Inquiry Project-Again

The final week of school is at hand, and the inquiry project is where my focus seems to be lying right now. I’m not complaining -- I am actually enjoying reading the research and writing the paper. Originally I was going to research about how to use diversity in a classroom can be utilized, however I was not finding good sources. I therefore changed my topic to “How do the arts affect academic achievement?” I was involved in the arts when I was younger. I played a few instruments, did a few plays and musicals, and was involved in several choirs.

For me, the arts greatly affected my achievement in school in various ways. I will explain this further in my paper, but I am also interested in researching the statistics behind success of students involved in the arts. I have found many articles pertaining to the fact that the arts do indeed have an impact on academic achieve. One article even claims that the arts can help create creativity. Of course I will have to look at the negative sides as well and the contradictions, but I am really excited to finish this paper and discover how the arts have affected other people as well.

Community Service: Ten Hours

For my 10 hours of community service I have been involved with “CCMP” or “Community Connections Mentoring Program” held at Montclair State. Every Tuesday night for an hour and a half, students grades K-12 come from Newark and we run a mentoring program in which we all talk about and discuss things pertaining to education. From what I understand, the program used to be a tutoring program, however they did not have enough students to tutor each subject and so now we focus primarily on encouraging students with their education and helping them with anything they may be struggling with in school. My group consists of two 8th grade girls. Both struggle in math and so we have been trying to come up with fun ways to help them study. We also talk a lot about college and what they want to do with their lives. The one girl wants to be a fashion designer and design her own perfume, which we explained that math could really be helpful in doing so. We have a lot of fun each week learning about each other and incorporating education within our discussions and activities. The program runs for 6 weeks, and also has an additional two weeks worth of training and orientation.

In addition to the mentoring program, I also bought a Thanksgiving dinner for a family in need. The church I am currently attending collected Thanksgiving dinners for families in need, and then delivered those dinners to the families right before Thanksgiving. I believe we had about 50 dinners all together, which was a pretty good accomplishment considering there are only about 20 people in this new church.

Community Meetings

I finally completed both of my meetings for the class field work requirements. In one, I attended a football game several weeks ago, and then Tuesday after my full day observation, I attended a meeting for teachers in Newark Arts High School. The meetings are held every month over the course of a few days, and require all the teachers to attend at one of the meetings. They are named “PLCs” or “Professional Learning Communities”, and they were started about a year ago by the new principal at Arts High. Each meeting the teachers are given readings and documents prior to the meeting, and they are expected to read and come up with their own conclusions and be prepared to discuss what they discovered. Each meeting is about an hour long and contains a meeting objective as well as guiding questions that help guide the main issues to be discussed.

Every participant in the meeting is also given an opportunity to share.
In this particular meeting, the discussion was based on open-ended questions. The teachers and vice principal discussed what the definition of open-ended questions were, how “open” an open-ended question can be, what makes a question “open”, and when is it appropriate to ask open-ended questions. It may sound like the topic became monotonous; however there were a lot of ideas that the teachers shared that were very helpful. For example, one teacher shared that asking open-ended questions gives students the ability to share their thoughts with others, even if that student is generally very shy.

Full Day Observation

This past Tuesday I attended Arts High School in Newark for my full day observation. I was initially excited to attend and get some questions answered, and my anticipations paid off. I observed a special needs class that assisted grades 9-12. When I had received my assigned co-op teacher and class I was surprised to find that Arts High even had a special needs class. Based on the difficult application process, I had assumed that students were not only extremely talented but also brilliant straight A, AP class taking students. Well, you know what they say happens when you assume. The fact of the matter is that these students, as many other students, are very talented and may be brilliant as well, but may also struggle in one or two areas. The special needs class focuses mainly on English and Math, and only has about 4-8 students in each class. To be completely honest, I couldn’t tell a difference between the special needs students and average students from other schools that I have observed. In each class there was a mixture of students from different grades, but they each worked on materials from either Math or English and what they were struggling in. What was most interesting to me was how the teacher was so involved with each student. If anyone asked her a question she would in turn ask them a question, raise another issue that was related, or ask them to look up what they were questioning.

The students also all helped each other, and through this sharing and helping with each other they seemed to be learning more. I was overall amazed at how advanced these students seemed, especially considering the fact that they were in a special needs class. It was encouraging to see a teacher who was so involved with her students, and cared so much about their welfare. She mentioned that her door was always open, and she rarely took a lunch break. I emailed her yesterday to thank her for the opportunity to observe her class, and this is part of what she replied with, “I am who I am and I just think that incorporating care and love for the kids is just as important as the teaching give the love, you can get the respect, but always with discipline and dignity-we don't make millions, but we can affect many lives.”

