Showing posts with label MSU. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MSU. Show all posts
May 09, 2011
I Did It!
After five very exciting, long, and challenging years - I graduated from MSU! Although I am an incredibly nostalgic person, I was filled with nothing but excitement and happiness the entire weekend. I am so thankful to be surrounded by wonderful and supportive people. I have the best family I could ever imagine and it was really special to share this time with them. It was just as big of an accomplishment for my family as it was for me to see me through this step of my life. Everything I have been involved with since my first day on campus has helped make this a really incredible journey. Forever a Spartan!
April 08, 2011
Questions, Questions: Part 3
Read Parts 1 and 2 Here!
The second part of this assignment that was important to me was to speak with students at the high school I am now observing at. I asked them some of the same questions I did of my teacher regarding motivation. I wanted to know what motivates them to do well in school, how teachers and classes contribute to this, and what they feel like the overall attitude towards school is in their community.
While speaking to the students they said that, interestingly enough, their friends were the main motivating factor in their lives. They explained that if someone they know is taking a harder class or getting involved in an organization, they can be convinced to do so also. They also said that they are very competitive with friends over grades, so it is important for them to not fall behind what other people are achieving. I think it is important to point out here that the group of eight students I spoke to volunteered to help me out and were (by a quick and informal poll while we spoke) all members of varsity sports, NHS, or some type of extra-curricular organization. I assume that the fact that these were academically high-achieving and involved students has an effect on their answers to my questions.
Some of their advice to me as a new teacher was that lectures and discussions were the best format for Social Studies classes. When I asked why, they told me that Social Studies is one of the only times during the day that they get to have much an opinion on subjects, and that they enjoy being able to do so. They also said that the most frustrating things a teacher can do are to not know the information they are teaching, or to not return assignments or grades back to them in a reasonable amount of time.
One of the things that I have working in my favor as a brand-new teacher is that I still completely understand what it is like to be a student. I could relate to what these students had to say about their experiences much easier than I could to what my host teacher had to say. Both had wonderful and insightful advice for me and I think keeping a balance between the teacher side of me and the student side of me will be key to my own success.
The second part of this assignment that was important to me was to speak with students at the high school I am now observing at. I asked them some of the same questions I did of my teacher regarding motivation. I wanted to know what motivates them to do well in school, how teachers and classes contribute to this, and what they feel like the overall attitude towards school is in their community.
While speaking to the students they said that, interestingly enough, their friends were the main motivating factor in their lives. They explained that if someone they know is taking a harder class or getting involved in an organization, they can be convinced to do so also. They also said that they are very competitive with friends over grades, so it is important for them to not fall behind what other people are achieving. I think it is important to point out here that the group of eight students I spoke to volunteered to help me out and were (by a quick and informal poll while we spoke) all members of varsity sports, NHS, or some type of extra-curricular organization. I assume that the fact that these were academically high-achieving and involved students has an effect on their answers to my questions.
Some of their advice to me as a new teacher was that lectures and discussions were the best format for Social Studies classes. When I asked why, they told me that Social Studies is one of the only times during the day that they get to have much an opinion on subjects, and that they enjoy being able to do so. They also said that the most frustrating things a teacher can do are to not know the information they are teaching, or to not return assignments or grades back to them in a reasonable amount of time.
One of the things that I have working in my favor as a brand-new teacher is that I still completely understand what it is like to be a student. I could relate to what these students had to say about their experiences much easier than I could to what my host teacher had to say. Both had wonderful and insightful advice for me and I think keeping a balance between the teacher side of me and the student side of me will be key to my own success.
April 06, 2011
Questions, Questions: Part 2
This will make more sense if you read this first!
As most things regarding education seem to do, the more answers I hear, the more questions I end up having. Recently, I was able to sit down with my host teacher and have a discussion about motivation. Most importantly, I was interested in seeing what she had to say about how she motivates her students, and how effective those methods seem to be. According to my teacher, the easiest and most prevalent way teachers motivate students and show progress are through grades. She explained that she feels that most students at our school feel that just passing classes is enough, and that there doesn't seem to be much of a desire to excel beyond that by the majority of students. In our class, her policy for late work is much more lenient than some other teachers in the school. My teachers allows students almost the entire trimester to get homework assignments turned into her for at least partial credit. According to her this, coupled with a regular email update to parents every week, encourages the students to finish most of their assignments. Her most salient advice to me was the importance of follow through. She said that whatever policies I establish need to be adhered to in all cases, and similarly at all times. I think this is great advice because it allows to establish a precedent within my classroom.
