On my list of things to do before I die is to see STOMP.
Jamie and I are going to see them (or is it IT) for Valentine's Day.
YAY!
And I'll get to wear a pretty new dress I bought.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Sunday, January 27, 2008
I Think Too Much, and Not Enough
Ever feel like things you have to do are pointless?
Like fillingout paperwork, homework, making dinner.
It's like when you have a craving for something specific but you can't figure out what it is...
That craving just CAN'T be satisfied if you don't have the slightest clue what will to the trick.
Or am I the only one that ever feels this way?
I get so excited for the weekends. Granted I have homework to do now that school is up and running again, but until it's crunch time I know I'll have some quality Ali-time set aside too.
But then that down time comes and I'm bored. Sure I caught up on some Monk and snuggled into a movie with Jamie...but now what? There's a book sitting next to me that I want to start...but not that this exact moment.
What exactly will satisfy this desire to do SOMETHING right now?
I'm just at a loss.
On the up side, I figured out that If I double my classes for the first summer session, I can complete my practicum in the second session and finish up the last class in the Fall....which meeeeeaaans.....GRADUATING THIS DECEMBER! So I'm doing it. It will probably be the worst year of my life (if you can top last summer) but I'm pushing through. I need to do it for myself.
After I graduate I will invite everyone I know to some pub with wings and 250 kinds of beer and we will celebrate all night long!
Will you be ready?
Like fillingout paperwork, homework, making dinner.
It's like when you have a craving for something specific but you can't figure out what it is...
That craving just CAN'T be satisfied if you don't have the slightest clue what will to the trick.
Or am I the only one that ever feels this way?
I get so excited for the weekends. Granted I have homework to do now that school is up and running again, but until it's crunch time I know I'll have some quality Ali-time set aside too.
But then that down time comes and I'm bored. Sure I caught up on some Monk and snuggled into a movie with Jamie...but now what? There's a book sitting next to me that I want to start...but not that this exact moment.
What exactly will satisfy this desire to do SOMETHING right now?
I'm just at a loss.
On the up side, I figured out that If I double my classes for the first summer session, I can complete my practicum in the second session and finish up the last class in the Fall....which meeeeeaaans.....GRADUATING THIS DECEMBER! So I'm doing it. It will probably be the worst year of my life (if you can top last summer) but I'm pushing through. I need to do it for myself.
After I graduate I will invite everyone I know to some pub with wings and 250 kinds of beer and we will celebrate all night long!
Will you be ready?
Monday, December 10, 2007
Looking into the future....
We decided last night that we are no longer looking for a house in the Rochester area. I will be done with my masters in a year and a half and once I throw the biggest celebration for that time of my life ending, we will move back home.
It is too hard being away from our families. I know, I know, it's only an hour and a half but I can't help but think of all that we may be missing out on. And ya know, people aren't around for ever. I want to spend as much time with the people I love that I can.
I'm thinking of pursuing a job working early intervention either for the county or Early Head Start. And if that doesn't work out then I can always fall back on a job as a classroom teacher, although that is second choice. As far as Jamie's job goes...we'll have to see what he can come up with. The job market for him in Oswego is a bit slim. But I think making this decision will be good for us.
I miss my mom daily, and my neices and nephews have my heart. I hope this year and a half moves quickly...
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Banned Literature and the Right to Read
Literature is thought. It is creativity. It is an art form which piques curiosity, evokes thought and emotion, and sparks conversation. Literature is also under attack. Banning literature from school or library shelves is not a new concept. In fact The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was first banned just after it was written in 1885. The problem now is the world is a much different place than it was when Mark Twain wrote his famous novels. Adults and children alike are dealing with complex issues like drugs, homophobia, and an ever increasing economic gap in society. Adding salt to the wound of what the world has become, teachers are unable to provoke answers to such issues. Instead teachers are being told what needs to be taught in schools thus limiting the amount of freedom in the classroom to develop critical thinking students who could potentially become change agents. Instead students are force-fed facts and told to regurgitate them to prove that the school systems are working. After students wipe their mouths clean and grab hold of that high school diploma most are pushed out into a world where they face people of different backgrounds, different belief systems, or who may be suffering from depression or other mental illnesses. In the end the bubble of protection from all of society’s battles hurts the high school graduate who is unaware of the blinders placed on his or her face during the thirteen years of schooling they have just endured. The answer lies within literature. While Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, may not literally tell us how to overcome all areas of prejudice it does provide a vessel from which teachers can begin a meaningful analysis of what the word prejudice stands for. Students can recognize previously unconscious prejudice thoughts, and potentially become an activist for people like Boo Radley who are so often swept under the rug of society left to be ignored.