"50 City Schools Get Failing Grade in a New System"

While passing a magazine stand a few days ago, I came across a headline that read "50 City Schools Get Failing Grade in a New System". Needless to say, it caught my attention enough to stop and pick up the paper on my way to class. The article stated that 50 schools got “failing” grades according to the new rating system that judges schools based on both performance and progress. This means that 29,000 students now have the choice to transfer schools if they wish. The article also stated that in addition to the failing schools, 99 schools received a grade of a D. I can’t say that I was completely shocked when I read this article, but I was really disappointed. The NCLB is clearly still not working at all. Because of these failing grades, many teachers and administrators may lose their jobs, and schools may close.

One parent wrote the chancellor saying, ““The way you treat our educators is part and parcel of the way you treat our students – constantly barraging them with narrow, deadening tests and demoralizing them with meaningless scores”” (Jan Carr in NYTIMES). Very well stated Ms. Carr! I think that sad part is the fact that the poor grades are causing the blame to be put on the teachers and administrators who now face the threat of losing their jobs. I think that under those circumstances, even the most caring teacher will have to resort to teaching only what is required to pass the exams. I suppose they wouldn’t consider the fact that the plan itself isn’t working. You can find the article for further information here: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A02E2DF1F3CF935A35752C1A9619C8B63

NCLB on www.ed.gov

After reviewing the www.ed.gov website, I found a lot of information pertaining to education. I paid particular attention to the NCLB articles, and the reauthorization of the act in an April 2007 newsletter. The reauthorization proposal is called Building on Results: A Blueprint for Strengthening the No Child Left Behind Act. In order to come up with this proposal the government worked closely with the school officers, parents, teachers, and policymakers across the country. They want the new plans to provide additional tools for teachers to use so that the reading and math scores of students go up by the year 2014. The Building on Results Policy has a few new priorities that are supposed to help the NCLB act. The policies are as follows: 1. Strengthen efforts to close the achievement gap through high standards, accountability, and more information for parents; 2. Give States flexibility to better measure individual student progress, target resources to students most in need, and improve assessments for students with disabilities and limited English proficiency (LEP); 3. Prepare high school students for success by promoting rigorous and advanced coursework and providing new resources for schools serving low-income students; 4. Provide greater resources for teachers to further close the achievement gap through improved math and science instruction, intensive aid for struggling students, continuation of Reading First, and rewards for teachers in high-need schools; 5. Offer additional tools to help local educators turn around chronically under-performing schools and empower parents with information and options.
I personally still think that they are focusing too much on math and reading skills rather than other aspects. Many students do not do so well in math or reading but they may be brilliant in science or computer science. There are many other ways in which students can prove to be “proficient”. The fact that they are still using proficiency tests doesn’t show me that there are going to be great changes.

Observation at Arts High

Prior to visiting the Arts high school in Newark, I was really unsure as to what to expect. Aside from my personal interest as to whether or not I would even find the school, considering the fact that every single time I drive into Newark, I end up getting lost; I was really interested in discovering how the Arts school would be compared to other urban school systems that I have observed. I was most interested to see how the influence of the arts would affect the school. I know from my own personal experience that music and art have always been a positive influence in my life. There is something about expressing yourself through music, or art, or dance that inspires the heart and the mind and helps you to focus. The school was beautifully decorated with pieces of art, and when we first arrived and were seated in the auditorium, an advanced choir class was singing on stage as part of their class. They all seemed very focused and their emotions came through in their voices and facial expressions. This was a common attribute throughout the rest of the school.

After leaving the auditorium, some of the students gave us tours around their school. We went into a few classrooms, and in one particular ceramics class, the students all seemed pretty focused and passionate about the art work they were doing. I was very impressed with the school and their standards. They set high standards and enforce strict policies for their students. For example, the school is very competitive and therefore students must continue to achieve good grades and good attendance in order to stay in the school. From what I could observe in the three hours I was there, the students really appear to take their education at the Arts high school seriously.

Upcoming Observation of Arts High

I am really excited to observe the Arts High school this coming week. I have observed many classrooms before but I always have the fear that I am going to miss something important. After last week's class I now understand more of what I am supposed to look for. I do not remember ever learning before what it was specifically I should pay attention to. Now that I will be looking through a different lens than I have before, I am really excited to discover what I will find.

