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That was my very first impression of education courses, too. Coming in as a PhD in another field, I was totally shocked when I took my first education grad course and realized that we were being taught what were obviously theories as if they were facts. We were never asked to question or criticize the theories, but only to memorize them. And I think many of my less educated classmates probably didn't even recognize that they were not facts at all, but rather just selected theories popular at present, and in fact not even the only popular ones. Drones for sure. And this is exactly the level at which our public education exists at. And then it becomes obvious why we have ill-researched and ill-informed reforms coming at us from all angles, and no one in the system is able or willing to question them. Thus I laugh when people say we need better-educated teachers - education is not a field welcoming to the truly educated and innovative. It's Borg-like.
Darn....I've been assimilated.... Borg-like is a good description. I too am very concerned with 20 something teachers coming out of ed colleges for this reason. While this class is a PITA and a waste of my time, I recognize theories as theories and take what I agree with and leave the rest. 20 something's without life experience and lacking an education that requires thought may not even be capable of making a choice here.
Last year, a first year chemistry teacher did something that convinced me that all he does is follow the leader. We do three labs in a row that generate acidic waste. Rather than spend time neutralizing the waste, I put calcium carbonate rocks at the bottom of the waste beakers which generate carbon dioxide gas as they neutralize the acid. Then we do a lab that generates basic waste that also needs to be neutralized (acids and bases neutralize each other). His classes did the lab first and when I got to the lab, he proudly announced that he had put the calcium carbonate in the waste beakers to neutralize the waste. He just did what I did in the three previous labs without any thought as to why I did it. The number of times I've had to tell him the obvious just astounds me. Yet, my principal loves him and hates me. My principal hates me because I refuse to give up my right to think. Fortunately, for me, he appears to have bigger fish to fry than me for the time being.
So your suggestion is to make them dependent on a reading list someone else chose for them???
Do you not see your reading list is just another way of telling them what they should do? ...Pot meet Kettle....
Did I say using the reading lists would be MANDATORY?
What do you think the word RECOMMENDED means?
If some students found the books better than their teachers then what would the problem be?
The trouble is there are a lot of DUMB teachers who behave as though they are supposed to be RESPECTED just because they got the title of TEACHER. What good are teachers that couldn't compete with a reading list?
I find that the problem in the United States is a mixture of poor teaching skills and changing values due to poor parenting. I was the department chair at a college. I had problems with faculty who wanted a 9-5 pm job and would not spend time on curriculum development. That isn't how teaching works. I also had problems with students who came in wanting all A's like they were given in high school. I wouldn't budge on it. Sorry...you had to earn your grades in my department. The students had to go on to pass boards. How would it look if I had "A" students failing their boards?
Always blame the parents. They're always the punching bag. I would have thought that at least college faculty didn't do that!
Last year, a first year chemistry teacher did something that convinced me that all he does is follow the leader. We do three labs in a row that generate acidic waste. Rather than spend time neutralizing the waste, I put calcium carbonate rocks at the bottom of the waste beakers which generate carbon dioxide gas as they neutralize the acid. Then we do a lab that generates basic waste that also needs to be neutralized (acids and bases neutralize each other). His classes did the lab first and when I got to the lab, he proudly announced that he had put the calcium carbonate in the waste beakers to neutralize the waste. He just did what I did in the three previous labs without any thought as to why I did it. The number of times I've had to tell him the obvious just astounds me.
This is why our schools pale in comparison to other countries. Come on Americans, it's so simple.
I think if all those fine teachers in Finland and Canada, and Shanghai and all those countries doing so much better (and they ARE!) than the US had to teach Americans in America they would not do so well.
Come on down, Finnish Teacher! I'm going to take you to Okolona, MS. Lessee what you're really made of!
I think if all those fine teachers in Finland and Canada, and Shanghai and all those countries doing so much better (and they ARE!) than the US had to teach Americans in America they would not do so well.
Come on down, Finnish Teacher! I'm going to take you to Okolona, MS. Lessee what you're really made of!
I think if all those fine teachers in Finland and Canada, and Shanghai and all those countries doing so much better (and they ARE!) than the US had to teach Americans in America they would not do so well.
Come on down, Finnish Teacher! I'm going to take you to Okolona, MS. Lessee what you're really made of!
I'd love to put an end to this "it's the school's fault" argument one an for all--lets take the teachers from the worst school in your state and put them into the best school in the state, then take those teachers from the best schools and put them into the worst schools...bet the rankings of the schools don't change at all....
You need a base to neutralize an acid. Calcium carbonate can be used to neutralize an acid but it won't neutralize a base. They install blocks of calcium carbonate in sink traps on chemistry labs to neutralize any acid that goes down the drain. A chemistry teacher should know that calcium carbonate will not neutralize a base. He assumed that all lab waste is neutralized the same way. I guess he thought they were magic rocks that do what you want them to do.
I'd love to put an end to this "it's the school's fault" argument one an for all--lets take the teachers from the worst school in your state and put them into the best school in the state, then take those teachers from the best schools and put them into the worst schools...bet the rankings of the schools don't change at all....
I agree. My principal is always claiming that we have the scores we do because of our staff. Nope. It's because of our kids and the families they come from. It's easy to teach the cream of the crop.
Did I say using the reading lists would be MANDATORY?
What do you think the word RECOMMENDED means?
If some students found the books better than their teachers then what would the problem be?
The trouble is there are a lot of DUMB teachers who behave as though they are supposed to be RESPECTED just because they got the title of TEACHER. What good are teachers that couldn't compete with a reading list?
But plenty of sources say the latter is difficult to understand.
psik
LOL. You can print all the lists you want but don't expect anyone to follow them.
I'm glad you found books you like. Why do you assume the rest of us can't do the same? Do you think you're so unique that only you could figure this out without being told what to read and the rest of us need a list? Which would be ignored anyway because quite frankly I don't want anyone telling me what I should read. I prefer to pick what I read myself.
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The number of times I've had to tell him the obvious just astounds me. Yet, my principal loves him and hates me. My principal hates me because I refuse to give up my right to think. Fortunately, for me, he appears to have bigger fish to fry than me for the time being.
I agree. My principal is always claiming that we have the scores we do because of our staff. Nope. It's because of our kids and the families they come from. It's easy to teach the cream of the crop.
Do you think you're so unique that only you could figure this out without being told what to read and the rest of us need a list? 
Which would be ignored anyway because quite frankly I don't want anyone telling me what I should read. I prefer to pick what I read myself.
