Technology in the Classroom

Just the other day, my friends and I were talking about the advancements of technology since I started school. I remember the awesome smell of copies from the ditto machine and sometimes I feel a little nostalgic for the purple ink I so closely associate with the earliest years of my education. But by the time I was in the fifth grade, there were macs in my classroom because of the twenty-first century classroom movement. By high school I was making yearbook pages with Adobe Pagemaker and made finding interesting things on Ebay a bit of a hobby. Technology is an important part of my life and was an important part of my education.

I love the possibilities that technology and the Internet bring to the classroom. I find that my students are eager to use it, and technology can be quite the motivational tool. When I use a powerpoint, the level of attention of my student increases dramatically. They become excited when I use those things. Even more they enjoy using technology. While part of the appeal is being able to use the internet, they legitimately enjoy using computers. But as an educator, I have a hard time finding and abundance of online materials that can adequately supplement what we are doing in the classroom. Not to say that there aren't a number of resources available, I just personally have a difficult time finding materials that work well with my lesson plans.

But that is the appeal in Sesame Workshop. It captures the ability and the spirit of today's children. I loved that they provide an example that really captures what the internet has to offer: a child learning how to play the guitar from youtube. I also love the website's integration of materials for the parents so that there can be reinforcements at home. The best part is the website's ability to let students to be able to apply their technology skills by making videos and allowing them to interact with other kids online in a safe environment.

Diversity

I grew up in a military town, and this fact allotted me the luxury of growing up in a very diverse environment. While I am grateful for this, I am more grateful for the fact that I never knew how lucky I really was. For the most part, I was blissfully unaware of how lucky I was to grow up in such an diverse environment. My friends and I acknowledged the differences and made jokes accordingly. In high school, I was always aware of the way my high school was perceived by others in my town. Few people expected groups from my high school to do well in things, and we were generally looked down upon. At the time, I just assumed it was because we weren't from the more affluent side of town. However, later I realized that it likely had just as much to do with the racial diversity as it did with the socioeconomic status of the students. Either way, it was a shame, as almost all of the students I went to school with had parents who were in the military.

I honestly cannot say that I remember that a large number of things that seemed to be used as a form of social control. There were some incidents that happened, a few I wrote about in my previous entry, that were easily associated with race, but nothing I can easily associate with wide-spread social control Not to say that there weren't moments or things that would have been classified as social control, but few that I can readily remember. One moment that has always strongly remained with me is from kindergarten. My teacher was out for a large part of the year, and we had many substitute teachers. My mother, who was Asian, told me that if I forgot my teacher's name, I could just refer to her as "teacher." In Asian cultures, this is a very acceptable practice and is the standard where my mother is from. And even though I was only five years old and respectful student, the teacher barked at me in a harsh tone, "Don't call me teacher! How would you like it if I called you student?!" While this seems rather melodramatic, for my five year old self, this was terribly painful. I associated this scolding with advice from my mother. And even though this happened twenty years ago, I remember the experience clearly and painfully. And for me, it very much seemed as if it was an act of assimilation.

Again, I do not reflect upon my past and see social control as a predominant memory. Reflecting, however, I've realized that despite the number of different cultures represented in my school, this was never recognized. While this would have been enjoyable for me, there were never any incidents that seemed to merit such activities. Naturally, the curriculum was problematic, as it was very European based. I specifically remember asking my chemistry if anyone other than white men made contributions to science. He attempted to reassure me that women and other minorities has important contributions, however, he failed to actually provide any examples.

Although the two views are conflicting, I found myself agreeing on several points of both authors. Waxler makes several important points that I wholeheartedly agree with. The histories and cultures of several groups should not be taught in isolation. They should be interwoven to create a whole history and interweave with one another. American history has always existed with a variety of peoples, so these histories should not be taught in isolation. His bottom line is most important-students can be taught to think critically and apply the knowledge learned about other parts of American history and this will translate into success on standardized tests.

However, I do understand the importance of finding a certain level of commonality between people of various backgrounds. A post-racial society has certain implications that there is a certain level of equality amongst all people, and this would naturally be an ideal situation. I agreed that we were doing our Black children a disservice if we taught our kids about Black history, and they were not about to read at grade level or do advanced math. But at the same time, if find that the differences between various cultures beautiful and important apart of our American identity.

