Personal Response Journal: The Teacher - Essay Example

The Teacher I am a person, a human being, a counselor, a mother, a father, a friend, a nanny, and a person who has an utmost dedication to serve and share life’s experiences to prepare the young into a world unknown to them, I am a teacher. I have been teaching for ten years, and in all those ten years I thought that I have been complete, until I have decided to finish my last year of training, an internship, dealing with students with different grade levels for five weeks. In those five weeks, I believe as an educator - with the general orientation and belief that there could be nothing permanent but change – that there could be no experience far greater and exciting as this. Different Classes Working with different classes has definitely been a new challenge, in the five weeks of internship, it seems that most of the things that I’ve had initial concepts of before have been changed. Some ideas were diminished and had become void from the experiences shared by the students and some of the co-faculty, whom I have been working with, and yet some were reinforced, more than any educator, or teacher could ever imagine. I have been given three different classes of which I got to teach, learn and interact with, each class was of different grade levels, and have different subjects to learn from. One class learns the subject woodwork and is composed of students of students from grades four and five. The other class learns the subject woodwork and science, and is composed of students from grade seven. While the other class learns art and woodwork and is composed of grade ten students, these students are most memorable since they possessed the spirit of the adolescent which clearly opens and presents the dilemma of the young adult such as the initial phases of starting to be rebellious and somewhat very much moody. Dealing with different classes has been very advantageous for an educator like me, since I get to see the students in different phases, and as I compare each and every one of them, I could easily compare each and every class’s receptiveness to the ideas and the concepts which I bring in to them, and how they reacted to such topics. In the general conduct of my teaching, I decided not to adhere to the general concept in classroom management that, the mark of a good teacher is that the teacher is in control of the class as discussed by Taylor (1987). I decided to give in with a little autonomy, a space for them to present their thoughts in such a manner that they would not be affected by the normal classroom rules which are both disempowering and scary for the children with such young minds. I decided, on my own accord, to be informal and to be a risk-taker and experimental with the expectation that my students would be more interested in the subjects with if I taught with a personal touch. Of course, I’ve been giving high regards to my supervisors, or my own teachers, but still, I think that everything is a learning process, and I believe that as I give my students some space for some experimental learning, I’m giving myself my space and opportunity to learn as well. I’ve also decided to avoid sending my naughty students to the principal’s office, for I know that each and every act they conduct, are spaces for learning, not only discipline, but for something else which might make them more interested in the class. Yet I know that I’ve strayed far from the concept of pleasing my supervisors as the main goal in getting high marks in my internship, going away from what Edwards (1994) has discussed, that administrators are usually happy if a teacher never sends a student to the office and interpret this as a proof that the teacher is in control and must be doing a good job. Of course, levels of autonomy differ for each class, the supposed maturity level of each class is considered, and levels of discipline and laxness is dynamically mixed in every situation, things are dealt with in a “subjectively-objective” manner, with due consideration to the grounds and the conditions for each and every violation and punishment as student has dealt and is dealt with respectively. Grade 4-5: Art and Woodwork. This class is mostly composed of children aged 9-11 years old, most have been very familiar with the hammer, and saw and some of the most commonly used household building tools found in their parents’ sheds. As I tackled the course, I tried giving separate lessons for art and woodwork, and then I tried to integrate art and woodwork. During the initial days of teaching, I have been more interested in knowing my students than they are in knowing me. Most of the students were very interested in handling woodwork, since they have been presented and have been given the opportunity to handle the tools and participate with the building. Most of the boys seem to be much more interested than the girls, and their efforts in trying to build or make some woodwork are extra, as I see them saw the wood enthusiastically. Some students have even been fighting for the tools and some materials. I have never encountered as much interesting observation as this before; I have also seen some students who only sat down, as if not trying to participate, I tried convincing these students to participate, some turned out to be only shy, but some children wouldn’t really give in, they just looked at me. I figured that they might be a little scared, or feel a little awkwardness towards my persona, being a little old, so I tried more ways to be more approachable, such as throwing out some jokes, or giving them some anecdotes about a carpenter, and how carpenter is of great importance to all of us. Some of my actions seem to have paid off, as some of my unenthusiastic students began to be more participative, and have been more receptive to my ideas. However, some of my students still have not been participating. I’ve tried to observe them further, I tried to investigate the background of the less-participative students, as I believe knowing the causes might be helpful in dealing with the effects. I made the initial hypothesis, that those students might have problems with their parents or their friends this might be one of the major causes for their lack of enthusiasm. There might be a possibility that there are children whose performance in the classroom is affected by self-esteem, as I’ve read from Moore (1993) that there has been substantial debate as to the relationship between self-esteem and performance by children in education. Although a positive correlation between achievement and self-esteem would seem logical, there has been considerable research which questions whether this correlation actually exists. I then believed that self-esteem might be affected by external factors such as the child’s environment, however, I was surprised when I checked the less-participative students’ backgrounds, they had very good parents with a considerably good economic status. This experience may validate what I’ve learned from