is race real??? This was a very interesting article as well as a discussion for the class. I think that I have come to know this kind of thing as I was growing up. When I was in school we would do projects on our heritage and the background of our family. Because of my red hair and lighter complexion it was assumed by many that I was from an Irish background and so was my family. However, this was far from the truth. I do have a little bit of Irish in me, but not a lot. My mothers side of the family is all from Germany and we are not sure about my dads due to some different circumstances. However, many people are very shocked to find this out just because of how I look. Another thing that throws a wrinkle into it is the fact that no one, and I mean no one in my family has the same hair color as I do and there is no trace at all of it in any of them. Both of my parents have dark hair and so do my grandparents that we know as well as my younger brother. So, I also have a lighter skin tone than they do which makes me not look like them. Many many times I have gotten to hear about how I look nothing like my parents and how they all want to know where I got my hair color from and why I am so different. But the answer is that we have no idea and so I feel as though, like others in the class I have been exposed to it through my own situations becuase I am not like the rest of my family members. Coming from my perspective I know that race is very much out there no matter what age you are and who you are. I think that this article and the discussion were very relevant to my life and what I have been through.

a new group...As I went to this class today I was assuming that I was going to see the class in which my case study child is in and the group who has seemed to open up to me more. However, I was greeted by many students who I had never seen before and who were just as curious about me. I also found out that my focal student had switched classes, luckily to one that I do get to work with, and so I would not be seeing him for another two weeks on top of the two that I had already missed him because of what days I was there. This was kinda upsetting to not get to work with him more but I know this gives me a chance to talk to more children. I did feel as though the kids in this particular class were starting to interact with me more than they originally did which makes me feel good that they are opening up and more willing to talk to me and see me as a teacher who can help them. I also was thinking about the whole idea of having kids switch classes and their schedules around now in the middle of the semester. I dont know how well I would have done if I was in the situation of changing especially since it had gotten to the point of the students getting to know each other better and being more used to the other kids and making friends and feeling comfortable. But, now they go and change this all up and put kids in a different room with others and I am wondering how well the kids will do and see how well the kids are able to adjust to this new schedules. I am very interested to talk with my focal student to see how he feels abotu the switch since he is one of the people who is directed affected by this change of pace. I know for me when I was their age, and being a very very shy person, I would have struggled very much to make the adjustments to the point of feeling comfortable enough to share my thoughts and participate in the class. I was one of those students who very rarely shared opinions and it was very seldom that I would raise my hand and share an answer on my own. Most of my particpation came from when the teacher would call on me to make me answer. I was also very intimidated when I would have to talk in front of the class for something like a presentation, especially if I was not in a group but by myself. So, knowing my own thoughts and feelings, I am wondering if this idea of changing the kids from class to class and having them have a different schedule just randomly starting on some week is really good for them or if it causes more problems and will in the end hurt the students in the aspect of grades and their feelings about going to school. I am looking forward to talking to some of the kids who were moved. I could tell just by watching some of the children who were new to the class that they were lost and felt left out and not as though they belonged with the class because it was their first day in a new room and with new kids who they werent used to. I really dont think for now it is a good idea but maybe as time goes on I will see that it isnt so bad after all.

