EDF2085-Reflection #20

Intersexuality for me is believed to be part of both genders at the same time, having male and female characteristics. You don’t choose to belong to both you are just born like that. It is something you cannot control from happening. There are also sex tests taken to prove to which gender you belong to. It is rare when intersexuality occurs and if it does it may be caused by different hormones during the pregnancy, or may be genetically. Everyone has a different view on this subject. Doctors believe if genital surgery is done it would prevent the child trauma, but this also goes both ways. The child may feel outside of its shell if the parents choose something for it and it isn’t agreed with their feelings. They may change the child’s gender, and the child ends up being the contrast of it. Our culture is what puts together the views of how each gender should dress and look like. There is no fixed difference between a male and a female. Transexuality is when a person feels that their gender is different from their sex characteristics. For example, let’s say they look like a woman, but inside it is a male, and they like women. To others it may look like it is a homosexual, but to them it isn’t considered this because they believe they are males. What also determines this is to go through the sex reassignment surgery. If they want to do this then it is obvious that they are not in the right body gender according to their characteristics and feelings. It is important to know this difference because you will never know when you will be crossed with a situation like this. You may not know the person is different from others, and you might say something foolish and hurt their feelings. I learned a lot from this because I never really knew what it was. Especially the difference between these two, I always thought transvestites were the same thing. Knowing these differences helps us to try to understand them and know where they are coming from. We need to sympathize with them, and understand what it is like being in a situation like that coming from their shoes. You never know where life takes us and maybe one day we will be friends with someone like this and we would not be able to know much about the situation because they won’t say. Now, I can say I know a little bit about it and know what a hard time they have with it. It is good to know we are all different individuals in this world.

EDF1005-Reflection #20

Education in Europe was different and was influenced by many people. Jan Amos Comenius believed that the educational system should have teachers treating their children kinder and that they will learn better through visual things such as pictures. He wanted colleges to have labs in their school and for knowledge to be available to everyone. He actually believed in women when no one else did. Freidrich Wilhelm Froebel was a person who believed that religion was the center of all things. God knew the plan for everyone and everything was surrounded around him. This is how much of the schools were in the colonial times. The Puritans believed in God and would go to church almost all the time. Froebel was the one to invent kindergarten. He wanted to foster the care for children that were four through six years old. Most of his ideas are still being used today in U.S. public schools which is playing in groups, goal oriented activities, play time outside, etc. Herbert Spencer brought about the quote “survival of the fittest”. He believed in individualism, hence he didn’t agree in public schools, but private schools. U.S. public high schools gave students entrance exams to get into the schools. They gave students goals in order to graduate. Democracy in public schools has helped diversity to be able to live happily in one society. Since public schools are for everyone, regardless race, skin, economic status, or disabilities they have to remain democratic and serve an education for all types of people including the service we give. Instead, they are putting a monopoly of different powers in a couple of hands, different from the democratic beliefs. The European high schools have four levels of education and they are way harder than ours here in the United States. The European democracy helps students explore the different principles of a society that is all about this. It gives them the rights and responsibilities they need to experience. They are both pretty similar to each other but of course have their differences. Most of our customs came from them. The acceptance of public schools did confirm the system of democracy. But, many things have also changed since the mid nineteenth century. The school system has changed and has its democratic and undemocratic traits just like everything else. Everything just seems to improve as time goes by but we always carry something from the past, and where it came from.

EDF2085-Reflection #19

I believe the cause of homosexuality is hereditary and partially based on experience in the way in which you were brought up. I think most people are just born like that with those interests different than the rest of us. Also, if you are a girl and still young and all you want to do is play sports and play with the boys outside I would begin to worry and put my daughter in a ballet class. These are things parents try to do to avoid that situation to occur. Religion can also play a major role in the decision of sexuality. But, unfortunately I think it is uncontrollable and something that is born in you. No, my views on homosexuality have not changed. I am not against any of them because they are exactly like we are human beings. They just have different views and customs towards some things. I have learned that it has not yet been fully proven that it is something genetic. It most solely based upon your decision and what you choose to do base on how you feel. It is something they themselves cannot control. Sometimes they are afraid to show their orientation because of what the outside world may think. They see how they are made fun of and don’t want to be one of those victims. I learned that just because an individual has a same sex encounter or experience does not make them a homosexual. If you are a female who seeks the same sex as their own you are called a lesbian. If you are a male seeking another male you are therefore called gay. I also learned that there are four different types of sexual attraction a person can have toward someone else. They can either be homosexuals, heterosexuals, bisexuals, or not have a sexual desire or attraction for neither of the sexes. It is said that if the root cause of sexuality is genetic, and the person most likely won’t be able to change their attraction once they are older. On the other hand, if it is something that is within the environment, then there is a chance it can be changed through some help and therapy. I also took from these readings that it is still not known on how homosexuality starts or what forms it. Everyone is still in question, and it is a delicate topic. Some religions have different views on homosexuality, and it is against their beliefs. Everyone is their own unique person, and has to follow the beliefs of their religion as well.