An interesting thing that my host teacher brought up is that she tries to use positive encouragement sparingly. Her reasoning was that if a student answers a question and you tell them that it was a "great answer", then it discourages other students from answering, or from that student pushing past their initial answer. I have very mixed feelings about this approach. I can see what she is saying but I feel like you can still validate and praise all answers, while still pushing students. I personally am a very positive person, so it would be difficult for me to take this approach. I have noticed that she does not use positive verbal encouragement very often with her students and have wondered how it effects her relationship with them.
Something that struck me during our interview that my teacher said several time was that, "we don't have kids that go to Harvard" when talking about the student population at our school. There is a very wide economic gap within the community, but our school has honor roll, AP classes, honors credits, and National Honor Society just like most other high schools. She also mentioned that her own children who attended the school were part of groups of friends that were very academically gifted and high achieving. That being said, she meant that even the smartest students do not attend Ivy League schools. This comment really confuses me because I don't understand how there could be a vacuum of Ivy League material students in this one community. Both of these comments make me wonder more about how my teacher actually views her students. I don't get the impression she thinks of them as adults (or at least on their way to being adults). It is hard to tell whether this is from the community, her age difference from the students, or her personal style.
As most things regarding education seem to do, the more answers I hear, the more questions I end up having. Recently, I was able to sit down with my host teacher and have a discussion about motivation. Most importantly, I was interested in seeing what she had to say about how she motivates her students, and how effective those methods seem to be. According to my teacher, the easiest and most prevalent way teachers motivate students and show progress are through grades. She explained that she feels that most students at our school feel that just passing classes is enough, and that there doesn't seem to be much of a desire to excel beyond that by the majority of students. In our class, her policy for late work is much more lenient than some other teachers in the school. My teachers allows students almost the entire trimester to get homework assignments turned into her for at least partial credit. According to her this, coupled with a regular email update to parents every week, encourages the students to finish most of their assignments. Her most salient advice to me was the importance of follow through. She said that whatever policies I establish need to be adhered to in all cases, and similarly at all times. I think this is great advice because it allows to establish a precedent within my classroom.
An interesting thing that my host teacher brought up is that she tries to use positive encouragement sparingly. Her reasoning was that if a student answers a question and you tell them that it was a "great answer", then it discourages other students from answering, or from that student pushing past their initial answer. I have very mixed feelings about this approach. I can see what she is saying but I feel like you can still validate and praise all answers, while still pushing students. I personally am a very positive person, so it would be difficult for me to take this approach. I have noticed that she does not use positive verbal encouragement very often with her students and have wondered how it effects her relationship with them.
Something that struck me during our interview that my teacher said several time was that, "we don't have kids that go to Harvard" when talking about the student population at our school. There is a very wide economic gap within the community, but our school has honor roll, AP classes, honors credits, and National Honor Society just like most other high schools. She also mentioned that her own children who attended the school were part of groups of friends that were very academically gifted and high achieving. That being said, she meant that even the smartest students do not attend Ivy League schools. This comment really confuses me because I don't understand how there could be a vacuum of Ivy League material students in this one community. Both of these comments make me wonder more about how my teacher actually views her students. I don't get the impression she thinks of them as adults (or at least on their way to being adults). It is hard to tell whether this is from the community, her age difference from the students, or her personal style.
April 04, 2011
Questions, Questions: Part 1
A large portion of one of the classes I am currently taking revolves around our time spent placed in a local high school. For five hours each week I observe and participate in a classroom with high school Juniors and Seniors. With respect to everyone's privacy, the name of the school, students, and teachers will be left out. For an assignment, we had to act as a 'participant observer' to further explore an aspect of the school that interested, confused, or concerned us. I decided to interview my host teacher and some of our students regarding questions I had about motivation.
