Kohn: What to look for in a classroom

 Reflection: When looking at this chart from Alfie Kohn I get a good understanding on a classroom environment. There is loads of things I agree with but others that I sometimes come to question as to why that wouldn't be allowed in a classroom, or why that is bad for students or learners. I understand how most of the things that are not allowed are proposed, but most just doesn't seem to hurt the learners, if anything I think it would help the learners stay on task and reward themselves. In the video provided they talk mainly about culture and how peoples opinions should be very much reviewed upon. They are important when creating a successful culture and society. 

Argument/Extended comments: I completely agree with what was said for the "good signs" column, the "possible reasons to worry section" had me question this chart just a little bit. To start off with "awards, trophies, and trophies presented." When thinking about trophies and accomplishments I think it is quite fair to show them off in the classroom. My basketball team won the state championship my Junior year and he had the trophy in his room and still does. I just would question as to why a trophy or accomplishment shouldn't be presented, and why it is a questionable sign to a bad classroom environment. Another one I start to question was the "list of rules." In many of my classes we make classroom norms in order to make some rules for our classroom so people stay on task. They normally hang them up in the classroom and when someone breaks one they can be reminded of the rules that were agreed upon. With this, I understand it gets people in trouble but at the end of the day it is rules and there are expectations in classrooms, why not remind them of the rules rather than just yelling at them and sending them to the principals. On the other hand, I completely agree with everything that is in the good signs section, they are all presented to help the learners succeed and give them good advice. 

https://thehighlyeffectiveteacher.com/the-importance-of-the-classroom-environment/

 

Preface and Introduction by troublemakers

Connections: 

In the beginning of the "Introduction" paper. It talks about this sense of "power," "I had power over him, and his success relied on his ability and willingness to accept that." I really focused on this quote because it can relate to one of my campers I had this summer. With counseling a summer camp, comes with a lot of crazy and uncontrollable kids. I had this one kid named Ethan and he was about to get kicked out of camp for his outgoing behaviors. The director gave him one more change to stay in the camp but he had to succeed. I personally used my power to help this kid succeed. I focused more on him and what he was doing throughout the day so it was tough for him to get in trouble. The director put it in my hands because I had power over Ethan. It reminds me of Anthony in this text and how they refer to him. It gave this poor teacher nightmares and made her day a lot longer than it had to be. 

Also in the second "preface" section, the author highlights as a human being school isn't the only place people must be treated free but it should also be a place to learn. In classrooms you should be able to practice and experience freedom. Here I can also connect this to my summer camp because beginning the year my director that guided us counselors all day gave us a meeting. And the one thing I remember very vividly was the fact he kept repeating freedom and fun. Yes, we had to control these kids but it is also their summer and he wanted them to have the most fun possible. Give their freedom until they broke it, let them have fun with their friends, let them come and go as they please, or even let them decide if they want to play or not. 

Reflections: 

A lot of this text I could connect with my job this summer counseling. The idea of freedom and students not following their instructors can all relate to how this summer went. I had students like Anthony who didn't listen to me all summer until I had to send him to the director which was almost considered the principal. Then I had other campers where I could let them come and go as they please and never had to worry about them because of the way they acted. As an example, going to the bathroom, I let some campers just go with no reaction, but others I had to know when and where they were going, and make sure they came back in time. Kids start to think of themselves as troublemakers and they just automatically get treated that way and they clearly show that's the way they feel. 

https://www.jotform.com/blog/behavior-modification-at-summer-camps/#:~:text=Setting%20behavior%20guidelines,than%20they%20do%20at%20home.

The Academic and Social Values of Ethnic Studies

 Overview/Reflection: In the reading we learned that ethnic studies are very important because of the end result. They want students to be completely balanced with what they are learning. The author highlights the fact that throughout schooling, we create this sense of connection between who we are learning about and ourselves. We put ourselves in their shoes so we can feel how they really felt during that moment and time period we are currently learning about. 

This example, can also connect us to the "Precious Knowledge" video previously watched in class. In that video they are protesting. A high school in Arizona,  shows us how important learning about their own Mexican societies background is to them. They want everyone to learn about what they went through. The only way in their eyes to get this point around is to protest through the school system. In this specific video, what it presents is the feeling of latino students when topics that are related to their cultural background are presented. Shown in this text, it talks about what we students currently learn, where we can compare this to the video where they learn about their own backgrounds. Both mention the feeling of being judged, how big it is so students. Therefore, to come to conclusion in the reading ("The academic and social values of ethnic studies") students feel more involved in their learning when it is about their own social background. Christine emphasizes this heavily, she just reemphasizes this fact that students are way more engaged when they're learning about themselves. In the Documentary, they demonstrate what they are learning throughout everyone participating over and over in the classroom. This also built an extreme environment in Arizona having a bunch of students rally together to fight for something they believed in. 

Site:https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/respect-in-the-classroom-reflections-of-a-mexican-american-educator

The Four I's of Opression

 The Four I's of oppression (Ideological, Internalized, Interpersonal, and Institutionalized) explains how oppression is apart of our everyday lives. It always shows up in everything we do but it is never really taken into consideration. It is more important than we even realize, the importance is never really reflected on. The Four I'd for a teacher specifically is one of the most important things to take note on when learning furthermore about students and how to keep everyone in your classroom in check. 

(Video)"Consider stereotypes you've heard for a boy crying for instance, you never think of this. It's always a girl crying" 

This shapes the way we look at different things. This falls under the Ideological category. It is the most important because it is the root of all categories. You can also think about it like girls are supposed to be pretty while men are handsome. I just used that example because it was the first one. 

"Internalized oppression can have severe impacts, such as feelings of despair, anxiety, depression, fatalism, self-hatred and even suicide." (pg2)

Here talking about internalization, we come to realize the impacts that could possibly occur. These are no joke clearly, they can stick with people. We get a sense of seriousness when looking at possible outcomes. 

An example of institutional oppression "The idea that laws are put into place in order for everyone to be able to work." 

We see this socially. through political issues. As an example of this we could also use the fact that some schools have more money funded than other schools. For instance South Kingston has way more funds than a small providence school. We saw this in the video and got a good understanding on why things are the way they are. Overall, it is just the mistreatment of people within the same social group supported by society. 

https://www.grcc.edu/sites/default/files/docs/diversity/the_four_is_of_oppression.pdf