The American Project...I thought that this article was very interesting and made some really good points that could really make you think. One statement that was made when it said that just the idea of speaking English does not make a person American. But to reduce the culture of some one makes them lose the depth of their culture and really is not good for them to do. It also talks about how the parents of these immigrant children are aware of the fact that the kids are going to need to have the skills of conpetencies, social behaviors, and know about the world around them if they are interested in becoming a success person and to really thrive in their situation. I thought that it was really interesting to think that the parents are going into this whole thing about having to learn things in order to be an active member of the society and to really thrive in their lives. This means that the parents are fully aware of what the child is going to be gaining as well as sacrificing for this new place where they are going to be living. I also thought that it was interesting that the article flat out says that if they are going to take on some of the American roles and such that they are going to lose a part of themselves and lose some of the culture which is so important to them and their family. This is one of the first times when we have read something that says this is not a good thing to take away from them what they are used to and what they are used to and trying to make them into something that they truly are not. I am glad to hear that someone else is thinking along the same lines as I am and know the consequences that may come from changing them and what these children are used to. The next part of this article which makes another point that is related is when it talks about how those immigrants who come into direct contact with the middle class and mainstream culture are going to have to have some trade offs to be a part of that and be accepted into this group. I think we have talked about this in class many times about how a person is going to have to give up some of themselves to be a part of the new culture. What this reminds me of is actually girls and even boys who are in the junior high and high school age group. This is because it is at that age when they are trying to make friends and have people of various groups like them and accept them. I think that many kids at this age start to act like someone who they truly arent because they want to be accepted by those who are popular and around them. I know from my own experience, that everyone wants to be liked and have friends so at times they will act differently or be some one who they arent because of the fear of not being liked. I think that I even myself went through this for some period of time and then once I got to my senior year especially realized that if people arent going to like you for who you really are then they really arent your friend or someone who you want to spend your time with. I think that this is the same idea for the immigrants. They should not have to change themselves or what they think or believe for the culture that they are in. I think that if people who let them be themselves and accept that it would be easier for those who are trying to be a part of the world. I think everyone has their own thoughts and feelings and that is why they are who they are and that is what makes people themselves and individuals. However, if we take that away from them then we are going to a bunch of people who are like each other and you arent going to have the individuals and special things that make everyone themselves which I think will be very sad and not good for the world around us.

what makes this hard...So up to now in my observing, everything has been pretty easy, and just more fun than anything else. Well, this last trip to the school was not the easiest and was a little bit more trying on my patience. I was asked to take two students into the hallway to have them write an essay to make up what they had missed on Monday. This was not a big deal because I was able to do the same thing the other day and help some other children, so I was familiar with the topic and everything that was involved with the enviorment. Well, the two young men who I was going to be working with would not be considered the best students and I was some what warned ahead of time that it would not be the easiest job I have had so far. One of the boys surprised me and was able to complete the assignment and worked very hard the entire time that we were out of the classroom and then since we had some extra time, I worked with him to organize his binder more because it is a disaster area. However, the other young man who I was working with was not as easy to convince to work on the paper. From the topic of the paper it should not have been that are because it was on a time when you were not honest or someone was not honest with you. It took a good 15 mintues to convince him that he was going to do the assignment and this was the chosen topic. Then, we worked together to think of the theme of the paper which ended up being the Bears because his life seems to revolve around the team and how they are doing. So, then, we came up with a story and we worked on what it was going to be about. It was a while later that I was able to get him to write some words on the paper which was eventually what was his first paragraph. Well, after that the class was allowed to come out for a short break and he became even more disruptive and eventually came to the point where he needed to go back into the room to finish the assignment. This was hard on me and was very frustrating because no matter how hard I tried, or how much I told him, he was not going to do this paper without going down without a fight. I know that teaching is not going to always be fun and easy, but this really made me realize that I dont know how well i would do if I was put into these kinds of situations everyday and had to deal with a class full of children like this all the time. I guess this was not my favorite time of observing, however, it really opened my eyes to some things that happen in the classroom and that its not always going to be fun. Which means to enjoy the good points and be very thankful for those children who make it fun and those times where you are glad you are in the room and not some where else.