We were told to pay attention to not only the students, but to details that surround them. For example, if there is construction outside and it is very noisy or the temperature is too warm or too cold, these are things that can distract students and take away fro their learning experience. It is also important to pay attention to certain students’ behaviors and how they are dealt with. For example, if on student is sleeping or not paying attention, it is important to note the ways the teacher handles the situation. How does she or he relate to the students?

I will also be interested to see how the Arts school differs from other schools, especially ones in which do not particularly have a lot of arts programs. The whole environment and experience will be a new one in which I have not yet observed in, and I am really excited to get some questions answered.

Inquiry Project

Something really scary happened the other day. I was looking at the pictures on my wall and when I came across my calendar I noticed that it was already nearing the end of October. The semester is flying by and soon everyone will be finishing final exams and papers and will make their way home for a good month to regain mental consciousness. I am well aware (and fearful) of the fact that the next several weeks will be filled with papers, exams, projects, and other last minute assignments. With these thoughts in mind, I began thinking about the inquiry project for my Public Purpose of Education class. The first part of the project requires us to identify a question that is personally meaningful and will have an impact on individuals.

I have been running several questions through my head in which I can think about exploring for this project. Although I believe that I will gain more insight and have more ideas after some of the volunteer work I will begin, I have been tossing around two different questions. One question I might begin to explore is how can I as a teacher help break down walls that are a result of diversity in a classroom? Another question I might explore is if “No Child Left Behind” was set to improve education, why are so many urban schools still behind? How can this be changed?

I am unsure as to whether or not I will keep these questions for the project, but right now they are my rough draft ideas. I hope to figure out a key question that I really want to discover and that will deeply impact other individuals. I want to explore a question that will help give me a better understanding of who the students are, and what my role will be as a future teacher.

Parker: Who are our students?

Walter Parker points out numerous ideas in his Teaching Against Idiocy article. In his writing the term idiocy is defined as “concerned myopically with private things and unmindful of common things” (Parker, 1). One obvious essential question stood out to me as I read through this text. Who are our students? We have been discussing this question in class and we have come to many conclusions such as the fact that one of the reasons that teaching is so difficult is because of the major diversity among some students. Parker recognizes that schools are diverse because the students in them come from all different backgrounds. He takes this issue a little farther in his text, however, and claims, “When aimed at democratic ends and supported by the proper democratic conditions, the interaction in schools can help children enter the social consciousness of puberty and develop the habits of thinking and caring necessary for public life. They can learn tolerance, the respect, the sense of justice, and the knack for forging public privacy with others whether one likes them or not. If the right social and psychological conditions are present and are mobilized, students might even give birth to critical consciousness. This is the kind of thinking that enables them to cut through conventional wisdom and see a better way” (Parker, 4).

In other words, interaction among a diverse group of students helps them to understand more not only about each other, but about the things around them as well. Parker is pointing out that you can still hold on to your differences while learning and embracing the social, moral, and intellectual ideals that bring us together. This is especially important in school in order for students to learn to their greatest potential. To instill interaction amongst students, we must first understand that ideas such as virtues and social ideals are not innate, but are learned from others. We must be aware of the fact that the only way to have such qualities is to break the bonds that diversity limited us to.

The basis of....what?

I have studied many times in the past how schools were started, and what their standards were set on, and I have reviewed several times the fact that our school systems were originally built off of a religious and moral background. After reading Tyak's article and after our discussion in class however, some new issues in which I have never thought about before have crossed my mind. For starters, as stated previously, our school systems were based and started on religious standards. That being said, what are our school systems based on today? If religion had such an influence on the school systems in the beginning, what happens when that basis is gone? Let's face it, we're not even allowed to mention the name of God anymore in the classroom because of opposing beliefs.
I suppose we could settle on the fact that our schools now rely on the basis of morality, however can you have true morality without throwing in any kind of religious beliefs? I find that there isn't really one definition on what morals consist of. Many define them according to their own religious beliefs, or if they do not have specific religious beliefs than most seem to assume that morals consist of doing good for and helping others, along with being a good person. Being a good person seems a vague standard for our school systems to rely on, and I'm not quite sure how the materials used to teach would follow such a broad requirement. I would be interested to discover more about what it is exactly that public school systems in the U.S. are based upon.

Haiku

I read Tyak’s piece

I looked up “homogeneous”

I now feel smarter

Alright, so my haiku writing needs a little work. To be honest, I was quite proud when I wrote the final line. Not that my haiku is an incredible piece of literature, but it goes along with what I have had on my mind in regards to what we were talking about in our last class. When reading any document or piece of literature, it is important to pay attention to words that you may not know. After you locate words in which you are unsure of, it is important to look up the definition of the word to fully understand the context of what your reading.