EDF2085-Assignment 2-Diversity Survey

The first survey I took was called “Core Beliefs about Mind, Body, Spirit, and Reality Survey”. This survey had to do with our bodies and how we work and it works separately. I believe that our mind and soul are connected. It consisted of what is reality? What makes up the human body? Etc. I believe there is life after death once we die and that is with God in heaven. It is a completely different world there, where we should rest in peace. This is what I was taught since I was younger also; hence it’s what I believe. I believe the mind makes up the body, and it also makes the soul. I believe the mind and spirit are the same and they go together. The spirit wouldn’t be anything without the mind, although once we die it is said that our spirit is still alive. The world as we see it is what is called reality. Having to suffer is part of life and reality, and part of being human is also dying, aging, etc. as well. No one can escape time; we cannot make it stop, although I wish we could sometimes. I believe the mind is the most important thing of the body on top of all other material things. I believe that the mind, body, and spirit are one and cannot function without the other.
The next survey was called “Core Beliefs: What I Learned From My Parents”. My parents taught me to always think well of myself and to believe in myself. To always respect authority and NEVER question them just obey. Challenging authority in my family was seen as disrespectful and you would most likely get punished for it. I was taught that God forgives and he loves us no matter what. By serving others and being good to them I am also serving God. God will always forgive, and try to help us in life. He will never do us wrong. Women were just as important as men. Lately I’ve been taught that there is rarely any good people in this world, most of them have bad intentions. I am special to my parents and have reached their expectations or higher. I was always important in my family and listened to by them. My opinions were important and my dislikes were too. When I was younger I was always rewarded when behaved well. Every time I got good grades or behaved well in school I received an award at the end of the week of some sort. Also, I was taught to always respect another’s things, which are their privacy and property, and not your stuff. It is okay to be wrong sometimes because none of us our perfect. We are all human beings and we all have flaws. I have also been taught that others needs and feelings are always important, and if we can help someone else out to do so. It is important to know that every person is different and we have to accept each other’s differences.
Another survey was called “Core Beliefs: How I Was Raised”. I was raised that profanity should never be used. Bad words and explicit language was definitely not part of the normal day, we would get punished if we were to use them. Respect is earned to the family always and to elders. Elderly people are always treated with the same amount of respect as everyone else. Men are of equal importance to women no matter what. Not one gender has more power than the other. The whole family is important, this meaning the grandmothers, cousins, parents, etc. The way you shake someone’s hands tells a lot about you. You shake it firmly it shows you are confident in yourself. You dress for success; if you want to be treated with importance and respect one must dress nice, decent and respectful. The way I was raised it is normal to greet someone with a kiss on the cheek or a hug. You look at someone in the eye when they are talking to you to show you are listening, confident, and paying attention to what they are saying as if it was of importance. Always call someone by their name, unless you are speaking with a teacher then you call him/her by their last name with due respect. When it is time to pray