Lit Circle #4...Well I thought that this group did a great job to start out with. I also think that almost everything that was brought up through the book and the group were things that were discussed in Sleeter and Grant or in previous blogs I have done. It was very easy to pay attention and enjoy because they did a lot of examples and questions. But not only did they give questions, but they were ones that we could realte to our lives and experiences which makes it easier to want to talk about and share things. I was thrilled with all of the examples because it made me feel as though I had read at least some of the book since we were given so many chances to hear from the book not just from the presenters. That is something that I wish I would have been able to do more in ours, but we needed to give some background and characters that it was hard. It makes me wish we could go back and do it again because I know there are things that I would change and make some differences to make it better. I loved getting to hear from others especially the examples relating to our class. I really think if we all start to share then we will get closer as a class where we will know each other more than just who sits where. One thing that really stuck out to me was thinking about culture pedagogies. I have talked about this and my examples in other blogs but I really do think this is important in breaking down some of the preconcieved ideas that kids have and that really need to be worked on. I also thought it was interesting with the ideas of how the two genders are treated in various ways and taught different things about some ideas. I feel as though this is done most of the time without thinking in some cases about having a guy move a heavier object or things but I also think that these are ideas that can be worked on and changed if the children see that girls can do things that boys can and vice versa. There are a lot of thoughts and actions that show that girls are supposed to be the more responsible, and be in charge of things, and be the "mother" example for everyone. This is not necessarily fair to the girls because, as pointed out in class, sometimes it seems that those are the people who are really getting punished the most because they are some what a head of others and most likely, they arent going to make many changes. I do from some experiences that I had in high school, that it is possible to break some of these stereotypes down but it does take some time and a LOT of convincing. The main example I have would be from my PE class and my ability to lift weights. I had worked very hard to become stronger and would do a lot of lifting out side of class and in the summer so that I would make some progress and be successful in my sports. However, it did take a long time to convince the teacher, and some of the male students that I should not be squating in a group with girls, but that I should have male lifting partners. From the previous experiences and thoughts of these males, they were not used to a girl being able to lift as much, and sometimes more than them. But luckily through a lot of trying and convincing, by the end of my senior year I was able to show them that girls really can do some things that guys can do and some preconcieved ideas are not always true. I keep these thoughts with me when thinking about girls being thought of in a different way and tell myself if I was able to do it once then I can do it again. But not only that, but I would be able to share my story with others so that they can try and break down whatever ideas are surrounding them. I think this is something that should be addressed in the room and that all students are the same...no matter the background, race, or gender.

the final chapter...one of the things that stuck out to me in chapter 7 was when it was talking about teaching the culturally different was geared towards the Latino culture and helping them to get through school, teaching them english, and also preparing them for a job in addition to trying to make sure they will be contributing members of society. This again was another thing that made me think of the book I had just recently read for my lit circle. Thinking about all Alejandro had to go through made me think that him being in a culture or surroundings that would have had this line of thinking would have really helped him and his school. Since the school was 98-99% Latino, this would have been one building that would sure be able to benefit from teaching the cultually different. However, because of the teachers who were at this school and with their philosophies, I really dont think it was going to happen with them because it is hard to change ones line of thinking especially when they have been around for a long period of time and are basing their thoughts off of past research. But, I do think that this would be a good solution to helping those Latino students who are falling behind so that they can be successful and be functioning members society which is something that I thought was important to talk about in my philosophy of edcuation. I feel that everyone should have the chance to be successful and make something with their lives, no matter what their background is or what kind of family they come from. I think this kind of program which is directed towards those who normally struggle and can help them to make something of themselves. I think that this book gave a lot of good thoughts and help for those who are working with and going to be teaching any kinds of students from any background. It showed how important those adults are who are in situations where they can make a difference in a persons life. I feel as though teaching is much more than just getting in front of a class and talking for a certain amount of time. I have been able to learn so much more about children and what to do and not to do that I can apply to my own situation.

coming to table with different things...As I was reading in chapter 6 I came across a paragraph that really stuck out to me in particular. On page 192 in the second paragraph, Sleeter and Grant talk about how it is important for teachers and those working with children that these kids are already a part of the struggle of oppression, even if they havent been exposed to the ideas of social theory. They say that people often will oppose the thoughts which they see to be unfair openly. Within the school setting it can take place in a variety of forms which can be girls wanting to be looked at as more than a sex symbol, students who are trying to join with a group to retaliate against those who usually are mistreating towards them, and also students who are living below the poverty line who feel as though there are low expectations of them from the middle class teachers who feel as though they are above them. I think that especially the last part of that sentence is the most interesting for me wanting to work with young kids. I have always felt as though that no one is better than anyone else and there is no reason that a person should act as though they are better than another human just because of some material things. Knowing that some children will think that the teacher acts as though they are better really makes you wonder and know that even though it may be hard to break those barriers, I feel as though it is necessary to try as hard as possible to show that you care about every child in the classroom no matter what background they come from or what kind of life they are living outside of the school. This is very important when trying to create a safe and comfortable relationship between the students and teacher. If the teacher treats the child as though they are just as important as them and treat them with value, I believe that the child will respond in a positive way and things overall will be better in the long run. This shows to me that children will come into the enviornment with their own thoughts about everything no matter if they have been exposed to the exact thoughts or not. When thinking about your classroom behavior, I think it is important to really think about how you are acting and treating all of those around you and show that everyone has an equal importance and no one is better than anyone else.

