11-10-08 Lecture

At our lecture tonight for Ed. Psych., we had three parents from the area come speak to us: Steve Becay, Rebecca Sullivan, and Mary Kay Lynch. Each parent discussed the characteristics found in teachers they considered to be the "favorites," and then also discussed those teachers they were not so fond of. All three parents shared most of the same ideas. They liked the teachers who expected a lot from their children. When Mary Kay's son was in school, he took part in Special Education. Something that she said bothered her, was when the teachers set such low expectations for her son, just because he had special needs. She would have preferred the teachers to have more expectations for him, instead of having the attitude, "Well what do you want me to do with him?"

Something that I noticed about the parents was that they are all on different levels of involvement with their children. Steve said that he rarely got involved with his son's schooling, unless he really needed it. Steve believed it was more important to let his children deal with their problems alone. Rebecca was extremely involved with her children's school experiences. She volunteered in the classrooms of her children as often as she could. She tried her hardest to do whatever she could to be involved with her children. Mary Kay was sort of in the middle. She wasn't constantly getting involved, but she always made sure to get involved when it was necessary. She also taught special ed., so she was more aware of everything going on in regards to her son's IEP.

I learned a great deal from these parents. All three kept stressing the point that teachers should NOT be afraid of parents. The parents simply want what is best for their children. I also learned that the most important thing is COMMUNICATION. When I am a teacher, I am going to try my hardest to make sure the parents are always aware of what is going on. I think my job as a teacher will be much easier if I have the parents involved.

The last thing that the parents have taught me, is to set high expectations for all children, regardless of the setbacks they might have. No parent wants to feel like a teacher is giving up on their children. I will make sure to set expectations for all my students, while also providing them with the appropriate tools needed for success.

I really enjoyed this lecture a lot. I learned so much!

11-3-08 Lecture

Wow! Never have I been more excited about becoming a teacher, than I was tonight. Tonight's lecture brought in three teachers who were Luther grads. There was a special ed. teacher, a choir director, and a fifth grade teacher. It was so awesome listening to the experiences that the three of them have encountered as teachers.

There were two things that I was really happy to hear. The first, was that all three felt very well prepared after graduating from Luther. I am kind of nervous to become a teacher, but it is nice to know that Luther will do a good job of preparing us. However, one teacher brought up the fact that we will NEVER be 100% ready for what we will encounter in the classroom. So much of successful teaching comes from constantly learning from everything that you encounter. Never let the bad things bring you down. Instead, look at the experience as a time to grow as an educator. I will carry that bit of advice with me forever.

The second thing that I liked hearing was that none of the teachers regret their decision to become an educator. All three of them said that teaching was a very rewarding experience, and although the money is not the greatest, you gain so much more. I am so excited to become a teacher, and I cannot wait to experience the rewarding feelings that they experience almost every day.

One last thing that I was happy to hear, was in regards to the lady who teaches special education. I am getting an endorsement in special ed., and I recently considered switching endorsements. She talked a little bit about the high demand for special ed. teachers. She said that only two people applied for the position in Decorah. This kind of assured me that I will more than likely be able to find a job pretty easily. I was glad to hear this.

I really enjoyed this lecture. Like I said, I left Olin feeling very happy and excited about becoming a teacher. :)

Ed Psych. 10-27-08

Tonight's lecture was based around the viewpoints of two school board members from Decorah Public Schools. I have to say that the majority of what was discusses was a bit over my head. I don't really feel like I will be able to relate to most of what was said, until I become a teacher.

I did; however, learn a lot of things about what school board members do. Before this lecture, I was not aware of the responsibilities of school board members. Mrs. Nelson said that the two main responsibilities of school board members are setting policies and hiring the superintendent. The school board plays a big part in school referendums as well.

I really enjoy the Monday night lectures, because it allows me to better understand how many people are involved in running a school. Like I said, this lecture was probably the most difficult to follow, because lots of rules and "legal" material was discussed. Although the majority of the information was over my head, I am really glad that I gained more insight into what it is like to be a school board member.

Oct. 6th to the 10th

This was a very busy week in Ed. Psych! On Monday night, we did a role playing activity. I thought it was quite interesting to listen to every one's opinions regarding the "school proposal." One thing that really stuck out to me, and really upset me were comments made by the parents of low achieving students. They were complaining about having conferences for their children several times per semester. They made some comment about how they would have absolutely no time to attend a meeting for their children. I was really upset by this, because as a parent, the children should be FIRST PRIORITY. My parents each have three jobs, and they made time for conferences EVERY SEMESTER, as well other meetings for my siblings and me. On the other hand, as future educators, I think that it is important to remember that we need to be flexible for all of those busy parents out there. Parents want to do everything possible to ensure the success of their children, but they also have a lot on their plate. I promise that when I become a teacher, I will do my best to work around the schedules of the parents, and go along with what is most convenient for them.

