Blog Post 10
Throughout this class and in
completing my course blog, I have realized that the field of education is a
complex and complicated career path and not everyone is cut out for teaching. There
are many aspects to education, and how one handles them is what determines what
kind of teacher they are. Many of these topics have been discussed in our class
and my course blog. For example, we discussed the importance of self-reflection
when looking into the field of teaching and we reflected on the 10 questions posed
by Herbert Kohl in Chapter 3 of Educational Foundations and personal inspiration
for becoming a teacher in John Taylor Gatto’s Chapter “The Green Monongahela”. The impact
that our previous teachers had on us as students was evident in this discussion
and in many other discussions and how previous teachers frequently served as
our inspiration for becoming interested in teaching. We also discussed the
importance of developing relationships with students to learn more about them
in order to educate them more effectively in Bill Ayers’ To Teach and the issue of relying on generic lesson plans instead
of adapting lessons to fit specific classrooms and students from Susan Ohanian’s chapter “On
Stir-and-Serve Recipes for Teaching” in Educational Foundations. Ayers
also touched on the issue today in the education field with administrators,
teachers and parents diagnosing students with learning disabilities sometimes
prematurely instead of trying to work with them differently to help them learn
in a way that works better for them. We discussed today’s issues with the
inequity of district financing and also Paulo Freire’s criticism of the “Banking
Concept of Education”.
Introduction
This
was one of the reasons why I chose to further research Paulo Freire’s work with
the banking concept of education. Through many of the readings and discussions
from this class, I have discovered that there are many different strategies and
approaches to effectively educate students. From what I have observed through our
3 class visits, 10 hours of outside observations, and personal experience as a
student, I have been happily surprised and the many different techniques used
by teachers in our area. I think that this makes sense because the schools I
have visited are very different in many ways, so it is only logical for each of
them to have their own different techniques and systems for teaching their
specific students in their specific environment. This lead me to see the
importance of Freire’s criticism and alternatives. I believe
that completely relying on the banking concept of education, as criticized by
Paulo Freire, is wrong to use in the teaching of today’s students and that a
system where teachers foster discovery and creativity, allow for a deeper
understanding of human existence, and are partners with students should be
instilled in our education system instead. My observations and experiences have
showed me that this topic is relevant in today’s education system and the fact
that it seems as though it seems that we are no longer as dependent on the “banking
concept” as we were during the time of Paulo Freire’s writings.
Problem
Statement
This
belief of mine responds to the techniques used by teachers in the field of
education and how these techniques affect how students learn. This is extremely
important because if poor techniques are used in educating students, then their
schooling experience is not used properly. As we have discussed in class, we
all have memories of past teachers, both good and bad. We also realize that
both kinds of teachers have had an effect on us and our career decisions. This affects
their future learning both in higher level schooling and also learning in the
real world such as in the job atmosphere or even simply in social situations. It
also affects how we view school and education as a student. I believe that the
field of education is a cycle. Teachers teach pupils, and they continue to
learn and teach others throughout their entire life. Therefore, teachers teach
their students and some of those students may become teachers in the future and
the way in which teachers teach determines if their students choose to become
teachers and what kind of teachers they become and the cycle continues. So the
teaching techniques used in our education system effects much more than how well
students do on their tests. I plan on specifically focusing on the banking
concept of education and its criticisms and alternatives, however the teaching
techniques I just referred to include more than this. For example, we read Susan Ohanian’s chapter “On
Stir-and-Serve Recipes for Teaching” in Educational Foundations, which also discusses teaching techniques and
how to be a good teacher. Similar to the criticism of the banking concept, she criticizes
“stir-and-serve” lesson plans. She discusses how each classroom is different
and therefore lesson plans and teaching techniques need to be different for
each of them. That is the most effective way to teach specific classrooms and
students. This is similar to the problem of banking education. Both are
critiques of techniques for inadequate teaching in the field of education. With
this paper, I hope to find out more specific alternatives to banking education
and the specific impact that it has on students. I want to see evidence and
examples of how affects students as they grow up and continue the cycle as
adults. I believe that the effects of teaching techniques such as banking
education can be seen throughout many different aspects in students’ lives.
With this paper, I hope to reveal why the criticisms and alternatives to
banking education are so important and relevant in our education system today.
I also hope to see how our education system is currently using these
alternatives as I connect my research to my outside observations and
experiences. Through the class assigned readings and discussions and along with
these personal observations and experiences, I have realized that alternatives
are currently being used to combat this issue and I hope to convey this
realization in my paper.
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