Citizenship in School

Right off the bat i was interested in this article because my mother and sisters teach at schools with kids with disability. I have volunteered at the schools and understand thoroughly everything that comes in the picture in this article. Some of the stories were really disappointing to here like the story of the girl who wanted to be a movie director. Teaching skills even in the field require never doubting any kids or ruling them out in anything. When i volunteer at my moms school i make sure i have open ears and eyes to all students no matter if they are disabled or not. Separating the kids can be a better thing more time than a negative thing. The reasoning for this is from seeing examples of kids with disabilities being taken out of the classroom and getting the one on one attention they need and being in an environment where they can concentrate and be comfortable it helps them to learn better and have a lot less distractions. The only negative part of this is that they may feel secluded form the group and it may take away from different social aspects. Overall i think it should be evenly spread where they are in the class for the areas of school they understand and they are taken out of the class when they need help or are struggling with a subject. A person may be seen as different in some ways but everyone is different in one way or the other and we are all human beings no matter what. Therefore a child with a disability such as down syndrome can be in any career he wants with the best help just as any other person could and this is what we as teachers need to realize.

Jean Anyon

The different points brought across in this blog can help us to learn how to become better teachers as well as students. Anyon describes to us in different opinions just how bad or good a school can be. If the learning is one that is disciplined, kids are kept in line, there is punishments, caring, orders and directions are followed, and kids are in school to learn due to these factors then the chances for success are unbeatable. One personal experience that i can recognize from my service learning projects is seeing the behaviors, attitudes, and discipline of the kids and the teaching skills of these teachers and relating them to when i was in elementary school. The different things that children are getting away with and the discipline is just not there at all. If i was to do any of those things in my old school i would have been suspended or maybe even expelled. I went to a catholic school where all the kids were polite, kept in line, and the discipline was one at a level of expertise so seeing this is like a whole new world to me. My school relates more to the first couple examples given that was why i had reason to believe those school were public schools.
The kids obviously aren't getting the discipline that they need at home and this is where our jobs at teachers are brought in the picture and we need to step up and make sure that this is changed. There is no reason a teacher cant put a kid in line and make him a better person. The knowledge known by those who teach shouldn't always be about teaching and should play as a role of one who can get these kids into shape and make sure they have the manners and discipline they need to make it in this world. No matter what class they are in a child can always change if the right things are played into the picture.

Gender and Education

To find information on this subject wasn't easy at all. Most said boys were smarter in math and girls were smarter in English and history. I personally think it varies from what i have seen in all my years of being school. The girls in my schools usually had more drive and motivation in school and in that may have been considered smarter but that doesn't necessarily mean that the girls were smarter. Until i actually see statistics and results that are accurate and posted i cant really believe that gender plays a role in the subject a student takes. It is more to do with drive, environment, and smartness of the student learning.
I think in order to change what is happening teacher need to make boys and girls equal in every single classroom, make sure that they are never grouped separately, and make both genders want to learn the subject and have drive. Everything must be equality including things such as being called on in class, same push, and same work that is given in the classroom. The children cant be stereotyped before they even walk into the room because it plays to an unfair disadvantage to one gender or the other. I personally have a reference to this with one of my high school teachers. She would always judge girls as smarter than boys and pick on the girls more than boys. This even played a factor in things such as test grades because it was all a mental mind state. The teacher would look as the name on the test see it was a girl and already be thinking that the paper was good and when a boys test was looked at nothing much was expected. I would like to see a classroom that gives gender equality and does all of those things that i said above and then show the statistics of the grades and i will believe whatever the results are even though i feel it would be different in every school.

Wise

This article was just an okay read for me. I thought there was a lot of good points brought up about Obama and the different factors that played into race. Wise gets the message across that Obama becoming the first black president is a start for change but it doesn't erase the problem of racism. I agree with him on that point but every little step that is made is one that is closer to change and closer to equity for good.
Brown vs. Board of Education for what i learned was a huge turning point in the factor of color or race. It ended segregation and was another one of the steps as i mentioned. It was a step but the problem was still not yet solved. Racism was still a factor to the point where kids didn't even want to go to school. Although this was true i feel it was the only way to realize the equality among races and help kids to realize that white and black students and people could work together and make things work as a whole. Overall equal opportunity and rights were given to those of color and it obviously helped a lot if we are where we are today.

Kahne and Westheimer

This article was pretty interesting to me because we are doing service learning projects so some ways could relate. Relations such as caring for the people your helping and actually devoting time and giving to them were seen as more of an importance to me after reading. I realize that you cant just give to someone and expect for them to learn and be fine you have to care for them and vice verso. The article also opens up eyes to recognizing whats around us and the different things that we can do to help people. Going to hospitals, caring for the elderly, or helping out in schools just as we are is key to making a better society as a whole. Students must be dedicated in doing these projects and it will help to connect with those being helped, teach others better, and help to learn more about different situations and things that are beneficial.

Linda Christiansen

I feel as though this article is a very interesting one but its very controversial as well. Most people try not to feel as though the media plays as an influence in their thought process and lives when overall i personally believe it does. All the cartoons, movies, and media that people use to entertain themselves plays some kid of aspect in their lives. Children are very easily manipulated by cartoons but there are also some cartoons that are far fetched and i think that children can sometimes see the difference of what can be pertained to real life and what cant. The quote "Turning off cartoons doesn't stop the sexism, racism and racism." is an extremely strong point to make. I agree partially with that statement but i also think that turning off cartoons and choosing cartoons wisely is a very important start. The points that were made about Disney movies were obvious to me. When you look at most Disney movies there is usually a princess or prince that is either beautiful or handsome and they end up together every time. Kids see this and want to be that beautiful persona and look as themselves differently if that don't look that certain way. Disney would never have anyone that is LGBT in their movies and that's an example of sexism in itself. The quote about the servants and rich people came as an extreme shock to me that was one issue that i had never even picked up on or noticed in the Disney movies until now. There are so many cartoons like this out there but we can allow our children to watch this stuff but we must reassure them of the important factors that they may take to heart. This whole article was definitely one that makes you think and look into the media and television shows that you watch more thoroughly and see the different stereotypes that you do notice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uatrgO5Omfw

Carlson

This article was decent read but i noticed it addressing all the different priveledges and cultures again. I feel like all these articles connect in different ways and address the advantages of color, sexuality, and other things. The fact that teachers had gotten fired due to the fact that they were gay was absolutly ubserd. Teachers are teachers no matter what they are there for the same reason, to teach these students and give them a better education. The sexuality of a teacher shouldnt make a difference because that is his/her personal right and personal buisiness. I personally believe that people who are gay today are a lot more open about it than the people back in the day were. They should have the same respect as everyone else even though they are gay though, they shouldnt be addressed different than any other person. The point of being gay as a bad thing that is viewed by some people just needs to be erased. I think the people who are homosexual need to not be scared and not worry about what other people think and stand up for themselves more and then they will gain more and more respect over time. It needs to start in schools where children can be gay, be proud of what they are, and the other students dont look at them different. It shouldnt be as silenced as it is now. Carlson brings up a lot of good points in this article that need to be approached more thoroughly by the people who read it.