Why is it that people want books placed out of reach of children and young adults? The proposed answer here is religion and fear. Mainly found under the context of Christianity, such followers want to shield all facets of life that go beyond those of moral beliefs. A childhood classic A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein is number 51 on the American Library Associations list of top 100 frequently challenged books from 1990-2000 (“American Library Association” 2007). One poem entitled How Not to Have to Dry the Dishes claims to teach children to be disobedient. Others have argued that among the other pages in the book children are introduced to ideas of suicide, violence, drug use, and even cannibalism (“Wikipedia” 2007). Is there really a fear that children will read a poem within the pages of A Light in the Attic and unconsciously become a drug addict? Instead parents and teacher alike should take the opportunity to use Shel’s imaginative drawings and silly limericks as a pleasing introduction to the art of poetry and stop the What If game. With appropriate guidance, any topic introduced through literature can be discussed as a learning moment.
Other frequently challenged children’s books include the works of Roald Dahl a classic children’s author who promotes creativity, laughter, and imaginative thinking in his novels. James and the Giant Peach has also been challenged by people for moral reasons. Parents claim that the green worms given to James promote early drug use and of course magic which is why the popular Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling have received so much attention from church members (Howard 2006). The book was also banned from the schools in Sanford County Virginia because it encourages children to be disobedient and disrespectful to adults (Howard 2006). One must wonder if the parents who initially filed the complaint to the school district in Sanford County ever read the story to completion. Instead of focusing on the disobedience, perhaps a conversation could be struck up in regards to the maltreatment of James by his aunts. By ridding the school shelves of Dahl’s classic children’s novel the opportunity to speak with children about issues such as grief, friendship, and perseverance may never arise.
While parents live in fear of children’s novels, the majority of books banned within classrooms are at the high school level. Here, political-correctness plays a roll in the banning of literature. Take the previous example of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This book as well as its counterpart, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, have both been the topic of controversy in schools due the use of racial slurs. Quite simply the word nigger is not a well tolerated word in today’s society. That word alone has frightened parents into neglecting their children the right to read a classic novel laced with important themes like friendship, freedom, and humanity. These novels are also a catalyst into a discussion of black history in the United States, for at the time both novels were written, nigger did not have the negative connotations associated with it as it does today.
It seems as though Christian conservatives have taken their ideals too far. It is to the disadvantage of America’s youth that such people are impeding the education of today’s children. It is out of ignorance and fear that these conservative beliefs want to pull any literature containing strong language or a confrontational topic from the shelves. It is beyond ignorant to believe that by being exposed to racist thoughts in John Steinbeck’s novel of Mice and Men a reader will become racist. Or perhaps the newest controversy; if you are a fan of Harry Potter’s head master, Dumbledore you will decide to be gay. Topics such as racism, sexism, violence, suicide, and many other controversial topics will confront youth head-on in their everyday lives. It is the job of a teacher to present such topics for discussion in an environment where critical thinking can be fostered without fear of persecution by family or friends. Students need to be taught to defend an opinion and speak out for what he or she feels passionate about, and above all students need to be presented with opinions and ideas that are different from their own. By shielding such thoughts schools are producing narrow-minded citizens who will only perpetuate the cycle of ignorance and are endorsing a message that wisdom gained through literature is null and void. Perhaps Judy Blume, whose literary work Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret appears on the 100 Most Frequently Challenged Book List of 1990-2000, best states the negative impact on society’s youth in saying “[I]t's not just the books under fire now that worry me. It is the books that will never be written. The books that will never be read. And all due to the fear of censorship. As always, young readers will be the real losers” (“American Library Association” 2007).