all together??...Chapter 5 of Sleeter brings up a very important point that we have discussed before and I know that I have blogges about it as well, but it is definatly worth talking about some more. I think that cultural pluralism is something that needs to be incorporated in every class, hall, school, in some way and as often as it can be. This does mean, that teachers and others bring more than one culture into the same class and mix them with the cultures of other children in the rooms. I think if I was trying to find a way to do something fun with the children in addition to exposing them to the various cultures, I would have every child do some "research" on their family and background and present what they find to the class. I also think that they could bring in something that represents their culture and what it means to them. This could be any where from a certain food, to a artifact, or anything that can help to describe what they feel their families culture is. I think that this would be a good way to start out the school year so from the very beginning children are used to having a variety of cultures around them. This would also help because they would know that not everyone is the same, but by presenting it in a positive way and having everyone participate lets them know that it is a good thing to be yourself and have your beliefs in addition to realizing its ok to be open to those who come from a different background than you. I know that I was not necessarily exposed to this idea because the schools that I went to were all primarily white especially at the younger levels. As was mentioned in a previous blog, the young age of the children is what will really help them to be accepting of the differences because what is taught and learned from the young years is what the later years will be based around. These years are the perfect time to teach them what you want, which just shows how important these elementary years are the children and what they are going to believe for the rest of their lives. I have been very impressed with the teacher who I am observing and what she is doing with the kids to allow them to be themselves. When they are writing their essays, she will give them a broad topic which allows them to talk about what they want and have experienced more than giving a very specific topic where they are forced to talk about one thing. This allows for them to express themselves in a positive way and also helps the teacher to learn about her students and what they are thinking and feeling about certain areas of their life. Another example that relates to this topic, was also something that I witnessed when I was observing once. One student, who has not been doing work when they are supposed to and just sitting around, had had a CD taken away at one time and the teacher kept forgetting to return it since she was not quite sure where it was. However, she recently found it and was going to give it back to the child. But, instead of just giving it back she used the chance to motivate the boy to do the same thing as the rest of the class. She let this young man sit at her desk and put the disc into the drive and listen to the CD while he was working, but the deal was if he got off track and stopped doing the assignment, then the music would come off. I was amazed at how hard the boy worked so that he could listen to the music of his choice. I thought it was so cool how she thought of this idea and used what seemed like a bad situation of getting a CD taken away became positive and helped the student to accomplish a lot of work. This helps the student to bring his likes into the classroom and allows others to learn about him and the culture that he usually lives around when not in the class.

A new idea....as I was reading chapter 4 from the Sleeter and Grant book, I came across a new concept that I had never heard of before. This chapter talks about an idea called single group studies and focuses on just one group of people who they think are in need of some help. I think that this could be an interesting concept depending on how it is approached and how much people use it. I do feel though, that if it is used the focus should be on muliple groups all at once if they need it, instead of just one when there are more that need some help. I feel if there is a situation where there is just one group that is struggling more than others, it would be a good chance to get those children more up to speed and to be similar to those who are in the other groups that are not having as many problems. I think this somewhat goes along with the no child left behind theory because it is focusing on those students who are not as far along, but is trying to catch them up to the most of the children and where they are. I think this is an important thought because I believe that everyone should have the same chance to get a good education and be successful no matter what race, gender, or anything else you are. The book mentions that one of the negative sides to this approach is that it leaves the regular curriculum to be unreformed. However, I dont know if this would necessarily be that bad of an idea. I personally believe that not having this set curriculum to follow and allowing for some bending of the ideas and letting it flow to what the children need and at the pace that they are going with. If some children need to move at a slower level, then I believe as a teacher it is ok to do that and maybe not get through every little thing that day but instead having a child understand better. To me if that happens, then it is really worth it more than going fast and having some who are lost getting even farther behind to the point that they may give up completely which would be very sad to see. I think that this thought has some good points to it and could be very effective and make some progress as long as things are done in the right way and gets support from many people.

