It's OK to Whine Sometimes

Today, I feel four years old.  I’m not a complete crybaby like a three year old, and I’m not as smart as a five year old, nor as independent—if you would every consider a five year old to be independent.  No, today I feel exactly four years old.  Every boo-boo, snarl, word, and action is making me cry; my emotions are running ramped, and I want nothing more than to run into my mother’s arms and have her make all the evil in the world that is trying to kidnap and hurt me go away.  I want to throw my arms up in the air, dramatically cross them over my chest, and throw my bum onto the ground.  I want to give up.  I want to whine and scream and cry and yell.  Life is just not fair!  Why me, why me, why me?  Will someone please hand me a juice box, a fruit snack, and put on a cartoon so that I can completely zone out frustration, my adult years?

I just finished reading and discussing Sandra Cisnero’s “Eleven” with my AP students.  We read that text to better understand what voice is and how it is established.  We concluded, as a class, that age is merely a number, and a person rarely acts or feels their age all the time.  Instead, a person really embodies a myriad of ages, ranging from four to ten to sixteen to twenty two to forty to sixty, because of their experiences.  To act four or forty when you really aren’t that age is completely acceptable and expected; humans are complex beings!

So, with that said, lately, my four year old self has been making an appearance.  I feel overworked and underappreciated, and, because of that, I want to find comfort in my mother and the simply joys in life all the while I scream, cry, and throw a huge temper tantrum.  I know I can’t do that.  I can’t let my four year old self burst out of my tear ducts whenever I want it to.  No, I must wait to expose my four year old self when I am away from my students, when I have finished grading all that needs to be graded, when I have planned and made copies for the next work day, when I have attended all of the many meetings before, during, or after school, when I have driven an hour home from work, when I have cooked dinner, when I have tended to my cats, when I have made my husband feel like he does exist. 

As I reflect on one of the ages I have been feeling lately, I can’t help but think of my students.  I’m always thinking about my students, even when I don’t want to.  I imagine while I am feeling four, some of them feel like they are forty because of the amount of responsibility they are forced to have at an early age, or the hardships they are facing outside of school—maybe at home.  “Eleven” is a nice reminder that no human is perfect, and we all need to empathize with others and consider how they might be feeling and why. 

Education Equity: What Is It?

I'm currently taking a class called Education and Society, and in that class we analyze and discuss the various perceptions of education in society (go figure- the title says it all!).  Last week, we discussed the social foundations of education: race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and class, for example.  Educational institutions are mandated to educate all types of students from many different backgrounds.  Despite this, research suggests that there is educational inequity when it comes class.  Simply put, not all students are motivated to learn, and often times that lack of motivation is associated with the lower class.  It has been proven that teachers teach much differently to the lower class students than they do the upper class students.  For the lower class students, teachers aren't explaining the significance behind what they are learning, nor are they having them think critically and create; rather, teachers have them sit quietly at their seats, write directions on the board, and have them fill out a simple worksheet.  On the other hand, the upper class students are taught in the opposite manner; they are the ones that receive thorough explanations on what they are doing and why- how it applies to their lives- and they are permitted to work in small groups to discuss and create.  

My question is, do you think this is accurate?  Mind you, this was one study that was done.  The data came from various school districts ranging from lower class, rural and upper class, private schools.  

Since we were discussing equity that week, we were given a picture to analyze for fairness.  What is "fairness" in education?  Are the hypothetical students in the pictures being treated fairly so that they can all succeed?  If you look closely, the box in picture 2 appears to have been taken away from the taller person and and given to the shorter person.....  What is your take on that?  Is it fair?

Young People: Our Future, Our Inspiration

I know I said this week that I would reflect on my AP blogging assignment some more and provide a plethora of materials for all to share, but that's just going to have to wait.  Something much more urgent has come up, and that is the Malala Yousafzai.  (Admit it, I'm building the anticipation, too, for learning more about my blogging assignment; I'm sorry to be such a tease!)  Yousafzai is an inspiration, and she's only 15 years old.  She's the age of my Sophomore students.  She has published, and she has spread her passion and stayed firm in her beliefs.  She.  One person.  One single person, a young person, has made a difference.  If you watch this video of her interview on the Daily Show, you will learn that she was wanted dead because she fought for women rights and equal education in Pakistan.  Yes, you read that right: a 15 year old girl is fighting for the right to be educated.  As educators, it's common to feel that our students don't value education like they should.  But that's not true.  There are so many students that do value their education, and those who don't just need to be reminded of why they should value their education.

