Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 10 "Going Beyond the Classroom"

    In the first few paragraphs of the chapter it emphasized one of my biggest theories; that teachers need to make connections for students to the outside world. I really feel that this is important, students need to see that everything they do can affect the future and that especially in high school and even in middle school these decisions aren't like the one's they've made in elementary school where they could all be reconciled and forgotten. Not that students should be held for every single mistake they make because everyone makes mistakes, but understanding every action has a consequence and to be ready for that.

    By the time most of us in my area reached high school we had an understanding of this, whether or not we followed through with it well that was our own responsibility. I also feel like this type of tactic should be used in more schools around the world. Again, to make a comparison to city schools vs. non-city schools, teachers in the schools in the area I grew up in didn't spend as much time teaching the students about this, instead they just let the students fail. Maybe that was because there was too many of them, maybe it was because the students didn't care, (not that that is any excuse). However, we had students who "didn't care about school" in my high school too but the difference is teachers up in Maine spent more time trying to connect with those students before they came to the point where there was nothing else they could do for these students. It's really interesting to see the differences, and these differences are so evident to me because my sister went to middle school and half of high school in New Jersey, whereas I started middle school right when we moved here and I had a different perspective of going through middle school and high school where teachers cared more and put more time and energy into their students.

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 9 "When Things Go Wrong"

    One thing that really jumped out at me in this chapter was how students presented a new teacher's attempt at being liked by his/her students. It's really interesting to read about their perspective of a new teacher being nice to them and how they would actually respect the teacher more if they didn't try and put being liked by their students over their authority. (p. 167-168).

    When I read this I was really intrigued, but my first thought was that this all depends on the area (an urban area vs. rural). I can see where these students could feel this way, but I could also see the other side. As I've mentioned I am originally from New Jersey so my elementary school years were completed there. I can see how the lifestyles of education vary from a town in New Jersey to a small town in Maine. Most students in New Jersey school systems don't want their teachers to have a caring relationship that is put over their authority whereas, the lifestyle of Maine is different and people are naturally nicer. There are small towns and everybody knows everybody and teachers are generally nicer and relate to their students more. I think that's why when I was reading this I instantly thought, not all students would agree with what was written in the book because they do want teachers to have a caring relationship as well as use their authority, whereas trying to stay away from stereotypes city kids don't usually like when teachers act that way. Another example of this that really put this into perspective was that most students in Maine like to continue to go to Universities in Maine because they like the one on one interaction with the professors that they couldn't get if they went to a big University and that is the biggest reason I hear students say they like UMF so much. However, this is different in the city. Students are used to being just a number in the classroom, not being recongnized (an I am not saying that's right but it's how it goes), and going to big Universities they know won't be changing the dynamic of how they've always done things and they won't be put in the spotlight or singled out. These are all the interesting thoughts that this chapter really emphasized for me and really helped me understand the difference of teaching in different areas.

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 8 "Teaching Teenagers Who Are Still Learning English"

    The importance of this chapter seemed to validate various learning styles, various students at various levels in a class and the expectations for teachers. When reading this chapter suddenly all of these things become real situations and not just stories you read. As teachers we could all be presented with these situations and challenges and that's why I think reading about these in the chapter are really important.

    I was really able to relate to some of these stories; for instance, a student who a translator to help them understand the English being spoken in the classroom. I grew up in New Jersey and there was a wide variety of students with different nationalities, race, and religion who attended the same school and it was very common to see translators for students, but mostly they were others students. There were a couple of years that I had a completely non-English speaking student in my classes and they had a student who translated everything the teacher said to them in their language. This was frusterating for everyone involved, the non-English speaking student who couldn't directly communicate with the teacher or other students, the teacher who had to rely only on the student translator and when they were absent it caused a lot of difficulty, and it even caused stress for the other students in the class because it was hard for the rest of us to concentrate having other students talking while the lesson was going on. It also caused the English speaking students to be jealous that those students were able to talk and we weren't. It was really easy for me to understand the distress and discomfort of these students when I was reading this chapter and it really helped me look at it now in a teacher's perspective.

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 7 "Teaching Difficult Academic Material"

    Memorizing it isn't like learning it no matter how much students think it is (p. 123). It's not always easy for students to retain the information from a whole semester especially if it's on a subject they don't particulary understand. Memorizing is taking the easy way out of cramming in the information and then forgetting it the next day.


        Normally I wouldn't have too much sympathy for students who do this and I would say it's part of life and they just need to learn it because you don't always get what you want in life. However, I was the student in school who memorized way too much of the material because when it came to history and science I had difficulty learning all the concepts and information so before the test I would learn it long enough to put it down on the test. The problem is I do agree with the students memorizing it isn't how you learn things because most of what I memorize in school I forgot and I feel like I am not as knowledgable on certain subjects because I don't kow about the wars, I don't know who fought who or why, I don't know a lot of science concepts, etc. These are all things that result from not actually learning the content in school and I definitely wish I knew more now and that I understood things better.

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 6 "Motivation and Boredom"

     When students in the book talk about how they would like teachers to motivate them and point out how the things they learn in the future will help them later in life I am very surprised and also pleased to know that some students really want to help their future.

