RE_5539

I think the following quote best reflects how I view my learning during this course: "There are times in life when the question of knowing if one can think differently than one thinks, and perceive differently than one sees, is absolutely necessary if one is to go on looking and reflecting at all." This course has revolutionized my thinking about my role as a teacher and how I perceive my students. Before taking this class, I never realized the scope of influence my job as a classroom teacher has on children. I've always known that as a teacher I am helping to mold the minds of children and prepare them for the future, but my perception of what was required of me to achieve this end was vey narrow.

I have always cared about presenting clear academic instruction to my students that is based on their needs and the standard course of study. I have also cared about maintaining discipline in the classroom and have given incentives to the children to practice good citizenship and be good workers. These teaching priorites were sufficient for most children, but not all. Each year, I have had at least one or two children who had trouble going along with the program. These children had problems such as trouble getting along with peers; difficulty with self control, staying on task to complete work, and following directions and class rules. These children usually lost their happy gram almost every day. I did not know what to do to help these children change their behavior. Though some made more academic progress than others, most of them carried their bad reputaitons with them into third grade.

I knew very little about the home lives of my students. Most of what I knew about my students was based on what I knew from superficial interactions with them in the classroom. Anything I learned about their interests and lives with their families was a result of information they shared at school in their writing or during discussions. However, I didn't value this information as much as I valued the quality of their work or their achievement of an academic objective. As I now know, demonstrating to students that I genuinely value their backgrounds and interests could have been a bridge of influence to connect difficult students with the expectations of school.

As a result, my classes will be conducted differently from now on. Achievement and good citizenship will continue to be valued as important. However, so will students' backgrounds, interests, and their feelings about themselves as students and individuals. I want all of my students to feel that I care about what they think and feel, and respect their language and values from home that they bring to school with them. Hopefully in a class environment in which genuine mutual respect thrives in the teacher-student relationships, all students (including the students initially known as difficult) will be motivated to practice good work habits, behavior, and strive for their best academic achievement.

Vickie Howell