I urge you to use this interview, use Yousafzai to inspire your students, in a lesson in the near future.  It's current, it's real, it's honest, and it's inspiring.  I truly believe your students will be captivated by her words and empowered, even if only temporary.  It's our right as an educator to remind students why they are in school and constantly show them the value of learning. 

I plan to show this video in class this week.  After the video and a class discussion, I will extend my students knowledge of another culture by having them complete a short webquest where they research Pakistan and Yousafzai and reflect/connect in a journal entry.

Share how else we as educators may use Malala Yousafzai as a lesson in the classroom.

What I Learned This Week

Like all good school girls, I measure what I learn by success....errrr....or lack of success in this week's case!

I learned this week that:

(1) Technology is tricky, and sometimes it can be more of a headache than it is helpful.  It can also make students curse you under their breath.  I wasn't terribly insulted by their profane muttering, because I know just how truly frustrating technology can be.  Case in point, technology can and will make make your students your enemy at times, especially if you try to help them and are unsuccessful.  

(2) Scaffolding is your friend.  However, my scaffolding friend was nonexistent this week.  Case in point, it's never a good idea to get way too excited about an idea (ie, blogging) and literally toss a seven page assignment in your students face and move on.  What was I thinking?  I know better than this! 

Ok, I need to be honest: these are lessons I have already learned.  So why did I make two past mistakes?  Time was an issue.  Excitement was an issue.  And thinking I was 100% knowledgeable when I wasn't was an issue.  I guess you could say, I was human.  As teachers, we will make mistakes- all the time.  It's identifying when you have made a mistake and rectifying the situation that really counts.   

Let me back up.  Some of you may know from a prior post, I have been in the works of creating a blogging assignment for my AP students to complete weekly.  (I completed the assignment, and I will post it sometime soon- just as soon as I iron out all the wrinkles in it)  As soon as I finished my assignment, I was overtaken by a whirlwind of excitement.  I literally couldn't wait to present it to my AP students the very next day.  Forget what I originally had planned!  I needed to present this project to them like now!  So, I halted discussion and spent a period reviewing the assignment.  That night, everyone was to create their own blog so that we could post their URLs to our class wiki space.  Everything sounds good, right?  Wrong.  I didn't have a small discussion on what a blog is or why I feel they are super important.  I didn't review what I deem to be stellar blogs with my students so that they have a model.  Instead, I just said, "Hey, we're doing this.  Now set it up!"  Why, why, why didn't I scaffold!?!?!?!  Looking back, I know what I did was so very wrong.  Because I know I did wrong by my students in not really explaining blogging, I decided to have a blog work day in class, for which I first described what a blog is and why they are important.  Students weren't really listening.  I blew it.  I missed my shot.  At this point, they were too worried about their blog and what they were going to post.  What's even equally worse is half my students were unsuccessful in creating a blog, and I had a heck of a time helping them because our school computers were so erratic!  

After a long week of trials and tribulations, I will be reviewing my students' first blog post Monday morning.  I think the dust has settled; the huge gaping wound that I had created has begun to heal....but time will tell- actually, Monday morning will tell me!

Here's a quick list of what to do should you choose to use my blogging assignment with your students:

(1)  Spend a day just introducing the idea of blogging- probe your students minds, and have a discussion.  Share with them valuable research that highlights the positive effects of blogging.    

(2)  Have a pretend blogging day with paper.  Have students write a blog post on paper; "post" them all over the room.  Then, teach students about the value of good comments, and give students sticky notes so that they can post comments on the posts throughout the room.  Review with your students successful vs. unsuccessful posts and comments so that students know what is really expected of them.  Visuals help.  

(3)  Definitely have a blog work day in class so that students can begin to write their first post with you; however, make sure every student has their blog established before this work day.  

I hope this post has been helpful.  I decided it was of value to go out on a limb and reveal my worst week of teaching this year- so far- with all of you.  You know what they say: learn from others so that you don't make the same mistake.  And they also say, if at first you don't succeed, try, try again!

Stay tuned for more updates on my students' progress with my blogging assignment.