On Wednesday, we took IQ tests. This was quite amusing for me. I scored a 138, which is quite above average. It basically told me that I am brilliant. I don't think that is true. I looked around, and I noticed that everybody got really good scores. In fact, mine was one of the lower ones, and 138 is really good. I talked to Prof. Bruneau, because we are talking about Intelligence testing in one of my other classes. She says that the online IQ tests are not an accurate measure of intelligence. So I guess we aren't as smart as we thought we were. Just kidding :) I think that Dr. Langholz was just trying to prove a point, that IQ tests should not be the only basis for how much success one possesses. That means there is hope for me! I am not the most brilliant person, but I have a good personality. :)

I really do not think that we should base success off of strictly intelligence. There are so many things in life that require compassion and empathy, as well as intelligence. I can think of one such example. A girl that I graduated with is extremely intelligent. She is an elementary ed. major with a 4.0. But I can say with almost one hundred percent certainty, that she is going to be a crumby teacher. Her personality is very cold, and she is so smart that she has trouble explaining things to others, because most things come so naturally for her. On the other hand, I think that I will make a great teacher. I may not be a genius, but I have patience, and compassion, and empathy for kids who struggle, because I was one of them. I realize that nobody wants an idiot for a teacher or doctor, but we NEED to factor in their personalities as well.

Class Discussion for the Week of Oct. 29th

This week in Ed. Psych. was probably the most interesting so far. I really enjoyed the conversations we had, and the movie that we watched.

The discussion we had about the kind of music that children listen to was very interesting. I enjoyed hearing all the opinions regarding whether or not parents should control their children's music. I have always had the personal opinion that music does not have that great of an effect on children. I actually believe that parents have more power than the music does. If parents explain that the messages in songs, and that most of them are derogatory, hopefully the child realizes that they should not use these songs as basis for a lifestyle. Personally, I admit that some of the music that I listen to is very explicit, but it has never made me want to commit murder or become a whore. I think that it depends on what you want to get out of the music. If you are just looking for a form of entertainment, then the music will be harmless. But if you are looking for something to base your lifestyle on, and you turn to music for this, there is going to be lots of trouble.

In class, we also watched a clip from the movie "Thirteen." It was very interesting to see Tracy transform from an innocent thirteen year old, into a trashy troublemaker. I feel sorry for Tracy, because there were so many outside factors that contributed to her transformation. Her mom was a recovering alcoholic, who always seemed to busy for Tracy. She was also portrayed as "a cool mom," and those are never good. Parents need to realize that they cannot be their children's best friends.

Tracy was also peer pressured by Evie, and this caused her to commit acts that she probably never would have committed, had she not met Evie. Being thirteen is such an awful time. You are insecure, and trying to find out who you are. Most kids are fortunate enough to find good role models, but Tracy did not have that luxury.

I think that the movie "Thirteen" can send a message to us as future parents. We need to make sure that we are talking with our children, and making sure that they do not have to hide all their concerns and emotions inside them.

As future teachers, we can learn that we always need to be aware of what is going on. We talked about how in the movie, we rarely saw any teachers around. As educators, it will be our jobs to protect our students. That means we need to constantly be on the lookout for inappropriate and harmful behavior.

Opening Convocation 2008

Luther's opening convocation was held on September 4th, 2008. The keynote speaker was David Treur. David Treuer is an Ojibwa Indian from northern Minnesota. He grew up living on Leech Lake Reservation. His father was also a holocaust survivor, which I found to be very interesting.

Treur talked a great deal about the hardships that he dealt with because he was of Native American descent. Kids were constantly picking on him because he was different. He has become a very successful individual. He graduated from Princeton, and is now an author. I think that he can be a motivation for children who feel like they are different than everybody else.

I think that David's message can be tied into education. As future educators, I think we can all learn something from what he went through as a child. We, as teachers need to make sure that we are embracing ALL children, despite of their differences. It is very important for teachers to create a classroom environment in which children are taught that differences are not a bad thing. As a future teacher, I know that one of my main goals will be centered around making sure that children do not feel uncomfortable about being different.

Like I said earlier, I think we as future educators can all learn something valuable from David.

Some Thoughts About Ed. Psych.

I really like my educational psychology class so far. The class has a very relaxed atmosphere, which is really comforting to me, because I know that I do not have to feel intimidated to speak up during a discussion. We have been talking a lot about No Child Left Behind, and the measures that teachers need to take in order to accommodate different types of learners. In class, we did an activity regarding our thoughts about education before we read chapter one, and then our attitudes after we read the chapter. We had to act out different situations that we may encounter when we become teachers. This was very beneficial for me, because I am more of a visual, hands-on learner. To see examples being acted out helped me to apply the ideas to real life. I really learned a lot during this exercise.

We watched a great movie called "Lions for Lambs." Doug and Jim encouraged us to pay attention to the teacher in the movie. He had a rather laid back style of teaching. He invited a student into his office, to have coffee and discuss what had been going on during the semester. I really liked how Robert Redford's character talked to his student as though they were on the same level. He did not talk down to him, he treated him like an equal. The teacher also did a good job of challenging what the student was saying. I feel like that is an important part of being a teacher. Making a student defend what he or she believes, will get the them to think more deeply about the given topic.

I want to be the type of teacher that Robert Redford portrayed. I want my students to feel comfortable talking to me, and I want to avoid being an intimidating teacher. I have already learned so much in Ed. Psych., I cannot wait to see what else I will learn!