cognitive development....so as I was trying to catch up on some of the reading for class tomorrow, I was reading chapter three and read the part about cognitive development and other psychological theories on why people have the thoughts they do and why they are thinking like this. Of course, being a psych minor, I was able to relate to this line of thinking and was very interested in what I was hearing. I think it is very true though to why people are almost conditioned to think in a certain way because of the way there are taught and think as they are growing up. When children are getting older, they start to think about people and try to fiugre out what makes them all different from them and their family. Well for a young white child who sees some one from the African American background will see some automatic differences just in their skin color. Well, they are going to remember this and know that they arent the same which is where the whole thing about having stereotypes and things come into play. Also, kids who have grown up in a certain neighborhood their entire lives are not going to know anything different than what they have been used to all the time. This would mean that if they would be to go over to someones house who is not like theirs they are going to be thinking about what is different and then will wonder why they arent the same. No matter what they think, they are going to start to think things about that person which may not necessarily be true but they dont know what else to do other than think about that. I think children learn so much about life and what to think and so from their parents because they are the role models for the children and they trust to look up to the parents for what to do. I think it is important for parents as well as teachers to realize this and know that it is up to them to try and take the first step to breaking down stereotypes and letting kids know it is ok for not everyone to be the same and come from the same place and have the exact same family. If parents and teachers would work on this and start to help the children in their lives see this, then when they get older they will do the same thing with their children which overall will help the world not to think the same as it has for so many years.

But she wont help me.... this was one of the most ironic things that could have happened today. I was observing the class and all of the sudden another student from one of the other classes comes in. It happens to be the student who I am doing my case study on and so I was very interested in talking to him because I hadnt in a while and also because I was curious to know what he had done to get himself sent to this class when he was supposed to be in math. The team has a system where if a child is not behaving or having problems in one class then they are sent to another teacher for a certain amount of time to cool off and then rejoin the original class. Well I come to find out that he was in math class and they were doing a lesson that he was unfamiliar with and was confused with what was going on and was unable to follow. He shared with the teacher that he was confused and lost and had honestly no idea what was going on and was looking for some extra help to learn what was going on. However, the teacher responded with this is how I am going to teach you guys because I have been doing it this ways for many many years and I am not going to change just because you dont understand. Well, according to this young man, they continued to talk about it until she got fed up and sent him to the english room for some time out and away from math. I thought this was really interesting especially after just getting done doing my lit circle and how we discussed how a certain teacher at this young childs school was unwilling to work with the students as indivduals and change her methods of teaching to accomodate for the changes in time over the years. It really made me think about how important it is to realize that not every style is going to work for everyone and there may come a time when a change here and there will be needed. I was in shock when he said this to me because all of the philosophies from my book are still very fresh in my head and I immediately thought about the teacher in the book and how much of an impact she made in the life of one student just by how she treated him one time. This made me feel very concerned for this student and the fact that he will never think of this teacher in the same way and will probably remember for a long time how she was not willing to work with him and try another way of trying to teach it. Now I do realize that this is coming from this young boys perspective and we dont have the other side from the teacher. However I found it interesting how I th0ught that teachers wouldnt act in the ways we found in the book, but it appears that it may be in areas that we are familiar with and not even realizing it. Its amazing how this child shared this with me and the first thing I thought of was my book and the story of the teacher and child from it. I guess class and things that are happening in your life really are more interlinked than one may think......

Lit Circle #3....So I dont know exactly how to reflect and talk about this presentation since it is my group and all...but here goes...I thought that things went pretty well except I know that we didnt allow enough time for discussion. There were so many things that we wanted to talk about and include that we needed more time than we thought...its very easy to see why the other group went as long as they did. I thought this was going to be a more difficult presentation but once we got up there I wasnt as nervous as I thought. And I promise, for those who havent gone, its not as hard as it seems. The part that I wanted to get to the most was the end with the quotes because we were going to try it in with field placement and make it more personal than just the general questions. I would recommend this book to any one who is going to be a teacher or work with an ESL program, or even with children or people from other cultures. It is important to know that we all must be accepting of what the kids are all going to be bringing to the classroom from their homes. I think the second quote that I talked about is the most important because it shows how vital it is to work with everyone as individually as possible because they all need to be worked with in their own way whenever it is available. Some people are going to go slower while others will be moving along faster. I know that there will not be a way to make it easy for everyone in everything that is done, but I think whenever it can be done it will really benefit for everyone. If the student feels as though they can be successful and make progress then it is more possible that in the future they will put forth the effort. When they struggle and know that it will be hard and they may not do well, they are then more likely to give up and not care. I think that teachers can make a big difference with the smallest acts. I am sorry that we didnt get to hear more from you guys in the presentation I would have loved to hear what everyone thought...but feel free to leave comments so I have some ideas of how things were both for me individually and as a group!

