All posts by Nathaniel

What do your students want?

Blurring the In-School Ouf-of-School Line

Powerful Learners and Critical Agents: The Goals of Five Urban Caribbean Youth in a Conceptual Physics Classroom

Sreyashi Jhumki Basu

Department of Teaching and Learning, Steinhardt School of Education,

New York University

”

In my interview protocols, I asked students several questions about their goals, the aspect of agency in which I was most interested for this paper. For example,

  • What was your favorite part of this science unit, and why?
  • What do you want to learn in your physics classroom? Are you learning what you want to? What is missing?
  • What are some strong beliefs you hold in your life? What are some of the things you care about the most? What are your most important goals right now?
  • Does this physics unit contribute to anything you want to achieve for yourself or in the world? If so, could you tell me more about how you think about this? “

Reply :

These questions are powerful. The thoughts that these questions provoke allow an individual to grow as a student. The questions get students to reflect on what they have learned, how they feel about what they have learned, and what they actually want to learn. The answers can help educators create a more productive learning environment for their students. The ideas of students are at times neglected in schools. Out dated, “in the box,” ways of teaching have prevented growth within our school systems. Taking our student’s words into consideration when developing school curriculum, and  environments, may prove to be beneficial to students, educators, and administrators.

The essential goal for me as an educator is for my students to learn while also expressing the hunger to learn. If my students don’t express or understand the value of knowledge; then I am failing them as an educator. People have to want to learn in order to learn anything. Finding out what my students want to learn should be my goal in the beginning of the school year; then maybe I can teach my students something. Often we are passive in our students learning because of the pressure on our shoulders to have them succeed in standardized testing. We need to stand up and make a change and teach our students how to learn, express what they learn, and act on upon what they learn, to build, and progress as people.

 

Television at Home and in the Class Room

Differentiation as an Approach to Teaching Diverse Learners

 

Television has become a part of our everyday lives. Chances are in most households, low income or high income, there is some sort of television present in the living room. Popular culture has attracted the masses to sit in front of television screens for hours on end on a daily basis.  Adolescents join adults in front of television screens from an early age. Some questions as an educator that I would like to ask are: what educational television programs are available to adolescents? and how much television viewed by adolescents is educational?

Research has shown that by the time a teenager has finished high school they will have spent more hours in front of a television screen than in class. The amount of educational television viewed is different for each individual. There are many different educational programs available for youth of all ages. PBS Kids offers educational television shows for children from the ages of 2-8, such as: Curious George, and Sesame Street. Sesame Street has been known for teaching children the alphabet, concepts of friendship and community, as well basic language skills. Shows on Nick Jr. such as “Ni Hao Kai Lan” and “Dora The Explorer,” expose children to different cultures and language. In a house hold where learning a new language is valued, children may be able to learn words or phrases of the Chinese and Spanish language by watching “Ni Hao Kai Lan” and “Dora The Explorer.” Among other channels and networks, the History Channel, Food Network, Animal Planet, most news channels, and the National Geographic Channel all offer opportunities to learn about the history of our planet, and what it has to offer.

As an educator in a world where technology and society changes as fast as the speed of light, it is my duty to adapt in the classroom to keep my students engaged and on their toes. Involving television as text could be, and should be, on my agenda. Every student carries their own interests. As an educator I have to find new and interesting methods of pedagogy that will help open the minds of my students in a classroom environment that allows all students to explore their interests. It is easy to find a place for educational television within a lesson plan. For example: students may be asked to critically analyze a debate between republicans and democrats and bring to class their own ideas and arguments developed through watching the debate. Students can then conduct their own debate in class. An experience like this can help students with their organization of data, and public speaking skills. The experience can also get students to become more aware about the nation they live in; which should be one of the many goals for educators across the nation.

The amount of media readily available to the youth makes it very difficult to monitor or control what they watch and learn. With guidance and communication between educators, parents, and students; adolescents may be able to flip through their television channels and find an educational network. Whether or not they will stay on that channel and learn something valuable is another question. Students must want to learn in order to learn. If students come from an environment where reality shows, and the “Jersey Shore,” are valued more than educational television; then as an educator it is my job to try and break that mold and encourage the exploration of educational television networks by incorporating them within my lesson plans.

Important Links:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1054139X00001282

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/27/books/review/its-complicated-by-danah-boyd.html?_r=0

4 Colored Girls

eLiteracy and Social Media(tion)

“4 Colored Girls Who Considered Suicide When Social Networking was Enuf”

A Black Feminist Perspective on Literacy Online

By David E. Kirkland

Reply by: Nathaniel Jimenez

I’ve heard from people I have met in my life that “Black woman have it the worst” because one, they are black, and two, they are women. They suffer from racism, and sexism. Black women are objectified and used in every way you can imagine. Attempts to protect the image of the Black women are silenced by a hyper sexualized society that uses sex to sell anything, and to cloud the minds of men, women, and children. The voices of black women are frequently looked over. The voices of all colored people are frequently looked over. Colored women are forced to try harder than their male counterpart to be noticed, heard, respected, and accepted.

