I'm a little late posting about my third JA session from this past Wednesday, November 19th. This past week turned out to be very busy.
At first, I thought I was going to have to cancel my third week of JA because my sister got in a car accident this past Monday. The two of us used to share the car, which meant she got it 90 percent of the time and I got it 10 percent of the time. Anyways, nobody was seriously hurt and my sister was not at fault. However, the car is history. Almost all of my friends live in different counties or states. The few friends that I have down here in San Diego are either full-time students or work full-time, so they would have been too busy to drive me all the way to Poway and pick me up. Luckily, our insurance company covers the cost of a rental car for the time being, so I went and rented a PT Cruiser.
My third JA session went well. This time, their teacher was there, so the kids were on their best behavior (unlike last week with the substitute). We played the same game as last time, but this time I tried explaining the point of the game before I handed out the materials. That way, they would all pay attention to me without fidgeting over the materials. All of the students understood the point of the game much better this time around and they had fun with it.
My next session with the class won't be until the first week of December. Mesa Verde Middle School gets the entire week off for Thanksgiving, instead of the usual Thursday and Friday for the rest of the country. Lucky kids...
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
Observation Paper
This weekend, I worked on my classroom observations that I completed last semester (Spring 2008). At the time, I observed two classes at Hoover High School. One class was a World History class, which was made up of mostly sophomores. The other class was a hybrid for seniors; for the first half of the semester is was US Government, the second half of the semester was Economics.
As I was looking through my notes from my observations, I thought about Professor Imazeki's Economics for Teachers class and my student teaching sessions with Junior Achievement this semester. I thought about all the hard work and research it took to put together a good lesson plan in Economics, especially for today's high school students. As I was reading my notes, I wrote down that many of the students in the US Government and Economics class had no clue what economics was. When the teacher went over the term scarcity and what it meant, almost all the students couldn't even pronounce the word correctly. That's how much they knew about economics.
When I become a teacher and I begin the first lesson plan for economics for my students, I'm going to have to do a good job of making it easy to understand for my students, because many of them might not even know how to pronounce "economics" correctly.
As I was looking through my notes from my observations, I thought about Professor Imazeki's Economics for Teachers class and my student teaching sessions with Junior Achievement this semester. I thought about all the hard work and research it took to put together a good lesson plan in Economics, especially for today's high school students. As I was reading my notes, I wrote down that many of the students in the US Government and Economics class had no clue what economics was. When the teacher went over the term scarcity and what it meant, almost all the students couldn't even pronounce the word correctly. That's how much they knew about economics.
When I become a teacher and I begin the first lesson plan for economics for my students, I'm going to have to do a good job of making it easy to understand for my students, because many of them might not even know how to pronounce "economics" correctly.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Second JA Session
Well, today I had my second JA session with my class.
Today's lesson didn't go exactly as planned, but in the end everything worked out well and the students and I had fun. Originally, I wanted to spend about 10 minutes with the students reviewing last week's lesson, begin the discussion on decision-making and consequences of choices, then play the board game for about 30 minutes. I ended up spending too much time with the discussion because the students were coming up with so many good examples of decision-making and consequences of choices in their lives. So we ended up only having about 15 minutes to play the game.
The students were really confused over the game. They didn't understand the point of it and it was difficult to explain it to them. Once I started passing out the game supplies, the students began to get really excited and noisy. Every time I tried explaining the rules of the game, half of the class would continue talking. Also, their teacher was out on jury duty, so the substitute teacher was the only one there to back me up. So I guess the students felt they were a little more free to be noisy during class. I did my best to get the students to quiet down and play the game without having to yell at them. I went around to each table and explained the rules to each group to make sure everyone was on the same page. Towards the end of the period, all the students were playing the game correctly and were on task. However, the period ended a little too soon for a winner to be decided.
The only part I didn't like about this lesson plan were the game cards. They wouldn't tear so easily along the lines, so my students got a bunch of torn up cards. There were so many cards to tear too.
