44 - Big Expectations For School

Sociological Concepts:

I disagree with the formula's Institution's provide or so claimed by this site. A desire for love does not always become a desire to marry. My father, for one, loves affection but the idea of marriage never appealed to him. Though, he was most alone when he had no one to care for him (sort of like a mother figure.. who also provides sexual benefits). Next, my desire for happiness comes mostly from school. The better I do in my classes and the more I feel I understand the content, the happier I am because the happier I make my father. He never graduated high school so to see his daughter succeed is his most desired wish at this moment (especially because his older daughter never graduated). Granted, possessions makes everything just a little bit better but when you take into account all the poverty and starvation, etc- it's not the first thing that comes to mind when I think of "happy". My desire for an education though, does ultimately impends a desire for a good job. Of course I want a good job. I want to be able to travel when I get older and go out every night with friends and simply make good memories. School as an institution does provide me with that opportunity. As fore a desire for democracy - well I'm not huge on politics. I'm hoping that later on in life I'll become more involved (more specifically after I'm 18).

Liberal Arts Education:

So, from what I understand, it's not what you learn, its how you apply it to your everyday life. In general I don't really agree. I mean, is the reason for learning science so that we can analyze data and test hypothesis. I think generally the human mind is programmed to do just that all on its own without learning science. As children (without school), we analyze the situation and act on it. We test different methods such as crying and shouting for things we want or just simply behaving and being rewarded at the end. Granted I think school definitely sharpens those aspects but they don't "teach" us how to do them. However, specifically pertaining to art, I do think it helps us appreciate the "richness and endless diversity of human imagination". Speaking for myself, I've never appreciated art until school taught me that the beauty of art is that it can be perceived in so many different ways. It can tell stories, it can be a "mirror" which acts as a representation of whatever the art is on, it can be a "hammer" in which to offer change. Art never appealed to me before I knew I could understand it and I guess I should be thankful for school in allowing me to see that I can do just that.

Benefits Of Intellectual An Social Awakening:

This was my favorite article to read as it focuses on what I want to look more into about schools: teacher's passion for learning. So they say the curriculum is important but its the teachers drive to be the best teacher they can be that triggers the same osrt of feeling in students. I loved how they mentioned that the teacher, Ms. Kenny, observed no noise when students changed classrooms and that reminds me a lot about how noisy and active children naturally are and how school teaches us to obedient and listen to authority figures and not to identify ourselves as "animals" (loud and wild.) School does indeed teach the fundamentals by promoting no violence which I think is a great thing, but I do think kids need to find a way to express their emotions otherwise studies show it can lead to insanity (bottled up emotions). Also, parents promote the same thing at home (no violence) so it doesn't need to be that exaggerated in school.

“They were trying to replicate programs instead of trying to develop people.” < I think school needs to focus on developing people rather than teaching curriculum.

HW 42 - Significance

I still don't know exactly what I'm going to be looking into but I know for a fact I'm highly interested in the whole teacher-student relationship and what can come of it. I'm still confused on what question(s) to ask that will lead me to solid/interesting information. If I had to ‘narrow’ it down, it would probably be the teachers affect on students and their overall school experience.

I feel like this question is important to me because as I look back at all my school memories, the best ones involved some amazing teachers. I remember being in 3rd grade and feeling so happy that my teacher cared for me so much. She’d always tell me how smart I was and how much potential I had and how ahead I would be if I’d just do my homework. She’d always know when something was wrong and find a way to make me feel better. She was definitely the first teacher I had that I realized learning was something I loved doing. She made me feel so happy to know the answers to problems and be able to tackle problems she gave us with ease. In 4th grade, I had a different teacher. I knew she didn’t care as much because she never really bothered with me. She left me to myself. I didn’t care as much for school and was always looking for a way to stay home. I guess I values having a connection with my teacher. I liked someone telling me I can do whatever I thought I couldn’t. After reading Tuesdays With Morrie, I sort of have this really big hope that in college I can become as close to my professor(s) as Mitch was to Morrie. I admire that relationship so much. The thing is, I can’t put my finger on why I do. I think maybe if I have a professor(s) that cares, then I’ll be that much more motivated to do my absolute best.

I don’t know much about what I want to do for the rest of my life or what I want to pursue, but I do know a couple things about what I enjoy most at this point in my life. As of right now it’s playing sports, learning, laughing, and relationships (with my friends, guys, teachers, advisers, etc). Because learning makes me feel so good about myself and happier in general, I know it really matters to me and plays a big role in my life. I think I might want to share this passion by actually becoming a teacher and showing students just how fulfilling the feeling of learning makes you feel. I think if I can do that (share my passion for learning - with or without becoming a teacher), I’ll be able to say that I lived a life well lived (at least to my standards).