Chapter 8- Hannah Schreiber

"I don't get it... All that screaming at each other and throwing signs, what do they get out of that?"
Honestly, when I started reading the chapter, I completely agreed with Ahmed's wonderings. What could possibly make them feel good about putting someone down that did nothing to them personally. Then as I continued to read the chapter, it dawned on me that the point of a gang isn't to fight and curse at another group of people, its to form a family-- a brotherhood, in the absence of a biological one. Kids join gangs not because they want to hurt other people, but because they need the support and acceptance of a group of people. If the only way that they can get that support is through joining a gang (and therefore doing all the other stupid bull that the gang requires you to do), then that's what they're going to do.

"I've got things to do Mr. Mitchell", he said. "I'm sure you do. So does the custodian who cleans this room."
Nothing bothers me more than the disrespect of another person. In my student teaching placement, I would look around and see all the other teachers leaving this huge mess for the custodian to clean up in their room, and though it is the custodians job to sanitize the room after school, they are not your personal maid. My cooperating teacher held her students accountable for the messes that they made. We had a sensory table that was filled with sand. If the children spilled sand on the floor, they were expected to get a dust pan and broom and clean it up. We also at one point borrowed the pre-k's science table (which had all sorts of tree nuts, seeds, beans, and dried corn in it). If there was any corn or seeds on the floor, my cooperating teacher expected the children to get on their hands and knees and pick every last piece up and put it back into the science table. Whenever our class saw the school's custodian, Bill, in the hallway, they said hi to him and asked how his latest fishing escapade went. Not only did this teach them to be more clean for Mr. Bill, it taught them to be accountable for their actions and respect the people who keep the school running smoothly.

"Me against them. That was my attitudes towards gangs when I started out"
This chapter in general made me realize that although I am completely against gangs and gang violence, I would have no clue how to stop it from happening, or even how to recognize that it is happening. I honestly couldn't even tell you any major gang names in this area (and I've lived here all my life.) One example to show you just how naive I am about gangs would be from over this past summer. I had been out to dinner with my boyfriend and his buddies at charlotte beach. After dinner, Drazen, my boyfriend, suggested that we take a stroll down the pier before we headed home. When we got closer to the beach, there was a huge mass of people surrounding the gazebo. Me, being the curious person that I am, asked if we could go see what was going on. I assumed that it was some sort of dance performance, since I had seen people practicing on the gazebo a week earlier. When we were amidst the mass of people, Drazen told me that we needed to leave immediately. Apparently he recognized some gang symbols that were being shown as well as the fact that everyone (save a few from the opposing gang) there was wearing some piece of red on their clothes, be it a bandana, a hat, or something.  When we got to the car tons of police had shown up and were herding the mass of people off of the park property. Until I was told that it was gang activity and that they were probably meeting to have some massive fight, I had no clue. I didn't even necessarily believe Drazen until I saw the cops show up. Hopefully I never have to deal with that sort of thing in school bc I don't even know where I would look to find that information.

Vocabulary Terms
moniker-

–noun Slang .

a person's name, esp. a nickname or alias.

nortena-

–noun

a lively, polkalike folk music chiefly of southern Texas and northern mexico, usually with spanish lyrics and played on accordion and 12-string guitar, sometimes with fiddle and saxophone.

mestizo-

–noun, plural -zos, -zoes.

a person of racially mixed ancestry, esp., in Latin America, of mixed American Indian and European, usually spanish or Portuguese, ancestry, or, in the Philippines, of mixed native and foreign ancestry.

equivocally-

-adjective

of uncertain significance; not determined: an equivocal attitude.

 

 rehabbed-

of or pertaining to rehabilitation:

Essence Extractor
You have to be knowledgeable and strong to fight against a major power in schools, mainly gang activity.  

Chapter 8- Stephanie Baldwin

Creative Connector

“’That’s not gonna happen to me,” he huffed assuredly. ‘Ain’t no way.  This kid’s not going that route.’”

I know this sentiment very well.  I remember driving in the car with my dad when I was in junior high and telling him that I would never have sex, try any drugs, or drink alcohol.  I think this came after seeing one of my older brothers royally mess up.  Needless to say, I didn’t stick to 13-year-old convictions.  As young teenagers we’re so idealistic, but not so realistic.  People and events have influences on us to change our minds.

“’Man, this kid’s got some talent!’ That was my first thought upon unearthing Marvelous’s artwork.  My second was, ‘He must’ve been working on this all period.  How did he sketch this whole thing out without me noticing until now?’”