you stop what you are doing just for a few seconds. There is always time for prayer; it only lasts about less than five minutes anyways. Time is not money, although time is important and it is important to always get to places on time. I am responsible for my own actions. If I choose to do something whether it is right or wrong, they were my choices, actions, and decisions. More than one marriage is not permissible, we always try hard to keep one and work out the one you have. I was taught to never question or challenge authority, instead you obey them. Destiny is something you have to accept and cannot change. It is something that is uncontrollable.
The next survey I took was called “Beliefs About Men”. I do not believe a man’s humor is seen to be aggressive or gross. Although, some may make it seem like it sometimes but it isn’t always like this. I don’t think they think women enjoy suffering. Sometimes men do like to make women suffer but I hope they don’t enjoy it. They definitely don’t like to be told what to do at all. When you tell a man what to do they get offended, as if it were their job to tell us what to do. They don’t really like to let out their problems with people unless you are very close to them. It is difficult for a man to tell you his problems, most of them like to keep things to themselves. They aren’t more superior to women. Men and women are both of equal importance. I believe men can maintain a serious close relationship; they just have to be mature enough. Some men are completely opposite because they aren’t mature to handle just one women in their lives. I do believe they are more conceited than women, and appear to be cockier. When a woman says yes a man usually interprets that as a no, and vice versa. Men do get threatened when you sound very intelligent, they begin to feel intimidated. Men get easily intimidated by women. Men always want to feel superior so they date a girl that is younger, less knowledgeable, or even less attractive than they are. Women are more logical than men and seek to think things through more than men do. Men don’t think about anything, they just go for it with no thinking.
Next, is the survey called “Beliefs About Women”. I believe women are more nurturing than men are. They are the ones that nurture their young babies, take care of them, and even breast feed them. They care about others feelings more than men do. When a women is telling someone their problems they aren’t really looking for a solution but just someone to let out their frustration with and someone that’ll listen to them. We all need someone that’s just a good listener sometimes. The most important thing to women is her mother. Her mother is the one that brought her to this world, her best friend, and the one that knows it all and is always right. Women are interested in raising a family as soon as they get married. The most important thing to them is raising their kids and to start a family. They are more stable and able to maintain a close relationship. Women are said to mature faster than men. Women were made for men. If it wasn’t for the women, reproduction wouldn’t be possible. I believe sexual interests between men and women are completely different. I disagree that women ALWAYS mean the opposite of what they say; this may be true sometimes, but not always. Women are always available to give emotional support to others. Women are very motherly. They are better than men in seeing the needs of others and providing them with what they need.
Another survey I took is called “Beliefs About Race”. I believe that just because you are white does not mean you can attract any type of girl. If you are black doesn’t mean everyone of them is good at sports or athletic. If you are brown it doesn’t mean that you are good with music. I do believe people should try to marry within their culture, but if it doesn’t happen then no big deal. If you are yellow skin Asian it doesn’t mean you are smart at all. These are all very general phrases that have nothing to do nor are determined by your race. I do agree though that by the way someone looks you can tell where they may be from or what culture they may belong to. You may not be completely correct but it does give you an idea. If you are white doesn’t mean you are bankrupt, and if you are black it doesn’t mean you are a criminal either. Every person is their own individual. You can look super rich and white and be super poor and a criminal. Every person is different, it all depends. It has nothing to do with the outward appearance of a person to determine this. This is also where racism comes into play. People start to believe and make predictions and judgments about things just because the way someone looks and it has nothing to do with that. The person may look awful through the outside but may live in a beautiful house, be a millionaire, and not even have to work a day in his life. It has nothing to do with traits of a person.
Finally, the last survey taken was called “Beliefs About Sex and Gender”. I believe this is against my religion. I was taught we should produce and get married to the opposite sex. I believe that homosexual and lesbians should have the same rights under the law that we do. They are people just like us. The only difference is they believe in a different sexual orientation than we do.I believe our gender is determined by our organs within our body. If we have male organs inside and we look like a female through the outside you should choose what you want to do and which gender you want to stay with. What makes a woman a woman is her vagina, and a man a man is his penis. I do believe they have the right to become teachers if they want to because this would be complete prejudism. Sexual orientation has and shouldn’t have anything to do with your occupation or what career you choose. You are still a regular person just like everyone else is. You will perform the same tasks, as any other person will. I don’t think that just because you are a male teacher you are gay. I had many male teachers that were happily married and had a family. I agree that men are usually more aggressive and violent, and women are usually sweet and nurturing to their family.
At the end of the day diversity plays a huge role in our lives. It is what our day to day world consists of. The reason is because everyone is different. We are all different whether it is our gender, religion, beliefs, the way we were brought up, etc. we all have to see beyond that and try not to differentiate ourselves because of it. We must learn to accept everyone’s differences and just learn from them. Diversity is all around us. We must try not to be racist about anything because we are all unique and different individuals and we must see past our differences. They shouldn’t determine whether we are a good person, suitable for a job, or brought up right because of it.

