Week 21

Thursday was the only day I observed this week. I graded papers. However the interesting part of it was that the answer key had two incorrect answers. It was just overlooked, and nobody is perfect. I am also getting prepared for my next lesson plan. I am a little worried because last time I taught math the students did not seem to understand what to do. I think that the coordinate plane topic will be easier for them though because they have done it before and there is a lot less memorization involved. I also need to try to remember to move around the room and keep the pace going. I am ready to present this lesson and I feel very prepared. 

Debate Topic: Sex Education

In 20 states and District of Comlubia, sex education classes are required. New York just recently made it mandatory in January 2012. Arizona, however does not require such courses. There is a large debate over whether this is acceptable or not. Some parents feel it is unnecessary because of fear of increasing activity. This is not true because studies show that it has actually reduced such behavior. Does it not make sense to give our students as much information as possible? Teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases may even go down because of these courses. It is better to teach our students of the right way then to have them learn wrong ways due to lack of information. I personally feel that schools have some responsibilty in giving students the information that will keep them healthy and safe. Parents also may feel that they want to shelter their children from this type of behavior. This is not a good attitude to have because that is not reality and if we do not teach the actual world then students and children alike are bound to discover and experiment with things themselves. We simply cannot shelter in this sort of fasion. It is wrong to withold information that may alter ones perception of life, ultimately resulting in tragic consequences, and only because the student was uneducated! Sex Ed. courses also give the students a sense of responsibility. Allowing students to take these courses allows the participant to feel like they are being taken seriously and it shows them that they are mature enough to handle such responsibility. Should sex education courses be offered to not only high school students but elementary students as well? Studies are pointing to yes because behavior of sexual activity no longer ranges to the high school age. Even students under the age of thirteen are participants. If those students do not know what they are doing then how are we supposed to prevent pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases of young ages? I feel as though fifth graders, who will soon be in middle schoolers, could be mature enough for even just the basics of it. Any younger is unnecessary because they are much more unlikely to participate in such behaviors for they may not be able to understand it. In conclusion, sex education courses should become a mandatory course. It can reduce this risky behavior, as well as provide students with information ultimately leading to preventive measures of life changing consequences.

Debate Topic: Eligibility For Sports/Extra-curricular

Most schools that have mandatory requirements allowing students to participate in sports and extra-curricular activities. The requirements for eligibility usually is a GPA of 2.0 or higher which is a C average. Additionally, a student is allowed to have an F in one class but no more than that. Upon research, it has come to my attention that this is a general trend among districts and most high schools. My personal experience at my school is that any failing grade is unacceptable and must be brought up by the quarter grading period. In my opinion, these are perfectly acceptable terms for participating in school activities. These rules help students stay on top of their grades and may elliviate some slacking in their classes. The terms for eligibility give the student's an incentive to do well, if they don't already have it. This may also get rid of any ideas the students may have to only come to school for the social aspect and raise awareness on how important grades can be in high school. I do believe that their can be a little leniency, because no one is perfect in every class, but student's should not be failing most of their classes and focusing solely on a sport or activity. This provides no learning and if anything, it will provide more stress for the student in the end. Schools who take the time to give student's the priviledge of sports and extra-curricular activities should not be taken advantage of due to a students poor academic performance either. The school does not have to allow these activities to take place, but it is a great opportunity for students to grow and learn in other ways and if they are doing poorly in their classes then they are obviously not grasping the purpose of the sport or activity. Eligibility rules should be implemented in all schools in order to ensure learing and focus in the class.

Week 20

I was only at my mentor class one day this week due to fall break. On that day, thursday, I read the books that the students wrote to show persuasion. The whole basis was about trying to get someone to adopt a pet at shelter. Some of the books were really creative, yet they all sort of had a sad theme of animals being put down. I really tried to focus on how the fourth graders wrote the book, so I could identify what the teacher should expect out of them. I don't think all of the books captured the idea of persuasion but for the most part the goal was met in their stories. I also noticed the length of their writing. There were a few books, but not many that were very lengthy and made a lot of sense, but for the most part the students used short, brief sentences to describe what was going on. I am wondering on how much leaniency she gives the kids when grading their work because obviously they are still learning some of the basics. I also think it depends on the school on how lenient one is on their work. It was very interesting and fun to read their stories and look at their illustrations. I was also reminded that day on how each student needs a different amount of time for work. Some may take a really long time on an assignment while another may breeze right through it. I am very sure that that is a similar experience during long testing days like AIMS. I am so excited for the last quarter! There is still so much left to do!

Week 19

Last Monday, I recieved my objective for my third lesson plan. I will be teaching coordinate planes. This should mostly be review for the students with the exception of using negatives on the coordinate plane. I'm a little worried about this lesson simply because it is math and the students tend to really struggle with the math concepts. I will make it as straight forward as I can as well as entertaining. I need to go online and find exmaples of some worksheets. I am plannning on doing a picture worksheet. On thursday I graded papers and observed a math lesson. The lesson was over how to find greatest common factors. She had the students use white boards and modeled the lesson on a poster. I wonder if it is better to teach that lesson before or after simplifying fractions.  While I was there, my mentor teacher also had to attend to the parent's needs. Although I have been aware that being a part of the job, I had never really noticed it in my observations. That was the first time I ever really had to become aware of the parents needs. I have also noticed that my mentor teacher has her students do all the problems on the worksheet that they can do, and when they get those done they can ask for help. I think that this is a good idea for this age level because it allows them to rely on themselves a little more than the teacher and allows them to go through the other problems and may be able to find their own answers to the problem. Next week I am only at my mentor sight for one day, but I am getting ready for my third lesson plan!