While student teaching I had these students who constantly challenged me.  These students were especially good at making me laugh when I really shouldn’t have been.  Most of the stuff they said or did was inappropriate for the classroom, but still hilarious and sometimes witty.  But as a teacher I had to be stern and discourage that kind of behavior. 

Essence Extractor

In order to address serious issues in the classroom, you have to be tough.

Chapter 8! - Rachel Mosher

Creative Connector

Pg. 137-138: Mr. Michie’s first encounter with gang activity:

I still remember my first encounter with gang activity: once as a high school student and another as a teacher. As a high school student my freshmen year, we actually have a major problem with “gangs” forming in our school between two different groups of boys. It got to a point where fights would break out between the boys during passing time in the halls and eventually, a select few of the boys were transferred to other schools to break them up. As a teacher, my first encounter with seeing and hearing gang related activity was actually teaching in schools abroad in Belize for 10 days with a group at my undergraduate school called Friends Across Borders. I was taking pictures with a group of the 1^st grade students out in the courtyard during recess, and I asked them to say cheese or make a funny face. A few of the boys held up a symbol with their hands and as soon as a teacher at the school saw it, they ran over and started yelling at the boys. I wasn’t sure what was going on until another teacher at the school explained it to me that it was a gang symbol that was absolutely not tolerated at school. The more days I spent working with the teachers and students at the school, the more symbols I saw and the more stories I heard about the teachers and staffs struggle to keep the younger students safe and out of the gang groups around Belize. It was amazing to see how gang related activity can be seen all over the world and viewed in similar ways.

Pg. 141: “The Preacher” meets with the students in his room after the fight in the hallway:

Every school needs a “Preacher”! This is the model teacher who doesn’t just send the boys to detention, but treats them like adults and human beings by sitting them down, letting them discuss the issue and hearing them out. I remember a teacher back in high school similar to the “Preacher” and the way he would handle a situation like this. It’s comforting for students caught in situations such as gang activity in school to not be shut down but to be heard so that whatever the issue is can be addressed instead of suppressed and cause something worse to happen later. Mr. Michie took note of the ‘Preacher’s
actions with these students and put forth his best effort to do the same with those students. It’s important for us as teachers to remember the “Preacher” and the way he would handle a situation such as the confrontation in the hallway the next time we are faced with a challenging situation.

Pg. 153-154: Juan talks about the student teacher in his classroom and the impact it left on him.

I thought Juan’s comments on the student teacher in his classroom were interesting! Since we’ve all been in that situation, and we try to have the best experiences we can and make those special connections with our students. It sounds like in Juan’s experience, he felt that the student teacher knew more about Juan and actually knew his name more than his regular teacher. It seems to be true in some situations that the student teacher comes in with a whole new energy and perspective on the classroom more than those teachers that have been around for years and start to burn out. It’s nice to see that in Juan’s situation, he had a good experience with a new teacher in his classroom to feel welcome and enjoy school.

Essence Extractor:

Treating students as individuals and human beings during difficult and frustrating times can go a long way.

Hey guys! Kathleen, I think I might be the researcher this week?? So I went ahead and researched some websites on the topic/theme of this week’s chapter-gangs and gang activity in schools. I found some pretty good articles as well and websites alike that discuss the trend in gang activity in school and how teachers and staff are handling it,  even one article on girl gangs that are starting to appear. Check them outJ

http://www.schoolsecurity.org/trends/gangs.html

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/aug/20/nation/la-na-gangs-and-drugs-20100820

http://www.myfoxmemphis.com/dpp/news/local/041410_girl-gangs-terrorizing-high-schools

http://blog.heritage.org/2010/09/27/drugs-gangs-and-public-schools-in-america-a-call-to-action/

Chapter 8 - Kathleen White

Creative Connector

Page 135

“If he is really cunning, really ruthless, really strong – and many of us are – he becomes a kind of criminal. He becomes a kind of criminal because that’s the only way he can live.”

In a way joining a gang is smart. I never thought I would write or think this but in a way it is. Many of the students we’re reading about in this book are just like the students in the Rochester Schools, I think about the poverty, danger and discrimination in our city and I can say no wonder they ‘turn.’ It’s a built in family and protection, it is support for your entire life, you are respected (maybe for the wrong reasons but when you’re used to being powerless respect is respect). I do not in any way condone gang activity, I do however see a faulty system that does not serve all of its people, that leaves the majority of individuals in this country wanting and I don’t blame teens for joining. If the government, schools, economy… fails kids and their families how do we expect them to abide by the rules and regulations of these systems? I think of the jail system, if a person is in jail it is intended to be a punishment and correctional system. You have a regulated schedule, 3 meals a day, time to work out, forced education, in many cases inmates will be with people of like-mindedness. It seems that jail, like gangs, have a negative connotation in society but for the people they serve it is what makes life work. 

