ED4236- Assessment One- Classroom Scenario

Why Bother? Why bother that the room is messy? Why bother that the students are not interested? Why bother that the students are obtuse? Why bother at all!!!
Because, these students are worth bothering about! These students deserve my best efforts; these students need guidance, love and experience. St Mark quotes Jesus as saying “Let the children come to me…because the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (Mark 13.14-15.) These students are Gods children and that’s why I bother

I came to teaching later in life. After 20 years raising a family and working in the finance and telecommunications industries, I came to realize that my other vocation (besides motherhood) was teaching. I have my uncle Father John Whitty to thank for this. After many heated discussions with friends and family about the “real” benefits of history and geography offer modern students, Uncle John always supported me with the idea that there is no such thing as useless information, just ineffective instruction on how to make it relevant to all situations. A similar idea was put forward in the movie “Mr Holland’s Opus” (Herek and Duncan, 1995) were the Principle says to Holland that it not good enough just to transmit information but the students also need a compass. For a look at the movie click on this linkMr Holland's Opus - Trailers - Movies - Virgin Media
Skills transfer is something I am passionate about and had been rather successful at.
I hoped to be that compass, using the experience that I have gained in life to show the students that history and other subjects are relevant. The same critical analysis skills used to find out the relationship between Augustus and Tiberius are useful in the classical realm but also in financial analysis which present the ability to compose clear and succinct reports to management. Beside all of this, history is helpful in being able to make judgments on who we are as a communities and as and how we can find our way forward. Costa and Kallick (2000) also state in their idea of "Habits of Mind" that an important part of successful teaching is creating an atmosphere where studnets can enquire and create, I hope to help make this happen.

Senator Edward Kennedy once said whilst giving the eulogy at his Brother Bobby’s funeral,
“Some men see things as they are and say why. I dream things that never were and say why not."(Kennedy, 1968). For full transcript of the speech click on the link http://americanrhetoric.com/speeches/ekennedytributetorfk.html
Although he was not referring to education specifically, but to society in general, I am of the opinion that education has so much to do with society that I saw room for me and change in the education system, so I accepted the challenge.

Another inspiration for me was a James Clavell’s (1924 -1994) movie called “To Sir with Love” (Clavell, 1967) it starred Sidney Poitier and Lulu (a popular singer in the sixties and seventies).I first saw this movie when I was fourteen years old. I was student at a convent school and I had been lucky enough to have been taught history by a most excellent teacher called Mr McCall. He had left wing sympathies and couched everything with a leftist bias, Even the battle of Thermopile was given a leftist tome (the few banding together will never be defeated!) That aside he was passionate about his subject and encouraged us to seek relevance in this world and to know our worth as individuals. Sidney Poitiers character in the movie was challenged by how these rather disengaged group of working class children could be made to see their worth and that an education was not just about learning “stuff”, but was by using what they know to make a place for themselves. He managed this despite the indifference of his teaching colleagues and resistance from the students themselves. He faced challenges and did despair, he started with the idea that he was just filling in time until a better job came along. When he realized how important being a teacher was he concentrated on his students and he did make a difference in the end. I would like to think Mr McCall had made a difference in me.
Let us now return to my listless students. They are not having such a good time of it .The day outside is wet. I remember when my children were little and it rained, they got very bored and listless at being cooped up all day. A little trip to the corner store was a logistical effort, but it did break the monotony of the day. I think children like to have options. They might not go outside to play but would like to know the option was opened to them if they needed it. The same is relevant for my rebellious students. Lethargy also comes into play here. It is important to remember that this group of students falls in to stage 5 of Erickson’s Theory of Psychological Development (Bochner, Duchesne and Krause 2003). For brevity, it is basically the belief that the period from adolescence to the age of twenty is tumultuous emotionally and the child is characterized by rebellion .Erickson calls this role identification and that the students are finding their way ( Bochner, Duchesne and Krause,2003. pg 81); they are becoming aware of their role in family and community and social groups. So it is to be expected that there would be some kind of “discussion” with regards to tidying up the mess and getting down to work.
It probably would have been easier emotionally to not ask the students to clean up. However it is important to make the point that they have to be responsible for their surroundings and to ensure that the learning environment is pleasant for all. Wet weather and the feeling of entrapment perhaps promoted the negative feelings amongst this quasi mutinous group. I understood that. They day had been hard and long for me as well. I need to be careful that my negative experience of the day does not transmit to the students. Perhaps this is what partly fuelled their near rebellion but the learning environment needed to be made safe and tidy and clean.

We finally got the room tidy and students started to work. Why they were not interested in the work? I think lethargy comes into play here, more sitting down after an afternoon of being cooped up.! Nevertheless discipline is an important trait in any occupation. It is important that we as a group remain on track with the syllabus. I must still keep endeavouring to create a " creative space " for the students (Costa and Callick, 2000). That having been said the students whether they realize it or not have a program that needs to be followed and we need not to fall behind. It is important to me that these students are prepared in the best possible manner and by the best means available at the time. A sentiment also shared by Mr Holland (Herek and Duncan 1995). Perhaps I could have used another method to engage the class with the work. A subject relevant DVD, or a research and May have given them a diversion. Am I giving them silent reading tasks because I want peace or not properly prepared for the extra? All of these questions need to be asked before I could remedy the situation for next time. What I must never do however is stop learning. I must still keep endeavouring to create a " creative space " for the students the I will continue to watch and “read “ my students. They are their own set of working instructions. Many people and events have inspired me to be at teacher not the least my children. There was a popular song in the eighties called the “Greatest Love of All” (Masser and Creed , 1986) the first line of the song was “I believe the children are our are future, Teach them well and let them lead the way” Fo full lyrics see link Whitney Houston Online : Lyrics - Greatest Love Of All. I think this is so true. If we stop reading the signs in the classroom and accept that students have something to offer, and marry that with what they need to know they will never be in a position to be able to make those significant life choices. A teacher has to bother and never stop bothering because the children are not there for our benefit and egos, indeed we must be there for their benefit.

References

Mark 13. 14-15. (1992). Good News Bible, Sydney.

Bochner, S., Duchesne,S. and Krause,K.L. (2003) Educational Psychology for Learning and Teaching. Sydney:Thomson.

Kennedy, E. (1968) Edward M. Kennedy: A Tribute to Senator Robert F. Kennedy. Retrieved 20/03/2007, from http://americanrhetoric.com/speeches/ekennedytributetorfk.html

Clavell, J. (Director and Writer). (1967). To Sir with Love[ Motion Picture]. United Kingdom: Columbia Pictures

Costa, A. and Callick,B.(2000) "Discovering and Exploring". Book 1 of Habits of Mind: A Developmental Series. ASCD: Alexandria.

Herek, S. (Director), and Duncan, S.D. (Writer). (1995) Mr Holland's Opus [ Motion Picture]United States:MGM

Masser, M.(Writer) and Creed ,L.(Writer) and Houston, W. (Performer). (1986) The Greatest Love of All [Song] United States:Arista Records