Lit Circle #2 (cont)...I thought that this part of the presentation was much more interesting than the first (no offense guys). Being a psych minor I loved getting to hear about that stuff which I knew and was able to take that stuff and relate it to what I have been learning in other classes. I thought that the quote at the end of the presentation was probably one of the best things because I talked about that in my philosophy and have talked about it before in blogs as well. I have learned through my interactions with kids that they just want a chance to be like us and so you should think about that in whatever you are doing or saying especially cause you never know who is watching you. I think if you give people the chance to open up to you it will be important and will benefit everyone. I know that I have learned a lot about my self through my junior high softball team that I would have never guessed just by listening to them and finding out what is important to them. I am very excited to do my culture presentation becuase I get to talk about them more. Another point that I thought was interesting was about the idea of what would happen if some funding was taken away from some schools to make it more equal. I honestly dont know what I would have done in school if it wasnt for the technology or other things that we were able to have. I cant imagine going through school without the things that I was able to have. My school was by no means as well off as a lot of those that other students in class went to, but it was fine to get us through and get the information across to them as was needed. I know that my school was not as wealthy nor were the students who went there, but that was ok for us to not be rich. I could also not imagine what would happen if they would take away some activities to put in test prep classes. I know coming from my background that I could not imagine my life without sports and playing them. I know that at my school sports were very important to almost everyone, even to those who were not participating, especially during football season since our team has been succeeding more in the future years. Coming from the athletic standpoint, I would be very mad if that all got taken away from me and then I had to go to some test thing. I would not have paid attention because that would have been my way of trying to rebel against the system. However, I have learned to be thankful for the chances that I got no matter what they were.

writing essays...Yesterday when I was observing, the class was looking at their papers that they have been writing over the course of the last few weeks and were doing some peer review. I was able to work with one child who did not have a partner and was amazed at how much my experiences have helped me to be able to help this young boy. As I was reading his paper and making changes on it, I was thinking to myself about how he and I are not going to be the same and we are going to be thinking along different lines just because of our backgrounds and personalities. The way he was dressed and the things he was writing about and carrying himself, I could tell that we were not goign to be alike, but by using some of the thoughts that I have come to think about more through this class I was able to help him without focusing on the fact that we are different people. As I was reading his paper, I was asking him about what was going through his mind and why he wrote about what he did. This was able to give me some insight to where he was coming from and why he thinks how he does. I thought back to the lessons from this class and how they have already changed my thoughts about people and how to approach situations that I may not normally be comfortable in. Another thing that happened yesterday was I was working with another student who was obviously quite the Bears fan. Everything he had on in addition to what his school supplies where had to do with his favorite team. So of course his paper was also about his passion. Luckily for me I was raised in a very sports oriented house where football was important so I was able to relate to him and the subject of his paper and help him in a way that some others may not have been able to. Both of these kids were able to teach me something. One taught me that even if you are a little different from each other you can still work and accomplish what you are trying to. The other taught me to try and find that common ground with the student that you are working wiht to show them that you are a person just like them and have similar things in common. I think that these are both very valuable to being a teacher or someone who is working with any kinds of students...we can always learn something!

Lit Circle #2...The information that we were learning about in the discussion from class today I thought was both interesting and very sad. It is hard for me to believe that there are schools that are in such bad conditions. I thought it was interesting hearing about the towns and how in certain parts there is little to no white people, when that is usually not what is seen in the areas that I have been around. I have been in the Bronx though and was not surprised to hear about the very few that were living there. That area was unlike any that I had ever been too in my life and there were times that I did feel as though I was in the minority. I also thought it was sad to hear about how these kinds of problems have been around a town that I have grown up near and been in many many times. I feel very bad for those children who dont know much more than those conditions. I wish there would have been more time in the class for discussion to get a chance to talk about it and hear from other students what they thought as well. I am looking forward to hearing on Tuesday and getting to talk more, I think that this book would have been really interesting to read especially for anyone who is interested in becoming a teacher. I couldnt imagine working in those conditions because it would be even harder to keep their attentions with all of the distractions that would be taking place with the windows and poor conditions that are surrounding the school. One thing that I was very happy to see with the group was the visual diagram that was drawn on the board. Since I am a visual learner, it helped me to see the information that they were trying to convay in a way other than just listening to the group talk. I think that is one thing to incorporate into all of the things knowing that students all learn in a variety of ways and not everyone is going to be the same.

