Public space encompasses shared space that is owned by the people and is for the people. Public space isn’t necessarily free space in a sense that it is paid for indirectly by everyone however it is not for profit. The space isn’t owned by anyone and used to create a profit for themselves it is for free for people to use. For example, parks are public places without it being a public place it wouldn’t be equally accessed by all people because there would be a cost to use it; additionally, maintenance of the park may not be in the best interest of the natural flora and fauna or the area because it would be for profit. That is why public places are so valuable because they are not for profit; they are not subject to the whim of the market or the control of capitalism. Public places are another aspect out of the binary of market control, unfortunately with a crisis occurs in a public place the government opts to increase capitalistic control. For instance, if a park is unable to operate and sustain itself at the public level them a corporation may step in and take over – then it is no longer public space and open the all people.
Public schools are ultimately valuable because they provide equal educational opportunity to all and teachers can teach what they want and how they feel are best practices, in addition to state standards of course. However If schools become privatized teachers will no longer have that freedom and they will be keep their jobs based on how well they produce. How well they produce college bound students, not by any other measure and curriculums will become narrower and more standardized. Schools in poor communities will go out of business and poor families will be unable to afford a more expensive successful school, thus increasing the achievement gap which the U.S. is trying to decrease. Decreasing the achievement gap will not work by using market logic, public education is a whole other animal altogether and people in power are going to have to think outside of the box and outside of the binary of market and government logic to solve the problems with public education. Let me include that decreasing funding for school will not help to solve the problem either.
Showing posts with label education. Show all posts
Showing posts with label education. Show all posts
Friday, May 8, 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
Epistemological diversity
Epistemology or theory of knowledge is a branch of philosophy that deals with the scope and nature of knowledge. However, people and populations of people hold varying beliefs about what constitutes the theory of knowledge; this is called epistemological diversity. For example the Indigenous educational system and their epistemological beliefs are different from U.S. schooling. Indigenous societies have traditionally practiced forms of “informal” education; however, “informal” doesn’t make the education any less as functional or important. It just means that their education isn’t confined to institutionalized places and times, which makes it more fully encompassing and connected. The epistemology of indigenous societies is eloquently explained in the book To Remain an Indian by K. Lomawaima and T. McCarty (which will the text that I draw my understandings about indigenous education from in the rest of this blog). They discuss the history on indigenous schooling including colonial education and its harmful impact on the education of indigenous children.
In traditional indigenous educational systems the teachers are the parents, elders and the relatives; there isn’t a classroom in a building with a teacher with written exams and other “formal” assessments. Students are educated on being physically strong, being good mothers and fathers, being leaders, and being doctors; they are taught how to “pass” survival, which is higher stake then the SAT exam. Students are also taught based on age, level of knowledge and according to clan and rank; importantly is the practice of teaching according to the student’s level of knowledge. Unfortunately, in the institutionalization of the educational system in the U.S. students are being confined to a one-dimensional education and they aren’t being taught according to their levels of knowledge but instead to the defined level of knowledge that they should be at. This, again, corresponds to epistemological diversity because the educational system in the U.S. believes that students all learn in a certain set of ways not in multiple ways, while indigenous educational systems believe that students learn in various complex and multidimensional ways which is reflected in their “informal” style of schooling.
How will understanding epistemological diversity better improve my teaching philosophies? I think that understanding and recognizing that there is epistemological diversity is important in effectively teaching a diversity student population. In the sciences, mu content area, it will be important for me to remember although students need to pass the high stakes exam they need to learn as well. Further, “formal” education isn’t the only way that people learn; students have high quality learning experiences all the time not just confined to the classroom. This kind of education needs to be incorporated into the classroom experience, for example, in science education field trips and hands-on learning activities are important in students being able to fully assimilate the information and to be able to incorporate the new knowledge into their lives.
