Lesson Plan for Intro to Teaching Seminar #3
This is my lesson plan for this seminar, which includes additional resources and materials.
Resources for Intro to Teaching Seminar #3
This is a document with links to all the materials, videos, and resources I shared during the seminar, as well as some extras that I didn't get to share.
Mr. Joe Rosen's Resources
Meeting the Needs of All Students
www.mcdowell.cps.k12.il.us
Activity from Intro to Teaching Seminar #3
We did not have time to do the group work activity during our seminar, but I think it can be a valuable activity to try. Therefore, I would like you do this activity individually and respond to your classmate's responses.
You should watch the videos below:
Adora Svitak: What adults can learn from kids
You Can’t be My Teacher
You have just watched two very different videos with two very different children telling teachers how they should teach. Write a comment to this blog post about the children in the videos and ways you can serve them. What do you think their needs are? What are their interests/backgrounds? What do you need to know about them in order to be their teacher? What are some strategies in order to teach them? Think critically about Adora Svitak and the You Can’t Be my Teacher Boy and what you learned during our seminar.
Adora said two good points. Firstly, teachers should teach, but learn and listen as well, because you can learn a lot from your students. They have opinions, ideas, and thoughts. They are the future,
ReplyDeleteSecondly, I like how Adora discussed her plans for publishing her own book. I think some adults forgot what it was like to be in their children's shoes, and maybe that is why one man hesitated to let her publish her book. But another man, pushed her through.
The boy in the next video shared good points as well. Some teacher do not not know what really is going on in the world today, on the internet with facebook, and etc. Children are growing up in a technology reality.
I also feel that children should not sit in a desk all day. I think there are times when they can sit on the carpet also. They need to let loose. Again, I think some adults forgot what it was like to be a child.
These two children are very different. Adora is obviously extremely intelligent and self-motivated. While she makes good points, she kind of makes it seem like every child is as driven as she is. Yes, children have some great ideas that adults would do well to listen to, but adults DO have more experience. Still, it is imperative for teachers to look out for students like Adora and provide them with opportunities for growth and expansion of their talents. Truthfully, the same should be done for all students, albeit on a smaller scale, depending on each student's needs.
ReplyDeleteI found the boy in the other video to be kind of terrifying, actually. There is definitely truth to what he says, though. Children today often come into school much more technologically-savvy than their teachers. This may cause the students to disregard their teacher's words, since "they live in the middle ages anyway," and the teacher will also have a harder time keeping their attention and teaching them effectively, since such a teacher will not able to offer them the sort of stimulation they need to learn.
Both these students appear to be from higher-class backgrounds, since Adora obviously has the means to acheive what she wants, and the boy has the means to acquire enough technology to feel like he is "smarter" than his teachers.
Honestly, I did not really appreciate either of these videos. While I recognize that sometimes adults may be viewed as staid, traditional, and inflexible, I find it very unappealing when one's focus is the somewhat whimsical cry of 'children vs. adults', 'adults have lost all of their creativity and love of life.' In fact, I find it kind of peculiar.
ReplyDeleteAdora, the child prodigy from the first video, feels that adults are responsible for the major mistakes of the world, given that they are in charge......but by the same logic, aren't adults also responsible for the myriad of wonderful inventions and institutions of the world and nation, since they are presumably in charge of that too? I find that while this young woman will most likely be a a dynamic success, she has yet to realize that the world isn't black and white. Not all children are miracle geniuses, and not all adults are rigid, archaic thinkers. I believe that she may have had some valid points about education, but honestly, i think they were lost for me because of her "chutzpadik" delivery and superior attitude.
The second video was very different from the first but also contained little value, in my opinion. While I also believe that teachers should have an awareness of new technologies and the evolving classroom, I think it is ridiculous to posit that it is impossible for students to learn without utilization of the latest technologies, or even basic computer and internet use. Additionally, I also felt that this video showed a real lack of appreciation for the people who work very hard, and have done so for years on end, to properly educate children to the very best of their abilities. What does this video mean to the close-to-retirement teacher who has successfully taught first graders how to read for the last 30 or 40 years? Is this teacher and her methods obsolete? Are we disregarding past academic success simply because there was no smartboard involved? Granted, a teacher does have a responsibility to try to understand her student's cultural and developmental environment, in order to engage, relate and educate better, but I felt that this video wasn't being clever in bringing serious issue to the foresight; It was pushing a view that was very narrow.