Teachertube video

Here's an awesome video that I found on teachertube.com. As a future educator, it's interesting to think about how the world is changing and what kind of responsibilities we'll have to be accountable for technology-wise. Even from the perspective of a non-educator, this video should teach you some things which are applicable to the world we live in. Check it out!

Mentors and Education

What does a teacher do? Yes, we carry out lesson plans and teach children how to be literate in each of our specific content areas. Yes, we basically babysit your kids while you put time in your own job. And yes, we manage classrooms and deal with school issues. But really, is that all we do? No, we teach kids how to think critically, and we're supposed to prepare them for the pressures of the cruel, cold world which awaits them once they receive their diploma. Truth is, teachers are mentors, and the ancient idea of the bearded wise sage has always fascinated me. The topic of mentors is barely recognized in life, but it is something which remains crucial to the productive functioning of healthy individuals and the lost component in an otherwise sick and ruined society. When children reach middle school, they go through many psychological, physical, and emotional changes. During this time, the majority of kids will rebel against their parents and their teachers, adopting an "I can do this myself" attitude which roots itself in the very core of immaturity. Children want control of their own lives, they want to make their own choices, and they care but little (if at all) to what others may say to them. If you look at our society, it is unfortunate yet true that most of these children will grow into adults and never deviate from their immature attitude towards life. Individuality becomes a way of life in high school - a counter productive comfort zone if you will - and it shapes who they will become for the rest of their lives. Mentors - teachers, parents, etc. - can change this pattern and encourage the development to maturity. Without mentors, kids are generally directed toward self-centered ideals and care little about whom they affect with their decisions and words. It is also noteworthy to observe that young adults who have mentors usually regress at some point, feeling as if they've learned all that they need to figure it out by themselves. During such a regression, these kids break away from their mentor(s) and foster the same type of individualistic behavior of those who refused to let mentors play a role in their lives in the first place. The important lesson to learn here is that everyone - no matter what you do for a living or how old you are or what circumstance you find yourself in - needs to have mentors in their life. Period. Without the presence of the mentor figure in one's life, direction becomes convoluted and perspective diminshes. The truth that many youths (and sadly adults) cannot seem to grasp - or are unwilling to grasp - is the truth that you cannot make it through life in a truly happy and productive fashion without the help of others. You must depend on other people for support - there's no getting around it. And a key part of that support is played by the mentor figure. So, to those of you who are teachers, you need to embrace this mentor role and offer your students the kind of support they will need to mature and live a productive and healthy life. For those of you who aren't teachers, think of the mentors in your life. Thank them and show them the appreciation they deserve. As a teacher, it is the one reason above many that we go to school everyday - you have no idea how heart-warming it is to have a student stay after class to thank you. Bottomline: Everyone needs mentors. Think of them, thank them, and never forget them because without them, you would be lost.

Creative control in the classroom

Is it just me, or does creativity have but a fading pulse of life left in the modern classroom? From my observations, it seems that most new teachers give creativty an honest shot, putting countless hours into the planning of their lessons and a great deal of thought into unique and new ways of presenting information. However, as the grind of each school year wears on each teacher, they become more and more prone to the mindless redundancy of worksheets, essays, and multiple choice tests. As educators, it's easy to preach in favor of creativity and idealistic environments that foster the imagination, however, it is not as easy to practice what is being preached. Most good teachers never lose their creative edge. They draw upon the very roots of why they became an educator in the first place - for the students and for the future. Unless we want the future to become the sterile black and white world we fear, we need to remember expression. We need to remember perspective. And we need to remember how we thought of the world when we were children. Too often the artist is forgotten in our world - and when I say artist, I mean more than a painter or someone who draws. I mean the writers, the architects, the visionaries, the sculptors, and the innovators. Our society seems to punish those who pursue their creative passion - as if we are to weed them out and exterminate them. Yet, without the artists of the world, nothing would function. Everything would become two-dimensional and stale. We would be nothing more than a collection of mindless bodies given mundane tasks to carry out - square pegs that fit into square holes...used until we could be used no more and then discarded and shut down. Because many of our society's artists are forced to be a part of the machine somehow, we choose education. We choose to be teachers, and even in this choice, the path is marred with challenges and systems of protocol which try to dictate the way in which we carry out our day. It's imperative that we never forget our creative side. Teachers seem to be the only hope for the children of tomorrow, and without expression, perspective, and creativity, teachers will be unable to move and inspire the next generation. So, for all of you fellow teachers out there, when you go home to create your next lesson plan or your next unit, remember this. I know it's easy to sit back, have a beer, turn on a baseball game, and let the worksheets dictate the rest, but don't give in. It's tough to conjure up the energy to create more lesson plans after a long day in the classroom, but it's worth it. Put yourself in your student's shoes and ask yourself if you wish you had a teacher who did that for you. Don't sell yourself short - afterall, you're not a teacher for yourself, you're a teacher for your students.