Today's lesson didn't go exactly as planned, but in the end everything worked out well and the students and I had fun. Originally, I wanted to spend about 10 minutes with the students reviewing last week's lesson, begin the discussion on decision-making and consequences of choices, then play the board game for about 30 minutes. I ended up spending too much time with the discussion because the students were coming up with so many good examples of decision-making and consequences of choices in their lives. So we ended up only having about 15 minutes to play the game.
The students were really confused over the game. They didn't understand the point of it and it was difficult to explain it to them. Once I started passing out the game supplies, the students began to get really excited and noisy. Every time I tried explaining the rules of the game, half of the class would continue talking. Also, their teacher was out on jury duty, so the substitute teacher was the only one there to back me up. So I guess the students felt they were a little more free to be noisy during class. I did my best to get the students to quiet down and play the game without having to yell at them. I went around to each table and explained the rules to each group to make sure everyone was on the same page. Towards the end of the period, all the students were playing the game correctly and were on task. However, the period ended a little too soon for a winner to be decided.
The only part I didn't like about this lesson plan were the game cards. They wouldn't tear so easily along the lines, so my students got a bunch of torn up cards. There were so many cards to tear too.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Being A Teacher Is Like Being A Bodybuilder
This past Wednesday I finally got my first JA teaching session done. It was my first time teaching students, ever. I'm glad I finally got to test the waters and see what it's like to be in the teacher's shoes, because it's a lot more difficult than I had originally thought. It's not like standing in front of your peers in your class and giving a presentation on a subject you researched. It's much different than anything else I've tried. Although, it was a very rewarding experience for me, because I learned a little more about myself and what I need to improve.
In one of my original statements or blogs, I listed a few reasons why I chose to pursue a career in teaching. One of those reasons was because I had a few teachers who were very bad at their job. Some were like robots on auto-pilot; they only cared about getting through the subject matter or curriculum as fast as possible. They didn't care about students. Some of those teachers didn't know how to make sense of the material to their students, nor did they care. A few of my teachers didn't like students in general; they should have chosen different professions. That's why I wanted to become a teacher, so that my students wouldn't have to go through the same batch of bad teachers that I went through. I wanted to be an example of a good teacher, the exact opposite of a bad teacher.
The first thing I noticed about myself when I began speaking to the students was that I didn't feel quite like myself. When I am with my friends, I feel like myself. When I am at home, I feel like myself. When I am in class, I usually feel like myself. While I was commanding attention and speaking in front of a bunch of strangers who were my students, I felt very awkward. It's probably because it was my first time doing something which I have never done before. With more practice and time, I should be able to overcome it. The closest feeling I can compare this to is the first time I competed in a bodybuilding show. I was almost naked, with fake spray-tan all over my body, oiled up, and wearing nothing but a teal-colored Speed-O. I had to go on stage with a bunch of other competitors who were just like me and flex for a handful of judges and a big audience in an auditorium. Not only did I have to do that, but for the individual posing round, I had to pose to my own music during my posing routine
Being a teacher is like being a bodybuilder: You have to make sense of something that people don't understand or care about. In a typical bodybuilding show, there are four rounds. The first round involves comparison and call-outs in the "relaxed" posture. This simply means that the judges compare all of the competitors to each other while they are just standing on stage with their feet together and arms to their sides. The second round involves the same thing, but with the mandatory poses. The judges will call-out several mandatory poses for the competitors to perform (Front and Back Double Biceps, Front and Back Lat Spread, Side Chest, Side Triceps, Abs and Thighs, and Most Muscular). The third round involves each competitor posing on stage one at a time to their own routine and music. The fourth is called the posedown; it involves all of the competitors posing on stage at the same time.