the writings of Kohn (1994) that "it is entirely possible that children who feel good about themselves are not necessarily high-achievers or caring people - and yet, at the same time, that those who doubt their own worth are even less likely to be so". Since then, I’ve tried making other efforts to make these children participate further, however, only some of my actions gave satisfactory results such as befriending the students, and even trying to visit them at home or talking to their parents. Using a brush is at some point as hard as using a hammer for some of the students, as some were either afraid to get their clothes smudged with paint or are really trying to make efforts to paint but were afraid that they might be making a wrong painting. I clarified the later to my students, saying that art has no bounds, and that there is no such thing as the word “mistake” in art. At some point, I realized that art has somewhat boosted some of my students’ self-esteem. One day, out of the blue, a student suddenly approached me and asked things about me, I was very much surprised, yet when I realized that they were trying to make a personal connection with me, I was very happy, for the efforts which I have done were already trying to take effect. During the later parts of my stay with the class, I have been more familiar with them than some of my relatives. I have known most of their names, which I believe I could not state in my paper for their protection, and I even knew some students favorite colors and foods. I was greatly amused as to how girls began to become more curious over the subject, how they tried to shell more efforts in order to learn about the proper ways to handle a saw or a hammer. I was also amazed to receive some calls and letters from the parents of my students saying that they were very well satisfied as to how I thought their children to handle woodwork, as their children made efforts to help their parents do some minor repairs in their houses. The feeling was quite incredible. All of the moments I could remember from my grade 4-5 woodwork class were fun, even if sometimes there were incidents wherein some of my students would send me some letters telling me that they could not go to class. The funniest thing that I’ve received from them was a note which was obviously written by the student himself that he could not participate in the class because the doctors said that he had a low-bone density, and should be exempted from holding a hammer, imagine done, children nowadays are much more creative and innovative in making excuse letters, much like what I’ve read from another teacher’s experiences in readers’ digest. Grade 7: Woodwork and Science. The students from the Grade 7 class were older than the kids from the Grade 4-5 class. Most of them were in the ages of 12-13, and venues for observation have been more, since most of the students were in the process of turning into adolescents or teenagers. When I was oriented about the nature of this class, my first instinct was to study the background of the children whom I was to teach. I tried identifying who among them were 13 and who among them were 12. As I started teaching the class, I asked them about their ages, and identified those who were already teenagers and those who were still about to become teenagers. Then I started to level-off with them, I asked them about if there were current changes in their lives and explained to them the concept of puberty. Most of the students were already well aware of the concept, they knew about the physical changes they were experiencing or which they were about to. This has been my starting point in teaching science and technology, and as this has been a very interesting topic which the students were well aware of, they seem to be very participative in the discussions. It seems to me, that having the participation of students in the discussion of such topic was very much interesting and learnable than teaching them what they should be encountering. From this experience, I remembered a quote from Lipitz (1980) that says: “It’s a little wonder that teachers of young adolescents know from their day-to-day scars what the rest of us tend to ignore: this is the most wildly heterogeneous group of students in our entire continuum of schooling”. However, I believe that it is of uttermost importance, that things like this should be discussed at this early age since I believe that students should be given the proper guidance in these early stages for them to carry them as they grow old as Spinks (2002) suggests that the brain is not yet fully molded until the age 18 and those who are learning or utilizing it for something else embeds that something in them forever. In the woodworks class, it seems that most of the students were less-participative than the younger children, as they have learned some of the basics before. I was starting to get worried as I was running out of ideas as to how I could further interest the students into learning more from the class. However, the idea of incorporating some of their learning and my teaching from the science subject has somewhat made them more interested in woodwork. Such as how I would compare some of the wood shavings to the hair that would soon be growing out from them, and that, I would tell them some lessons from the science class as them are trying to sand a piece of wood. Some of my students reacted to some of my teachings, which they said were gross, but I explained that these are all a part of the human being, and that their experiences are just part of that. Some of the children, both the boys and the girls were giggling while I discusses some of the changes which might be occurring to them, since then, I started to use puberty as a means of attaining attention from students who have experienced or are experiencing such. As for my personal assessment of my methods, it seems that I haven’t been to far from the current suggestions of some authors such as Davis (2001), Kolb (2000) and Wilson (2001) that, teachers need to engage the senses and emotions to gain students’ attention for learning, not just for the moment but also for the interest throughout an entire unit study. I was also happy that my students in Grade 7 were fast in becoming familiar with me, through my methods. I believe, that such unconventional method, even if somewhat bold and daring is applicable, even though it would only be on a case to case basis. I’ve also encountered problems with the 7th grade as one of my students cut his classes, one time, he went absent for a few consecutive days which then worried me, I tried to contact his parents but to no avail. So I started investigating the background of the student, and then it was then that I was informed of such heartbreaking news, the student whom had cut classes and had been absent for some consecutive days had encountered a misfortune, his mom had died due to terminal cancer. I felt very sorry for the student, as his father did not have a job, and he would deliver