      When I read this it was reassuring to hear as a future teacher, because this is the first time I heard students validate my views on teaching. I do believe that as students especially at the age level we will be teaching that we need to focus on teaching them and preparing them for the real world. I think it's really important that teachers teach students basic curriculum of the school system but also to prepare them for life by teaching them responsibility for their actions, time management, the importance of being on time, the importance of deadlines, etc. by the expectations teachers have in their classroom. All through high school I heard that "this is high school now and the expectations are higher and certain behaviors are not acceptable." The teachers also kept saying that college will not handle bad behavior instead they will just kick you out of the class. Another thing they kept telling us about college was that if you didn't show up to class the teachers didn't care because you were only wasting your own money and if you didn't do the assignments they didn't care because it was your responsibility. I was well informed as to what the expectations would be like in college because of the preparation my teachers gave me and my classmates in school and that is why I am a firm believer in teaching students the responsibilites of life.

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 5 "Teaching to the Individual, Working with a Group"

http://domo.goanimate.com/go/movie/0QObZEWPrqaY?utm_source=emailshare&uid=08DqsQcUw60I

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 4 "Creating a Culture of Success"

    It seems as if many students are often overwhelmed especially when they reach the high school level. "Remember, your class is just one of the many obligations we have" (66). This quote seems to sum up the feelings of many students very accurately and it was unfortunate but surprising to see that that is so true for so many other students.

    As a student, even before I reached high school I was always overwhelmed with the amount of homework I had to do and it always seemed to me that each teacher was under the impression that their assignments and their class was my main priority. It used to bother me a lot because it's like they didn't see that if they assigned multiple things and a big project for one week I was going to have to struggle to get all of the other assignments that the other teachers gave me, and all their projects done in the same week. That's how it always was too; it seemed as if the teachers all planned big projects and tests on the same week which caused a lot of pressure and stress for the students. I am not one to say that students shouldn't have to work hard or get used to the pressures of the real world, and I do believe that school should help prepare students for life lessons they will need outside of school, but the stress of numerous projects and tests overwhelm the students to the extent where they can't prioritize because the workload ahead looks too daunting. When I was reading this, I definitely was able to relate to the statement and it started to help me figure out how I would manage my classroom workload and what my students would be expected to and what is reasonable.

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 3 "Classroom Behavior"

     There were two specific area's of this chapter that really struck me as shocking and it's really making me think, do I have the wrong idea? "A teacher who wants a classroom that works has to fulfill the bargain students described in chapter 2: Know and care about the material, treat kids with respect and fairness, and they will pay attention, do the work, give up some freedom, and play by the rules. Students realize that this bargain will pay off eventually, in learning and life success. But if teachers signal unwillingness to keep up their part, kids will immediately act to right the balance of power that makes the deal fair. The struggle that results is what many people consider an "out of control classroom" (p.36-37). The other note that works hand in hand with the first one that really left me appalled was "Be honest and matter-of-fact when students break the rules, reminding them why they all agreed to them. If unacceptable behavior comes up that wasn't on the list, make clear why it detracts from the goals of the class. Warn offending students two or three times at most, then impose appropriate consequence" (p. 38-39).

    These idea's of working with the students and not being a dictator to an extent is helpful because students shouldn't just feel like their being taught at but rather that they have a part in their education as well. However, it wasn't long since I was in middle school and high school and these ways of handling classroom behavior were never done in my schools. I understand that schools change and that as society changes so does many aspects of the world, (i.e. education), but I think it's absurd to have classroom behavior be a "bargain" between students and teachers. In schools growing up I was expected to know what right from wrong was and each student was responsible for their actions and choices. Now I am not saying if a student makes a mistake it should be taken to the extreme, but I also think that by the time students reach middle school and high school they have been in school long enough to know what is expected of them and what isn't and they need to take responsibility for what they do. I was taught what was right and wrong even as early as Kindergarten and I was definitely aware that actions have consequences by second grade and that is why when I read this I wonder what's different from when I was in school to now. Maybe because of the expectations I had in school and the fact that students in those schools were able to follow them, I don't see why it is so challenging for older students to abide by the same rules they've been taught since they started school.

"My MEL Experiences"

Student Teacher Relationship- My chemistry teacher in high school was very helpful and she set a very comfortable vibe in the classroom. She did not put up a barrier where students felt as if they couldn't ask her questions, but rather she was able to understand that many of us were new to chemistry and was very efficient and helpful in explaining directions for labs, was there to explain concepts along the way if we didn't understand why things were happening as they were.

Helping Students Succeed- Going into my junior year of high school I was going to take Honors English, but I was reluctant and nervous that I was not going to pass the exam over the summer reading books. This test had a reputation of being very difficult because its purpose was to "weed out students" because we had too many in our class. I explained my concerns to my teacher the first week of school, and he explained to me that the test was over all the required reading and his discussion with me not intimidating at all and even though at that point the didn't know that much about me, he was very encouraging and was not worried that I would have difficulty with the test. This really helped ease my mind, because a teacher who has never had me in his classroom before already believed I was capable of so much and that definitely helped me and pushed me to work even harder in his class than I normally would have.

