Additional Assignment #5

Just Teach Them to Solve for X

This post is basically a debate between the "new" and the "old" methods of teaching. One teacher is trying to get the other to stick with the basic teaching methods without using metaphors and pictures to teach the kids math. Math is a subject that very few people like and a subject that even fewer people understand. It's great to teach kids the importance of solving for 'x' and let them demonstrate some examples of how solving for 'x' can be used in real life situations.

Sketchy Portraits: 8th Grade Identity and Pencils

This post shows that he really understands the minds of a 14 year old. The student, William, did have a tiny bit of an attitude. I probably would have been a little angry myself if he would've said those things to me, but it was pretty funny. I often wonder why teachers get so worked up about things. Why was it even necessary for the teacher to even continue to pick with him? Why was she so determined to make William give her the answers she wanted to hear? Anyway, I digress. You can't really be a great teacher without first understanding how your students feel and how they see the world. Like he said, they want to be treated as adults and kids. Regardless of what the overly anxious teacher believes, I believe it's possible to do both at the same time.

He Just Likes the Class for the Pencils

These teachers at this school are out of control! How can you take pleasure in watching a child cry? Then they wonder why he has no respect for them or their class. I was also angered by some of the comments one of the teachers made. He states that the student interrupts him with stupid questions in his gym class. First, even though I sometimes wonder if this statement is true, there is no such thing as a stupid question. If this teacher believes asking questions in gym class is stupid, then perhaps he should find another career. Obviously being an educator is not his calling.

The Medium Shapes the Learning

This post was a little more difficult to decipher. I believe he is saying that people, not just teachers, tend to jump on the technological bandwagon. Whenever something new is produced, we decide we want to use it for our own purposes. We try to mold these new things to fit our life that goes against it's purpose. Not only do we use some new forms of technology against their purpose, we also deter our students away from the purpose of the material. I'm not sure if that was the intended message but that's the best guess I have.