jr garth’s blog

My day at Tunica Park has been divided into three segments. PRE ASSESSMENT  We are studying the fight that African Americans experienced at the turn of the 20th century.  We have seen the fight for advancement that began with the Emancipation Proclamation up until the entrance of Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois.  We have read and analyzed several issues of the Negro plight.  We should now take at a more localized look at the effects that the natural landscape(Mississippi River) had on African Americans in Mississippi.

ASSESSMENT    While at the park, the student will assume the job of private investigator. He/she must examine all exhibits carefully, taking note of the cause/effect of all issues surrounding the river. The student has the liberty of focusing on a specific aspect if he/she chooses.  They may include but are not limited to social, political,economical,etc.  The student must compile as much data as possible in order to complete the assessment successfully upon return to the classroom. 

     Once we have returned from Tunica Park, the student must take his/her compiled data and recreate a day in the life of a Mississippi resident living by the river.  The time period will coincide with the same era in which Washington and DuBois are changingthe national landscape.  The rubric that will be used to determine the validity of this assignment will be based upon ideas, content accuracy, grammar and spelling, and expressive freedom.  Each category will be graded upon a scale of 1-4 , with one being the lowest and  four being the highest.  Good luck!!!!

     The name of the reading that I chose was Social Studies for Secondary Schools: Teaching to Learn, Learning to Teach.  It was very fascinating from the standpoint that it made me realize that the first thing a great teacher in training must do is understand the mission of the respective teacher.  Alan Singer, the author of this piece, opens the book with many questions that I believe should be answered before the any lesson has been taught.  They include why teach social studies, what is the importance of social studies, what ate historical facts, how does a historian approach histoey, and several others that follow suit.  That opening really hooked me for the read because it made me realize the broad range that social studies falls under.  With such a huge umbrella, it can be quite easy to lose sight of the actual mission of the course that one is teaching.

     Singer goes into great detail about differentiating the lesson that one is teaching so that all students have an opportunity to learn.  I had heard this  before so this was no suprise.  The next thing that got my attention was how to teach your opinion while teaching the facts.  This was what I have been waiting to hear from a social studies teacher to admit that history is not objective.  The only thing that you owe your students are showing them that there are sides to history and dr. foster don't read this

this has been a really wonderful week.  i just got back the results of our first nine weeks district exams.  i teach u.s. history so that is state tested.  i am pleased to say that my students had the best scores in the school and we had a great increase from last year.  this is with two first year history teachers leading the way.  needless to say, i was really proud of my students.

after i reviewed the scores, i noticed that most of my students missed the same problems which tells me what i have to work on for the state test.  i told my students that although we made advancement, we had not made progress yet so we needed to continue to press forward.  they then told me that there was no difference between progress and advancement which opened up a great teaching moment.  i can already see my kids learning how to think and i guarantee that we will have even higher scores this time.  

The article was pretty simple in nature.  Hazing is wrong and should not be done.  Or so we think.  It sounds just downright awful on paper but if you look at every facet of our society, some type of hazing takes place.  Whether you call it seniority or rite of passage, it still means the same thing.  Having experienced it myself on sports teams as well as other places that need not to be mentioned, I feel that it is something that will not cease.  There is just something about physically being pushed to a breaking point that appeals to the human mind.  While I don't agreee with the extreme violence that sometimes take place, it is what it is.  Furthermore, I think that it is here to stay. 

     I read this entry and I must say that it was quite interesting and showed me a side that I had not thought of before.  That being stated, I could not find it to be any  further from the truth.  It was sort of like looking at a picture through tinted lenses, which dictated the argument.  I did agree with certain aspects and the representation of the South was indeed horrible.  My argument against this claim however is quite simple. 

     I would find it really hard to believe that there is any 3rd World country that offers the same typ e of opportunities that the U.S. provides its citizens.  While that was briefly alluded to, I don't think the true power of this simple statement is seen.  There is no place like this country where a peson can rise from the lowest of levels to become "successful."  Thurgood Marshall stated it best we he said that " Anyone in this country can achieve anything if they are willing to experience the disappointments along the way."   That is what a 3rd World country can not give you.  So while it was an interesting read, I thought it was just that.

