Dear Congressman McIntyre,
My name is Sarah Gurney and I am an education major at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. Due to the fact that I am going to become an educator in the future, governmental policies and practices hold more importance to me than ever before. I do think, however, there are many policies that need to be reformed and I am hoping proper reformation will happen.
I was just reading your website pertaining to your views on education. I agreed with three of your four interests of education reformation. (1) Reduction of class size. (2) Modernization of educational facilities. (3) Installing of better technology.
(1) I have attended a few different colleges throughout my college career. Initially, I went the community college route and I found the smaller class size improved the professor/ student ratio and the interaction between faculty and students that typically does not occur in larger universities. I then attended a large university in Raleigh, NC and soon realized a setting of that kind was not right for my educational needs. I then began attending classes at UNCP and this close nit community was exactly what I had been looking for. The moral of my story is that I had the opportunity to relocate to different schools in order to better suit my own personal needs. Children growing up in inner city schools or kids located in under achieving school districts have fewer opportunities to find the setting that works best for them.
(2) I do think that if we can work from the inside-out our schools would have a better chance. Improving the cosmetics of a building, may seem to some as a waste of funds, but I think even a fresh coat of paint can help improve the attitudes of the people who have to look at the chipping paint daily.
(3) I also liked your stance on installing better technology in our classrooms. Smart boards and over-head projectors are very important tools in educating visually based learners. Computer education is essential for our future generation’s success.
I was also reading the section on the No Child Left Behind Act and I was wondering where you stood on this issue? You did say, “…this act will be reauthorized this year and I will continue to work with my colleagues to improve the amount of funding appropriated to our schools.” I do think funding is extremely important but I would like to know your position and how you would vote on issues such as standardized tests? I am an opponent of such testing because I do not think the results are completely accurate. My vote for you largely depends on your stance on these types of issues and I would appreciate a response informing me of your position.
Thank-you,
Sarah M. Gurney
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
Module 5
I am a math teacher in a middle school somewhere in rural NC. While working at the chalk board one day, I heard a student call another student a ni**er. As we all know that word is insulting to African Americans and it should not be tolerated at all.
If a situation like this happened and I was the teacher I would immediately send the child out of my class into the hallway to reprimand him/her out of ear shot of other students. I would let the child know that kind of language would never be allowed in my class and I would send him/her directly to the office. I would then set up a meeting with the principal and the parents. Although I am aware racism is learned and his/her parents could possibly feel the same way, I would still like to meet with them and inform them of what went on in my class.
Even if that type of statement was not directed at an African American, I would still feel as though something like that should never be said and that would not even make a difference a statement like that is still wrong.
I have been trying to think of a situation where I would be uncomfortable. I can not think of any situation like that. I would not have any problems teaching someone of a different race, religion, or even sexuality. I would not even have a problem if a child had homosexual parents. I have been trying to put every possible scenario into play to see if I were uncomfortable and I truly can not think of one.
An issue that bothers me is abuse, either physical, mental or sexual. If the child's' parent were abusing him/her and I was aware of it, I would definitely have to take my information to the officials, whether it be the school officials or the police. As a teacher, I would be responsible for the care and safety of the child. If I knew something was causing harm to a student, then it would be my duty to stop it and help the child in any way possible.
If a situation like this happened and I was the teacher I would immediately send the child out of my class into the hallway to reprimand him/her out of ear shot of other students. I would let the child know that kind of language would never be allowed in my class and I would send him/her directly to the office. I would then set up a meeting with the principal and the parents. Although I am aware racism is learned and his/her parents could possibly feel the same way, I would still like to meet with them and inform them of what went on in my class.
Even if that type of statement was not directed at an African American, I would still feel as though something like that should never be said and that would not even make a difference a statement like that is still wrong.
I have been trying to think of a situation where I would be uncomfortable. I can not think of any situation like that. I would not have any problems teaching someone of a different race, religion, or even sexuality. I would not even have a problem if a child had homosexual parents. I have been trying to put every possible scenario into play to see if I were uncomfortable and I truly can not think of one.