As an educator it is my responsibility to foster a love for learning and for literature. It is my belief that these two foundations of education are one in the same. It is my responsibility to present imaginative, historically accurate, creative, and poignant literature of all genres to students that with promote thought, evoke questions, and potentially change a perspective or two. Such literature should be approached with an open mind. Teachers need to foster open, honest discussions and help students understand the values and beliefs of different cultures and of different times.
There is no doubt that I will at some point face a parent who is against a piece of literature I choose to make available to my students. Thus, it is my responsibility to pre-assess any literature I wish to use. According to the organization Parents Against Bad Books in Schools (PABBIS) the justification they seek from teachers includes the educational goals and objectives achieved by a particular book. PABBIS also questions the relevancy to the state standards and requires that teachers justify why a text in question is necessary. While I recognize it may be a lot of extra work on the part of a teacher, the beneficial side to reading quality literature far surpasses the documentation needed to ward off a potentially fearful parent.
I must also recognize and respect a parent’s right to wish his or her child not to participate in any reading. While I may not agree I will present all evidence to affirm my opinions but in the end I will never force a student to read something that may be offensive to him or her, especially at the elementary level. This age is fragile and it is the job of a teacher to identify special circumstances among individual students. While I do believe Harry Potter is a well-written series worthy of reading, I do recognize that there are children who are easily scared or swayed into believing the unnatural. Therefore I would never suggest that such a child read J.K Rowling’s novels.
A second action I will take as a teacher is to celebrate Banned Books Week. Simple acts of displaying books around the room, putting up a poster, diving into a discussion with students, or even holding an informative parental meeting on some challenged books are just a few ways a classroom teacher can become involved. Being an activist for banned literature does come with backlash from parents and even public figures such as the Christian ministry called Focus on the Family, who sees Banned Book Week as an assault against those who “dare to speak out about questionable materials for children” (Simon, 1995). Teachers need to be knowledgeable about what they stand for and willing to support the right to read and in turn the right to be well educated.
Why is it that people want books placed out of reach of children and young adults? The proposed answer here is religion and fear. Mainly found under the context of Christianity, such followers want to shield all facets of life that go beyond those of moral beliefs. A childhood classic A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein is number 51 on the American Library Associations list of top 100 frequently challenged books from 1990-2000 (“American Library Association” 2007). One poem entitled How Not to Have to Dry the Dishes claims to teach children to be disobedient. Others have argued that among the other pages in the book children are introduced to ideas of suicide, violence, drug use, and even cannibalism (“Wikipedia” 2007). Is there really a fear that children will read a poem within the pages of A Light in the Attic and unconsciously become a drug addict? Instead parents and teacher alike should take the opportunity to use Shel’s imaginative drawings and silly limericks as a pleasing introduction to the art of poetry and stop the What If game. With appropriate guidance, any topic introduced through literature can be discussed as a learning moment.
Other frequently challenged children’s books include the works of Roald Dahl a classic children’s author who promotes creativity, laughter, and imaginative thinking in his novels. James and the Giant Peach has also been challenged by people for moral reasons. Parents claim that the green worms given to James promote early drug use and of course magic which is why the popular Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling have received so much attention from church members (Howard 2006). The book was also banned from the schools in Sanford County Virginia because it encourages children to be disobedient and disrespectful to adults (Howard 2006). One must wonder if the parents who initially filed the complaint to the school district in Sanford County ever read the story to completion. Instead of focusing on the disobedience, perhaps a conversation could be struck up in regards to the maltreatment of James by his aunts. By ridding the school shelves of Dahl’s classic children’s novel the opportunity to speak with children about issues such as grief, friendship, and perseverance may never arise.