I have to be perfectly honest with you.  This may come as an absolute shock, but I have not changed anything from this summer's management plan.  I believe that I had the benefit of listening sincerely to former first years as well as knowing my own personality. This allowed me to craft my plan in such a way that it always had a umbrella of sorts.  I liken it to the Constitution of the United States in a way that it is a brief, concise document that allows room for change without altering the true meaning.  I believe that classroom management comes into effect 99% of the time because there is a deficiency in the learning process.  I try to keep my classroom full of interesting topics and information so that the students never have an opportunity to get too far off task.  

Ruby Payne's A Framework for Understanding Poverty is a must read for not only teachers,but also for anyone who would like to understand their fellow Americans better.  Payne had me hooked from the very beginning.  She explained that their were many misconceptions and unwritten rules concerning poverty.  This is the first time that I have ever seen someone try to actually logically place poverty and  its many components in their proper place.  The rules made perfect sense to me, especially the one that stated that there is a transition between the levels that are not clear cut and also not vertical in mobility. 

Payne makes a great effort to generalize a major problem within the United States which is poverty.  Poverty however was seen in a very different light from Payne's standpoint.  I could not help but imagine poor African American kids when I read this book.  I also thought of Lali's Kin, the documentary about a poor family in the Delta.  I dont know if it was just my thinking or Payne's interpretation, but that's who I thought the book was addressing.

This book allowed me to see poverty through the eyes of someone else.  The only hangup I really had was the fact that was the fact about Payne being the Leading U.S. Expert on the Mindsets of Poverty, Middle Class, and Wealth. The problem with this title is the fact that she uses virtually no documents, research, or even peer knowledge.  She says that it is basically her opinion but she promotes it as gospel.  This does not make me knock her book, but I do question how much should be taken with caution.

My definition of Social Studies is very simple.  It is the art of analyzing all aspects of human interaction, both simple and complex.  Social studies can be considered a giant umbrella under which many other interrelated disciplines fall.  For example, the very term social studies makes me think about the school subject that is commonly referred to as History.  History is the study of the past, with emphasis placed on humanity's role in previous events.  The study of History however could not be possible without understanding the role and necessity of the Social Studies.  '

There are a few words that come to mind quickly when I think of my community, but since I am not a swearer I will refrain from using them.  My community is one of many faces.  Crime is high and drugs are rampant.  The students seem to be torn between two distinct factions.  They are groups of I can make it out of this place and there are others who feel that making it out is not an option so they just add to the problem.  The community in which I teach is very personal to me.  I use to stay in this area about four years ago.  I was also robbed of verything in my house in this community so I understand the intricate dynamics of this place.  My community is a place where I can push to achieve but I must also know when to back off or I will lose the student.

My first two weeks of school were absolutely awesome!!!  I knew that I was going to enjoy educating but not to this degree.  My students have been very cooperative, even to the point that I think it's even fake.  I am not saying that I have not been tested on a few occasions, but I have just maintain that teacher-student relationship in which we must work together but I am clearly the boss.  The school however has had a few things that are just tragic to see.  I have never seen this many ignorant African Americans assembled in one place.  It amazes me that I can see that student with the eight goals and  twenty tatoos never going to class and yet when I ask them what they want to be in life they say a doctor or forensic scientist.  It is not that the students don't dream big; it's just that somewhere along the line the ball was dropped between dreaming and working.  One of my major goals this school year is to always be an example that my students can look to.  I dont want to appear perferct but I do want to appear to be working at perfection.

 The one thing that I feel I must work on is staying organized.  I hate lesson plans and working in teacher groups because I can work really well of the top of my head. Documentation is so important though, so I am going to have to just suck it up and roll with that aspect.  I have been observed four or five times already and my administrators are ,pleased so I guess that I am at least doing a satisfactory job (at best).  Aside from that, everything is off to a wonderful start.