Tonight's Poet Corner: Introspection
Damn it. I'm not doing well on these introspection posts lately. Let me see what I can do. (Ahem)
Second graders. I teach fourteen of them now. Second graders are currently not corrupted by the concept of attitude. I am still a large authority to them. I must be listened to and obeyed. Unlike the sixth and fifth graders who make my sister's teaching job a little Hell, the second graders actually like me.
It's really a nice feeling to be appreciated by kids and parents. It happened when I worked at a day camp. It happened when I was a catechism teacher for - ta da! - second graders. It's really refreshing to see my work pay off, especially when it comes to teaching.
At the same time, I've developed my own sort of perspective in my work. As I move the kids forward in reading, writing, and math, I'm constantly being told how to teach. Which is fine and dandy, but I frankly am not a supporter of 100% "positive reinforcement." To me, that's being too sugary sweet and never really letting the kids learn from their mistakes. For example, I was told, instead of saying "[Joey], stop talking," to say, "[Cindy], thank you for not talking," as if [Joey] would magically want to follow [Cindy's] example. But that's not how kids tick.
My generation was raised on the "super special snowflake" attitude. We were no longer responsible for our own mistakes - our teachers and our parents were. It's a prevailing attitude in this day and age, and I find it rather disgusting. Kids, yes, can have problems caused by bad teaching or parenting, but they deserve more credit for their actions than that. They're smart enough to learn from failure and be taught from consequences. And that's what I try to do as a teacher.
Success does not just sprout out of the ground. It emerges from the ashes of trial and error, of conquest and of defeat. Children need to learn how to succeed and fail or else the future holds nothing but depression for them. We need to remember responsibility - that's an important trait. And that's why, while I don't support an old-school structure of teaching, I do support some of the old-school attitudes.
Enough about teaching. Back to writing.
Writer's Quotation:
Writing is easy. All you do is sit staring at a piece of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.
- Gene Fowler
Have a great night and a great weekend, everyone.
Second graders. I teach fourteen of them now. Second graders are currently not corrupted by the concept of attitude. I am still a large authority to them. I must be listened to and obeyed. Unlike the sixth and fifth graders who make my sister's teaching job a little Hell, the second graders actually like me.
It's really a nice feeling to be appreciated by kids and parents. It happened when I worked at a day camp. It happened when I was a catechism teacher for - ta da! - second graders. It's really refreshing to see my work pay off, especially when it comes to teaching.
At the same time, I've developed my own sort of perspective in my work. As I move the kids forward in reading, writing, and math, I'm constantly being told how to teach. Which is fine and dandy, but I frankly am not a supporter of 100% "positive reinforcement." To me, that's being too sugary sweet and never really letting the kids learn from their mistakes. For example, I was told, instead of saying "[Joey], stop talking," to say, "[Cindy], thank you for not talking," as if [Joey] would magically want to follow [Cindy's] example. But that's not how kids tick.
My generation was raised on the "super special snowflake" attitude. We were no longer responsible for our own mistakes - our teachers and our parents were. It's a prevailing attitude in this day and age, and I find it rather disgusting. Kids, yes, can have problems caused by bad teaching or parenting, but they deserve more credit for their actions than that. They're smart enough to learn from failure and be taught from consequences. And that's what I try to do as a teacher.
Success does not just sprout out of the ground. It emerges from the ashes of trial and error, of conquest and of defeat. Children need to learn how to succeed and fail or else the future holds nothing but depression for them. We need to remember responsibility - that's an important trait. And that's why, while I don't support an old-school structure of teaching, I do support some of the old-school attitudes.
Enough about teaching. Back to writing.
Writer's Quotation:
Writing is easy. All you do is sit staring at a piece of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.
- Gene Fowler
Have a great night and a great weekend, everyone.
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