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Cursive Writing makes me miserable
This date was the start of our lesson on cursive writing. Up to this point I always enjoyed school and learning new things, but I remember when my teacher introduced cursive I was lost from the beginning. This severly worried me because I never felt overwelmed like this before. I remember coming home that night and crying to my parents because I thought it was so hard. I learned that as a student you will go through a lot of these situations throughout your life. -
4th Grade Class
To this day I can still name my whole 4th grade class. All of us are still friends and its truly a remarkable thing. I made some of the best friends in my education. I learned not only is it a place to strictly learn, but also to become better at socializing and making friends. Classrooms where everyone interacts is great because we all become close, and that is just another aspect of education. -
No Child Left Behind
The No Child Left Behind act of 2001 proposed by George W. Bush showed me how politics can get into the educaton system. The act set higher standards and goals for educational institutions in the United States. The government wanted every student to succedd and it showed me that the better the education in the Country than in theory it will be a more succesful country. It showed me how education and society have a direct correlation. The country actually cares about every student doing well. -
Looping at Orchard Middle School
When I entered 5th grade that also meant entering a new school. Orchard Middle School in Solon, Ohio was a school that applied looping to all their classes. This meant that 100 or so students in my situation were placed in a team, and each team had four teachers in which the students would switch from teacher to teacher as the day went on. All four teachers were very close and so were the students. It gave me a sense of belonging and I learned that looping is a very effective method. -
9/11 Attack
The horrible attack on the United States happened while I was in middle school. It is a day I will never forget because at that age I never really understood the significance of this. I remember going to class after lunch and my teacher began to have tears and she told us about the importance of the event. My classroom felt like a family that day as everyone was very concerned and asked questions. I feel like I matured that day in some way. -
My First Middle School Report Card
I still remember my 5th grade report card and going through it with my parents. All the way down the rows it showed a check plus. As much as I dreaded being assesed and taking tests it all was worth it at the end. My parents rewarded me with a sleepover and emotionally it felt great to succedd. I strived for check plus every report card. I was taught doing well on an assestment will lead you to a succesful life. Politically and culturally this has what our society has done to us. -
Block Scheduling
In my freshman year of High School I was placd in a system of block scheduling. I mmedietely found some positives and negatives to the system. One the one hand we met for a class every other day which gave us ample time to do homework. On the other hand the classes were very long and it was hard to concentrate. I remember that there were more classroom disruptions because students quickly lost enthusiasm for the class. I really was not a fan of the block scheduling in our educational system. -
Perfect Attendence
At the end of my 8th grade year I found out with a perfect attendence award that I never missed a day during the whole year. Before she passed out the award to the students my principal made a big speech discussing the importance of students always attending school. Not only did I feel rewarded, but I learned that going to school really is important, and its politics that urge students to get into class so our society will be smarter in the future. -
Morning Announcements
High School was my first experience of a daily morning announcements. I think this was a very important part of my education because it kept me updated with what is going on in my school, and most importantly it showed me how education has to be organized. With so many different classes and activities to take part of it I found it very helpful to have a friendly reminder every morning. It was a good start to every morning and I hope wherever I teach that they have morning announcements. -
Solon School Levy
While I was in High School I had to experience a school levy in my home town. It was a very difficult time for teachers and parents as they debated on how to fund our schools. This was my first realization that schools have trouble with funding. I was always under the notion that the national government paid for it, but I learned during the levy that it actually comes from property taxes of local houses. I was scary seeing the possibility of teachers and certain classes getting cut. -
Rising Star Award
My High School had a tradition where they rewarded a select group of students for their accomplishments and being a good role model in the school. It was named a Rising Star award. I recieved this reward in my sophmore year. In my lived experience it showed how our educational system rewards the ones who strive at what they do. It felt great to be rewarded and I felt like all my hard work paid off just to be recgonized with this award. -
My First Coaching Experience
This was a very crucial step in my education career because it was my first experienece of actually having a responsibility of teaching, motivating, and leading a group of kids younger than me. As the season went on I learned different techniques that worked better than others as far as teaching skills. After each game, specifically winning I always remember the feeling of being awarded I got. Having the kids run up to me giving highfives in something I would not trade for anything. -
Baseball Camp Counselor
The summer of 2008 I was a baseball camp counselor as I educated young kids the tools and skills needed to play baseball. Even though it was not in a school enviornment I was still teaching. It showed me how much kids look up to their teachers and authoritive figures. I enjoyed my time and it was very fun. This was just another experience that influenced my decision to become a teacher when I am older. -
English Cheating
In my 11th grade english class I had a good friend of mine get caught cheating on something very minimal. Something where I think the whole class would agree it wasnt that big of a deal. After I heard of his punishments I learned the harsh consequences and severity of cheating in school. You cannot take someone's ideas. This is something I will never forget and I took this seriously and made it my own lesson. -
SAT Test
This was a light bulb momet for me during my education. The famous SAT determined how smart of a student you were based off everything you have learned. There were never critical question on this exam as it dealt with basic memorization of problems. And this test is supposed to determine what college you go to and how smart you are? After I went through this I have always had the mindset that the system is messed up with this test. -
Acceptence to JCU
One of the most memorable and great feelings I have ever felt in education was my acceptence to John Carroll University. It really was my number one choice, but I always questioned if I did a good enough job my whole life in education to get in. This is a very important date that I wont forget because I was the one with the biggest smile when I opened my acceptence letter. This was a new journey I was about to head into and this is the part of education where you would learn your indivdual area. -
The Nunney Cup
The Nunney Cup was a competition that my High School government teacher created. It was between his students and factors for score included homework and test grades. I hated this as I never felt comfortable in the class. Everyone was against each other and you had a sense that all the students wanted you to fail so they could do better in the competition. If you had a question about the homework, no student would help you. It was very competitive and one of my worst experiences in education. -
Teacher Break Rooms
I always thought teachers were pillars of society always optimistic and motivated to help their students learn until I saw teachers on the other side of life in the break room. I had to follow a teacher for my ed 100 class and I learned about all the behind the scenes action with teachers. There was drama and gossiping about all the teachers. It was funny at first and then weird after I realized I always looked at teachers a certain way. I really learned that teaching is like any othe job. -
Fall Semester 2010
My fall semester of 2010 at JCU was one of the most interesting experiences I have had in education. As I took 18 credit hours I had several different teachers in which each one used a different style of teaching. It was hard to adapt to each teacher, and I realized each teacher can be very different in their teaching styles whether that is lecturing, writing, group based learning, etc. With all these styles to compare I actually learned what I like best as a student which is group based. -
Reading a Book to a Class
For my service learning project in the fall of 2010 I went to Noble Elementary School in Mayfield, Ohio. This was a great experience because it gave me more insight about teaching. My first task was read a chapter of a book to the class. I had a great feeling while doing it because I felt like they were really listening to me and I as affecting their lives as I was reading. I felt like a role model. I think that was my first experience of getting that feeling that all teachers talk about. -
Philosopher Alain Locke
I learned about the famous American philosopher Alain Locke and his thoughts about education in my philosophy course, fall 2010. He warned the future society about students worrying to much about grades and not actually learning and becoming smarter for society. My class talked about how he was right and students now just read a book for a grade not to actully learn the material. To me it proved what may be the root of the problem in our educational system.