An issue that bothers me is abuse, either physical, mental or sexual. If the child's' parent were abusing him/her and I was aware of it, I would definitely have to take my information to the officials, whether it be the school officials or the police. As a teacher, I would be responsible for the care and safety of the child. If I knew something was causing harm to a student, then it would be my duty to stop it and help the child in any way possible.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Goals for Schools
The Goals for Schools survey that we had to complete this week had many important topics on the subject of "Why we have schools". There is more to school than the old slogan of reading, writing and arthimatic. The elimination of racism and hatred would be wonderful, but in reality something like that would never happen. I believe if schools were to increase diversity awarness by educating students about diversity (racial, sexual, religious), would be a good start for the resolution to some of these issues.
The elementary school that I attended was a magnet school and it happened to be the school that was in my district. I grew up in a tough city in the suburbs of Boston, MA. My school district was considered the "good" side of town. The idea of magnet schools in my city was a really good opportunity for those that were receiving a lesser education. Our school would send buses to the "bad" side of the city and pick of students that either had certain needs that their district school was not serving or smarter students that were not being challenged enough at their local school. This made for a very diverse learning experience. We not only had the students who lived in the good district, but we also had some of the less fortunate children from a lower socioeconomic background.
In our small, but largely populated city there were three junior high schools. Due to the fact that I lived the better side of the city, the junior high that I attended was the best of the three. Although the school I attended still had fights and drugs, there were less at my school than the other two schools. Being subjected to the problems with society at an early age, in my opinion, helped to shape me as a person. I saw things that I was not going to become i.e. homeless, a drug addict, a gang member, etc. While reading about home schooling and other alternatives a major issue that advocates had was violence and negative things they did not want their own children to be subjected to. I have to say, I was subjected to all of those things and I did not fall into those categories. I think my parents and my family definitely had a lot to do with helping me to succeed. But overall, it was me who had to turn down the peer pressure and no matter what my parents had taught me, it did not matter, it was up to me and me alone.
I think an effective teacher really makes the students want to be there and want to learn. I think I will incorporate different things and activities that I enjoyed as a student. Teachers that tend to lecture the whole period usually loose a lot of students along the way. I want every child to succeed in my class. If some do not, then I will have not done my job properly. If a teacher can make class fun and interesting, then chances are the success rate will increase.
The elementary school that I attended was a magnet school and it happened to be the school that was in my district. I grew up in a tough city in the suburbs of Boston, MA. My school district was considered the "good" side of town. The idea of magnet schools in my city was a really good opportunity for those that were receiving a lesser education. Our school would send buses to the "bad" side of the city and pick of students that either had certain needs that their district school was not serving or smarter students that were not being challenged enough at their local school. This made for a very diverse learning experience. We not only had the students who lived in the good district, but we also had some of the less fortunate children from a lower socioeconomic background.
In our small, but largely populated city there were three junior high schools. Due to the fact that I lived the better side of the city, the junior high that I attended was the best of the three. Although the school I attended still had fights and drugs, there were less at my school than the other two schools. Being subjected to the problems with society at an early age, in my opinion, helped to shape me as a person. I saw things that I was not going to become i.e. homeless, a drug addict, a gang member, etc. While reading about home schooling and other alternatives a major issue that advocates had was violence and negative things they did not want their own children to be subjected to. I have to say, I was subjected to all of those things and I did not fall into those categories. I think my parents and my family definitely had a lot to do with helping me to succeed. But overall, it was me who had to turn down the peer pressure and no matter what my parents had taught me, it did not matter, it was up to me and me alone.
I think an effective teacher really makes the students want to be there and want to learn. I think I will incorporate different things and activities that I enjoyed as a student. Teachers that tend to lecture the whole period usually loose a lot of students along the way. I want every child to succeed in my class. If some do not, then I will have not done my job properly. If a teacher can make class fun and interesting, then chances are the success rate will increase.
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