While parents live in fear of children’s novels, the majority of books banned within classrooms are at the high school level. Here, political-correctness plays a roll in the banning of literature. Take the previous example of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This book as well as its counterpart, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, have both been the topic of controversy in schools due the use of racial slurs. Quite simply the word nigger is not a well tolerated word in today’s society. That word alone has frightened parents into neglecting their children the right to read a classic novel laced with important themes like friendship, freedom, and humanity. These novels are also a catalyst into a discussion of black history in the United States, for at the time both novels were written, nigger did not have the negative connotations associated with it as it does today.
It seems as though Christian conservatives have taken their ideals too far. It is to the disadvantage of America’s youth that such people are impeding the education of today’s children. It is out of ignorance and fear that these conservative beliefs want to pull any literature containing strong language or a confrontational topic from the shelves. It is beyond ignorant to believe that by being exposed to racist thoughts in John Steinbeck’s novel of Mice and Men a reader will become racist. Or perhaps the newest controversy; if you are a fan of Harry Potter’s head master, Dumbledore you will decide to be gay. Topics such as racism, sexism, violence, suicide, and many other controversial topics will confront youth head-on in their everyday lives. It is the job of a teacher to present such topics for discussion in an environment where critical thinking can be fostered without fear of persecution by family or friends. Students need to be taught to defend an opinion and speak out for what he or she feels passionate about, and above all students need to be presented with opinions and ideas that are different from their own. By shielding such thoughts schools are producing narrow-minded citizens who will only perpetuate the cycle of ignorance and are endorsing a message that wisdom gained through literature is null and void. Perhaps Judy Blume, whose literary work Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret appears on the 100 Most Frequently Challenged Book List of 1990-2000, best states the negative impact on society’s youth in saying “[I]t's not just the books under fire now that worry me. It is the books that will never be written. The books that will never be read. And all due to the fear of censorship. As always, young readers will be the real losers” (“American Library Association” 2007).
As an educator it is my responsibility to foster a love for learning and for literature. It is my belief that these two foundations of education are one in the same. It is my responsibility to present imaginative, historically accurate, creative, and poignant literature of all genres to students that with promote thought, evoke questions, and potentially change a perspective or two. Such literature should be approached with an open mind. Teachers need to foster open, honest discussions and help students understand the values and beliefs of different cultures and of different times.
There is no doubt that I will at some point face a parent who is against a piece of literature I choose to make available to my students. Thus, it is my responsibility to pre-assess any literature I wish to use. According to the organization Parents Against Bad Books in Schools (PABBIS) the justification they seek from teachers includes the educational goals and objectives achieved by a particular book. PABBIS also questions the relevancy to the state standards and requires that teachers justify why a text in question is necessary. While I recognize it may be a lot of extra work on the part of a teacher, the beneficial side to reading quality literature far surpasses the documentation needed to ward off a potentially fearful parent.
I must also recognize and respect a parent’s right to wish his or her child not to participate in any reading. While I may not agree I will present all evidence to affirm my opinions but in the end I will never force a student to read something that may be offensive to him or her, especially at the elementary level. This age is fragile and it is the job of a teacher to identify special circumstances among individual students. While I do believe Harry Potter is a well-written series worthy of reading, I do recognize that there are children who are easily scared or swayed into believing the unnatural. Therefore I would never suggest that such a child read J.K Rowling’s novels.
A second action I will take as a teacher is to celebrate Banned Books Week. Simple acts of displaying books around the room, putting up a poster, diving into a discussion with students, or even holding an informative parental meeting on some challenged books are just a few ways a classroom teacher can become involved. Being an activist for banned literature does come with backlash from parents and even public figures such as the Christian ministry called Focus on the Family, who sees Banned Book Week as an assault against those who “dare to speak out about questionable materials for children” (Simon, 1995). Teachers need to be knowledgeable about what they stand for and willing to support the right to read and in turn the right to be well educated.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Banned Literature
I need your help. I am thinking of doing a project for one of my classes on the banning of literature in schools. If you could copy and paste these questions into a comment form (and everyone should be able to comment even if you''re not a member) I will owe you big time.
