Concluding Post: Teach Children How to be Children

For the concluding post I watched Dead Poets Society and School of Rock.  I had not viewed either movie prior to this assignment and the intention was to compare the two school settings in a way similar to the work of Tobin and his colleagues.  Dead Poets Society was set in the late 1950s while School of Rock took place in a modern education setting, assumedly mid 2000s.  However, after watching both films I decided not to focus on how education is portrayed in film has changed in a span of about 50 years but rather how the actions and interactions of parents with the school and parents with their children shaped the students' culture, ideas, and childhood experiences.

Concluding Post

Since both movies are set at prestigious private schools, the satisfaction of the parents, the schools’ source of income, is very important.  Administrators from Welton Academy in Dead Poets Society and Horace Green Prep School in School of Rock both encouraged the unconventional instructors: Mr. Keating in the former and Dewey Finn in the latter, to stick to the explicit curriculum because it worked.  While both curriculums may essentially “work” and teach the students how to memorize already discovered knowledge, the concern of the students’ ability to think for their selves and question what is before them is discouraged and found laughable.  Mr. Keating, humbly but also heroically, sticks with Welton Academy’s poetry curriculum, but uses engaging methods such as movement outside the classroom, music, and sports to engage his students in the content and emotion of poetry which in turn empowers the boys at Welton Academy to pursue their passions and create their own poetry.  Horace Green Prep School is subjected to the demands of the parents wanting their young children to receive a world class, competitive, education and they demand answers when it comes to light that a deadbeat, rockstar wannabe is teaching their children how to play music, manage a band, and execute a successful rock show appearance.  Mr. Finn, although with the wrong initial intentions, helps his students build self-confidence and express themselves through different creative avenues.  Because both schools are focused on strict academic, rote education, Mr. Keating and Mr. Finn are protagonists for their ability to help students learn what cannot be taught by reading textbooks.  During childhood, learning in an unconventional, engaging ways teaches children not only the information that is important to each individual, but also how to think creatively, abstractly, and critically: a common trait in successful leaders.

            Looking to the parents perspective, by placing their children in the types of school that pressures students to learn material in a standardized manner, the childhood culture these students are subjected to is one filled with stress and feelings of worthlessness if they do not meet their parents' expectations.  Students at Welton Academy and Horace Green are not allowed to think for themselves.  Neil Perry’s father in Dead Poets Society has planned his son’s out life for him. It is with good intention that Mr. Perry commands Neil that Neil is to become a doctor after earning an Ivy League education, since his father has sacrificed so much to afford Neil the opportunities he did not have as a young man himself.  But this pressure Mr. Perry passed along to Neil created a suffocating world for Neil to live in which he had to choose to follow his dreams and ignore his father’s wishes or sacrifice his aspirations and become the man his dad could never be.  Mr. Perry’s overbearing dominance is demonstrated once again when Mr. Perry decides that Neil is involved in too many extracurriculars and withdraws Neil from his leadership position working on the Senior Annual.  What Mr. Perry does not realize is that by Neil choosing the extracurrciulars that are interesting to him, Neil is learning for himself what his interests are, what he is good at, and when he has taken on too much responsibility.  By making this decision for him, Mr. Perry removes several learning opportunities from his son, although not academic, but ones that are equally important for Neil to be a happy, successful member of society.  The same can be seen in School of Rock where the culture of childhood the parents are pushing on their children is for superb academics and for merits that will stand out on their permanent records. This group of fifth graders are so well trained that when Mr. Finn takes over as the substitute and allows them copious amounts of recess, the students do not leave the classroom because they know they are expected to study and follow a rigid routine.  By not engaging in free play with little adult intervention, the 10-year-olds in this film are missing out on valuable opportunities to learn how to communicate with their peers and create and organize novel games when they all they have been subjected to is already discovered information in a pre-organized way.

