Just this evening I saw the movie Bridge to Terabithia. I know it's a kids' film, but it really was incredible. Wonderfully colorful and creative, with a lot of deep characters portrayed by some talented kids. Remember the girl from Because of Winn-Dixie? She plays Leslie, one of the main characters, and I was blown away. She and the other main character, Jess, together created a unique sense of reality and true happiness that I haven't felt in a movie in a long time. Sometimes I think that movies made for kids are the most profound of all.
Anyway, I'm writing about this in my Ed Pysch blog because there were several scenes in the movie centering around the K-8 school's music teacher, Ms. Edmonds. Of course, she was the cliche pretty, younger teacher that all the 6th grade boys had a crush on, but I found her teaching style really unique. She used popular songs that she taught to the kids to train their voices and they sang together as a sort of choir. She led them on acoustic guitar and handed out percussion instruments for the to play along with. These scenes really struck me--the kids looked so happy and fulfilled when they sang. Perhaps I'll use this method in my classroom someday. How cool would it be to just jam with your students for a while, rocking out to your favorite late 90s songs?
This teacher, Ms. Edmonds, also struck me because the main character, Jess, was quiet in class and never really spoke out. One Saturday morning she invited him to come to the art museum with her because she knew that he kept a sketchbook that he drew all sorts of things in. They spent the day at the art museum, and she just stood back and watched him as he was inspired by all these famous artists' work. This is a quality in a teacher that I think is very important--a certain eye for each individual's strengths and passions, and looking for ways in which we as teachers can bring those out and in turn bring out the true happiness and personality of each kid. I don't think there will probably ever be a more rewarding experience as a teacher than seeing that awe-filled, eager smile of a student that has just learned or discovered something that we teach them that will probably change their life.
You should probably see this movie.
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Technology: Hindrance or Help?
Technology in some form has been present in my education as far back as I can remember. I remember back in 3rd grade when we used those desktop word-processing keyboards to learn typing skills. And then in 4th grade we spent an hour a couple days a week playing math- and logic-oriented computer games on the square, cryptic Macs that used Verbatim floppy disks. 5th grade you could use one of the 2 computers in the classroom to play Oregon Trail on Fridays if you had earned enough "plus points".
Technology has been used as an educational tool for years, and in today's increasingly scientific and technological world it has become the norm. The majority of American families have computers at home, and many school systems use computer networks as integral parts of their administration, as communication for their teachers, to run grading systems, and to provide media access for students. Today's generation has become incredibly computer-literate...it always baffles me when my parents ask me how to do something on the computer that I find completely second-nature.
The question is, however, does this overwhelming technological presence, access to computers and the internet especially, offer promise for the future of education? I think it does in many ways. The internet truly is a infinite wellspring of information. So the first and most obvious perk is that students have access to this information. Yes, much of the information is unreliable, but I think this gives great opportunity for teachers to help their students understand the difference between reliable and unreliable sources, and help them become discerning consumers and members of society. Plagiarism is of course always an issue with the internet, but again, with a teacher's guidance, it's easy to help students understand what is acceptable in terms of original work. Teaching about plagiarism is also a great opportunity to help instill the younger generation a sense of integrity and morality.
Technology and the internet are also incredibly efficient means of communication. I check my e-mail here at school probably 10 times a day. It's a helpful way to organize my life and stay on top of things. I think the internet is also a great tool to accomodate and encourage curiosity about seemingly useless subjects that generally contribute to wordly knowledge. Just the other day I googled the London Underground because I was curious about how deep the Picadilly Line runs underneath London, and I ended up reading for 20 minutes about the history of the underground system over there. Information I probably would never have had access to otherwise, or information I would not have had the patience to sift through books to learn about.
I suppose that's the argument to technology in education: it promotes laziness and generally makes younger generations less intelligent. But I think that, although younger generations of students will grow up in a completely different world than we or our parents know, their instinctive curiosity as humans to learn and create will not be changed. So the internet and other technologies will simply remain as tools to access information that will allow new ideas and creativity to continue. Using the internet and technology in the classroom to promote these ideals is a good thing.
Technology has been used as an educational tool for years, and in today's increasingly scientific and technological world it has become the norm. The majority of American families have computers at home, and many school systems use computer networks as integral parts of their administration, as communication for their teachers, to run grading systems, and to provide media access for students. Today's generation has become incredibly computer-literate...it always baffles me when my parents ask me how to do something on the computer that I find completely second-nature.