What was a favorite or memorable book you read in school during grades 4-12?
Do you recall any literature that negetively affected your behavior, thoughts, or opinions of other people? (racism, suicide, sexism, etc.)
Was there ever an incedent in which your parents or another student's parents did not wish for a student to read an assigned book? If so do you remember why?
Do you think there are books that should be banned from the educational system? Why or why not?
What is the answer to the debate of what is or is not appropriate for school literature?
Of the following books, please identify with an X the books you read in school.
1984 - George Orwell
A Light in the Attic- Shel Silverstein
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885) - Mark Twain
Adventures of Tom Sawyer - Mark Twain
Age of Reason - Thomas Paine
Andersonville (1955) - MacKinlay Kantor
Animal Farm - George Orwell
Arabian Nights
As I Lay Dying (1932) - William Faulkner
Bell Jar-Sylvia Plath
Beloved - Toni Morrison
Black Beauty - Anna Sewell
Bless Me, Ultima - Rudolfo A. Anaya
Bluest Eye - Toni Morrison
Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
Call of the Wild - Jack London
Can Such Things Be? - Ambrose Bierce
Candide - Voltaire
Canterbury Tales - Geoffrey Chaucer
Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
Catcher in the Rye (1951) - J. D. Salinger
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
Civil Disobedience - Henry David Thoreau
Color Purple - Alice Walker
Confessions - Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Death in Venice - Thomas Mann
Decameron - Boccaccio
Dubliners - James Joyce
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Fanny Hill - John Cleland
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Gone With the Wind - Margaret Mitchell
Grapes of Wrath (1939) - John Steinbeck
Hamlet - William Shakespeare
Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
Harry Potter- J.K. Rowling
House of Spirits - Isabel Allende
Howl - Allen Ginsberg
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou
James and the Giant Peach
Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
King Lear - William Shakespeare
Lady Chatterley's Lover - D.H. Lawrence
Leaves of Grass - Walt Whitman
Lolita (1955) - Vladimir Nabokov
Lord of the Flies - William Golding
Lysistrata - Aristophanes
Macbeth - William Shakespeare
Merchant of Venice - William Shakespeare
Moll Flanders - Daniel Defoe
Monk - Matthew Lewis
Native Son - Richard Wright
Nigger of the Narcissus - Joseph Conrad
Nineteen Eighty-Four - George Orwell
Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
Origin of the Species - Charles Darwin
Portnoy's Complaint (1969) - Philip Roth
Rights of Man - Thomas Paine
Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie
Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne
Separate Peace - John Knowles
Silas Marner - George Eliot
Song of Solomon - Toni Morrison
Sons & Lovers - D.H. Lawrence
The Bridge to Terrabithia
The Diary of Anne Frank
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Tropic of Capricorn - Henry Miller
Twelfth Night - William Shakespeare
Ulysses - James Joyce
Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe
Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle
What year did you graduate from highschool?
Thanks everyone!!! You're peachy!
What was a favorite or memorable book you read in school during grades 4-12?
Do you recall any literature that negetively affected your behavior, thoughts, or opinions of other people? (racism, suicide, sexism, etc.)
Was there ever an incedent in which your parents or another student's parents did not wish for a student to read an assigned book? If so do you remember why?
Do you think there are books that should be banned from the educational system? Why or why not?
What is the answer to the debate of what is or is not appropriate for school literature?
Of the following books, please identify with an X the books you read in school.