Multicultural America

The readings were a reminder is far from the happy-go-lucky melting pot that we like to think it is. "Pithissippi Burning" wrote about the reality that even though many would agree that white males tend to be seen as in-charge, there are some that feel threatened by the growing evolution of the American demographics and landscape. Tobia points out some uncomfortable truths: "In the wrong hands. . .The Brigade is very dangerous. . . .In this world, affirmative action has run totally amok, with every position of power or authority occupied by an unqualified, low I.Q. minority, homosexual or lesbian," and "For a very few people, this is exactly how they see the world today. They will not view The Brigade as an ugly transparent piece of racial propaganda. Rather, they will open its pages and find a positive affirmation of what they already think, along with detailed directions on how to correct these ills the goriest way possible." While this is far from the mainstream view of race relations, I found that the article reminded me that some people actually do buy into this philosophy. Tobia points that with the election of the first mixed-race president, there are many questions that America must first some to terms with.

I found that "Why Multiculturalism is Wrong," made many points and questions that I really enjoyed reading. Diversity is something that we say we strive for in America, however I am not sure how that is actually done in practice. In terms of legitimising racism and inequality in America, I have seen some of the same ideas and practices in America. There are some racial associations that cannot be denied. Recently, I saw a comic that commented he saw black people in Nashville, that they did not usually do; for example, cleaning hotel rooms. He openly stated that this a "Hispanic job." While it was intended to be a joke, it was clearly based on an American truth. It could be argued that not all people feel as if having minorities doing this kind of work has satisfied some sort of moral obligation.

I do, however, that as Americans, we tend to be guilty of the idea of compulsory culture. I think that this attitude is a matter of convenience--we enjoy having things easily understood and organized. Grouping people based on their national origin or appearance in some ways makes us feel better and easier about those around us.

I enjoyed these readings because of my personal experiences. Often times multiculturalism is discussed in such feel-good terms and feelings that the reality of what it means for individuals can be lost. Growing up I have always had to deal with many of these issues. It wasn't until I was in first grade that I realized that I was somehow different from my peers. I had spend the first few years of my life blissfully unaware. As I started to take my TCAP that year, I read that I was not "black" or "white" but "other." This, for me, was rather traumatizing. What did "other" mean? Even then, the word held uncomfortable connotations. As I got older I realized some of the things that were robbed from me because of the pressure to assimilate. I would never speak the same language as my mother because of her fear that I would ostracized in school. I feel that our relationship was lacking because communication was often so difficult for us. I could never imagine trying to raise a child in second language. It wasn't long before I learned that "Where are you from?" did not mean, "Where are you from?" but rather a passive attempt to my racial background. "Where are you from?" "Me? I'm from Clarksville." "No, where are you from, from?" In high school, I learned to accept that we would never read an author who looked even remotely like me and that my books were filled with old white men, who were likely dead.

As a teacher, I try to be different. The required canon is filled authors who do not look anything like the children I teach. But I tried to incorporate positive examples of people from all parts of the world. Last year I have an assignment that allowed the children to pick any historical topic or person. I had so many young black males pick slavery, it broke my heart. I stressed to them that they needed to know that their histories included great people. The last thing I want is for my children to associate such an terrible time with their ancestors. While it is important for them to understand, I want them to realize that their past is not limited to three hundred years of being enslaved to European-Americans.

Church and State

Religion is a huge part of American conversation. Regardless of which side they fall on, all people will fall strongly on one side of the conversation. The First Amendment states that there will be freedom of religion, not freedom of religion. Where this thin, but important line falls is of great debate. The most important thing is that the rights of all must be protected.

When Minersville v. Gobitis was heard, prayer was a fundamental part of the public American school system. The acts of the Gobitas children were seen as insubordination. However, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette the Supreme Court ruled that free speech not only included the right to say whatever one pleased, but the right not to say something.

The moment of silence grew out of the tradition of prayer, however schools cannot require children to do anything during this time except being quiet. One parent along with the American Civil Liberties Union, sees this as a way to incorporate prayer and religion in public schools.