In traditional indigenous educational systems the teachers are the parents, elders and the relatives; there isn’t a classroom in a building with a teacher with written exams and other “formal” assessments. Students are educated on being physically strong, being good mothers and fathers, being leaders, and being doctors; they are taught how to “pass” survival, which is higher stake then the SAT exam. Students are also taught based on age, level of knowledge and according to clan and rank; importantly is the practice of teaching according to the student’s level of knowledge. Unfortunately, in the institutionalization of the educational system in the U.S. students are being confined to a one-dimensional education and they aren’t being taught according to their levels of knowledge but instead to the defined level of knowledge that they should be at. This, again, corresponds to epistemological diversity because the educational system in the U.S. believes that students all learn in a certain set of ways not in multiple ways, while indigenous educational systems believe that students learn in various complex and multidimensional ways which is reflected in their “informal” style of schooling.
How will understanding epistemological diversity better improve my teaching philosophies? I think that understanding and recognizing that there is epistemological diversity is important in effectively teaching a diversity student population. In the sciences, mu content area, it will be important for me to remember although students need to pass the high stakes exam they need to learn as well. Further, “formal” education isn’t the only way that people learn; students have high quality learning experiences all the time not just confined to the classroom. This kind of education needs to be incorporated into the classroom experience, for example, in science education field trips and hands-on learning activities are important in students being able to fully assimilate the information and to be able to incorporate the new knowledge into their lives.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Critical Literacy
What is critical literacy and why is it so important for students’ futures to proficiently be taught critical literacy? According to Ernest Morrell et al. in the book Critical Literacy and Urban Youth the acquisition of the dominant critical literacies is pertinent for economic, social and political success. Importantly, Morrell et al. states that critical literacy education leads students towards engaged citizenship and personal empowerment. Critical literacy to me, as a future educator, is being literate in multiple literacies and in the dominant literacies. Being literate in the dominate literacies give these people the potential to shape language and thus meaning, consequently, the meaning of language are constructed within social and political texts.
The question is, what does this all mean to educators? As a future educator, I need to teach my students critical literacy; literacies that will empower them to be active learners and participants in their communities and in American society. Ultimately, learning critical literacy will give students the tools to apply their skills and knowledge so to influence societal change. For instance, in Critical Literacy and Urban Youth by Morrell et al. he had founded a summer seminar program called the Futures Project for underprivileged students in which they learned critical literacies. These students cooperated with teachers on projects pertaining to the sociology of education and the critical methods of educational research. Through these projects they learned critical theory, social theory, cultural studies, educational sociology, legal history, and qualitative research methodology. Ultimately they at the end of the project the students brought forth their findings to university faculty, community activists, delegates, media personnel, and elected officials. Notably, the topics for these projects focused on education and educational reform for the equal access to academic achievement for underprivileged groups. This all ties into what Robert Moses (Radical Equations: Civil Rights from Mississippi to the Algebra Project, see blog: Teaching Science to ALL Students) was arguing about, that underprivileged groups have been denied access to the critical literacies that will foster their economic, political, and social success.
As a future science teacher, I will incorporate critical literacies in science into my teaching. From Morrell at al. in Critical Literacy and Urban Youth, I will incorporate research projects that involve critical inquiry and group work. Importantly, the projects need to impact students’ lives in relation to community involvement and activism.
The question is, what does this all mean to educators? As a future educator, I need to teach my students critical literacy; literacies that will empower them to be active learners and participants in their communities and in American society. Ultimately, learning critical literacy will give students the tools to apply their skills and knowledge so to influence societal change. For instance, in Critical Literacy and Urban Youth by Morrell et al. he had founded a summer seminar program called the Futures Project for underprivileged students in which they learned critical literacies. These students cooperated with teachers on projects pertaining to the sociology of education and the critical methods of educational research. Through these projects they learned critical theory, social theory, cultural studies, educational sociology, legal history, and qualitative research methodology. Ultimately they at the end of the project the students brought forth their findings to university faculty, community activists, delegates, media personnel, and elected officials. Notably, the topics for these projects focused on education and educational reform for the equal access to academic achievement for underprivileged groups. This all ties into what Robert Moses (Radical Equations: Civil Rights from Mississippi to the Algebra Project, see blog: Teaching Science to ALL Students) was arguing about, that underprivileged groups have been denied access to the critical literacies that will foster their economic, political, and social success.