In the text Kirkland speaks of the literacy written by Black women. Kirkland talks about what we can learn from the literacy of Black women; and how the work of Black women can heal society. He uses the word therapeutic to describe the literacy by Black women; and I agree. The more we read about a person, the more we learn about them. The more we learn about a person, the more relatable and less likely we are to mistreat them.

I have knowingly objectified women. I have knowingly objectified colored women. As a Latino in college, I have had many conversations about race, ethnicity, and the weight that comes with being an individual of color. It is important that I am honest with myself and with my peers because honesty can help me learn about myself and our society. Being honest and open minded is important if I want to be a part of a global movement towards the social justice of all people; especially women, and women of color. Using knowledge that I gain from articles and readings I can help in the movement to help educate and open the minds of the youth to what we are doing as a people, and how our actions affect others. I may not understand what it is to be a woman; but through a woman I can hear, see, and read what it is to be a woman. No story should go over looked. No cover should be judged by its looks.

“Learning From Young People”

Socioemotional and Psychological Development in Adolescence, Urban Adolescents

Raible, J., & Nieto, S. (2008). The complex identities of adolescents. In M. Sadowski (Ed.), Adolescents at School: Perspectives on Youth, Identity, and Education (1st Ed., pp. 159-160.) Cambridge Harvard Education Press.

 

Reply to: Pg 159-160 (1st Edition): Learing From Young People With Complex Identities

 

In her research at Madison High, Laurie Olsen found that the great majority of teachers did not believe that the needed additional preparation to serve the new diversity at the school. Most reported that being “color blind” was enough. Yet Olsen’s research revealed tremendous discordance and rage among the students in the school, as well as a silence concerning racism and other forms of exclusion. This underscores the need for teachers to come to grips with what impact identity has on students’ learning and their sense of belonging at school.

 

A safe environment in a school building is a crucial component for any school community. Students, and Adults go through changes all throughout their life. Having a diverse school administration, and teacher population, can help in creating this safe environment for students and school leaders, or staff; because a diverse staff will be able to relate to a diverse student population. All school staff, at every academic level, can benefit from being open, and inclusive with their students and co-workers. People can not work to their full potential when they feel threatened by an unsafe school environment. It is crucial that students, and teachers work together in developing this safe environment; with the educators and administration serving as the model for the students to learn from. Adolescents get their preconceived notions of all things, people, music, animals, and religions, from the adults that raise them. As educators we are blessed with the opportunity to show all adolescents the countless opportunities the world has to offer; because we are with them for most of their life, from pre-k through college. Educators have the potential to motivate students to stay in school, or to at least seek accomplishment in anything they love to do.

Being color blind or silent about the diversity of identities represented in a school community is a disservice to students seeking acceptance from their peers and from the world. I believe in thinking “globally;” and the only way that we could progress as a people within a global community, the people of the community have to work together.

Social injustice exists. By ignoring the fact that social injustice exists we are leaving the oppressed, bullied, hated, or judged out of a larger conversation. What are the goals of a nation whose people suffer from social injustice inside and outside of the classroom, inside and outside of work, or even in our own homes? Why should anyone have to suffer from the negativity and dangers of an environment that harbors a socially exclusive state of mind? Young people learn from adults. Adults should take time and learn about young people as well; because people and society are always changing.

 

By: Nathaniel Jimenez

“The Light But Steady Hand”

Biological & Cognitive Development in Adolescence

Beautiful Brains

By David Dobbs

“Yet we can and do help. We can ward off some of the world’s worst hazards and nudge adolescents toward appropriate responses to the rest. Studies show that when parents engage and guide their teens with a light but steady hand, staying connected but allowing independence, their kids generally do much better in life. Adolescents want to learn primarily, but not entirely, from their friends. At some level and at some times (and it’s the parent’s job to spot when), the teen recognizes that the parent can offer certain kernels of wisdom—knowledge valued not because it comes from parental authority but because it comes from the parent’s own struggles to learn how the world turns. The teen rightly perceives that she must understand not just her parents’ world but also the one she is entering. Yet if allowed to, she can appreciate that her parents once faced the same problems and may remember a few things worth knowing”

-Dobbs

 

My Response:

I know nothing about raising children. What I do know is that I was once a child, and that my mother raised a fine man. I wasn’t kept in a bubble; but my mom kept me under her radar to make sure I wasn’t doing anything wrong or dangerous. I made my own decisions, and made plenty of mistakes. My mother allowed me to see the world for what it was; she provided guidance. She didn’t force laws or opinions on me.

Visiting Puerto Rico, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic played a big role in molding my state of mind. Experience molds people. Experience, and stepping out of the box or the bubbles we live in, can open our minds; as well as open doors for opportunity. Not enough experience, traveling, or not socializing with diverse groups of people, during adolescents all the way through adulthood, can lead people to live in boxes that limit a person’s ability to grow as a conscious human being.  What one person gains from an experience will be different for another; but the point is that everyone deserves to experience what the world has to offer. Stepping out of our comfort zone is the best thing we could do to grow as people and as a society.

As educators, parents, or future parents, it is our duty to make sure that the youth have an understanding of morals, good or bad; and that we do not shelter them from truth. Any truth. Adolescents copy everything we do. They are sponges. Keeping these “sponges” in a bubble is dangerous for our society. We have to allow our youth to travel through the storms to see the sun.
-Nathaniel Jimenez