Teaching the Best

"A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops."
-Henry Adams

Can there possibly be a more important profession than teaching? Is the act of teaching the most noble act that one can aspire to do? To my first question, I've thought about this for a long time, and I would honestly have to say 'no'. It's the reason I've chosen to wander down the path that I am. I'll say it clear as day: there isn't a more important profession in the history of mankind than that of an educator. I say this because without teachers, there would be nothing else - only chaos and radically undeveloped tribes roaming the globe. Some would argue that law enforcement might be more important for the same reasons - without it, we would be left with chaos. True, but without teachers and education, there would be no law enforcement, there wouldn't be anything. Everything - in its roots - begins with the foundation of education and is carried out by a teacher. What about the President of a country - isn't that more important? Again, without a foundation of education, we would have no organization, no government, and subsequently, no President. Or, even if there could be a President without the foundation of education, it wouldn't be any different than a group of chimpanzees declaring a leader. I asked my friend this question and he brought up the medical profession - doctors. Surely they're more important, they save lives and prevent disease and plague. Back to the basis of my argument, without education and teachers, would we even have doctors? They were taught by somebody - even if it was other doctors, they were still taught. Which brings me to my second question - is the act of teaching the most noble act that one could aspire to do? To this, I would have to give a resounding 'yes'. Even if you aren't pursuing a career in education, you can still teach others. You can still contribute to society and engage in the most noble act there is - teaching. So think about this. Think about where our community, our country, and our world would be without the benefits of organized education and without teachers willing to dedicate their lives to the carrying out of organized education. Think of the undeveloped countries in Africa and the Middle East and look at the way their educational systems are organized. How would life in these areas be different if they had the same educational systems and the same kinds of teachers that we do? Bottomline is: Go out and teach. Regardless of what your chosen career is, or what you do, teach others and contribute to the foundation that is education - there is no higher calling.

The Man Behind the Myth

I've created a 'WebQuest' designed for an 11th-12th grade English classroom. Check it out and let me know whether you think it's appropriate or not. Do you think it would work? If you could place yourself in the classroom I've described as a student, would this be interesting to you? What would you change and why? Thanks!

