Tracking and Untracking in the Classroom

In our Monday’s class my group presented on the topic about tracking, standardized texting, NCLB, and how we can create a classroom where we are not just teaching to a test instead we are allowing students to explore the real meaning of what is important in life and what they will need to know in their futures. As teachers we have students for the majority of the day and we need to be teaching them about the community and world they live in. We need to give students the opportunities for discovery and surprise instead of teaching to a test, students need the opportunity to learn material that matters instead of just memorizing material to pass a test. How do we create this curriculum where we are not just teaching to a test? Why has school become just about passing a test instead of learning and understanding material? It is disappointing how children are our future and instead of allowing these students to thrive in their education we force them to learn material in order to pass a test so it will look good on the school.

 I find the whole idea about test taking in schools to be ridiculous because as a society we have lost the real meaning of that school should mean to our students. School should be a community of learning where students feel like their opinions, thoughts, culture, language and so much more are valued. As educators how can we get back to valuing these in the schools? I know that most decisions about schools are made from the government level but how can teachers feel empowered to change what is going on in schools if they don’t feel supported from their state governments? Educators, administrators, and teachers should be the ones making decisions that affect students in the classroom because they are the ones seeing what is going on day to day with students. Earlier in the quarter we talked with our small groups about teaching students by using real life examples and allowing students to be able to learn subjects by integrating them in ways that makes it fun and exciting for students to learn.

Reflection on my own Experience with Poverty

After our class discussion on poverty in the classroom, it started to stir up many memories I have had growing up when it came to poverty in my own life. Growing up my family moved all over the place because rent would increase but my dad's income would not. I was born in Idaho and lived in a few place in Pullman while my dad was finishing school. After he finished school we moved in with my grandparents because my dad was looking for work. After he found a job we moved to Everett to an apartment, and lived in a couple of different apartments, then we moved to Marysville, then Bothell, then Bellevue and all the while my dad worked as much as he could to support our family. My mom also got a job which put a lot of responsibility on me to take care of my brother and sister. Those years were extremely difficult on my family because we lived pay check to pay check trying to make ends meet each month. I have seen the notices on the door for final shut off, or going without TV for a few months because the bill was too much. 

I can remember one time being at the grocery store in the checkout line waiting to pay for our groceries and getting to the end of the checkout line and my family not having enough money to pay for the groceries. I remember at the time I was embarrassed because people were staring and we were trying to pay with change and search for any extra money we had in our wallets. In the end we had to put things back, it was a very hard day for my family because we finally realized that we need to do something differently with our money and budget better. Now that I look back, I do not remember one person willing to help us in that grocery line and I know now that if I ever see that type of situation going on I am the first to help someone. Why don’t people who are more privileged then others lend a helping hand? 

As an educator, I know that I will be faced with issues like these in the classroom and because of my own experience with living pay check to pay check and not having any extra money I hope that I can relate and help my own students. 

Poverty in the Classroom

I have really enjoyed the start of my teaching career and I am learning so much from my professors, my readings, and most of all my other cohort members. This program has created such an amazing learning environment to learn from all different sources, and I find myself truly blessed to be a part of this experience. Reading this week’s article on poverty really hit home with me, because even though I have been raised more under the lines of working middle class, I have always been stereotyped for being a rich white girl from Bellevue. This is beyond the truth because if people knew where I came from they would know that I am far from being that stereotypical middle class white person. Looking back I can remember moving a lot I think, I have lived in ten different houses and went to three or four different elementary schools where I was always seen as the new girl in school. It was very hard starting at new schools and not having money like a lot of my classmates. My family has struggled over the years and I am very lucky that I have been able to go to school and that I am graduating in June.

 I am very proud of what I have accomplished and I am looking forward to being a positive role model for my own students. One interest that I have in working in the classroom is that I want to work in a community where diversity is the main goal in the school. I also would love to work in a title 1 school district where I can work with low income students as well as first generational students going to school. I am also interested in working in building schools for underprivileged children across the US and possibly overseas. I would like to help eliminate the misconceptions and stereotypes of the roles in the school that low income students take on, I also would like to research more on poverty and see what other authors have to say about the poverty rates in the U.S.  How can we as teachers educate our students about poverty without isolating or making some students uncomfortable?

Diversity and Bilingual Education

            When I was sixteen, I started working in a restaurant as a hostess and I realized there were not very many English speaking employees. One of my coworkers stood out to me the most when I saw him trying to spell out certain words on our menu. I showed him how to spell out the words and how to pronounce it. He seemed extremely anxious to learn English and asked if I would help him the next day with understanding the English language. Over the next couple of weeks we practiced speaking English, writing in English and worked on pronunciation. I asked an ESL teacher from my high school for information and tools to further help my coworker learn English and we continued to read books in English as well as write short stories. It was amazing to be able to see the growth in my coworker and how much his English improved. It was such an eye opening and fulfilling experience teaching my coworker English.

This was one of the reasons why I wanted to become a teacher. When people ask me why I want to go into teaching I say because I want to make a difference in a child's life. I really enjoy working with ELL, and ESL students because I believe that language and bilingual education are extremely important goals that should be seen in the school. I love the whole idea of what language means to a person and specifically how ones culture plays a role in their everyday lives. I really love the idea that children deserve to be taught in their own language. Times are changing and English is not always going to be the prominent language spoken in the classroom in order to make sure everyone can succeed in the classroom we must embrace multiculturalism and allow students to share their heritage and their language in order for them to learn.

How do we bring the culture into the classroom? How do we allow the differences to be ok in the classroom? We need to be able to connect students to school to their families and to their own culture but as always the big question is HOW?

Not Feeling the Love in School

When I was younger, my family moved around a lot. I went to a few different elementary schools between kindergarten and 4th grade until finally we settled down in Bellevue when I was in 5th grade and we finally stayed in one place where I could make friends and continue with those friendships through middle school and high school. One thing that I realize looking back on my education is that I do not remember most of my teachers, that there are many teachers that did not play a significant role in my education because I don't even remember what their names are or what i really learned in their class. Yes, most of teachers were there to teach me the basics and I know that I wouldn't be where I am today education wise without some of my teachers but taking these education classes have reminded me that there are not that many teachers that I can remember growing up. But really, who remembers their first grade teachers? Do you remember teachers based on what happened in the classroom? Or do you remember teachers based on what they taught? Do you remember the teacher based on a good or bad experience? I think in reality it is all of the above, that most teachers are remembered by some kind of experience that a student has in the classroom.

One teacher that is extremely memorable in my eyes from middle school was Mrs. Bieler, she was my 6th grade language arts and social studies teacher. I don't know what it was about her class but I loved every minute of her class, I think it was her humor and her different methods she used for her classroom management. I also really developed a great teacher and student relationship with Mrs. Bieler and I started to babysit her children for her over the next few years of middle school. Since 6th grade I have kept my relationship with Mrs. Bieler and continue to stop in and check in with her a few times a year. I want to be that kind of teacher, the teacher that students remember years down the road and continue to come in and update me on their lives. I am excited to start this journey as an educator and I can't wait to get into my own classroom and start to make a difference in my student's lives.