Peter McLaren's "Critical Pedagogy: A Look at the Major Concepts

Peter McLaren’s Critical Pedagogy: A Look at the Major Concepts brought attention to several cultural issues that can relate to teacher candidates. One aspect of the reading that caught my attention was the “hidden curriculum”, which referred to the unintended results of the schooling process.

The hidden curriculum explores the displacement of superficial education ideas and goals of the classroom teacher and the unintentional procedures used with specific groups of students. Critical education theorists perceive that curriculum represents not only the program of study, text and the syllabi but “it represents the introduction to a particular form of life” (74)It went on to explain that certain curriculum favors certain forms of knowledge for select groups of students over other groups. McLaren’s explains that teachers unconsciously give more intellectual attention and academic help to males over females. An idea that really stood out to me in this section was that “When boys call out comments without raising their hands, for instance, teachers generally accept their answers; girls, however, are reprimanded for the same behavior” (75). After reading this I began thinking about my own classes as well as the observation class I am in, and whether I am guilty of this. The article states that it is subconscious, so the teacher is not aware they are doing it. One instance I remember in my observation classroom was a female and male student both blurting out the same answer at the same time, and I treated the behavior equally and called on a different volunteer instead.

I appreciate that each of the readings that we have experienced are in some way attached to each other, in this instance the idea of oppressive outcomes. Although the hidden curriculum has its challenges in the educational settings, the point is to identify the structural and political assumptions and to attempt to change the institutional arrangements of the classroom in order to offset oppressive results.

Paulo Freire’s “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” Chapter 2

Chapter one of Freire was a confusing blur to me, yet after in class discussion the chapter was a lot clearer to me. Through discussion I learned that Freire was explaining that education can open spaces students don’t know are there. I also was introduced to the question of whether the teacher’s role is to break down the power structure and to help students achieve independence. Understanding chapter one allowed for chapter two to be more easily read.

The purpose of school is to prepare students for what comes after high school, in education and life. Although some believe that students are just vessels of knowledge, “Narration (with the teacher as narrator) leads the students to memorize mechanically the narrated account. Worse yet, it turns them into "containers," into "receptacles" to be "filled" by the teachers” (Freire), there is more to the student then that, they are young adults seeking to grow. The classroom should allow a save environment for students to ask questions and grow.

The job of teachers, therefore, is to encourage a safe environment. Teachers spend as much time with students nine months of the year as their parents do, and in some cases more time. As Freire explains, although a student may remember information, they may forget the principles that guide them to that information. Students are exploring their knowledge through voice, and their fresh perspective should be acknowledge and encouraged by teachers.

After reading chapter two I gained a lot of knowledge, yet at the same time developed a lot of questions. The idea of the banking concept of education caught my attention and I hope after discussion today that I will better understand what Frier was meaning. Freire, although it was difficult for myself and a few fellow candidates to understand entirely, is beneficial to teacher candidates because of his approach to education, and the purpose of both teachers and students. Frier opens doors that some may not think to consider or try to understand.

Paulo Freire’s “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” Chapter 1

I am going to start with WOW. I had to read certain lines in chapter one a few times more than once to try and understand what was being said. And I still don’t fully understand much. The knowledge that there are people in society who are being dehumanized and oppressed is not new information, therefore, this article gives a more deeply examination of oppression. This article can be beneficial to me, and other teacher candidates because, if I have gained some understanding correctly, the idea of oppressors/oppressed/and those supporting the oppressors can relate to the status in education of teachers/students/and “experts” on school standards.
 Dehumanization of all people is the focus of Freire’s theory. My understanding is that oppressors have lost their humanity because they have lost their compassion, and understanding. Also those in control do not want to alter the functions of society, possibly because they don’t want to chance losing their oppressive position. Footnote #3 states, “The oppressed are afraid to embrace freedom; the oppressors are afraid of losing the "freedom" to oppress”. I believe this is portraying that all people are relying on the status quo.
Although the article does not specifically describe human nature interactions in the world, my understanding is that there would be three types when referring to oppression. The oppressed are those whom are taken advantage of, the oppressors are those who are taking advantage and then thirdly are those who are in a position to support for the oppressed.

I don’t believe it follows that exact break down of human nature, but I do believe that education could be a reliable example of the three types.  It seems as though the students are to continue to rely on what the teachers teach to them, and the teachers seem to rely on what the state standards voice to be appropriate instruction for all students.

Common Core State Standards

Common Core State Standards, although we have had the chance to explore them in each of our education classes, continue to be slightly difficult to understand. Although the CCSS are difficult to understand in detail, it is apparent that the creators are hoping for students to excel and be better prepared for future education. The CCSS are direct enough so that there will be no room for students to slack off, in hopes that they will not fall behind and will advance in their schooling.