The question is, however, does this overwhelming technological presence, access to computers and the internet especially, offer promise for the future of education? I think it does in many ways. The internet truly is a infinite wellspring of information. So the first and most obvious perk is that students have access to this information. Yes, much of the information is unreliable, but I think this gives great opportunity for teachers to help their students understand the difference between reliable and unreliable sources, and help them become discerning consumers and members of society. Plagiarism is of course always an issue with the internet, but again, with a teacher's guidance, it's easy to help students understand what is acceptable in terms of original work. Teaching about plagiarism is also a great opportunity to help instill the younger generation a sense of integrity and morality.
Technology and the internet are also incredibly efficient means of communication. I check my e-mail here at school probably 10 times a day. It's a helpful way to organize my life and stay on top of things. I think the internet is also a great tool to accomodate and encourage curiosity about seemingly useless subjects that generally contribute to wordly knowledge. Just the other day I googled the London Underground because I was curious about how deep the Picadilly Line runs underneath London, and I ended up reading for 20 minutes about the history of the underground system over there. Information I probably would never have had access to otherwise, or information I would not have had the patience to sift through books to learn about.
I suppose that's the argument to technology in education: it promotes laziness and generally makes younger generations less intelligent. But I think that, although younger generations of students will grow up in a completely different world than we or our parents know, their instinctive curiosity as humans to learn and create will not be changed. So the internet and other technologies will simply remain as tools to access information that will allow new ideas and creativity to continue. Using the internet and technology in the classroom to promote these ideals is a good thing.
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Budget cuts
There is a lot of controversy in public schools today about how much funding music programs should get and the significance of their importance in education. This issue never really hit close to home with me until I started thinking about teaching music myself, about where I would be teaching and what the budget and finances would be like to support the program. I came from a school district in a fairly well-off, populous area of Wisconsin where property and general taxes are incredibly high and the schools have little financial trouble, but at one point we did face the prospect of budget cuts. Being in a well-off district was of course a blessing while I was involved with the music program---we had wonderful teachers, many opportunities to perform, decent rehearsal spaces, and good instruments. We're talking a full-size auditorium with a Steinway grand piano onstage. But my eyes are beginning to open to the stark differences in many other areas of the midwest and the country in comparison to my home district. A lot of schools struggle to keep their music programs thriving or to keep them afloat at all. Budget cuts, decreases is government funding and district/community are constant issues. As a teacher, I'm going to work very hard against this. Budget cuts and decreased funding may be issues, but they will not be acceptable. The music ensembles at my high school, in the midst of budget cuts, started and continued traditions of program-wide fundraisers that were incredibly successful, and I hopefully will be able to initiate these traditions at whatever school I teach at. My high school orchestra put on their annual "Puttin' on the Ritz" dinner/dance, that brought in $8,000 in one night. My high school choir program put on a yearly Madrigal Dinner that brought in close to that. These, if perhaps on a smaller scale, will hopefully be easily implemented wherever I teach. Not only did they promote community involvement in school music and bring in a lot of money, but they were fun opportunities for students to perform and get involved in big planning projects.
Having been a music student all my life, it's sometimes hard for me to understand how some people think music is not an important part of education. Cutting financial support for it just because it doesn't bring as much glory as, say, a football team, is just inconceivable to me. An interesting question was brought up in class the other day, Dr. Langholz asked the music students, "Would you have had an enthusiasm and desire to go to school if you hadn't had a music program?" It jarred me when I realized the answer to this was no. I was never a terribly motivated student when it came to homework and other things related to academics, and I realize now that I would have had no patience or motivation in school had I not been able to take Music Theory, Orchestra, and Choir every day of my high school career. I know I'm not alone in this. Cutting music out of schools should never be an issue. It should not be the first thing to go when a school is faced with decreased finances. And if it becomes an issue, music programs should know that there are things they can do to counteract these problems.