Sleeter and Grant....Throughout my high school experience I felt that I did encounter the banking concept in a good amount of my classes in addition to using the textbooks way too much. I can remember the science classes especially used the idea of putting information on the board, the students writing it down, memorizing it and then putting it back on a piece of paper for the test. I hated these classes the most becuase I felt we did the same thing everyday and would forget a lot of the stuff right after I was done using it. I loved the classes and the projects which were new and something that was out of the ordinary. I see my coop teacher doing some of the same ideas which are different than what is usually done. I also thought that the textbooks were used way to much. We woudl use them to aid in the idea of memorizing and doing the same things. I had one class my senior year in where we didnt use the books and we all thought it was the greatest thing ever becuase we didnt have to transport these huge books that we found to be pointless wiht us to class everyday. I loved the days when we would do a class thing that didnt involve the book and would be out of the ordinary. My favorites were when we would do something that wasnt even planned by the teacher and just came out of nowhere. This made it seem that the teacher was okay with not sticking to a certain script which always made me happy.

Lit Circle #1... Today's lit circle group did a really good job, it would have been really tough to be the first group to go not knowing what all to do and have to be in front of the class. They all seemed to know a lot about what they had read and you could tell that they felt comfortable with the material and sharing it with the class. They did a great job of answering questions that were asked of them which they would not have had a chance to practice with what they would respond. I thought that what was talked about fits in perfectly with the class discussions as well as the philosophy of edcuation papers that we had just written. I think that Mc Laren made some great points about what should be incorporated into the classroom. I feel that giving the students a little bit of say in what they are goign to be learning about and how they are going to be doing so is a great idea because then they will know that the teacher respects them in a way to ask for their opinion instead of acting like he or she is better than someone else just because of the title they have. I also believe that having a critical pedagogy will be a way to start making school fun for students and not the typical methods which focus on memorization and regurgitation which are when you will lose the interests of the students and not be as effective as you could be. I think that if I was going to be in a classroom then I would want to use some of the same principles as were talked about in this presentation to allow the students to have ownership in what is talked about and the methods that are being used. Even though I can see how this book would be one of the most difficult to get through and then talk about I feel that all the members did a really good job. Talking about the different pedagogys and methods of teaching has really opened my eyes to school and edcuation in general in a different way. Even though I am not going to be going into a classroom setting, there are ideas that I am learning about which I will be able to use in my field of work as well which I am excited for. I will be honest I was very cautious coming into the education class knowing that I was not going to be teaching and having to observe and learn about things, but i have found that there is a way to apply this thoughts to what I will be doing and am excited to know things to make me a better person when I work with children.

Observing just seems to get better and better everytime I go. The first thing that happened was I was waiting outside the classroom for the kids to come back from lunch, and I was greeted very warmly from a variety of the students which made me feel very good because they not only know my name, but seemed to be excited to have me in the classroom with them. This also made me feel as though I have made some connections and progress with the kids and have been able to get to know them in a role outside of just being students I watch twice a week. I was able to walk around and help them with any questions they have about their essays as well as writing their parent letters. I thought back to my days in junior high and often wish that I would have had someone to help me because I often struggled with the writing process and with having bigger class sizes the teacher could not make it to everyone. Also, I was able to talk one on one with my case study student which was so much fun. He was very willing to open up and share about his feelings about school and his family. I found out that his situation is very different from what mine is and was in addition to varying from anyone I was friends with in school. I am very excited to get to talk to him more and find out more about him. He is thrilled when we get to work with each other which also makes me feel good that he is comfortable around me to share thoughts with me. I have felt very welcomed into the classroom with almost all of the students and I am always excited when I get to go because of it. I think if I can make a difference and help just one student a day and help them feel better in the classroom and help them to be successful then I have helped one person which is what I think is important and they will take it with them for the rest of their lives.