newspaper in the morning and do some chores for some of their neighbors for pay. I then contacted the father of the boy, who turned out to be a drunkard and a gambler, and it was since then that I started to give more detail in teaching the boy, I’ve tried to be lax in him in some of his absences and sometimes I would just send him homework given his situation. Grade 10: Art and Woodwork. Students I’ve handled in the Grade 10 Art and Woodwork class were more mature than any others. Since most of the students were in the ages of 15-16, I thought that it would be best to prepare them early for adulthood. My expectations were not that great from them, yet they seem to have surpassed my expectations, as they presented me with some kind of maturity which was still not for their age level. They already have much background of arts and woodworks, that they could satisfy the tastes of some so-called connoisseurs. Their skills in handling the tools for handicrafts were also well-practiced as they made some sturdy benches and hanging cabinets. They were somewhat easier to approach at a certain degree, yet it was also with them that I’ve experienced a certain kind of personal wall which they have created to make their own personal spaces. Discipline too, when it comes to them is also a little harder and somewhat subjective, sometimes strict, yet sometimes lax. The teenager is still one of individuals who are hard to teach, yet for me, it is one of my greatest challenges, touching and shaping the life of a teenager, who is about to be an adult in two to three years time, taking all the responsibilities, managing his or her own life, having a family, and if lucky be given the opportunity to teach and learn from other’s and his or her personal experiences. Also, problems of 15 and 16-year olds were much more complicated, while grade 4 and 5’s problems were on how to make perfect excuses for their teachers, teenagers face the problems of being wanted, having relationships, being in-love, being fat, or having racial as well as cultural barriers within each other. From my observation, teenagers are really those who must have their paths initially determined slowly, and with much of their participation. Some student with these ages were really aloof with each other, some wouldn’t talk, and some thing that some were not cool enough to talk to. As a teacher, I believe that a class should always possess the characteristic of being a community on its own, so what I did was that, I fixed the tables and chairs in a circular formation, such a manner that each and every student got to face one another and got to discuss things without having to look back. I also placed the students who were against each other, or who bore cultural barriers against each other, as seatmates. This came from the suggestions which I read from the internet in classroom management, as discussed in an article from scholastic.com (“classroom organization”, http://content.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=4134). The results of this were remarkable at some point, since some of the students became friends, while some of the students’ relationships just became worst. I believe that at some point there has been progress with what I’ve done, yet things like this always take time. I must admit that at some point, I lack the enough sharpness of multicultural preparedness, since that has been a new idea for the new teachers of today as discussed by Davis (2001), yet I believe that this should still be one of my thrusts in teaching, to learn more about everything. It was also surprising for me to encounter such problems from my students I never knew that such things could really come from them in those early ages, I once believed that children are supposed to be innocent, up to now I still believe that they are, however, I began to doubt as I encountered a problem with a student whom I’d just call by the name Denise. Denise is a smart 16 year old girl, and although she’s pretty, she was a little chubby, and there was this guy that she had a crush on. However, this guy who turned out to be his classmate already had his eyes onto someone, and Denise knows of the situation, and so she feels depressed, and at some point does not participate in some of my classes. I tried counseling Denise about her situation, but she says that there would no longer be anyone like the guy she likes, so I tell her that maybe there is still someone else out there for her, she then said that because of this she did not like to come to class anymore. This saddened me, but I really had to face the reality that there are things which happen such as this, I just encouraged Denise to go to school and try looking for someone else, I also encourage her to pick out some sport or anything to distract her from the guy. I haven’t heard from her lately, but I really am praying that she would really be fine. Conclusions I think that teaching is still one of the most interesting, most fun, and most interesting professions in this world. From it all of us could make others learn and could learn from others for being teachers. From the experience, I believe that I have learned more about understanding students, and handling different situations within the classes. I’ve also learned more in innovating and integrating subjects to catch more attention from the students. After ten years of working as a teacher, it is only now that I really realize how important the profession is, especially for kids and moreover for me. From all of my experiences, even though it really is a mentally tough profession, I believe that I would still be a teacher for ten more years, maybe twice, or thrice. References Classroom Organization: The Physical Environment. Scholastic.com. Retrieved September 18, 2007, from, http://content.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=4134 Davis, C.P. (2001). The evolution of pedagogical changes in a multicultural context: Journey of a university professor. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia. Davis, G. (2001). There is no four-object limit on attention. Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 24(1), 120 Edwards, C. (1994). Learning and control in the classroom. Journal of Instructional Psychology. 21(4), 340-346 Kohn, A. (1994). The truth about self-esteem. Phi Delta Kappan. 76(4), 272-283 Kolb, B. (2002). Experience and the developing brain. Education Canada. 39(4), 24-26 Moore, R. (1993). Grades and self-esteem. American Biology Teacher. 55(7), 388-389 Spinks, S. (2002). Adolescent brains are works in progress: Heres why. Retrieved September 15, 2007 from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline /shows/teenbrain/work/adolescsent.html Taylor, B.W. (1987). Classroom discipline: A system for getting the school administrator to see classroom discipline problems your way. Dayton, OH: Southern Hills Press. Wilson, M. (2001). The case for sensorimotor coding in the working memory. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 8(1), 57. Read More