A Learning Teacher

Reading Response #1 

After reading the article The Digital Learning Imperative: How Technology and Teaching Meet Today's Education Challenge and listening to the SWAMP speakers, there are many aspects that have expanded my understanding of the teaching profession. "More than 1 million children drop out of school every year" because the school system is unable to meet the demands of these students. This statistic blew my mind. The United States is losing a vast chunk of the student population due to the inability to adapt. I use this term broadly of course because within the umbrella of adaptability there are a plethora of varying factors, economics and funding being the largest ones. After reading the article and listening to our guest speakers, the idea that really resonated with me seems the most basic. To be the best teacher, I also have to be the best learner. I can never stop furthering and educating myself in my profession. Teachers are underqualified and after graduating their credential programs they have already fallen behind. The only way to keep up is to keep learning. I may be confident in my analytical abilities or my usage of English grammar but I don't know everything. Carrie Targhetta said that she uses a unit that incorporates more modern pieces that appeal to her students. She decided to use an excerpt from Gruen's novel Water for Elephants because all of her female students were reading it. She adapted the material to fit the student's interests and fuel their writing. Not only are her student's learning but so is she. It seems that the mentality of the teacher needs to change too. We are not the omnipresent all knowing being that a student must worship sitting wide eyed and silent while absorbing everything that comes out of my mouth like a sponge. What a silly concept? I learn something new every day, just like my students do. The only way to move forward is to learn and use the tools that are available. The biggest tool currently is technology. The internet has not only connected the entire world but it has opened a floodgate of information. But what good is this information if you don't know how to wade through it? As a teacher, I must use technology to close the gap between the needs of my students and the needs of the working world. I must also continually strive to improve and advance in my own profession. 

Native American Word Web

Reading Response 1-6

Reading Response #1

There are many research based instructional strategies that I could use in my own ITU. After reading the article Focus On: Asian Pacific Islanders, the success of being taught in a bilingual setting is made very clear. After the passage of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) many students are being held at a high stakes standard and being expected to perform at the same level as their native English speaking peers. NCLB is leaving many API students in the dust do to it’s high stakes testing and it’s policy of “English Only” education. Academic Performance Index (API’s) are not included when many academic policies are passed. Parents, teachers, and students “need to be included on committees and advisory boards to help determine the policies, programs, and practices that are most likely to benefit their children.” The best instructional strategy is to provide the students and parents with the necessary information that would fill the gaps in their education and to provide the community with the knowledge of how to change or become an advocate for their children’s education. In the Focus On: Blacks,  Black students receive less help and are, sadly, oftentimes expected to perform at a lower level then their White peers. To combat this division, the article suggests creating a sense of community between teacher, parents, and students. A couple examples that I will use in my own classroom are strategies that support educational equity. I will, “maintain the same teaching standards and learning expectations for all students...establish peer and support networks, matching students with other students to learn cooperatively...hold ongoing teacher discussions on strategies to improve instruction, as well as share data on eliminating the gaps in achievement...[and]  develop outreach mechanisms to foster collaborations among parents and community members.” I will also use my position as a teacher to recognize and educate my students and their parents about the culture shock that results racial differences or class differences. In the article Focus On: Hispanics, the best instructional strategy involves holding these students to high standards and providign them with cooperative learning opportunities that provides the students to work with their peers instead of using drills and rote memorization. Using activities like Jigsawing, Think-Pair-Share, Three-Step Interview, and Round Robin Brainstorming have been proven to greatly increase ELL student’s comprehension and understanding of the material. In the article Focus On: Gay, Lesbians, Bisexual, and Transgendered Persons, the best instructional strategy is to educate. After reading the article, it seems that the biggest obstacle for LGBTQ students is ignorance and homophobia. The only way to combat those symptoms and eliminate them is to educate students on why these words and perspectives are wrong. It is wrong to treat someone differently or to bully someone due to their sexual orientation. In the article Focus On: American Indians and Alaskan Natives, the biggest creating opportunities for bicultural activities and developing and supporting language proficiency in both their native language and their target language. In the last article, Focus On: Women and Girls, there were many simple but effective techniques that a teacher could implement in their own classroom. Some of these simple techniques included: not using inclusive language, making a concise effort to call on all students equally, providing enough wait time for all students to process the information and have the opportunity to respond to the question, providing many cooperative/collaborative learning opportunities, displaying bias-free wall displays, and creating a seating chart that evenly spreads out all the students. After reading all the articles, there are many simple, easy, and highly effective instructional strategies and techniques that I will use in my own classroom.