It's the third round of a bodybuilding show that makes me think of my teaching experience on Wednesday. The individual posing round is a chance for each bodybuilder to go on stage and show the audience their creative and artistic side. They choose a piece of music to pose to, and the audience is supposed to enjoy it and become inspired. For my first show, I picked Andre Rieu - Bolero De Ravel, and I had 90 seconds to pose to it. To get an idea of what I was doing, download and listen to the song, and while listening to it try to picture a bodybuilder flexing and performing aesthetic poses which synchronize to the music. The song I chose was a slow, beautiful, yet powerful classical music piece, so my poses and transitions were slow. To the people in the audience who had never been to a bodybuilding show, they probably didn't fully understand what I was doing on stage. But to the few people in the audience who knew what I was trying to do on stage, they were the ones who were able to fully appreciate what I was doing. Now try to picture yourself being in the shoes (or Speed-O) of that bodybuilder on stage who is doing this for his first time. It must be very confusing at first and awkward to that bodybuilder to do this in front of an audience and make sense of it.
Teaching a bunch of strangers in front of a classroom felt kind of like posing as a bodybuilder to a wide audience on stage, to me. I didn't feel like myself at first; I felt very awkward and unsure of myself up there. Also, I wasn't sure if I was making sense to my students (audience). Some of them could probably understand what I was trying to do and appreciate it. Others probably had no idea what I was doing or talking about, and were confused. In order for me to become the best teacher I can be, I will have to make sense of the material to my students so that they can fully understand it, much like how a professional bodybuilder with a powerful and monstrous physique can pose slowly to classical music and make it look beautiful.
In one of my original statements or blogs, I listed a few reasons why I chose to pursue a career in teaching. One of those reasons was because I had a few teachers who were very bad at their job. Some were like robots on auto-pilot; they only cared about getting through the subject matter or curriculum as fast as possible. They didn't care about students. Some of those teachers didn't know how to make sense of the material to their students, nor did they care. A few of my teachers didn't like students in general; they should have chosen different professions. That's why I wanted to become a teacher, so that my students wouldn't have to go through the same batch of bad teachers that I went through. I wanted to be an example of a good teacher, the exact opposite of a bad teacher.
The first thing I noticed about myself when I began speaking to the students was that I didn't feel quite like myself. When I am with my friends, I feel like myself. When I am at home, I feel like myself. When I am in class, I usually feel like myself. While I was commanding attention and speaking in front of a bunch of strangers who were my students, I felt very awkward. It's probably because it was my first time doing something which I have never done before. With more practice and time, I should be able to overcome it. The closest feeling I can compare this to is the first time I competed in a bodybuilding show. I was almost naked, with fake spray-tan all over my body, oiled up, and wearing nothing but a teal-colored Speed-O. I had to go on stage with a bunch of other competitors who were just like me and flex for a handful of judges and a big audience in an auditorium. Not only did I have to do that, but for the individual posing round, I had to pose to my own music during my posing routine
Being a teacher is like being a bodybuilder: You have to make sense of something that people don't understand or care about. In a typical bodybuilding show, there are four rounds. The first round involves comparison and call-outs in the "relaxed" posture. This simply means that the judges compare all of the competitors to each other while they are just standing on stage with their feet together and arms to their sides. The second round involves the same thing, but with the mandatory poses. The judges will call-out several mandatory poses for the competitors to perform (Front and Back Double Biceps, Front and Back Lat Spread, Side Chest, Side Triceps, Abs and Thighs, and Most Muscular). The third round involves each competitor posing on stage one at a time to their own routine and music. The fourth is called the posedown; it involves all of the competitors posing on stage at the same time.
It's the third round of a bodybuilding show that makes me think of my teaching experience on Wednesday. The individual posing round is a chance for each bodybuilder to go on stage and show the audience their creative and artistic side. They choose a piece of music to pose to, and the audience is supposed to enjoy it and become inspired. For my first show, I picked Andre Rieu - Bolero De Ravel, and I had 90 seconds to pose to it. To get an idea of what I was doing, download and listen to the song, and while listening to it try to picture a bodybuilder flexing and performing aesthetic poses which synchronize to the music. The song I chose was a slow, beautiful, yet powerful classical music piece, so my poses and transitions were slow. To the people in the audience who had never been to a bodybuilding show, they probably didn't fully understand what I was doing on stage. But to the few people in the audience who knew what I was trying to do on stage, they were the ones who were able to fully appreciate what I was doing. Now try to picture yourself being in the shoes (or Speed-O) of that bodybuilder on stage who is doing this for his first time. It must be very confusing at first and awkward to that bodybuilder to do this in front of an audience and make sense of it.