Hands on- My freshman year of high school I was assigned to take on the leadership role of our class project in World History class. My task quickly began to take on many forms and I had to incorporate the whole class and motivate them to work on one project as a group, even when they may have some "down time" when they may have completed their assigned task. This was my first real experience of learning how to incorporate various learning styles and various students’ interest. The point of the project was to make something illustrating a point in history. We picked war scenes and fighting scenes, but the purpose of the project was not necessarily to have a completed product by the end (because no class had ever achieved that in the history of this teacher's career) but rather to work together and figure out the most effective way to get as much done as possible. I split the students up into interests, for instance: those students who liked the "hands on, activity" learning style were the ones that were the warriors and fighters in our movies, while I had others who liked the planning portion better and they helped me coordinate and direct the movie along with make the script for the project, we had people video record it, edit it, etc. This was my first "hands on" experience working with working with students my own age and making a movie and coordinating all of the behind the scenes work, and surprisingly we were the first class ever to finish our movie just seconds before it was due!

Autonomy-In middle school we had book groups, where the teacher split us up into groups depending on how fast of a reader we were. My partner and I were not the quickest readers in the class, but this assignment gave us flexibility in terms of our reading. The teacher said we weren't allowed to assign any less than 20 pages for every two days but that was our only limitation; we were able to assign up to however many pages we wanted to or complete the whole book, and then we were supposed to write in our journal and exchange journals and read the responses of the other group members. This was a very effective approach, because first off we were able to pick the books that we wanted to read so it kept me more interested in my reading, and it motivated me to want to read faster to see what was up ahead. Also, watching the other students reading multiple books within a few weeks and having detailed conversations gave me more encouragement to continue reading at a faster pace, not to be included with them, but because it was giving me more opportunities to discuss the literature. The flexibility was what made this assignment one of my favorite assignments by this particular teacher.

Connections- In biology, I remember we had to do a project explaining the process and the functions of different parts of the cells, (the mitochondria, the cell, etc.) I remember first being very intimidated by this project, but we had to connect each element to some sort of real life job and explain what each thing would be in that job. I remember using my mom's Insurance company (State Farm) as my "real life job" because then each of the parts functions became clearer to me and I was able to understand what each parts purpose was. This approach was much more effective than just trying to read and memorize the definitions from the textbook and I remember that I retained that information a lot longer then normal.

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 2: “Respect, Liking, Trust and Fairness"

           In chapter two, the part that presented me with both an understanding of where the student comes from and the difficulties and challenges of being a teacher was when the book discussed how students were able to relate better to teachers who are closer in age to them (page 20).

            I was able to relate to this well because in my experience having both teachers young and older, I was able to relate to those closer to my age easier. However, I was in high school at this point but it allows the students a sense of understanding and compassion from the teacher if they feel that the teacher can understand the demands of being an adolescent or teenager in school these days. This also addressed my thoughts on respecting a teacher though and how it must be challenging for young teachers to gain the respect of students who are not that much different in age from themselves. This may have been what jumped out at me in this chapter because it has been a concern of mine that as a future teacher my own students won’t take me seriously, especially in times when I have to discipline them if I am so close in age with them. However, this chapter’s discussion on respect and the importance of a teacher’s first impression on students has allowed me to feel as if there are ways to be a successful young teacher that is able to gain the respect of their students.

Fires in the Bathroom Chapter 1: “Knowing Students Well”

           The part of chapter one that struck me most interesting and what left me most shocked after reading was when a student stated that they didn’t want the teacher to recognize or reveal personal information about themselves especially publically, specifically acknowledging a student’s birthday (page 1).

            When I read this particular sentence by this student I actually had to go back and reread it because this was the first time I had to think of all the different aspects of students lives and feelings from the other side. This was the first time the job of a teacher became real to me and this students feelings allowed me to understand with more clarity that teaching deals with way more then just knowing the content of your subject matter, but it’s about how you connect with each student and how to adjust to each students comfort level. This will definitely help me in my future encounters with students because it allowed me to relate back to my feelings of being a student at the high school or middle school level and how I had a similar though process as this particular student. This one simple sentence has allowed me to connect being a teacher with the feelings of students at this age and influence how I approach each student in the future.

Learning Styles Inventory Results

     I think my results are accurate in some ways but surprising in others. I knew that I was a mix of all the categories, but less of a physical learner than anything else which is what my results prove. I would have to say I am mostly a verbal learner over any of the other categories but surprisingly the chart shows that I am strongest in the verbal area which in my opinion is one of the learning techniques that I have difficulty with because I do not retain information or learn it when spoken verbally compared to visually. I would say that my results are not as accurate as they could be, especially because they illustrate that my learning style using logic is equal to that of the visual learning style and I think that is completely inaccurate. I would have to say the rest of it is pretty accurate, I am about equal in the solitary and social learning techniques; I do both of those depending on the assignment.  

Learning Style Survey and results from learning-styles-online.com