The reason I chose the topic of motivation, and how it is fostered, is two-fold. First, the atmosphere regarding motivation and enthusiasm about schoolwork was very different at this school than anywhere I had personally attended or observed. To me, many of the students were not passionate about school or interested in their classes. Having worked and tutored in mostly urban schools prior to this placement, this attitude was not completely new to me. High School is a difficult time for students for a host of different reasons. Unfortunately, popularity and personal issues often get in the way of education. That being said, the students at the school I am currently placed at were very different to me. There seemed to be a greater deal of apathy and disinterest than at other schools. In an urban setting, there are great amounts of passion, it is just usually not placed towards school. At my current placement, students didn't seem moved one way or another. They showed up because they 'had' to and for no other reason. The second reason I chose this is because, as a teacher, it is the aspect of classroom management that scares me most. How do I encourage students and convince them how important education is?
To keep my own thoughts organized, I plan on completing this analysis in three parts. This first entry being my intentions and thought process, the second will be about my discussion with my host teacher, and the third will be about my interview with students. Hopefully I can shed some light on this complicated issue.
The reason I chose the topic of motivation, and how it is fostered, is two-fold. First, the atmosphere regarding motivation and enthusiasm about schoolwork was very different at this school than anywhere I had personally attended or observed. To me, many of the students were not passionate about school or interested in their classes. Having worked and tutored in mostly urban schools prior to this placement, this attitude was not completely new to me. High School is a difficult time for students for a host of different reasons. Unfortunately, popularity and personal issues often get in the way of education. That being said, the students at the school I am currently placed at were very different to me. There seemed to be a greater deal of apathy and disinterest than at other schools. In an urban setting, there are great amounts of passion, it is just usually not placed towards school. At my current placement, students didn't seem moved one way or another. They showed up because they 'had' to and for no other reason. The second reason I chose this is because, as a teacher, it is the aspect of classroom management that scares me most. How do I encourage students and convince them how important education is?
To keep my own thoughts organized, I plan on completing this analysis in three parts. This first entry being my intentions and thought process, the second will be about my discussion with my host teacher, and the third will be about my interview with students. Hopefully I can shed some light on this complicated issue.
April 04, 2010
MSUMUN
Last weekend I was fortunate enough to participate in my fourth, but hopefully not last, Model United Nations conference on campus. Since I started at MSU I have been involved with an organization on campus that creates, organizes, and staff a conference for high school students to compete as delegates to the UN. When I was in high school, I had heard about Model UN teams and conferences but never chose to participate in them myself. Through James Madison College, some of my friends convinced me to interview to be on the staff when I was a Freshman, even though I had no idea what I was doing. Luckily, they gave me a chance and I completely fell in love with the program. We begin initial conference preparations in October and then work all year to train and prepare ourselves to host high schoolers on campus for the whole weekend. Personally, competing in Model UN is not something that interests me, but being a part of the staff has been a really wonderful experience. It combines my passions for history, social issues, and teaching in such a perfect way. The students, both college and high school, that I work with are the most interesting and engaging individuals that I know. In just the four years I have been on staff I have seen the conference grow into something really amazing. It has become more professional, better respected, and more successful than any of us could have imagined. This year, we had almost 500 delegates from 30 schools and four different states, discussing some of the biggest challenges that face our world today.This year, I was responsible for a group that, instead of being an official UN committee, was a mock Michigan Senate for the weekend. It was a challenge for us because it had never been done before and went against what most people were expecting at an MUN conference. We were nervous about how it would be received and whether or not the students would understand why we felt that this was an important avenue to explore. The committee far exceeded our wildest expectations in even just the first day. The high school students were prepared, involved, and passionate about their topics. The truly embodied their Senator's positions and eagerly jumped into the topics we had prepared for them (Revitalization of Detroit, Reform in K-12 Education Standards, and Transitions and Innovations for the New Michigan Economy). I am so truly inspired by these students and it just helps remind me that I am doing exactly what I need to with my life. Sometimes it so easy to lose sight of that and being involved with programs such as MSU Model UN has really helped me develop my own passions. Explore our website for more information about the conference.
March 28, 2010
Final 4!!
Huge weekend on campus for so many reasons (look for a post later about some of them)!! The MSU Men's Basketball team is going to the Final 4 in Indianpolis next weekend. I, admittedly, am not the biggest sports fan but I completely understand the excitement and school spirits it breeds. I love that everyone is so supportive and so proud of the school's team. It couldn't be any better press or publicity for our university (especially given the fiasco regarding the football team just before our bowl game in January). As I come closer and closer to graduation I am realizing even more how important my connections to this university are. I am so happy for the team and excited to watch them play. GO GREEN!! GO WHITE!! Photo: State News
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