Teaching a bunch of strangers in front of a classroom felt kind of like posing as a bodybuilder to a wide audience on stage, to me. I didn't feel like myself at first; I felt very awkward and unsure of myself up there. Also, I wasn't sure if I was making sense to my students (audience). Some of them could probably understand what I was trying to do and appreciate it. Others probably had no idea what I was doing or talking about, and were confused. In order for me to become the best teacher I can be, I will have to make sense of the material to my students so that they can fully understand it, much like how a professional bodybuilder with a powerful and monstrous physique can pose slowly to classical music and make it look beautiful.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Getting Ready For My First JA Session
This Wednesday, I'll be doing my first student teaching session with JA. It took me a while to finally get started with this, because my JA representative couldn't find a school and a teacher for me to work with. About three weeks ago, my JA representative finally found me a teacher to work with, but the teacher asked me to start coming in on November 5th. So I will be getting ready for my first session on Tuesday night. I'm a little nervous and a little excited. I'm nervous because I will have to teach for an entire 45-minute session, once a week for the next six weeks. In the past, I only had to observe classrooms, this time I'll actually be teaching a class, so there's a lot of responsiblity on my shoulders. I'm excited because I will finally get a little taste of what my future career will involve. I've chosen to pursue a career in teaching, so this student teaching session with JA will help prepare me for my future career.
That's about it for this past weekend. I had a pretty boring weekend. I didn't do much on Halloween. I just passed out candy to kids that stopped by for trick-or-treating then hung out with a friend for a couple hours afterwards.
The most exciting thing I did was complete my mail-in voting ballot and mailed it. Two of the most important issues to me on my voting ballot were the presidental election and Prop. 8. I decided to vote for McCain and Palin. I trust John McCain with the presidency the most out of all the other candidates. He has good character (one example is when he chose to stay as a POW during the Vietnam War, when he had the option to be snuck out earlier). He also has a lot of experience as a politician (26 years) which makes him qualified to hold the highest office in the land. I identify more with John McCain than the other candidates. I'm also the type of person who votes more on the character and qualifications of a politician rather than what they say they'll do once they're elected into office. Any politician can change their mind about what they said they were going to do once elected into office (remember George W. Bush?). But their character hardly changes.
The other issue that I felt was very important to me was Proposition 8. Marriage between a man and a woman is a very important issue to me, because only a man and a woman combined are capable of PRODUCING a family. Ask all of these gays and lesbians where they came from, I doubt any of them will say that they came from gay or lesbian couples. So I definitely voted Yes on my ballot for Prop. 8. I believe that all of the gays and lesbians in California who are fighting on this issue are viewing this issue the wrong way. They say that they want equality; but equality is not the issue here. The issue here is the sanctity of marriage; marriage has always been between a man and a woman for as long as history can remember. Changing the way marriage has always been would be like changing Thanksgiving Day dinner with vegetarian food instead of turkey because the vegetarians want "equality." Being gay or lesbian is a choice that goes against typical family values in our society. I believe that this issue goes even further than just marriage alone. Gays and lesbians want the state to recognize their status so that they can save money on taxes and be recognized as a couple by the state. If gays and lesbians didn't care about saving money on their tax forms, then they wouldn't be making such a big deal about marriage and equality. Gays and lesbians make up a very small fraction of society, they are not the majority so why should they ruin something which the majority loves so much just the way it is? If they want to experience the same joys of marriage as the rest of society does, and have the state recognize it, then they need to revert from their lifestyle. I also believe in the slippery-slope argument. If we allow gays and lesbians to marry in California, where will it end? Will pedophiles with underage lovers spring up and say they want the same rights too? Will people who practice bestiality suddenly say they want to marry their pets too? Will people be able to marry lifeless objects too? Where does it end? If we don't draw a line somewhere and put it in writing, there's no end to it.