1984 - George Orwell
A Light in the Attic- Shel Silverstein
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885) - Mark Twain
Adventures of Tom Sawyer - Mark Twain
Age of Reason - Thomas Paine
Andersonville (1955) - MacKinlay Kantor
Animal Farm - George Orwell
Arabian Nights
As I Lay Dying (1932) - William Faulkner
Bell Jar-Sylvia Plath
Beloved - Toni Morrison
Black Beauty - Anna Sewell
Bless Me, Ultima - Rudolfo A. Anaya
Bluest Eye - Toni Morrison
Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
Call of the Wild - Jack London
Can Such Things Be? - Ambrose Bierce
Candide - Voltaire
Canterbury Tales - Geoffrey Chaucer
Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
Catcher in the Rye (1951) - J. D. Salinger
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
Civil Disobedience - Henry David Thoreau
Color Purple - Alice Walker
Confessions - Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Death in Venice - Thomas Mann
Decameron - Boccaccio
Dubliners - James Joyce
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Fanny Hill - John Cleland
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Gone With the Wind - Margaret Mitchell
Grapes of Wrath (1939) - John Steinbeck
Hamlet - William Shakespeare
Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
Harry Potter- J.K. Rowling
House of Spirits - Isabel Allende
Howl - Allen Ginsberg
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou
James and the Giant Peach
Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
King Lear - William Shakespeare
Lady Chatterley's Lover - D.H. Lawrence
Leaves of Grass - Walt Whitman
Lolita (1955) - Vladimir Nabokov
Lord of the Flies - William Golding
Lysistrata - Aristophanes
Macbeth - William Shakespeare
Merchant of Venice - William Shakespeare
Moll Flanders - Daniel Defoe
Monk - Matthew Lewis
Native Son - Richard Wright
Nigger of the Narcissus - Joseph Conrad
Nineteen Eighty-Four - George Orwell
Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
Origin of the Species - Charles Darwin
Portnoy's Complaint (1969) - Philip Roth
Rights of Man - Thomas Paine
Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie
Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne
Separate Peace - John Knowles
Silas Marner - George Eliot
Song of Solomon - Toni Morrison
Sons & Lovers - D.H. Lawrence
The Bridge to Terrabithia
The Diary of Anne Frank
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
Tropic of Capricorn - Henry Miller
Twelfth Night - William Shakespeare
Ulysses - James Joyce
Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe
Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle
What year did you graduate from highschool?
Thanks everyone!!! You're peachy!
Sunday, October 21, 2007
To Sieve or Not to Sieve?
Upon reading the article The Democratic Sieve in Teacher Education: Confronting Heterosexism for a graduate class on the social foundations of education, I came home rather fired-up. It seems my fellow graduate students and I differ on our interpretation of the article.
The article by John Petrovic discusses the idea that an educational college institution should have the right to sort possible future teachers into two categories: those who should teach and those who should not. Petrovic's main example discussed homosexuality among the student population.
Picture this, you are a undergraduate student in your freshman year of an educational program. You are assigned to write your response to a student who confidentially confides in you that he/she might be gay.Do you:A) Tell the student that he/she must ask God for forgiveness from their sin.B) Tell them you can't help them.C) Let them know that you are there to listen to them whenever he/she may need to talk.
If you chose A or B you may be "red flagged" and possibly asked not to pursue the teaching profession at that college.
Upon listening to side conversations from some of the students in my grad class tonight I quickly realized that my take on the article was in the minority. Most people were angered by the even thought of someone possibly being able to tell them that they cannot study to become a teacher based on what they believe. I argue, that it is not what you believe, but whether or not you are supportive of the beliefs and feelings of your students.
It is fine to say that I believe it is morally wrong to be a homosexual. It is equally fine to believe that homosexuallity is a person's right as an American citizen. But as a teacher, it is not okay to ever push those beliefs or even discuss them openly with your students.
That said, imagine that you are a teacher. We will say for the convenience of argument that a student in your class is struggling with homosexuality (if you think outside of the box it could be any student, at any age, with any problem be it homosexuality, sexual abuse, physical abuse, an eating disorder, suicidal thoughts, etc..). The student feels he has no where to turn to for advice or help. His friends would abandon him, his parents would shun him, and he certainly doesn't know the school counselors well enough to confide in with information. Would you want that student to look at you thinking "She would just judge me too", or would you want him to think "She may be understanding of what I have to say"?
