“What inspirer teachers to be the best that they can be?”
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In Their Own Words - (Chapter 6 – New Possibilities for Early Childhood Education)
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The stories in chapter 6 was moving to me and very beneficial too. It made me think about my past, when things didn’t go my way at a job that I was working at, I would start looking through the “Wanted Ads” for a new job. I realized, while looking through the wanted ads this will determine my future career “Wow!” that wasn’t a good feeling at all. So I starting to think to myself, what do I want to do with my life? In my own words, I want to work with children. So, I decided to return to school and get my bachelor’s degree in elementary education and become an awesome teacher. My experience going back to school is priceless!
One of the stories that impress me the most from Cristina:
“It was very difficult to learn so much new information and English at the same time.” Then she added, “It was especially hard because I have six children and can only study late at night when everyone is asleep. But now I feel better ‘cause I know I am strong. I even can help my children with their homework.”
This is one of the reasons why I want to become a teacher. It has nothing to do with money, but everything to do with opening doors to student’s future. Stories and comments like this, can also be a reason of growth for teachers like me.
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A Pedagogy for Ecology (Rethinking Early Childhood Education)
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When I was a child I remember my elementary school (Pacific Palisades Elementary) that I attended. The environment and surrounding was amazing, I felt surrounded by nature. My elementary school has hills and mountains on one side and on the other side, it has a tremendous view of Pearl Harbor. I enjoyed going to this school for two reason, one because of the environment and two because of the teachers. I like the comment that Ann Pelo said:
“As a teacher, I want to foster in children an ecological identity, one that shapes them as surely as their cultural and social identities. I believe that his ecological identity, born in a particular place, opens children to a broader connection with the earth; love for a specific place makes possible love for other places. An ecological identity allows us to experience the earth as our home ground, and leaves us determined to live in honorable relationship with our planet.”
As a teacher we need to realize that it’s not only about the teaching lesson but the environment surrounding the classroom and the school.
Now here’s my question: “What can we bring natural balance to the classroom and to the school we are teaching at?
Hi Gary,
ReplyDeleteWhat does it mean to be the best? Who decides what is the best? Is the best determined by culture and community? Could the best ever hinder teaching practices? Is the best imperative to creating classrooms which are reflective of the people, community, and environment?
You speak about a natural balance between the school and the classroom -- does this relate to an imbalance between what teachers might do in a classroom and the overall school culture? Does this pursuit of an ecological identity move against the current standards-based practices?
I wonder how you might make more connections between the readings -- is there something about balance and identity that might connect both?
Jeanne
Aloha Gary,
ReplyDeleteDoes the inspiration of teachers to be the best that they can relate to the natural balance of the classroom? Does being the "best that you can" vary from teacher to teacher? What kind of message do you hope to relay to children?
How do you incorporate who you are and the experiences that contributed to who you are to your classroom environment?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAloha Gary,
ReplyDeleteFirstly I felt like perhaps you left it up to the reader to determine what is the best we can be, then to explain what inspires us. Well, thats how I'm interpreting it, hope thats okay.
I believe that the best I can be is the point in my teaching where I find myself teaching in a comfortable routine and techniques that reflects my specific teaching style. Since learning is never done I cannot base "the best I can be" on the amount of knowledge I have learned. Then again if learning is never done then I may never really be set in my teaching style...
Thank you for sharing
-Taira Q
Reading your section about teachers being the best they can be, or an “awesome teacher”, made me wonder what being the best really means. Are we the best we can be if we get high grades as college students? Are we the best we can be if our students receive high scores on standardized tests? When I began my journey as a college student, I decided that I wanted to be the “best that I can be” in order to provide the “best” opportunities for children. The questions that arose as I read your post made me realize that before I can “be the best that I can be”, I need to define what “best” means so I have a more tangible goal to strive for. Who decides what the qualities or achievements of “the best teacher” are?
ReplyDeleteHi Gary,
ReplyDeleteI take my children out to have nature walk around in our neighborhood sometimes. We look at the papaya tree, the Ulu tree and the banana trees. In fact last week we walk across the street and we walk to one of our children's home. We collected a few different sizes of caterpillars and the Crown flower leaves. We collected a few sticks on the ground and we set up a temporary home for the caterpillars. We watched them eat the leaves and make "Duu Duu". It was a fun learning experience for all of us.
Ivy Pang