Pg 140&141 Moses Green stops a gang fight in school and sits with the boys involved.

How awesome is “Preacher”? What an amazing person to have at this school. Someone who believes and shows everyone that no matter what organization people belong to, they are still humans. He is an example to teachers, he wants students to keep gangs out of school and offers them a socially acceptable and healthier place of belonging inside of school. This is what I want to do: To understand my students on a human level, not to pretend to know what they’re going through, not to be their friend, not to know the latest gadget or TV show (though hopefully I’ll stay up to date), not to be a savior, but to know the person in each student. There is an explanation for every action taken no matter how crazy it seems, honor student or gangbanger (or both!) kids are kids. They need teachers who see beyond the masks they wear and can educate them as people.

Pg 149 “Have they made any difference? Or have they, in the end, just been school assignments?”

The answer? We don’t know, we probably will never know. As an art teacher I have unique opportunities in my class to be able to make every lesson applicable to student life (if I do it right!) I hope that some of them stay with students and show them that they have a voice in the world. The creations of my students can, I hope, make a difference not only to themselves but to their community as well. Its up to me to let them to the things we already know them capable of doing. If teachers can create relevance for their students, as Mr. Michie has, there is no doubt that a difference has been made within a student. Maybe a huge governmental change was not created by the letters to the Mayor, but now students know that they can voice their opinions, and that they count for something.

Essence Extractor

Students are people, they deserve the respect and service of their communities and when they don’t get it on their own there are, unfortunately, organizations that can help them achieve this in unhealthy ways.

???

I didn’t know if I was supposed to do research or vocabulary so I did a mix of the two and found this really interesting article from CNN about how the Drug Enforcement Agency wanted to higher Ebonics translators to help catch drug cartel. There are so many social and political implications of doing this and this article touches on many of them. Ebonics, originally a combination of the words “Ebony” and “Phonics”, is now more of an urban language than one for strictly African Americans. Read the whole thing (its only 3 pages) and we can have a chat about it in our discussion on Thursday!

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/08/24/dea-wants-to-hire-ebonics-translators/?iref=allsearch

Chapter 7! - Rachel Mosher

Creative Connector

Pg. 121: “I certainly wouldn’t have expected him to be the kid to wage a one-person campaign against Ms. Reilly’s threatened early retirement.”

            When I read this story on Samuel’s letter to Ms. Reilly, it made me think about my own experiences in high school with the “bad” kids in school. Those kids were looked at by teachers as students who just don’t care about school and did whatever they wanted to because they didn’t care about school. A lot of the teachers in high school simply dismissed those students and didn’t pay much attention to them now that I think back on my classes in high school. I had seen some teachers lose it on these kids and could tell that these teachers had had it with school and some of the “bad” kids they had to deal with. When I read Samuel’s letter to Ms. Reilly, I felt sad thinking about those “bad” kids in high school who wouldn’t be expected to care and be the “Samuel” to stop a teacher from early retirement because they cared. Those “bad” kids did care and it’s a shame that most teachers don’t see that until it gets to a point where teachers just can’t take it anymore.

Pg. 125: “Unfortunately, neither Ruby’s nor Sam’s letter made much of an impact on the intended teacher.”

            I don’t really have a connection with this quote, but I was very moved and shocked by this statement. I can’t believe letters such as there written with true heart and soul from these kids were not addressed by either teacher. This wasn’t a written assignment they were forced to do, it was true and real and a message from each of these students crying out for help for someone to hear them! For both teachers to dismiss them is a slap in the face to both of these students who probably already felt like they didn’t have a voice. After having their letters dismissed and never addressed, I’m sure it scarred them even more than before and gave them a feeling of worthlessness, like nobody cared.

Pg. 128-129: When Mayra comes to Mr. Michie’s room after school to talk about her problems.

            I loved this moment between Mr. Michie and Mayra. Its little moments like this throughout a school day that can change a day for a student and make it a little bit better. Mr. Michie noticed the Mayra had been acting different and knew something was up so just asked to talk to her and when she did, she felt better and Mr. Michie was more aware of her circumstances. I had a teacher in high school that reminds me a lot of Mr. Michie. This particular teacher used to always have his door open for students to talk with him before or after school and during study halls. Students trusted him and felt that he was fair and they could talk to him about their problems. Sometimes, all a student needs it someone to listen.