I believe this is especially important for teachers to bear in mind. If a teacher is not going to spend the time to really understand what the context of the material is saying, how then can he or she effectively teach the material to his or her students? Or how can the teacher expect the students to put any effort into really understanding what they are reading? In order to effectively learn, it is important to put forth the effort.

There is also a sense of gratification when you are able to read through an article, and understand exactly what it is talking about. So just don't read, but define and make sure yo understand the meaning of the words in the text. By the way, the definition of the word "homogeneous" is defined as: the same kind or nature, or to be alike.

Educational What Article

I found the "Educational What" article to be very interesting. There was so much information that covered specific facts and percentages about the population of children in schools. The article went into great depth about how schools are divided by race, age, and gender and how those factors are, and will be changing over the next several years. One specific fact in regards to race that really caught my attention was the fact that "three million black Hispanics in the United States, mostly dark skinned spanish speakers from the Carribean, have checked black on the census form because Hispanic is not a race. This shocked me because it means that a lot of the statistics may be off for this or other reasons like this. I found the section on "Differences in World Views" to be very interesting as well. It noted the difference between race and national origin, which can really make a huge difference in a student. It gave the example that someone might be Hispanic but from California and therefore, speaks little spanish. I believe for teachers this is a very important thing to keep in mind. It's like the old saying, "don't judge a book by it's cover." In a classroom setting there are going to be all sorts of different individuals and it is important for the teacher to keep that in mind when he or she plans to teach effectively.

Profile of US public education

What are schools?
We have many different types of schools, including public, private, and charter schools. The majority of students attend public schools in the areas that they live. Nine out of ten students are educated in public schools and private schools educate 12%, so public schools are responsible for formally educating the majority of students. Our education system is based on 12 grade levels, where students must attend between 9 and 13 years, however in order to further their education at a college or university they must attend all 12. There are mandatory subjects in which students must study, including Math, English, and Science.

Who are our students?
Our students come from many races, backgrounds, and ethnicities. The percentages between them all are always changing, however by 2020 half of the nation's school age children will be children of color. More than 1/3 of public school students are from low-income families. Our students consist of those who are born in the U.S., immigrants, those with handicaps or disabilities, and those whose first language is not English.

Who are our teachers?
Our teachers are required to be well educated and have a degree in the subject area that they teach. The majority of our teachers are white females. Because of new laws that deal with education in our country, such as the No Child Left Behind Act, there are more demands placed on teachers and teacher requirements. For this reason there is a high turn-over rate in the teaching force.

Response to "Public Education Matters''

Throughout reading the “Public Education Matters” article, I came across some facts that I found to be very interesting. For starters, when I began reading the article I came across the section which gave the percentage of students enrolled in public and private schools. I realized that the article did not include children who were home schooled in these statistics. Although the statistics of children who were home schooled were noted later in the article, I felt that it would have been helpful to understand where children who were home schooled ranked next to students enrolled in private and public schools as well. Another part of the article that I found of interest was the chart in which displays some countries and whether or not they have a national curriculum and a national exam. The United States was one of the countries that did not have a national curriculum or exam. I found this surprising because I don’t understand how the No Child Left Behind Act can really be effective if the guidelines we use can change between states. Perhaps this is why, several pages later, it is noted that the government has not reported the NAEP scores in math since 200 and in reading since 2002. I personally disagree with the testing methods, however if that is what is going to determine a student’s achievement, then the tests and standards should be the same across the nation.

First day of class

I was pretty apprehensive walking into class today. Already annoyed (to say the least) that the education sequence changed, which meant I had to add a few more classes to my already never-ending list, I had premonitions that this class would just be another repeat of an earlier education course I took last semester. Although I had my doubts, the class proved to be more exciting than I anticipated. I really enjoyed how fast the time seemed to go by, and I feel as though the material will be somewhat interesting. I was surprised to see how many students were in the class and even more surprised to find out how many were juniors or older. I thought that I might be one of the older in the class but apparently the new education sequence is holding back a lot of students. I'm honestly looking forward to the class however. It seems as though Dr. Goldstein is really enthusiastic and cares about who she's teaching as well as the material that she's teaching which is not all that common in a lot of classrooms. I also really enjoyed the activity we did. I felt that it helped people to realize certain things that mgith have in common with fellow classmates. Overall, I think the class will be a good one.