Teachers do not only present information to students in order for them to pass a test. They are role models, they are parents, they are nurses, they are mediators, and refferees. Teachers should create an environment of support and understanding where students are free to think, to ask questions, and to come to their own conclusions. A classroom should be a non-threatening environment to all students, including blacks, homosexuals, muslims, and any other minority that is not a WASP, and yes, even WASPs should feel welcomed. If a student turns away from your doorway when seeking out help for a serious issue, then you as the teacher did something wrong.
Now, does not being able to be a supportive, non-judgmental adult make you unfit to become a teacher? I think so. No college should ever breed a future educator that would breathe the words "if you are going to be openly gay, you are going to have to expect this kind of treatment" (Petrovic) to a homosexual student who continually gets harassed both verbally and physically because of his sexuality.
Teachers who are narrow-minded and ignorant to diversity yield students who are equally ignorant and close-minded. Teachers who are not up for the task of molding all students into a free-thinkers, or who are ademently against provideing unbiased guidence for troubled youth are in the wrong profession and should be told so before they spend 90,000 and six years of their life on an education, or worse; push a student to suicide because that student felt that he/she had no one to turn to.
The article by John Petrovic discusses the idea that an educational college institution should have the right to sort possible future teachers into two categories: those who should teach and those who should not. Petrovic's main example discussed homosexuality among the student population.
Picture this, you are a undergraduate student in your freshman year of an educational program. You are assigned to write your response to a student who confidentially confides in you that he/she might be gay.Do you:A) Tell the student that he/she must ask God for forgiveness from their sin.B) Tell them you can't help them.C) Let them know that you are there to listen to them whenever he/she may need to talk.
If you chose A or B you may be "red flagged" and possibly asked not to pursue the teaching profession at that college.
Upon listening to side conversations from some of the students in my grad class tonight I quickly realized that my take on the article was in the minority. Most people were angered by the even thought of someone possibly being able to tell them that they cannot study to become a teacher based on what they believe. I argue, that it is not what you believe, but whether or not you are supportive of the beliefs and feelings of your students.
It is fine to say that I believe it is morally wrong to be a homosexual. It is equally fine to believe that homosexuallity is a person's right as an American citizen. But as a teacher, it is not okay to ever push those beliefs or even discuss them openly with your students.
That said, imagine that you are a teacher. We will say for the convenience of argument that a student in your class is struggling with homosexuality (if you think outside of the box it could be any student, at any age, with any problem be it homosexuality, sexual abuse, physical abuse, an eating disorder, suicidal thoughts, etc..). The student feels he has no where to turn to for advice or help. His friends would abandon him, his parents would shun him, and he certainly doesn't know the school counselors well enough to confide in with information. Would you want that student to look at you thinking "She would just judge me too", or would you want him to think "She may be understanding of what I have to say"?
Teachers do not only present information to students in order for them to pass a test. They are role models, they are parents, they are nurses, they are mediators, and refferees. Teachers should create an environment of support and understanding where students are free to think, to ask questions, and to come to their own conclusions. A classroom should be a non-threatening environment to all students, including blacks, homosexuals, muslims, and any other minority that is not a WASP, and yes, even WASPs should feel welcomed. If a student turns away from your doorway when seeking out help for a serious issue, then you as the teacher did something wrong.
Now, does not being able to be a supportive, non-judgmental adult make you unfit to become a teacher? I think so. No college should ever breed a future educator that would breathe the words "if you are going to be openly gay, you are going to have to expect this kind of treatment" (Petrovic) to a homosexual student who continually gets harassed both verbally and physically because of his sexuality.
Teachers who are narrow-minded and ignorant to diversity yield students who are equally ignorant and close-minded. Teachers who are not up for the task of molding all students into a free-thinkers, or who are ademently against provideing unbiased guidence for troubled youth are in the wrong profession and should be told so before they spend 90,000 and six years of their life on an education, or worse; push a student to suicide because that student felt that he/she had no one to turn to.
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