In February, I attended the "Vagina Monologues" at Luther College. Going into this performance I thought I would find very few connections to education, but in fact, I found one very important one.
Though I found each monologue intriguing, overall I was struck by one important thing: though this somewhat "taboo" topic had potential to be very awkward, it was not, because not only did the actresses acknowledge that they were blatantly discussing a "hushed" topic, but because they were so willing to do this.
Especially teaching in an upper-level English class, this lesson will be very important to me. Many works of great literature are based on "uncomfortable" themes, but are very important, nonetheless. As a teacher, I plan to have a lot of discussion in my classroom, and this experience helped me learn how to make uncomfortable and taboo topics open to discussion, so that all who hear them can gain knowledge and insight.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Ethnic Arts Festival
One of the most unique things, I think, about Luther College is the college-wide focus on diversity, and acceptance.
Recently, I was able to attend both the Ethnic Arts Festival and Ethnic Arts Dinner. I found both of these to be very interesting. Present at these events was not a unique group of "diverse" students, or foreign students. All types of students attended the festival and dinner, looking to expand their knowledge of cultures and places different than their home.
These are very important things for educators to think about: though we may have students of different ethnic and racial backgrounds, how will we show that we are accepting of them, and how will we teach them in a manner to most facilitate their learning?
Although events like this, for most people, serve as a cultural experience, educators need to look at them as learning experiences. Chances to learn things about prospective students so that we can use their culture to our advantage.
Recently, I was able to attend both the Ethnic Arts Festival and Ethnic Arts Dinner. I found both of these to be very interesting. Present at these events was not a unique group of "diverse" students, or foreign students. All types of students attended the festival and dinner, looking to expand their knowledge of cultures and places different than their home.
These are very important things for educators to think about: though we may have students of different ethnic and racial backgrounds, how will we show that we are accepting of them, and how will we teach them in a manner to most facilitate their learning?
Although events like this, for most people, serve as a cultural experience, educators need to look at them as learning experiences. Chances to learn things about prospective students so that we can use their culture to our advantage.
Babel
Recently I viewed the movie "Babel" and was incredible intrigued. This is definitely a movie would recommend to anyone, but especially those in the teaching field, or those who interact and influence the lives of young people on a daily basis
Simply, "Babel" aims to demonstrate two key issues: the interrelatedness of all lives on the planet, and the prospect of hope.
As a future educator this was incredibly interesting for me, because it portrays on a global level how one person's actions will have profound impacts on countless people, even those you don't know. This is important to realize as an educator, because it will remind me to always strive to do my very best when teaching, and teach my students as much as I possibly can, because what I do will (directly or indirectly) change the world.
The prospect of hope is another thing to remember as educators- we may have frustrating days, lessons, classes and years, but it is important to always push through, because like I talked about before, everyone impacts this world.
These were two lessons that I took away from "Babel," a very moving film.
Simply, "Babel" aims to demonstrate two key issues: the interrelatedness of all lives on the planet, and the prospect of hope.
As a future educator this was incredibly interesting for me, because it portrays on a global level how one person's actions will have profound impacts on countless people, even those you don't know. This is important to realize as an educator, because it will remind me to always strive to do my very best when teaching, and teach my students as much as I possibly can, because what I do will (directly or indirectly) change the world.
The prospect of hope is another thing to remember as educators- we may have frustrating days, lessons, classes and years, but it is important to always push through, because like I talked about before, everyone impacts this world.
These were two lessons that I took away from "Babel," a very moving film.
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Entry #4 for March 9th, 2007
Does the Internet and technology offer promise and hope for education or learning or does it just create additional problems? What do you see as the promise and what do you see as the problems?
As a student who grew up in a relatively affluent suburb of Minneapolis, I was blessed to have been surrounded by computers and technology for my entire schooling. I had a computer in my home, and computers in my classroom's for as long as I've been in school.
In third grade typing was part of the curriculum, but this was the first time I remember using the computers for educational purposes. After that it was expected that students would be proficient typers, and become adept at using the Internet.
As a sixth grader I was given the opportunity to be a member of the "web-page club" and the "photojournalists" to document happenings at my elementary school, and publish them on the school web page.
As I moved into high school, I began to use computers on a more regular basis, both for research, and reports. Overall, my experience with the Internet and technology was great.
Unfortunately, during my Ed. 115 experience, I saw some of the downfalls of technology and the Internet. First of all, students do not seem to have the exposure to the Internet that I did, so that even as sophomores in high school, they are not as comfortable using the Internet and computers as I was.
Also, their access to computers seems to be primarily at school, which does not give them the opportunity to be comfortable with the Internet, which I find very unfortunate. I think that technology can be a great addition to the classroom, especially for use in research and exploration.
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