            Personally, I supported each educator for different reasons.  I saw myself most in Mr. Keating – a fan of the content he is teaching, respectful of the curriculum outcomes administration pined for, but always adding a little something extra.  Just as there are several types of intelligences there are also multiple types of learning.  In order to receive a well-rounded education, students cannot keep their education within the four walls of the classroom.  Mr. Keating used kicking a ball and music to help students feel the power and beat of the poetry they were reading.  I enjoy taking students to the basketball court to shoot freethrows and see the actual parabolas we are discussing in algebra.  The methods may not be conventional, but the more ways a student can learn the more he or she can learn.  Academic knowledge is just a fraction of everything there is to learn.  For example, the ability to communicate and link two concepts together are attributes of successful leaders – not memorizing the quadratic formula.  Finally, I see my classroom in Mr. Finn’s.  It is never my first choice to have students work individually.  Some students in my room work independently if they want to, but groups of twos and threes abound.  Frequently I allow students to complete problems in my class that peak their interest as Mr. Finn does.  Where he helped each student figure out which part of the band production best suits him or her, I encourage students to answer questions in ways that they like best: charts, graphs, or tables all relay the same information in different ways to different students.  It is common in schools that individuality is encouraged amongst students but children need to be given the chance to learn and grow without being watched and instructed every step of the way.  If a young student does not fill with excitement at the sound of unlimited recess, then he or she may not jump at the opportunity to conduct experiments or create the next best selling video game because he does not know how to freely think and create.

            Teachers are given the unique opportunity to influence students’ lives to support or challenge the guidance students are receiving at home.  I found Mr. Keating to be a teacher that was thought-provoking – his goal was to help his students see situations from different points of view.  He never approached his students about doing something they were not comfortable with, the students always came to Mr. Keating first and then Mr. Keating offered his advice.  However, I do not condone the manipulation and threats Mr. Finn used to force his rock band on his unsuspecting students.  In the end, Mr. Finn taught his students lessons on self-confidence, organization, and sticking up for personal beliefs, but he also taught his students that it is okay to lie and deceive others in the process.  Mr. Keating artfully advised his students to always pick their battles and this is something Mr. Finn, and students, should learn. The balance of respect and pursuing your dreams that comes with choosing which battles to tackle when faced with conflict or adversity is a key attribute to living a content and productive personal, social, and economic life.  But again, children will never master this artful skills if their fathers are always making decisions for them.

          Where teachers are encouraged to be facilitators of learning in the classroom, and where it has been proven that students learn best when they construct their own knowledge, the same can be applied to the culture of childhood and learning schools and parents are creating for the next generation of decision makers and leaders.  To facilitate students' childhood: letting them create their own games to play or choosing which one to not play, seeking out friendships from their peers that do and do not look like them, and by letting them learn (sometimes the hard way) how much they can and cannot handle will leave a lasting impression and will be a personal experience for students to connect with rather than being instructed on how to grow up and learn.

Cycle Three - The Relationship Between School and Home

            This week’s reading provided several chances for me to reflect on my Montessori education as well as opened my eyes to several topics Martin discussed that are current events.

            To begin with, I have always been familiar with the word “Montessori.”  First, I knew it as part of the name of one the elementary schools I attended.  Then, I understood it as the name of the woman who founded this new method of instruction and educational environment.  Unfortunately, the Montessori school I attended resembled more of a Schoolhouse than a Schoolhome.  I was young, so my memories are not complete, I do not recall much of a “homey” atmosphere in my Montessori school.  This could be because I was part of the cohort of students who were first to be tested on redesigned standards and assessments.  The classroom images of a Montessori classroom in Italy presented by Martin do not match the images I have in regards to a strong presence of care, connection, and concern in the classroom.  However, my Montessori classes were very student-directed.  I recall a lot of independent work time.  Always in groups, my friends and I would busy ourselves at several classroom stations throughout the day working with manipulatives to understand math concepts and writing our own stories to practice reading, writing, and spelling.  Most of the work was done on the floor and students were held responsible to take care of each learning station before we left for another one. 

            I seldom worked with the teacher.  Classes were mixed with students of two grade levels (K with 1^st, 2^nd with 3^rd, etc.) and, without fail every year, the teacher always seemed to provide more rigid instruction to the grade level I was not in.  I remember working with the teacher’s assistant frequently to prepare for spelling tests.  I never had a connection with the teacher or her assistant that Montessori strived for.  The classroom never had a home-like atmosphere but you could say that student needs were met and curriculum was individualized since the majority of the time my friends and I could work at different stations as we chose.  

