students to learn about different subject matters such as English, History, Math, Science, etc. Students attend school Monday through Friday 6 hours a day. The school districts are controlled mainly by the State and local government. Students are required to attend school from ages 5-18. At the age of 16, students have a choice to drop out.

Who are our students?

The students in America are diverse. (Asian/Pacific Islander, African American, White, & Latino) Foreign born children (born outside of the U.S) also attend schools in the U.S. and are taught to speak English. Students start attending school at the age of 4 until 17-18.

Who are our teachers?

Almost half of all public school teachers have advanced degrees, and the majority has more than 10 years of experience. The ratio of male to female teachers is 8:10. 9 out of 10 teachers are white. 33% teachers escape the profession and pursue other careers. 46% of teachers leave the profession within 5 years.

Reaction to 1st class and reading

By the first class I can really feel that this class will be very informative for me. Since I plan on becoming a teacher, this class will give me a lot of information on how to deal with different situations with students who are mentally challenged or come from a poor neighborhood and teach them the same way. You really seem to want to teach us, so when we do get a job we will know how to handle these different situations. You as a person seem really down to earth and if I need to come to you and be able to talk to you about whatever it is I need to talk to you about.

For the reading, I found that most of the information is very interesting. For example, that 1/3 of the public schools are from low-income families. Another interesting thing it said in the reading was that more than 90% of funding for public education comes from state and local sources. Another thing that i found interesting is that low income students are being taught by teachers teaching "out of field." I don't like that because the students who are in that low-income family usually go to school in a bad neighborhood. I think these kids need teachers who will stay after class and teach them things that need them. And they need teachers who have a specific certification or have a college degree for a subject. But overall the article is very interesting and some things in there i disagree with and find very interesting