As a future science teacher, I will incorporate critical literacies in science into my teaching. From Morrell at al. in Critical Literacy and Urban Youth, I will incorporate research projects that involve critical inquiry and group work. Importantly, the projects need to impact students’ lives in relation to community involvement and activism.
Teaching Science to ALL Students
The issue with this is that the educational system that is in place hasn’t changed fast enough to accommodate for the change in the economy and the job market. The system still “weeds out” students from the math and sciences, which are now pertinent to economic success in the new economy of computers. This “weeding out” occurs not only at the secondary level but at the post-secondary level as well, seems even more so from my experience. However, the challenge for me as a future science teacher at the secondary level is that I have to adequately prepare all students for college level science so that they have the learning tools critical to preventing them from being eliminated from the math and science pool.
Interestingly in the book by Robert Moses, Radical Equations: Civil Rights from Mississippi to the Algebra Project, he compares the acquisition of math literacies for minority groups to the Civil Rights movement in Mississippi. The correlation is that the fight for the right to vote and to have political power is similar to the now fight for the right of minority groups to be taught math and science. Moses argues that being taught math and science literacy is and should be as important as being taught reading and writing literacies, because of the need for “knowledge workers” in postmodern society. In being denied math and science literacies minority groups lose access to economic and political power.
Importantly, in order to be successful in the movement toward prioritizing the teaching of math and science literacies at the same level as reading and writing literacies students and communities need to be involved; they need to find a voice and be empowered to speak for themselves, as African Americans had in the Civil Rights movement (Moses). Science, which is intimately related to math, has historically been denied to minority groups. Traditionally, students with parents who are doctors they too will be doctors, same is true with scientists, chemists, physicists and so on. This tradition needs to be challenged and it begins in the classroom, with the teacher; as a future science teacher I will need to prepare all students to be successful in the sciences that I teach.
Interestingly in the book by Robert Moses, Radical Equations: Civil Rights from Mississippi to the Algebra Project, he compares the acquisition of math literacies for minority groups to the Civil Rights movement in Mississippi. The correlation is that the fight for the right to vote and to have political power is similar to the now fight for the right of minority groups to be taught math and science. Moses argues that being taught math and science literacy is and should be as important as being taught reading and writing literacies, because of the need for “knowledge workers” in postmodern society. In being denied math and science literacies minority groups lose access to economic and political power.
Importantly, in order to be successful in the movement toward prioritizing the teaching of math and science literacies at the same level as reading and writing literacies students and communities need to be involved; they need to find a voice and be empowered to speak for themselves, as African Americans had in the Civil Rights movement (Moses). Science, which is intimately related to math, has historically been denied to minority groups. Traditionally, students with parents who are doctors they too will be doctors, same is true with scientists, chemists, physicists and so on. This tradition needs to be challenged and it begins in the classroom, with the teacher; as a future science teacher I will need to prepare all students to be successful in the sciences that I teach.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
English Language Learners
It’s is obvious that there are many complex literacies that students need to navigate through in their daily lives. Additionally, English language learners deal with an even more challenging and complex array of literacies. This is also obvious, not only do these students have to learn a second language they also have to deal with the literacy challenges of their native language; in which they may or may not be proficient in. Ideally, English language learners become proficient in both their native/home language and their second language; however, this is not always the case.
In “Becoming Literate in a Second Language: Connecting Home, Community, and School Literacy Practices” by Mari Haneda, the problems with the school system regarding the education of English language learners is discussed. For instance, a Chinese English language learner was placed lower track classes in which he was only learning basic reading and writing skills, however, he was practicing complex literacies through the internet by creating his own website. Through the website he was engaged in multiple and complex literacy practices with people all over the world. The issue is that the educational system had labeled him and tracked him, keeping him from the opportunity to practice critical literacy – which he decided to get elsewhere.
There are many problems with the current educational system, particularly the practice of tracking students, tracking can have and has had deleterious effects on English language learners. As a future educator, it is important to remember that all students can learn and are capable of practicing complex literacies. Furthermore, bringing in their native literacies and culture into the classroom is a valuable teaching tool for all students.