For response purposes I focused on the Literature, Information Text and Foundational Skills CCSS for grades 9-12 because I am placed in a high school language arts classroom. A commonality that I found in these three specific CCSS is that they build upon each grade level in order to increase difficulty in expectations. One example is in Literacy.RL.9-10.7 Analyze the representation of a subject or a key scene in two different artistic mediums, including what is emphasized or absent in each treatment, where the students are asked to analyze one subject and two different mediums. When students get to 11-12 grades they will be asked to evaluate multiple scenes in multiples mediums, Literacy.RL.11-12.7 Analyze multiple interpretations of a story, drama, or poem (e.g., recorded or live production of a play or recorded novel or poetry), evaluating how each version interprets the source text. Another commonality that I found will be helpful for teachers, students and parents to understand the CCSS is the word choice describing what is expected. Words such as analyze and determine are found in the classroom on a regular basis. One thing that I was surprised by were the range of reading and level of text complexity in the reading literature because it was broader then I expected.

I have spoken with current high school teachers who have been teaching for countless years, and they are not very ecstatic about the introduction of CCSS. After looking through the three reading portions I believe that if the teacher is introduced to the Common Core State Standards at an early stage teacher candidate they will be able to use them in a more positive way because they will be just as prepared as the students. The CCSS are mapped out for what is expected of the students, it is up to the teachers to use these guidelines to help their students succeed. I wish the best of luck to my fellow classmates, and present and future teachers!

Side Note: There is an APP for the CCSS for iphones and Androids!

A must read for teacher candidates! - Discussion as a Way of Teaching

 

The first assigned reading that my classmates and I have encountered is from Discussion as a Way of Teaching. Although I have only read a small piece of the book I am very intrigued! The first chapter, “Discussion in a Democratic Society”, caught my attention because it broke down discussion, conversation and dialogue. Throughout the education program we have had countless scenarios, tools, and tips thrown at us for the classroom, and having an article tie all three together in regards to discussion, an important tool, made the article good for teacher candidates. “How Discussion Helps Learning and Enlivens Classrooms” is a chapter that all teacher candidates should read while going through the program. Discussion is an important part of the classroom, and helps students find their own voice while allowing them to work together to explore literature. My personal experience as a teacher candidate in a new classroom proved that having the full attention of the classroom did not come easy. Using discussion in the classroom gives me the opportunity to allow a level of control for the students as well as myself. Discussion is based on the flow of the classroom, and the article shared a variety tips for using discussion and the benefits that come from discussion. Discussion encourages students to listen, to explore and to learn: each of which are individually important and I hope to see in my future classroom. I liked that the article broke down each of the benefits and explored obstacles that students and teachers may come across as well as how the discussion benefit will enhance student learning. An important benefit that I found myself completely intrigued by was that discussion affirms students as co creators of knowledge. This is important in the classroom because when students are discussing they are creating insight, validating and refuting claims that they find and are exposed to alternative perspectives from their peers in a whole class setting. This article was also helpful to the teacher candidate because it reminds the reader of why the teacher may lose faith in the use of discussion. When considering my future classroom I worry that I may have to high of expectations for classroom discussion. This article reminds the reader that participation is a lifelong learning project and that teachers need to not blame their students for lack of participation. The teacher needs to know when to take control, what questions to ask their students, and verbal cues to help students begin conversations. I would highly recommend this book to teacher candidates in any stage of the program.

Introduction Letter

Hi! My name is Breanne and I am working towards earning a Secondary English Major. I am currently enrolled in English 493: Teaching Literature to Adolescents, and as a part of the class I will be posting blogs about different readings that I will encounter. Along with attending college classes I am also working in a 9^th grade classroom through my teacher candidacy program. In this classroom I will be observing as well as regularly teaching the students. The first two periods of the day are a reading help based lecture where students will work in groups as well as individually with the teacher to insure they are understanding what they are being given to read in the classroom and comprehending the text after they have read it. Working with these students has shown me how important literature in an adolescent’s classroom can be because the skill of reading is influential in all other types of classrooms. The last periods of the day that I will be working in are freshman language arts. A variety of literature will be used in these classrooms as well, yet the students will not be getting the degree of one on one lecture with the teacher as the reading help students will. In the past week I have had the great opportunity to teach the language art students about fiction! My first lesson gave me a chance to discover possible strengths and weaknesses that I may have in my own classroom. A weakness that may make teaching literature in the classroom more difficult is, as my master teacher describes it, my lack of a big girl voice. Literature is an opportunity for students to discuss ideas and explore reading, which may also lead to side discussions and a rowdy classroom. My lack of a big girl voice makes pulling students back into the whole class discussion harder. Although this weakness may not relate specifically to literature it will still influence the time management for students to learn in the classroom. A strength that will help my when teaching literature to high school students was that I was able to ask probing questions in order to get the students thinking outside of the box. This will be important for classroom discussions and getting the students to form their own opinions about what they are reading. A goal that I have for my English 493 classroom is to discuss with my fellow classmates ways that I can improve my weaknesses in the classroom and ways to hold discussions in the classroom. At the end of my class I also hope to leave with a variety of literature that can relate to adolescents and motivate students to want to read in the classroom! Thanks!