Nurturing the Intellectual Intercourse - Essay Example

I think that all members of the teaching profession take learning seriously. The question is how to convey this to students. I found that the social learning atmosphere suggestion to be a positive one. I do know a grade school teacher who teaches in an all-boys catholic school in New York. Her students are in sixth grade. Rather than turn literature into a demand to memorize, she turns the classroom into a lounge. She and her students then discuss not only the piece of writing that they were reading but also the author and his own background.

In so doing, students experience reflective learning and I think that they actually gain a better understanding of the piece of literature. Oftentimes, one can relate to a story if they can relate to the writer and understand his or her reason for writing the piece or their source of inspiration. Indeed, reflective writing by a student tells the teacher far more about the student's comprehension of the material and an understanding of why the writer was inspired to write the piece. Likewise with science, social studies, and the other subjects.

I must say, though that I found the labels of the article disheartening. I don't understand why it is in today's society and profession that everything must have a label. "Amnesia, fantasia and inertia" are to me, rather offensive concepts. Further, it seems to me that by having such labels, it may put teachers in the position to categorizing their students instead of trying to engage the child and draw them from the circumstance that places them in the label, to begin with. This is not to say that the categories are incorrect but that I am always resistant to the results of "studies" versus the observations that come with classroom experiences.