In “Becoming Literate in a Second Language: Connecting Home, Community, and School Literacy Practices” by Mari Haneda, the problems with the school system regarding the education of English language learners is discussed. For instance, a Chinese English language learner was placed lower track classes in which he was only learning basic reading and writing skills, however, he was practicing complex literacies through the internet by creating his own website. Through the website he was engaged in multiple and complex literacy practices with people all over the world. The issue is that the educational system had labeled him and tracked him, keeping him from the opportunity to practice critical literacy – which he decided to get elsewhere.
There are many problems with the current educational system, particularly the practice of tracking students, tracking can have and has had deleterious effects on English language learners. As a future educator, it is important to remember that all students can learn and are capable of practicing complex literacies. Furthermore, bringing in their native literacies and culture into the classroom is a valuable teaching tool for all students.
English Language Learners
It’s is obvious that there are many complex literacies that students need to navigate through in their daily lives. Additionally, English language learners deal with an even more challenging and complex array of literacies. This is also obvious, not only do these students have to learn a second language they also have to deal with the literacy challenges of their native language; in which they may or may not be proficient in. Ideally, English language learners become proficient in both their native/home language and their second language; however, this is not always the case.
In “Becoming Literate in a Second Language: Connecting Home, Community, and School Literacy Practices” by Mari Haneda, the problems with the school system regarding the education of English language learners is discussed. For instance, a Chinese English language learner was placed lower track classes in which he was only learning basic reading and writing skills, however, he was practicing complex literacies through the internet by creating his own website. Through the website he was engaged in multiple and complex literacy practices with people all over the world. The issue is that the educational system had labeled him and tracked him, keeping him from the opportunity to practice critical literacy – which he decided to get elsewhere.
There are many problems with the current educational system, particularly the practice of tracking students, tracking can have and has had deleterious effects on English language learners. As a future educator, it is important to remember that all students can learn and are capable of practicing complex literacies. Furthermore, bringing in their native literacies and culture into the classroom is a valuable teaching tool for all students.
In “Becoming Literate in a Second Language: Connecting Home, Community, and School Literacy Practices” by Mari Haneda, the problems with the school system regarding the education of English language learners is discussed. For instance, a Chinese English language learner was placed lower track classes in which he was only learning basic reading and writing skills, however, he was practicing complex literacies through the internet by creating his own website. Through the website he was engaged in multiple and complex literacy practices with people all over the world. The issue is that the educational system had labeled him and tracked him, keeping him from the opportunity to practice critical literacy – which he decided to get elsewhere.
There are many problems with the current educational system, particularly the practice of tracking students, tracking can have and has had deleterious effects on English language learners. As a future educator, it is important to remember that all students can learn and are capable of practicing complex literacies. Furthermore, bringing in their native literacies and culture into the classroom is a valuable teaching tool for all students.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Out of School Literacies
It is easy for people to forget, particularly educators, that there are many out-of-school literacies. Since being in the traditional school setting for a while I had forgotten about how influential and important out-of-school literacy is and, as a future educator, how essential it is for my students. What is out-of-school literacy? Doesn’t literacy learning only occur in the classroom? – No, not exactly. Out-of-school literacy is literacy learning that occurs outside of the structured schedule (curriculum) of traditional class and there are many examples of out-of-school literacy - these include art, music, any form of literature (i.e. graphic novels, books of interest), and movies (just to name a few).
In “What they don’t learn in school” by Jabari Mahiri (which is a collection of youths experiences with multiple literacies by professional educators), gives insight into the lives of “unschoolers” who practice a form of out-of-school literacy. They don’t go to school and don’t follow a definite scheduled learning like “home schoolers” do, instead they may research a topic/subject that they are interested in and create their own projects – a type of self motivated learning. I think that all students are capable of self motivated learning and practice it different ways.