            Personally, I may not have had the Montessori experience Maria Montessori intended her style of instruction wanted to precede but my incomplete experience has not left me hardened to hers and Martin’s ideas of constructing a schoolhome.  Watch the news and you will find every reason why school's need to be a safe haven for students.  Within the past week, this story was shared on NBC’s Nightly News with Lester Holt and right away it made me think of the schoolhome ideal shared by Martin and Montessori.
           Thankfully, the students I, and most of us teach, do not live in literal war zones where schools and places of worship are main targets for terrorists.  But this does not mean that a figurative war is not going on in students' homes (domestic violence) or neighborhoods (crime and drugs).  In another class I took as part of this masters program, we read an article and discussed the psychological effects traumatic situations can have on students’ abilities and motivation to learn.  It is impossible to expect a student to leave home at home and school at school when he may not have a home, parent, or sibling, to go home to.  And for those who do not have someone at home to care for them (because both parents are working to make ends meet) those students come to school to find that missing support.

            But what makes the mentality of “home being left at home” worse is that situations happening in our students’ homes and neighborhoods are not discussed in the classroom from an academic point of view.  By focusing on a common curriculum, common lessons, and common assessments, teachers are not given the time to help students in the ways they need the most.  One method of instruction that could reverse this and actually bring a students’ home life into the classroom to foster understanding of what is going on in their neighborhoods and how to resolve it would be using a curriculum centered on social justice (also discussed in a previous course).  Creating a classroom with couches and bean bags, essentially bringing the home furniture into the school, may be unrealistic for some educational settings, but establishing a positive repertoire with students in which they can discuss and study social justice issues such as domestic violence and sexism can not only peak student interest but also help students integrate school as part of their lives – not an institution to be kept separate from their home lives.

            I mentioned sexism as one of the social justice issues that students could study because it was one that Martin discussed in her text, but it is also one that I am starting to see more and more in the media.  If I’m seeing it, I know the students are too.  Whether it is brought to their attention or not, sexism runs rampant on my high school’s campus.  I saw it just today at the Freshmen Bootcamp hosted by the Student Government Association (SGA).  Most of the SGA is comprised of girls who like to cheer, decorate banners, plan events, and help others.  While on the other hand, our school’s aerospace engineering programming is mostly male.   To compound this, another instance of sexism that resonated with me this week was the comparison of Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky to Michael Phelps.  Rather than Ledecky receiving allocates for her athletic achievements at such a young age she is constantly referred to as the Phelps of women’s swimming.  Even in this article by the Daily Beast, Ledecky is compared to her male equivalent in the headline, the opening paragraphs, and throughout the text.  In order to bring the home into the classroom, all aspects of the home need to be integrated – that includes caring for the students’ academic and personal needs, teaching them how to show concern for one another, and connecting their world to what is taught in the classroom.

Cycle Two: School, Cultural Assimilation, and Social Mobility

Before

For this cycle I wanted to reflect some on what I think I will be reading as I peruse Richard Rodriguez’s Hunger of Memory.  Based on Professor Greenwalt’s blogpost, one common theme that will be presented in the text is that of education serving as a gain as well as a loss.  I wanted to reflect on my own students and the culture of my school.  I see these paradoxes in real life almost immediately.  Cultural representation is abundant at my school with an annual student multicultural show, “Flag Day” as part of the high school’s homecoming week, and announcements made celebrating profound historic figures during Black and Hispanic Heritage Month.  While the school system is taking the time to educate our students on each other’s differences to keep an air of inclusion, the school system is also taking away from our diverse students their native language, familiar foods, and sometimes even their family-given names.  What have we taught out students with these often government-mandated actions?  Possibly that these cultural-rich students should be stripped of their wealth so that they can blend in and let their peers admire their rich heritages from afar.  This idea is something I have just come to realize and it is disheartening.  Below are my reflections after reading Rodriguez’s book, as well as the other articles.

After

            I would like to know how to get Richard Rodriguez’s Hunger of Memory to become a mandatory read for every teacher, administrator, and politician who is involved in the decision-making aspect of ELL laws and mandates!  After reading Rodriguez’s book I was at a loss – how many other students feel this way about cultural assimilation and affirmative action?  Rodriguez's writing is filled with the many paradoxes of cultural assimilation that many do not think of.  The most profound moment had to be when Richard realized that he could not represent the Hispanic, minority, disadvantaged community because he was not like them because of the benefits he ended up receiving for being a Hispanic minority.