Essence Extractor

Teachers provide students with the tools to learn, and ears to listen.

I am the Discussion Director this week!:-)

Chapter 7- Stephanie Baldwin

Chapter 7 Blog

Creative Connector:

In this chapter the author asks his students to evaluate his lessons in the middle of a unit.  The feedback he receives is surprising to him, especially since his students are so open and honest.  At the end of my student teaching experience I had students write evaluations of how they thought I did as a teacher.  Most feedback was positive, except for my Level 4 class.  They were harsh.  I was surprised by this because no one really gave any sign of being that dissatisfied with my lessons.  I wish I had known before so I could have fixed my mistakes.

A lot of this chapter deals with the author's first impressions of students and how they proved him wrong.  I think we all have probably had this experience.  When I first started student teaching I had this one student who tried his very hardest to get under my skin.  He quite often acted like a brat when he didn't get his way.  But after a while he let down his wall and actually started to like me.  I was then able to see the real person he was and he actually became one of my favorite students.  

Rigorous Researcher:

I find it really important to build good relationships with students, so I found some how-to sites on how to do so.

http://tep.uoregon.edu/workshops/teachertraining/beginnings/onlinebeginnings/relationship.html

http://www.priceless-teaching-strategies.com/teacher_student_relationships.html

http://www.howtodothings.com/education/how-to-earn-your-students-respect (Ignore all the links at the top of the page, the content is actually useful)

http://www.ehow.com/how_5060463_earn-respect-high-school-students.html

Essence Extractor:

There needs to be respect and understanding between teachers and students.

Chapter 7- Hannah Schreiber

"After reading the kids' letters, though, I'd decided it was time to admit temporary defeat"
Being able to crumple up your lessons and admit that you were wrong is not an easy thing to do. This is one of the lessons that I learned during my student teaching placement. I was teaching preschool during this one particular circumstance, reading a story to my 13 4 yr olds. It was a bad story. A LONG bad story. One which I hadn't read ahead of time to make sure that it wasn't a bad long story. The kids were bored with the story, and worst of all, so was I. They were all starting to get really antsy and couldn't sit still any longer. My cooperating teacher let me trudge through the book and finish an abbreviated version of it (in which I ended up making up part of the story on my own just to make it more interesting). Later that afternoon she told me that if I ever find myself in a similar situation again, that what she normally does is either admit to the kids that the book was boring, or tell them that you'll put a bookmark in and finish it later. (generally 4 yr olds won't remember if it was something they weren't interested in and you won't actually have to finish it.) It was hard at first to admit that I made the mistake by picking such an awful book, but in the long run, it saved me a lot of misbehaving out of sheer boredom.


"The security measures they seemed to say, were a necessary evil"
I know that this is quite a stretch from security measures and what was actually happening in the book, but the term "necessary evil" made me think about other necessary evils in education today. I currently have a child in my pre-k class that really needs to be receiving services of some kind. The way that things have been going, he just can't function in a regular classroom all by himself. The center that I'm teaching at doesn't have any sort of inclusion "technology" or services to help children with legitimate behavioral disorders. Today he was observed by Roosevelt center, a school for children with special needs, in the hopes that they would provide a 1:1 aid or some other sort of services for this child (or to train current employees in ways to help this child). Unfortunately, this child's mother has a fear of her child being labeled as special needs and prepared him for the observer. In the education world, i guess that you could say that labeling children with special needs is a "necessary evil" for getting a child the services that they need to succeed in school.

My last creative connector deals with Mr. Michie and talking to Mayra about what has been bothering her. Though my scenario is not really the same, it has similar characteristics. When I was in my first student teaching placement in Kindergarten, there was one particular child that was very quiet, didn't play with the other children, seemed to have speech problems as well as fine/gross motor delays. He came to school in dirty clothes with open sores on his feet from his wet socks/shoes combination. But worst of all, he had bruises all over his little body. Its one of those scenarios where you don't really know what to say. Nor did I know what to do. I wasn't the classroom teacher so it wasn't my place to bring up suspicions about abuse/neglect. But I felt like I had a duty to this child to protect him and make sure that he was taken care of. In the end, it turned out that my cooperating teacher had the same concerns as me and had already started looking into contacting CPS to help the family. But reading that part of the book made me remember that awful feeling of not knowing how to help. I think that Mr. Michie helped Mayra to decide what she wanted for herself and not to try and work hard for anyone but herself.

Essence Extractor: Students need to be interested in their learning for THEM and not because they are trying to impress someone else (ie: a teacher or a parent)