The conversation and debate of creationism and evolution in Texas is more difficult. The conversation is filled with strong feelings and ideas, and it seems as if much more is at stake. Some want to change the curriculum so it will be more difficult to discuss the possible weakness in evolutionary theory. Scientists argue that discussing the strengths and weakness of evolution will allow more teachers to incorporate creationism in schools.

I find the First Amendment to be an important, vital part of the American identity. I recognize the importance of a student being able to speak their mind and stand up for their rights, even if it means not participating.

Personally, I think that there should be a clear separation between church and state, so I find the ruling of West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette rather favorable. I think the separation of church and state is an important part of the American identity, and I admire Roger Williams very much for that reason.

There is such a diverse population in our schools, that I think incorporating any religion would be at the expense of making others feel marginalized. Since schools should be an open, accepting place for all students, I find the idea unacceptable.

Innovators and Makers of American Education

The first thing that stuck me about the innovators in the PBS site, was the people that they decided to include into the list. Reflecting on the list, I felt as if it was almost a canonization of those who have made contributions to modern American education. I had previous heard some of those spotlighted on the PBS site, for example Mann, Beecher, and Washington, however most of them were fairly unknown to me. Mann seemed to be a natural choice, but honestly, I did not know that he argued for education as a public good or promoted the democratic and egalitarian aspects of a public education. I found these ideas to be refreshing and enlightening. John Joseph Hughes was one of my favorites, because, again, I had no idea that he had begun the movement toward the secularization of American education. People feel very differently about this, however, as a huge fan of the First Amendment, I find it to be incredibly important for all Americans. I was personally confused to as why PBS would include Booker T. Washington and mention W.E.B. DuBois, but choose not to include him. I think both voices are incredibly important to the history of American Education, and I found it to be an interesting decision. Overall, I thought all of the innovators helped shape the discussion and evolution of American education as we know it today.

Personally, I really enjoyed reading about the real makers of public education. I am a fan of alternative literature and history and thought that the makers website really made a very good argument about public education. Sometimes as a teacher, I struggle with the balance of teaching my students middle class values and norms with teaching a number of individuals to become a group of robots. The idea of schools as business made me think about Fast Food Nation, a book about the history and state of fast food in America. McDonalds was the first to effectively promote its product to children, and the website made me think of this instantly.

The two sites presented an interesting dichotomy. I think education provides one of the few opportunities of social mobility to those of the lowest socioeconomic status. However, at the same time I feel as if teaches students to belong and accept things without causing too much trouble.

Deciding on which of the two makers or innovators made the largest impact on American education as we know it today, is the most difficult question. With the risk of sounding a bit cliché, I have to say that Horace Mann, out of all of the innovators, has made the most lasting impact on public education, as we know it today. In some ways, Mann achieved the American Dream—he came from humble beginnings to achieve an Ivy League education to make his own legacy. He saw the potential of a public education to be a social equalizer for its students, he advocated for teacher training, funding for schools, and better materials and support of public schools. Perhaps, my favorite idea, he promoted education as a public good that could benefit all students, not just those that received it. While he was not perfect and failed to address some of the other social injustices of his day, his impact can been seen today.

Of the makers of modern schooling, it seems as if Frederick W. Taylor has made the largest impact of modern education in America. This was especially difficult. One could argue that any of those named—Carnegie, Ford, Rockefeller, or Morgan—had a huge impact on the modern education, with its focus on money end results. However, since Taylor inspired the entire Social Efficiency movement, his ideas have made the largest impact overall. The Gilded Age was a turning point in American history, and making money and becoming more efficient seems to have been at the heart of the movement.

The innovators were comprised of a rather diverse group, and that makes it very difficult to easily categorize them. Some of the innovators have some common ideas—Washington, Cubberly, and Hirsch all seem to promote a certain set of ideas. It may seem a bit controversial to include Washington, however, I see them as promoting working and learning without rocking the boat or becoming more independent thinkers. On the other hand, Dewey, Gutiérrez, and Meier share more progressive, empowering ideas, that promote the education of all children.