Learning through Observing: What are schools for?

            Schools are essential environments for promoting learning and success. After observing a few classrooms at Central Falls High School, I have made this general conclusion about the majority of schools. For one thing, students are exposed to an array of academic concepts in schools. With these ideas, students are encouraged to broaden their critical thinking and reasoning abilities. It is then that students can become socially responsible in their communities. From my perspective, I think that schools are for preparing students for the cycle of life. Essentially, this means that students learn a variety of academic-centered information, apply this information to their lives as students and individuals, develop a sense of community and belonging, and then do what they please (college or work) after graduating. I think that schools like CFHS are trying to prepare their students for higher education. I think that there is a focus on this, especially when molding students to think on their own. Forming individual opinions that are supported, in some way, by evidence proves that the student is an informed member of society.

After observing Ms. Garces’s tenth grade English class, I have seen this improving and preparatory work in action. The class was finishing up their Lord of the Flies unit, and the teacher repeatedly asked questions that did not have only one right answer. Most of these questions required the students to either analyze or evaluate, so some type of evidence was needed in order to have a fully developed answer. Ms. Garces and her student teacher went around the room asking opinion-based questions to the students. The majority of the students used textual proof to support their claims, and the teachers positively acknowledged such inclusion of evidence. In this classroom, and at CFHS in general, I think that a main focus is on having students think critically and support their opinions with appropriate evidence that enhances their argument. This will prepare them for either higher education or the work field.

In 1897, John Dewey enters the big picture with his American model of education. He draws on the social aspects of education, particularly working with the child to establish them socially. He believed that learning was linked to the social community that surrounds the individual. This is the main idea of Dewey’s Pedagogic Creed, and I think that it is applicable at CFHS. To shape the students into socially relevant individuals, the classes are designed to gather the opinions of students. With these differing opinions, the students are taught to support their claims in accordance with the acceptability of society.

More than seventy years later came Ivan Illich, whose philosophy consisted of de-institutionalizing education- his book, Deschooling Society. Like Dewey, he did believe that individuals are affected by and learn from their surroundings. However, he concludes that schools do not equalize (as believed) but rather divide. With Illich’s philosophy, the responsibility transfers from the student and becomes dependent on the institution. Asides from fostering dependency, this system also abrogates responsibility. However, I find a parallel to CFHS with the diversity of classes that are offered to students. The students are able to choose classes that best fit their interests, and I suppose that this can be connected to Illich’s philosophy for this reason.

From my findings and experiences in the classrooms at CFHS, it is clear that administrators and educators are working to create a positive and healthy learning environment for the students. Now in 2014, I think that Central Falls High School utilizes both Dewey and Illich’s philosophies to shape their students for the world after high school. It provides a safe environment for exploring paths and areas of study. Schools are for finding a healthy balance between academics, morals, society, and agency. This equality will yield informed, cooperative, educated individuals. Learning on an individual level will produce significant life skills that will help students now and in the future. Critical thinking, creativity, and independence are fostered at Central Falls High School, and for these reasons, students will be successful in all that they do in the future.

Microteaching II

And that's a wrap...

Hi there, ladies. Thanks for sharing this incredible learning experience with me- you are all so talented and will make amazing educators in the future. I hope that I didn't bore you too much during my English lessons, and thanks again for being part of this essential teaching foundation.

For the final time, it's all yours!

RITELL Conference- November 2014

            Attending a professional conference is an exciting and educational experience that is meaningful for all educators. On Saturday, November 15^th, I attended the RITELL conference with high hopes for growing inspired—you see, I thoroughly enjoy and appreciate immersing myself in any activity or event within the education field. After reflecting on the four-hour conference, I have concluded that the information presented was essentially meaningful to only educators who are already involved with RITELL. As a new member of the organization, I was disappointed when I left with many unanswered questions and a lack of meaning for the information offered.

            First off, I assumed that I would learn about RITELL at the very beginning of the conference, presumably as an opening to engage the audience. This seemed appropriate, because many new members were present and eager to get involved. However, many informative details were left out of the introduction. It was certainly nice to see the organizers and supporters of RITELL, but it would have been so helpful to learn more about RITELL as a professional association. Yes, I understand that the organization is for teaching English language learners, but I wanted to know more. It would have been valuable to learn about past and future endeavors and more about the applications for this teaching.

From the very beginning of the conference, I felt lost and therefore out-of-place. Especially as a new member, I thought that more emphasis would be placed on integrating us into the organization. The main presentation that I attended was supposed to link Common Core and WIDA standards using multicultural literature for ELLs. For educators who were informed and work with ELLs, this presentation was probably valuable. The three presenters explained several books that were helpful in teaching ELLs; however, I could not differentiate why these books were ideal for ELLs and not simply the majority of students. And may I add, these presenters certainly lacked presentation skills, which was a major disappointment due to the confusion and structural instability that this caused during their presentation. I completely understand that public presentations are very challenging, but I was preoccupied with the disordered presentation of information rather than the content, the reason why I attended in the first place. This was a difficulty for me, especially considering how this presentation lasted for about an hour and a half.  

            Although I did not find a great deal of value with RITELL’s conference this year, I am always eager to learn new information to better myself as a future educator. Therefore, one thing that I will take away from my first conference is the importance and value of attending professional conferences. Continuing education and learning is a central idea of teaching, especially considering a teacher’s role in the classroom to shape students into self-regulated learners. If I should ever teach ELLs in my classroom, I will certainly be able to select books that are appropriate for their level of reading and understanding. In the future, I will structure my classroom with every student’s needs in mind. Multicultural education, as I also learned, is an essential component to consider in a diversified classroom. With an array of cultures within one classroom, it is important to incorporate multicultural texts within the curriculum. Such integration will provide an educational basis for an unprejudiced, respectful, and cooperative classroom, and the RITELL conference targeted this idea as a major point of discussion. 

            Another meaningful detail of the conference was the author’s discussion of his novel, When This World Was New. D.H. Figueredo was an incredible asset to this conference, and each attendee was given a copy of his multicultural text. He anchored his discussion to his process of writing the book, and his presentation was both interesting and valuable. He encourages others to share their stories, because different stories reach different people. This is an essential idea to consider, because it is important to teach students in ways that are relevant and meaningful, of course, to them. It is also essential to encourage students to be supportive and knowledgeable about each other, and this will foster an open-minded, cooperative learning environment. Children must be prideful of their ethnic backgrounds and explore others’ heritages to become fully intellectual and perceptive learners.  

            Finally, I have recently done some browsing on the RITELL website and found useful resources. Before attending the conference, I did not know much of anything about the website. So it is important to know that there are resources readily available to teachers and future educators. I plan to revisit the website on a regular basis due to my new membership and desire for educational exploration. As I’ve mentioned before, I was disappointed with the RITELL conference this year, but I think that I have found meaning as I’ve navigated through information and ideas for myself.