 From my undergraduate studies and Google searches to find supplemental resources for this post, the popular results represent the benefits and on-paper success of immigrant and minority students working their way through the public school and postsecondary school systems.  The problem is that most of these articles and reports are from the point of view of educational professionals and university researchers – not the students subjected to the government programs of constant ELL testing and university acceptance based on statistical quotas and not merits.  The pros and cons of affirmative action have been in the news recently given the Supreme Courts decision to uphold affirmative action back in June.  However, Rodriguez’s work brings to light the irony behind this social justice movement to fix a social injustice by making the situation even more unjust for all involved.  I never thought that the races benefitting from affirmative action would feel so conflicted by it as many white students do.  The mix of emotions shared by Rodriguez as job offers were piling up on his desk was somewhat comforting – on both sides of the spectrum affirmative action is not always well received.  This should be our first hint that the system can be remodeled – hopefully with the opinions of those most affected by it at the center of the conversation.

Affirmative action, and cultural assimilation, is not just an American issue.  Great Britain faces the same situation regarding affirmative action related to increasing the number of unrepresented lower class citizens in universities and public colleges.  The article mentions the academic side of affirmative action – how schools using affirmative action tend to have lower test scores and inflated grades skewing the intent of affirmative action altogether.  But, I wonder how the lower class students feel as they study at a university, become more educated, and slowly start to become unrepresentative of the family and community they left back at home?  I would think that these students would take great pride in being able to provide a better life for themselves and their families through university study – but how heartbreaking would it be if they feel that they are being transformed into an individual who can no longer connect with loved ones or represent the people with whom they grew up with?

It is refreshing, somewhat, to know that students affected by cultural assimilation in the school system or affirmative action do not permanently feel conflicted.  As Russell Contreras mentioned as a quote from Rodriguez, Hunger of Memory is only a snapshot of what Rodriguez was experiencing as he worked his way through school.  I have worked with ELL students of all different levels.  I have seem some of the most proficient English speakers exit the program and seem cheerful when conversing in the classroom in English but talking with their friends in the parking lot in Spanish.  But I have also seen the those just entering the program look downtrodden and out of place in an American classroom.  After the course readings this week, I have realized how much more a responsibility I have when working with ELL students: to encourage learning and growth by acquiring a second language but also celebrating the unique culture and values they bring into the classroom environment simultaneously.  High school ELL education may only be a quick picture in the lives of my students, but I want to make it one that brings fond memories when they look back on it.

Admittedly, I was a bit morose after reading Hunger or Memory and was offended almost as much as Contreras was upon reading his book review.  How could Rodriguez write such a profound account of his life and then brush it off as just one piece of the puzzle making up his life and career?  So, to bring some light to the readings this week, I found this humorous clip of an instructor trying to manage an adult ELL class at a community college.  The actors accurately portray, in a lighthearted manner, the difficulties presented by the inconsistencies of the English language as well as represent a diverse group of ELLs present in most of our classrooms. 

Most schools offer these type of classes to students to support English language acquisition as they pick it up and use it in traditional classes.  However, the loss of the native language is one of the downsides of cultural assimilation Rodriguez discusses in his book.  Ethnic classes discussed in Phippens article could be a happy medium for ELL and traditional students.  Education, just like everything else, needs to be well balanced in order to be successful and sustainable.  Ethnic studies that let students learn English and discuss and research their culture and history proved to be popular and in demand in the American southwest.  I would love to see these types of classes in my school district!  My district serves a large Haitian and Hispanic population and students could learn research and writing skills in the context of studying theirs and different ethnicities - which would hopefully help them feel less like they are being torn away from the culture they are familiar with and love.

References

Contreras, R. (2002, July 19). Brown Like Us? Texas Observer.
Retrieved from: https://www.texasobserver.org/836-book-review-brown-like-us/ 

Phippen, J.W. (2015, July 19). How One Law Banning Ethnic Studies Led to its Rise. The Atlantic.
 Retrieved from: http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/07/how-one-law- banning-ethnic-studies-led-to-rise/398885/ 

Rodriguez, R. (1982). Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez. Boston: Bantam Books.

Cycle One - The Culture of Childhood

            Who would have thought that one of the major decisions of any parent would be to decide which pre-school to send their child?  I am not a parent yet but I never thought that this decision could have certain economic implications or determine how well my child will do in school later on.  Personally, childhood was a well-balanced mix of play and academics (it’s weird to think of 4-year-olds being academic!).  Regarding play and imagination, I remember being a very creative and active child.  I was always playing with dolls, played house and dress-up with my friends, and enjoyed going to the safest playground in the world – with each set of play equipment set far apart surrounded by rubber pieces which always so painfully got stuck in my sneakers. 