View Upload your own

Cliques

One of the many unfortunate things I'll have to deal with when I officially become a teacher in the near future is cliques. You can't avoid them, you can't ignor them, and you can't change the fact that they'll always be there. So, with that being said, I thought I would present a different kind of question: If I were to convince every child to become a member of one particular clique, which would I reccomend (essentailly, which clique is the "best" or most harmless)? My initial reaction would be to steer my kids towards being 'Preps' because as a teacher, who wouldn't want to have a bunch of hard-working, brown-nosing kids who pump out A's? Although, would I be doing these kids a disservice in the long run? Most other people (the non-'Preps') view the 'Preps' primarily as arrogant jerks and teacher's pets. I say screw these "other people" - being a 'Prep' will set you up for life. Not only would you receive 4.0's and get into the best colleges, you'll also get hired in many jobs before the "other people" belonging to the other cliques. Sure, they may be jealous of you during grade school, but one day, they will inevitably respect you and give you mad props for being such a dedicated fool. Let's talk about the other cliques and why I wouldn't steer my kids in that direction. 'Jocks'. They seem to be blessed with physical prowess and generally make friends with the 'Preps' - which is a really good thing because the 'Preps' will allow the 'Jocks' to cheat off of them on tests and papers in exchange for protection. However, there's a reason the 'Jocks' are cheating - they're not very smart. You can only make it so far in life by cheating off of others, so I wouldn't want my kids to be 'Jocks'. How about 'Nerds'? They're really smart and they dig Chewbacca and the USS Enterprise. 'Nerds' get good grades and great opportunities in life outside of grade school, but I wouldn't reccomend my students take this path because 'Nerds' don't get chicks, they're generally wimpy, they get picked on a lot, and because they're picked on a lot, they become really spiteful and bitter - not a way to live life. Let's move on. 'Punks' or 'Skaters' (same thing). They do a lot of drugs and drink a lot of alcohol all the while making a point to rebel against anything and everything in the world (even if it's good) and through this act of rebellion, they generally make really dumb decisions and end up in the adult world as 'losers'. I can't think of anything good to say about 'Punks' - unique wardrobe maybe? What about the 'Goths'? For many of the same reasons surrounding the 'Punk', I wouldn't reccomend any of my kids to become a 'Goth'. They're basically a 'Punk' that starts to cut themselves and listen to depressing music - at least 'Punks' listen to rock and ska. 'Goths' retract from the world and become very spiteful, like 'Nerds', but in a really bad self-defeatist way. Nuff' said there. Then there's the 'Drama kid' or 'Theater person'. This clique seems to promote an abundance of emotion and unneccesary blowing-things-out-of-proportion mentality. They over-react to just about anything, and often times start to play ball on the other side of the fence if you get my drift (not that there's anything wrong with that of course). I would steer my kids away from the 'Theater people' just to save them the perils of needless and completely manufactured stress at such an early age. Next is the 'Band person'. I wasn't ever really sure why, but everybody seemed to avoid these people like the plague back in my day. They really aren't that bad. They're kind of like a cross between a 'Nerd' and a 'Theater person' without the bitterness and the abundance of emotion. 'Band person' is alright - I'm down with that. They're just a little awkward socially, but that's about it. Then there's the 'Loner' or 'Outcast'. They don't have friends. The aren't good in social situations. Their grades depend on the subject. They never stand out. And they are pretty much forgettable. Really, it's not that bad of a clique if you think about it though. They may be labeled as 'Loners' or 'Outcasts' because they don't belong to any of the other cliques and that's a good thing. The undefined kids are labeled as 'Loners' and 'Outcasts' even though they may not display any of the typical attributes of the 'Loner' / 'Outcast'. And the last clique that's coming to mind is the 'Gangster' or 'Homie G'. They create fear, they're "tough", they protect others who are similar to them or belong to their "gang". They steal. They peddle drugs. They drink a lot. And sometimes they stab people - until they get out of grade school, then they get guns and ghetto cars. Definitely don't want my kids to be 'Gangsters'. All-in-all, I'm going to have to say if I had to convince my students to choose a clique, I'd advise them to become a 'Prep' because it will help them the most in the long run ('Band person' is a close second). Of course, it's terrible that we even think of the world in such a stereotypical fashion, but as I started the post off with, that's the way it is and it'll never change. I encourage everyone to try whenever they can not to be judgemental, although I realize such an ideal is outrageously ridiculous. When I become a teacher, I'll never - in fact - steer my students towards any clique above the rest, I'll speak to them in terms of rising above that. Screw everybody else - be you. Let others label you and don't give in. Even beyond grade school, the world - the people you meet - will judge you and label you and it's up to each and every person the just say, 'to hell with it', and be yourself. Who cares about how some label you, the people who truly care will see you for what you are. Instead of getting up on the soap-box (as I just embarassingly did) and fighting this issue, teachers stand pat and ignore it. And by ignoring it, they in turn foster it. Educators need to help students and encourage them not to cave-in to the pressures of their peers and the cliques they're surrounded by. Although, I won't lie, it would be nice to have all of my classrooms full of 'Preps' :P