Out-of-school literacies are important in identity formation for young people, I remember when I was in middle school I use to draw and create artwork – it was central to my life at the time and meaningful. Just as the students described in “What they don’t learn in school”, Peter Cowan in “Devils or Angels: Literacy and Discourse in Lowrider Culture” (a chapter in Mahiri’s book) explores artwork by Hispanic (mainly Mexican American) students and how it is central to their identity formations and is meaningful to them – a form of literacy. These students understand the meanings of their artwork and the connections to their everyday lives.
As a future educator it is imperative to remember that there are out-of-school literacies that occur in everyone’s lives – for example, I still enjoy creating forms of artwork, particularly paintings, and it is meaningful to me. Teachers can incorporate out-of-school literacy techniques in the classroom; for example we can learn from the “unschoolers” and incorporate meaningful projects – which can be done if we remain aware of what is significant to the students. This reminds me of how important it is as an educator to incorporate and connect relevant information to the topic/subject being taught so to cultivate their own self motivated interest in learning.
In “What they don’t learn in school” by Jabari Mahiri (which is a collection of youths experiences with multiple literacies by professional educators), gives insight into the lives of “unschoolers” who practice a form of out-of-school literacy. They don’t go to school and don’t follow a definite scheduled learning like “home schoolers” do, instead they may research a topic/subject that they are interested in and create their own projects – a type of self motivated learning. I think that all students are capable of self motivated learning and practice it different ways.
Out-of-school literacies are important in identity formation for young people, I remember when I was in middle school I use to draw and create artwork – it was central to my life at the time and meaningful. Just as the students described in “What they don’t learn in school”, Peter Cowan in “Devils or Angels: Literacy and Discourse in Lowrider Culture” (a chapter in Mahiri’s book) explores artwork by Hispanic (mainly Mexican American) students and how it is central to their identity formations and is meaningful to them – a form of literacy. These students understand the meanings of their artwork and the connections to their everyday lives.
As a future educator it is imperative to remember that there are out-of-school literacies that occur in everyone’s lives – for example, I still enjoy creating forms of artwork, particularly paintings, and it is meaningful to me. Teachers can incorporate out-of-school literacy techniques in the classroom; for example we can learn from the “unschoolers” and incorporate meaningful projects – which can be done if we remain aware of what is significant to the students. This reminds me of how important it is as an educator to incorporate and connect relevant information to the topic/subject being taught so to cultivate their own self motivated interest in learning.
Friday, January 30, 2009
What is worth knowing?
E.D. Hirsch felt that it was most important for a person to be proficient in the cultural literacy of the dominant society, and with this, he in collaboration with a few others (educated intellectuals) crafted a list of concepts, ideas, terms, etc… that all people should know in order to be successful (academically, socially, economically, etc..) in the Unites States. However, his list only created a known snapshot in history at the time that the list was made, and this is a major problem because what is worth knowing in any given society is always changing and evolving with time.
As a biology enthusiast/scientist (as I would describe myself), I can only give a few examples of what I think people should know regarding the sciences – particularly biology. I do not feel that anyone can say what is worth knowing to an individual; essentially, the individual knows and makes decisions about what is worth knowing for them. I think that given the resources, anyone can learn anything that is worth knowing to them.
General knowledge of biology:
- People should have an understanding of evolutionary theory – all misconceptions need to be eradicated.
- Basic anatomy and physiology
- Basic chemistry and math concepts
- Basic genetics
(I chose these because just understanding these basic concepts create a greater knowledge of how the human body works and develops, which would increase an understanding of good health. Moreover, an understanding of evolutionary theory and genetics would help to eliminate racism – since, scientifically, races do not exist; the idea of different races are socially constructed.)
General knowledge:
- How to read, think critically, make connections between concepts, and solve problems
I also feel that an educated individual should always challenge themselves by stepping out of their comfort zone – specifically, by studying a subject area that they are unfamiliar or uncomfortable with. Doing this can be a really great learning experience and will create new perspectives – you may even surprise yourself.
Furthermore, my list is subject to change and that’s a good thing. It’s difficult to assume what other people should or shouldn’t know; ultimately it’s the individual’s choice. And as a future teacher, it’s my job to give students the resources and tools that they need to be active, reflective, and critical thinkers/learners.
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