EDF1005-Educational Philosophy

Many theorists have influenced my thoughts and more specifically helped me realize why things happen the way they do. There is a reason for every teachers “madness” or the way he/she composes the lesson in a peculiar way sometimes. It has made me realize the most effective methods of teaching, from my own experience and also observations. Beginning with Christian Wolff which coined the term mental discipline. Mental discipline is used among many teachers now days to teach the lesson so students may learn and memorize the material in an easier way. Another theorist that’s method has helped me a lot has been Jean-Jacques Rousseau which has expressed that your feelings and emotions are more important rather than learning straight from a book. Finally, Johann Friedrich Herbart introduced the way in which we associate new things with old things. Every time we learn something new it is linked to an old experience we had which also helps to learn it quicker.
First, an important theorist was Johann H. Pestalozzi. He made schooling for the poor possible and gave lessons that were relevant in value. “He made popular the idea of teaching by getting students actively involved in learning through using all of their senses. His particular method for doing this was called the object lesson” ("Rousseau and pestalozzi," ) . He believed that in a classroom it should all be about love and care.
Someone else who has influenced educational philosophy has been Christian Wolff which influenced mental discipline. Mental discipline is when let’s say for example gives you a list of words you need to know, each and every day you recite them, read them, and then get tested on it. It is exercising our minds. This is another important way in which students learn. In the classroom I am getting my service learning hours in the teacher uses this method and it seems to work effectively. The teacher recites the words with her student’s everyday and the students grasp and begin to learn the words and how to pronounce and spell them. It is all about habit; forming good one and behaviors. Throughout all my years in grade school this is how I learned.
Another theorist I will always have in account is Jean-Jacques Rousseau. “His theory has a big impact on today’s modern education. Rousseau's ideas about education have profoundly influenced modern educational theory. He minimizes the importance of book learning, and recommends that a child's emotions should be educated before his reason. He placed a special emphasis on learning by experience” (Chew, 1996). In my perspective this is important in a classroom and is something I will always take with me. Most of the time teachers like to make the students just read from the book and the students begin to concentrate more on finishing the reading than rather comprehending it. It also bores the students because they need a more “hands on” explanation. I am more of a visual learner so I learned best this way when my teachers taught like this. It is also important to have a little bit of both, since every student is a different learner.
A philosopher that has a great point to his theory is Johann Friedrich Herbart. He came up with the idea that when we are presented with something new, that new thing is linked together with something that already existed in our mind. This is what some teacher’s do, which is why it works so well and some things just stick. “Herbart saw the teacher's essential task as identifying the existing interests of the student and relating them to the great store of human experience and culture in order to help the student become part of civilized life”(McNair). Many teachers have done this to me, and make the new subject pertinent to the old stuff we already knew and caught my attention, therefore the new subject was easier to understand and will be easily remember because of the somewhat “analogy” that was given.

EDF2085-Reflection #18

This article is very important because I have always heard different stories about immigration from Cuba to Florida and how Castro is such a bad person and this article says all the facts. It is well known that almost the whole population of people that live in Miami know all the terrible stories Castro has done to Cubans. I can’t believe Castro would be so rude as to not let everyone who wanted to leave Cuba leave; also not following through his promises for all those people. For example, the “Peter Pan” acts when all the children were able to come to Florida but then Castro decided to stop that. Another example was the Camarioca boat lift, in which he allowed Cubans to come pick up their relatives but the price would be to lose all they have and it would belong to the government. Thirty five days later he decided to abolish this boat lift, and he left thousands hanging thinking they were going to be able to go. I can just imagine how awful it must be when someone with so much authority, whom you must believe because he runs your country, tells you something and doesn’t make it happen and just makes you lose hope. Yes, I do believe that a case can be made for charges of institutional racism. Institutional racism is when a group, government, or institution excludes a certain ethnic group from something without making notice. The reason why it is so hard to stand up for is because it is a group that it is being done by and not one specific person. The government or group is acting racist in not allowing a certain group of people into their country. They were blocking them out and weren’t being allowed to have their own freedom or go where they wanted to. They definitely should have put a charge for this when they had the chance. There were so many incidents that this occurred in from refusing to let individuals cross the borders, to immigrants coming and transferring the HIV virus. There was also dispute with how the Cubans and Haitians were being treated differently in the process of immigration. I was also shocked that during the time of the 9/11 attacks, that Haitians were a threat to national security. At least America has been able to somewhat balance and be flexible with the immigrants and emigrants. I believe we should help those immigrants as long as we can. We aren’t hurting anyone by doing so.

