1. Write one thing you learned from these
activities and your reading so far that you think will benefit your future
teaching. Please address something from both the Park book and the readings on development.
One thing
that I believe will benefit me from the park book is to think carefully before speaking
and avoiding questionable situations. For example, I enjoy hugs from the
elementary students, but getting hugs from a middle school student could be misconstrued.
My words can be taken out of context and
used for hurtful purposes. Also my reputation as a teacher is on the line and I
should remember always that I am a professional and not a friend to my
students.
I also
enjoyed reading the book on development as it addresses comments and concerns
usually directed at our changing middle school students. At times this book is humorous
as I can relate to some of the scenarios. I particularly liked the passage on “Defiance
or Hormones”. I found a better way to
address students who are defiant; it’s called a ‘pass’. A power struggle is
never a good way to handle a discrepancy in the classroom. Again, it comes back to remembering you are
the teacher and that you have the control in the classroom.
2. Write one question you have about this week’s
content or the course in general.
I am increasingly surprised at the knowledge
and experience middle school students have with drugs and alcohol. There are so many programs and community members
and even peers telling these students that drugs and alcohol kill, so why are
our students engaging in such a reckless activity? Drugs don’t just affect a
select few; it affects children across class boundaries. Why are our intelligent
students making such irresponsible decisions?
3. Write one thing you are interested in learning
about working with middle school students.
One thing I am interested in
learning about working with middle school students is learning to communicate
more effectively with English as a Second Language (ESL) students. I think it is important to reach all students
and that is difficult if there is a break in the line of communication.
Power struggles are always a losing battle. They are to be avoided as much as possible.
ReplyDeleteMiddle school students often have extensive knowledge of drugs and alcohol and likely have easy access to both. They make poor choices for a variety of reasons. One is that their brain is not fully developed. The decision making part of the brain usually continues to develop into the mid 20s.
While people often think we do not have a significant ESL/ELL population in MS, the population is growing and varied. Communicating with the students is very dependent on the students' ability to read in their first language. If they can - technology can help a lot if there is a significant language barrier. Using tools like Google translate etc. can help get beyond some initial struggles. Though you also want to help the children learn English as quickly as possible.