Reading Response #2

Activity 7.1
1. After looking at the national standards, the local curriculum and community dynamic, student textbooks, literatures, resources, and student interests my ITU has decided that we would do a unit that would focus on Native Americans in Education with a culminating project that would involve students to go into their own community and interview a Pechanga Indian.
2.  
3. The process that really guided our discussion was the topic’s relevancy to our local high schools. The Temecula Valley Unified School District is bumped up against the Pechanga Indian Reservation. Many attendees at both Temecula Valley High School and Great Oak High School are of Pechanga Indian decent. To not use this valuable local history would just be educationally irresponsible.

Activity 7.2
1. What historical and legal influences have lead to the educational injustices that Native Americans face today? As a fellow American, why did the majority of Americans allow these injustices to occur? How would one fight against these injustices?
2. How are Native Americans portrayed in the media? How does their representation effect public perceptions of Native Americans? In what ways do these representations progress Native American values and ideals? In what ways do these representations further Native American stereotypes?

3. Native Americans believed in Animism but many were forced to adopt Christianity. What cultural beliefs were left behind and which were adopted? What events caused this transition?

4. Many Native Americans were forced to attend schools that removed them from their families for long periods of time often returning unable to communicate with their own families. How would language isolation effect the family unit? How would language isolation affect a person’s self esteem of perception of themselves? How does language isolation effect Native Americans today?

5. How has the casino business changed Native American values? In what ways has the casino business strengthened the Native American community?

Reading Response #3

Characteristics of an Effective Teacher. I decided to include this list because it provided an opportunity for self monitoring and assessing while highlighting effective practices and techniques that could included into the classroom. Here is the list as it appears in the text:

• “Characteristic 1. Recognizes classroom practices fostering self-esteem in students and validates their linguistic and cultural heritage.
• Characteristic 2. Recognizes that multicultural awareness enriches the lives of all students.
• Characteristic 3. Communicates clearly when giving directions and presenting new information.
• Characteristic 4. Demonstrates an ability to communicate rationales for instructional techniques and participates in professional development.
• Characteristic 5. Demonstrates specific instructional skills in organizing meaningful instruction and can incorporate hands-on and minds-on learning, plan ad hoc or mini-lessons around individual skill development, encourage collaborative and cooperative learning, and use a thematic curriculum in consultation with the students.
• Characteristic 6. Paces instruction appropriately, involves the students in the lessons, monitors the progress of each student and provides prompt feedback.
• Characteristic 7. Provides clarity in instruction for English language learners (ELL} students by alternately using the students' native language with the assistance of a classroom aide or parent volunteer, and then English for instruction.
• Characteristic 8. Seeks help from others and provides help when asked.
• Characteristic 9. Specifies expected outcomes to the students.
• Characteristic 10. Demonstrates high expectations, although not necessarily identical expectations, for all students.

Reading Response #4

After reading the ITU Overview Powerpoint there are many tasks that I think I would be able to contribute to to the ITU assignment.

• culturally relevant pedagogy
• integrated thematic unit
• democratic ideals
• content of the disciplines
• student generated essential questions
• place-based education
• social justice service and learning

Reading Response #5

Our school team has decided to focus on the theme of Native Americans in Education, specifically how Native Americans were treated and educated in the United States. We chose this topic because Temecula is home to the Pechanga Indians where there is a large casino and many schools receive donations from the casino. This would provide our students with a great opportunity to go out into their local community and learn more about not only Native Americans but their community as well. (Cover sheet below)

Reading Response #6

I have created a PLN (Personal Learning Network) with all of my credential peers. I have created a blog, class website, grouply, and twitter account. My class blog is http://qe-la.blogspot.com/. My class website is https://sites.google.com/site/mssadeghipoursclass/. My twitter account is @mssadeghipour. I have added my peers to my network and am currently awaiting their responses.

To the Students of the Future

Considering the class that I am currently taking I have decided to create this blog and keep it until the point in the near future when I begin teaching and attempting to incorporate aspects of technology into my classroom. The unfortunate thing that I tend to hear from a lot of teachers is that there is never enough time in the day for every student. So, what better way to reach out to students outside of the 7-3 time slot then by the amazing power of the internet! I am hoping that this will be a successful attempt. Well, let's get rollin'