All of this was under the supervision of a parent or a teacher.  I never minded the supervision.  Although adults were present they never interfered in our playing or childhood squabbles.  I assumed that this childhood I experienced was the same for everyone – until this week’s readings I never really thought about others having different kinds of childhood experiences that could potentially affect how successful they were.  Thinking back, I do recall two sisters that lived across the street that my sister and I had frequent play-dates with.  These two girls were from Venezuela and were allowed to leave their home and cross the neighborhood street at a young age without parental supervision – something my American parents, and admittedly myself, would never let a young child do.

On the other hand, my childhood was filled with academics as well.  I loved learning and it was something my parents supported.  According to my mom the church-based preschool I attended taught some reading and phonics but hardly any math skills. Kindergarten through the third grade, academics was not a major part of my elementary school curriculum as I went to a Montessori school.  Student-centered play and student-interest drove what I would do each day in class.  I have said many times that I do not remember learning anything academic at that Montessori elementary school – I credit my parents with teaching me everything I learned up through the third grade.    Every summer my parents would purchase academic workbooks for my sister and I to complete and this is when I remember learning how to write, comprehend my reading, and learn procedural math skills.  Fourth grade and on, once I switched schools, I remember academic learning.  At my new school I had a desk with textbooks and tests and quizzes to take and I was thrilled with this! 

I would like to consider myself economically successful on a personal level and as a benefit to my community.  Whatever government entities or businesses invested in my early childhood education were dollars well spent.  The return I was able to give them on their investment is that I am a creative teacher in the community I grew up in.  I am on my way to earning a Masters degree so that I can learn how to be a more effective teacher and the unconventional projects and games I use in my classroom engage students and make them more critical thinkers.  Whether it was the play or academic portion of my childhood that led to the success I have today (which I am eternally grateful for) we will probably never know since I had a good balance of both worlds while growing up.  Going to a preschool that emphasized socialization and peer play and spending most of my afternoons and weekends with friends at the playground could be the reason why I am unafraid to try new instructional games and project ideas in my classroom.  As well, because academics were an ever present part of my childhood summers, maybe that is why I took high school, undergraduate studies, and now this Masters program so seriously which has led to me having a full-time job that allows me to support the economy.

Continuing on the “return on investment” theme, I wanted to hear first-hand from politicians there views on investing in early childhood education.  The statistics presented in Preschool in Three Countries Revisited were interesting – someone actually took the time to itemize and analyze the economic impact of quality early childhood education programs.  Here is a clip of a debate amongst gubernatorial candidates in Minnesota from back in 2010.  The responses of the politicians to the moderator’s question are true to form: we must be implementing researched-based instructional methods in preschool classrooms.  However, the answer given by the last candidate is the most thought provoking and logical when discussing the topic of investing in early childhood education and its potential returns.

As mentioned earlier, I have not given much thought to my culture of childhood before this week’s readings.  But after reflecting on my past, it raises questions about the culture of childhood my current students must have had.  The high school I went to was diverse but most of the students were born in America.  However, the high school I teach at has a very different atmosphere.  The work ethics and play habits of the students differ greatly than what I was exposed to in high school.  For example, the majority of the students at the school I teach at are Haitian born.  They are always playing basketball (before, during, and after school).  When I was in high school, the courts were seldom used except during P.E. class.  I went ahead and looked for some information about the early childhood education in Haiti.  The video below shows a new early childhood program schools in Haiti are adapting - of which the narrator said the program is designed to share with other schools indicating international use.  The program places an emphasis on students developing individuality - a necessary character trait in adults to support a global and strong economy.   Although this video did not answer my initial question about the traditional culture of early childhood education in Haiti, I ended up liking that this innovative program is making positive changes in one of the Western Hemisphere's poorest countries.  As one mom explained, her four year old daughter is learning how to make decisions and think independently which is needed whether children are playing with one another, studying math, reading, or writing, and out in the job market.

            I do not think there is just one answer – that would be too simple.  In order for adults to be well-rounded students they must be a part of a well-rounded curriculum and culture.  One area should not be the main focus – I feel a childhood culture can incorporate progressive instruction without losing cultural values and still allow time for students to play and engage with one another.