Aside from everything I just said, I will admit that I am a Christian (non-denominiational) with Christian values. So I find homosexuality to be disgusting and wrong to begin with. I also think that gays and lesbians who are trying to push their lifestyle and this issue in our faces are being selfish too. If married couples couldn't save money on their tax forms, then they probably wouldn't be pushing this issue at all. Also, if having a gay or lesbian lifestyle is your thing, then keep it in the privacy of your own home. The rest of society doesn't need you to rub it in their faces. I have a friend who went to Disneyland last month with his girlfriend, and they were shocked and unprepared to see that there was a gay pride parade at Disneyland. Of all the places in the world to have a gay pride parade, Disneyland?!?!
That's about it for this past weekend. I had a pretty boring weekend. I didn't do much on Halloween. I just passed out candy to kids that stopped by for trick-or-treating then hung out with a friend for a couple hours afterwards.
The most exciting thing I did was complete my mail-in voting ballot and mailed it. Two of the most important issues to me on my voting ballot were the presidental election and Prop. 8. I decided to vote for McCain and Palin. I trust John McCain with the presidency the most out of all the other candidates. He has good character (one example is when he chose to stay as a POW during the Vietnam War, when he had the option to be snuck out earlier). He also has a lot of experience as a politician (26 years) which makes him qualified to hold the highest office in the land. I identify more with John McCain than the other candidates. I'm also the type of person who votes more on the character and qualifications of a politician rather than what they say they'll do once they're elected into office. Any politician can change their mind about what they said they were going to do once elected into office (remember George W. Bush?). But their character hardly changes.
The other issue that I felt was very important to me was Proposition 8. Marriage between a man and a woman is a very important issue to me, because only a man and a woman combined are capable of PRODUCING a family. Ask all of these gays and lesbians where they came from, I doubt any of them will say that they came from gay or lesbian couples. So I definitely voted Yes on my ballot for Prop. 8. I believe that all of the gays and lesbians in California who are fighting on this issue are viewing this issue the wrong way. They say that they want equality; but equality is not the issue here. The issue here is the sanctity of marriage; marriage has always been between a man and a woman for as long as history can remember. Changing the way marriage has always been would be like changing Thanksgiving Day dinner with vegetarian food instead of turkey because the vegetarians want "equality." Being gay or lesbian is a choice that goes against typical family values in our society. I believe that this issue goes even further than just marriage alone. Gays and lesbians want the state to recognize their status so that they can save money on taxes and be recognized as a couple by the state. If gays and lesbians didn't care about saving money on their tax forms, then they wouldn't be making such a big deal about marriage and equality. Gays and lesbians make up a very small fraction of society, they are not the majority so why should they ruin something which the majority loves so much just the way it is? If they want to experience the same joys of marriage as the rest of society does, and have the state recognize it, then they need to revert from their lifestyle. I also believe in the slippery-slope argument. If we allow gays and lesbians to marry in California, where will it end? Will pedophiles with underage lovers spring up and say they want the same rights too? Will people who practice bestiality suddenly say they want to marry their pets too? Will people be able to marry lifeless objects too? Where does it end? If we don't draw a line somewhere and put it in writing, there's no end to it.
Aside from everything I just said, I will admit that I am a Christian (non-denominiational) with Christian values. So I find homosexuality to be disgusting and wrong to begin with. I also think that gays and lesbians who are trying to push their lifestyle and this issue in our faces are being selfish too. If married couples couldn't save money on their tax forms, then they probably wouldn't be pushing this issue at all. Also, if having a gay or lesbian lifestyle is your thing, then keep it in the privacy of your own home. The rest of society doesn't need you to rub it in their faces. I have a friend who went to Disneyland last month with his girlfriend, and they were shocked and unprepared to see that there was a gay pride parade at Disneyland. Of all the places in the world to have a gay pride parade, Disneyland?!?!
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