I thought that class yesterday was one of the better ones for me because I was able to relate everything that we talked about to my own personal life. The thoughts of parent involvenment has always been something that I have been aware of in a variety of situations. For most of my close friends and I we have always had our parents close and extremley active in what we were doing but not to a point where it hurt us. Then in watching some of my dads wrestlers who have very little support its always hard to see them participating with no one watching where I always knew that at least some one from my family was going to be in the stands for me. Also the idea of teachers having different curriculums for different areas I find to be very interesting. I think that this is a good idea because those people who are living in an area may not be interested in the same things. for example, those living in an amish community are not going to have the same goals and beliefs as those who are in the middle of chicago in a very rich part. This is all based off of experience. But it also goes with my thoughts of how standarized tests are not a good way to be assessing how students are doing because they may not all be learnign the same things at the same pace which would make it hard to test them on the same things as others of the same age who havent learned those concepts becuase they dont apply to them as much. This would show that there should be another way to see what children do know, but it should be based on them and their area, not a nation which is very different from place to place. Even though I did not participate much (because of having a bad day...sorry) I was very interested in what I was hearing. It also gave me some more insight to what others from the class have been through and in some cases gave me the thoughts that they are more like me than what I had thought before because I was able to learn about them. This is one thing that I have enjoyed about having a smaller class is that people are more willing to share and we can get to know each other on a more personal basis instead of a lecture class where very few will say much. I am looking forward to more disscussions in the future where I can feel more connected to my classmates

I thought that class today was very easy to relate to my own life and therefore made it more enjoyable. We talked about the parent interaction which I have been able to view from various aspects. Being in my own situation with my parents who were very involved with every thing that I did, even to these days. Then I had those friends who have parents who live very far away from them due to moving. I have also watched some of my friends who have the parents who really couldnt care at all about the kids and the activities that they are participating in. This I think is a really sad situation and wish it would have been different for them. I think that the book made some great points about different areas and the ones that I thought was the most interesting was about the teachers making up their own curriculum based on the area that they were teaching in to accomidate for those they are teaching. This is interesting because then the idea of standardized tests would not be able to judge everyone across the board because different kids are learning a variety of things because of where they live which may not be the same as others. This helps me to prove my feelings more that these tests are not the best way to assess kids.

Yesterday at obseving was the most eye opening experience yet. The class had something called a workshop day which is where they are given a good amount of time in the class to work on their paper which they were forming a rough draft form. This gave them an oppurtunity to ask questions and get a start on their work. I was able to work with a variety of students and help them with their papers and encourage them to think about what they wanted to write about. There was one student in particular where the teacher and the student had come to an end on helping each other because they were not relating well to each other and were not able to be productive due to this miscommunication. Seeing that there was potential in the story, I went and worked with the student for a while to try and help him to at least get started. I was able to get him to talk to me and tell me why he was stuggling with the assignment and talk with him about what we could do to fix the situation. He was not understanding the assignment and was confused with what the teacher was telling him to do in the time he was given. I had him tell me the story that he was going to be writing about and was able to help him to start the paper and get some sentences going to begin the paper. All he needed was someone to sit and talk with him and explain to him in terms he could understand what was needed from him. This really showed me that he does want to try and do well its just that he is a student that needs just a little more help and some ideas to bounce off of some one. I know that this experience will stick with me for a while and that I can come back to it and remember on those hard days that everyone has the potential it just sometimes takes an extra step to get them to the same point as everyone else.

One part of the class that stuck out the most to me in my mind was about forming relationships with the students. I think this is something that is very important. Recently I had been talking with my cooperating teacher about this idea and how from my experience it has helped make the situation better and made for a more comfortable enviornment. With my experience on coaching junior high softball was with this same idea. For the most part, all a lot of them want is to be treated as though they are adults and are able to talk with someone older who is willing to listen to them and just give them some of their time. They are at the age when they need to be treated older and then they will respond and act in such a way. I found that many of the girls on the team just wanted to talk to someone and share about their day and stories from their life and have some one talk with them and treat them older. I found that forming this relationship really benefited the team because they were more willing to open up and talk to you about things and possible problems that may have come up becauuse you had formed that bond with them they were looking for. Also it helped because you treated them as an equal and not as if they were less because they are younger than you. Another thing that the other coach and I did was take them all out bowling and for ice cream. It showed them that we wanted to spend time with them and that we are not any different than them even if there is a good amount of age between us. This just made the season better that we were all able to communicate and be more friends than coaches. I think forming these relationships in the classroom will help as well and will allow for the teacher to get to know the students so they will know where they are coming from and what special needs they may have based on their situation.