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I believe students learn best when they...    (4/2/19)

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I believe students learn best when they...    (4/2/19)

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After the readings for this week I feel like my thoughts on how students learn best have definitely shifted. I now believe that students learn best when they get to feel heard and like they have a say in what they need. I had never heard of the idea of a cogen. As I read Chapter 4 of For White Folks Who Teach In the Hood... and the Rest of Y'all Too. I feel like my feelings shifted a lot with this idea. At first I thought the text was describing a large group circle discussion similar to what we often have in class. Then as I continued I realized that I had completely misinterpreted what was being described. Every question I had was then answered within the next page or two. I now believe that students do learn best when their voices are being heard and LISTENED TO. This means students must see the changes they ask for.

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I believe the purpose of schooling is...

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I believe the purpose of schooling is...

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I believe that the purpose of schooling is to educate our youth so they can be successful in their futures. This can range from teaching them facts and equations to teaching them how to be a successful member of society. I think that a large purpose of schooling is socialization.  As humans we are social beings and in order to succeed in life we must catch on to social cues and norms.  Many of these are taught in school. Another purpose of schooling is to teach "common moral and political values" (Spring, J. H. (2018). American education. New York: Routledge).  This is where public schooling is tricky, in my opinion.  How is it decided who's values are being taught to the students?

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I believe students learn best when they...   (3/26/19)

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I believe students learn best when they...   (3/26/19)

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I believe that students learn best when they are listened to and understood as individuals.  We must not make our students feel invisible.  In the book, For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood... and the Rest of Y'all Too, "What's important to note is that the teacher in this scenario had rendered the student's self image as 'prepared and on time' invisible (pg. 19).  As the author was walking with the student in this scenario it became apparent that the student did feel like she was on time and prepared.  This was because she would be at the door of the classroom when the bell rings.  She also explained to him that her friend shares books and supplies with her.  In her eyes this makes her prepared, so she was very angry when she got expelled for this.  This reminded me of how important building relationships is.  If the teacher would have taken the time to build a relationship with her this whole situation would have never escalated to this point. I now understand that students learn best when they are heard and understood.

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I believe being a teacher activist...           (2/26/19)

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I believe being a teacher activist...           (2/26/19)

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After reading The Invisible Weight of Whiteness: the Racial Grammar of Everyday Life in Contemporary America my thoughts about what being a teacher activist have changed. Understanding the idea of Racial Grammar in our everyday lives is what will make it possible to be an activist for my colored students. Reading this paper made me realize how racialized everything in our lives are. I can't be an activist for my students with the mindset of things "just being that way" like described in the paper. I have to be meaningful in what I show them and be meaningful by not assuming that things are coincidences. Whether it be a book I use in class or topic I choose to address rather than ignore, I now realize that being a teacher activist means more than being a meaningful teacher. It means that I am trying to help reduce the amount of inherent racism that is all around them. No I cannot do this all the time but children are in school a great portion of their day for the first 18 years of their lives. If I can be an activist in my classroom and help to share my knowledge with my colleagues I can try to help be an activist for their time at school.

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I believe being a teacher-activist...       (2/5/19)

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I believe being a teacher-activist...       (2/5/19)

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I believe being a teacher-activist means knowing how to be culturally relevant to all of my students. This also means giving my students the knowledge they need to be successful in their futures no matter where they end up. It is also my responsibility to understand that my my students may be bi cultural and what this means for their learning experience (Spring pg. 183).  I think it is equally important for students to see their own cultures represented in the classroom as well as seeing a variety of cultures that may be new to them.

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I believe students learn best when they...   (2/19/19)

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I believe students learn best when they...   (2/19/19)

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I believe students learn best when they are in an environment where restorative practices are being implemented. School is meant to be an environment where students develop their social-emotional skills. This is only possible when other needs are being met. When students are afraid of being punished for normal interactions it is not conducive of forming the social and emotional needs students form while they are school-aged. Many students in urban settings feel unwelcome in school (Restorative Justice School Health Works Page 6). It is essential that we move away from punishment and towards fixing well-being and creating harmony in school (Restorative Justice School Health Works Page 8). This is so important to remember and to be able to communicate with other teachers and staff members.

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I believe all my future students are...        (2/12/19)

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I believe all my future students are...        (2/12/19)

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I believe all my future students are not bad. The assumption that children are bad is our first flaw that is leading to the cradle to prison pipeline. We are not taking the time and effort needed to raise children and work with students like adults used to. We are too dependent on technology and the fast pace that life moves at and not properly focusing on how we are raising children anymore (Lowres Pg. 3). We are not perfect and neither are children. We must let children be children and use their imaginations. They must fail so that they can learn from experiences instead of just being told. We must realize our part in the issue in order to give children the future they deserve.

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I believe my responsibilities as a teacher are to give my students the tools they need to be successful people in the community.

I believe that learning is important and is something we will always be doing so we must learn how we learn best.

I believe that teaching is what shapes the world around us and helps or hurts our communities.

I believe the purpose of schooling is to teach our students how to be successful members of society.

I believe all my future students are able to learn; as a teacher I must find out how they learn best & adjust my teaching accordingly.

I believe students learn best when they are taught to their learning type and made to think in multiple ways.

I believe my students will learn best when I am reflective on what is and isn't working for each of my students.

I believe community/family is a crucial part of young childrens' lives.

I believe collaboration is being able to successfully work together for a common goal.

I believe being a teacher-activist is being more than a facilitator in the room; getting to know and care about my students.