Having been a music student all my life, it's sometimes hard for me to understand how some people think music is not an important part of education. Cutting financial support for it just because it doesn't bring as much glory as, say, a football team, is just inconceivable to me. An interesting question was brought up in class the other day, Dr. Langholz asked the music students, "Would you have had an enthusiasm and desire to go to school if you hadn't had a music program?" It jarred me when I realized the answer to this was no. I was never a terribly motivated student when it came to homework and other things related to academics, and I realize now that I would have had no patience or motivation in school had I not been able to take Music Theory, Orchestra, and Choir every day of my high school career. I know I'm not alone in this. Cutting music out of schools should never be an issue. It should not be the first thing to go when a school is faced with decreased finances. And if it becomes an issue, music programs should know that there are things they can do to counteract these problems.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Important Questions...
Why do we teach? What is the difference between school "work" and student "learning"? What makes for good teaching?
We all have teachers that have had an impact on our lives, teachers who have mentored us and helped nurture within us certain passions that eventually will be our futures. For the most part, I have been blessed with good teachers for my entire educational career, but there are of course the several that had the most impact on me. I can think fondly back these teachers, but to put my finger on what made them good teachers is difficult. There are so many factors that make it possible to label them "good". But I think the most essential of these factors, and the answer to the questions both "Why do we teach?" and "What makes for good teaching?" is the fact that these teachers gave me, as their student, their entire heart, and they cared about me as if I was a priority in their life...almost like a parent. They went beyond school work: textbooks, worksheets, papers, and curriculum, and found the good in me and nurtured it. They guided me at a point in my life when I needed guidance and I needed people to help me become an creative and ambitious individual. Teachers can indeed make an impact on their students by teaching them from the book, following the curriculum closely and being a picture perfect teacher. Their students learn a lot and leave more intelligent and probably inspired to learn more, if the teacher is effective. I have had many teachers like this--ones that are knowledgeable and effective, but never took the time to get to know me or my peers. I retained the information I learned, but as an impressionable and needy youth, I gained nothing more. I think it's so important to understand that students not only want to learn, but they more essentially, as human beings, just want to feel connected to people, and that as a teacher, you have a unique opportunity to make a difference to so many individuals. I think teaching is important for the betterment of the world and for the good of society, but on a more primal level, I think it's important just to be fulfill and be fulfilled. This is, at least, why I want to teach. I want to feel connections with creative and unique people and to share ideas and stories and, essentially, continue to be taught, by my experiences with young people that are individual and that love the same things I do. Student "learning" should be as much about passing on your own knowledge as you learning from them.
I feel like the above paragraph is scattered and unorganized. But that's just it. It's so hard to be conclusive about things like this....good teachers are good teachers for reasons you can't really assign words to. They're good at what they do because they care about it, and they care about other people. Is that corny?
We all have teachers that have had an impact on our lives, teachers who have mentored us and helped nurture within us certain passions that eventually will be our futures. For the most part, I have been blessed with good teachers for my entire educational career, but there are of course the several that had the most impact on me. I can think fondly back these teachers, but to put my finger on what made them good teachers is difficult. There are so many factors that make it possible to label them "good". But I think the most essential of these factors, and the answer to the questions both "Why do we teach?" and "What makes for good teaching?" is the fact that these teachers gave me, as their student, their entire heart, and they cared about me as if I was a priority in their life...almost like a parent. They went beyond school work: textbooks, worksheets, papers, and curriculum, and found the good in me and nurtured it. They guided me at a point in my life when I needed guidance and I needed people to help me become an creative and ambitious individual. Teachers can indeed make an impact on their students by teaching them from the book, following the curriculum closely and being a picture perfect teacher. Their students learn a lot and leave more intelligent and probably inspired to learn more, if the teacher is effective. I have had many teachers like this--ones that are knowledgeable and effective, but never took the time to get to know me or my peers. I retained the information I learned, but as an impressionable and needy youth, I gained nothing more. I think it's so important to understand that students not only want to learn, but they more essentially, as human beings, just want to feel connected to people, and that as a teacher, you have a unique opportunity to make a difference to so many individuals. I think teaching is important for the betterment of the world and for the good of society, but on a more primal level, I think it's important just to be fulfill and be fulfilled. This is, at least, why I want to teach. I want to feel connections with creative and unique people and to share ideas and stories and, essentially, continue to be taught, by my experiences with young people that are individual and that love the same things I do. Student "learning" should be as much about passing on your own knowledge as you learning from them.
I feel like the above paragraph is scattered and unorganized. But that's just it. It's so hard to be conclusive about things like this....good teachers are good teachers for reasons you can't really assign words to. They're good at what they do because they care about it, and they care about other people. Is that corny?
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