EDF1005-Assignment #1

Progressive education is different from the education we receive in a regular classroom. It is a method in which you actually experience something and learn from it. The experiences can also affect our future actions and decisions. Progressivists believe it is better to learn through experience and real life everyday obstacles. “At least two models of progressive education have emerged within the historical literature to date: the child-centred form and the social-reconstructionist form (Martin & Goodman, p. 410)”. These are two different things that came about since the historical date. But, the editors wanted more discussion about this so they began to research on the different examples and perspectives of the participants. What also played a major part in this was the difference in gender. It has showed that males performed a different progressive action than women did.
Education is seen as the primary key to the future. It will change our children’s lives as well as our society. Education helps achieve our views and knowledge in a politically and social manner. Just like the quote says from one of Joseph McNair’s readings: “In America, education has always been viewed as a vehicle for improving society at large.” I agree with this one hundred percent because the more we learn the more opportunities we open for ourselves and our society. The more doors we will open for ourselves and the more knowledge we will have on different subjects in life. It’s also important to have a form of reference historically as well as a point of view because it can provide a solution for the future lives of children. Researchers compared the behavior and change of practice in the first half of the twentieth century, and then the second half of the twentieth century. “They also wished to continue the re-visioning of progressivism in the light of the gender-sensitive and postcolonial analyses informing current scholarship in the history of education (Martin & Goodman, p. 410)”. “There is a special edition that helps us view an account of progressive education with different approaches to the method that can help historians, teachers, policy makers, and provide potential for our future (Martin & Goodman, p. 410).” It compares progressive education in the past with the present, and notes on how some things have changed or remained the same maybe because they need to or may be positive to our future and everyone in it. Although progressive education has been able to spread internationally with different discussions in institutes and different networks it has tried to open vastly among others. “The networks and relationships of progressive educationists, as well as accounts of progressive practice, the interplay between activism and agency, and the attempt to extend notions of democracy and citizenship in light of progressive education’s ideals” (Martin & Goodman, p.410). It is noted that women educationists were able to endure the common activities of the day to associate themselves with the different works of philosophy, experimentation, and political and institutional leadership. On the other hand, the results of the men were completely different from the women during the same time period. This article shows that this has become an important category in the history of education.
“Kevin Brehony’s view on progressivism is described in three factors which are the descriptive historical accounts of the experienced kind, evaluates the effectiveness of progressive suggestions in education, regulating writing for the support of an idea or cause, and finally unconvincing accounts that challenge assumptions on progressive education (p.410).”
Education is constantly changing, each and every day there is something new being invented or taught. An important factor also is in the ways in which we may teach something. Every single thing in our lives takes significant importance in the way we earn our education and what we take from it. Sometimes we may not be grasping the true meaning of what we are being taught. One of them being our own experiences with our day to day lives that challenges us each and every day and helps us learn new things. According to Cunningham, “Cunningham uses prosopography as a tool to analyze the contribution of life histories, personal ideologies, roles and relationships to the dissemination of educational change” (Martin & Goodman, p.411).” It’s all about the characteristics that make up a person that act as a tool for different changes needed in education. He uses narrated personal experience also with small group activities in order to complement individual creators. Then, concluding with the results that Cunningham received he used prosopography to learn more about certain individuals that made themselves not really known to everyone else. She pointed out ways in which the female gender made a contribution in progressivism through their participation, money, religion, and building up on different institutions. Many important people such as Eisenmann believed we shouldn’t continue with the practices that neither educators nor anyone else believed would be accomplished. They thought we should learn from the past and our mistakes and make what was unsuccessful even better for the present and future. The practices that weren’t successful shouldn’t be repeated, the same way when something goes wrong you don’t want to do it again because you don’t want it happening again to you. It is the same pattern.
Education has changed over time including progressive education. Things are a little different than what they were before. We have learned more politically and socially which has helped progressive education as well as for the future. We have learned from the past history practices and try not to repeat them, but come up with new ones for our future, so it can become a successful one. Progressive education makes schools more productive as a democratic society.

EDF2085-Reflection #17

Racism is something we are always hearing in our society in today’s world. It is something in which we must go beyond in what we see in that person, but see what’s inside, their capabilities, personality, and who they are. This tells so much more about a person, rather than seeing the outside cover and judging them from there. I have seen institutions act in a racist manner and have their own favorites which is not fair for the rest. I have also attended people at stores which get offended if you speak to them in Spanish because they say that they are “American”. For example, there was once a customer in whom an associate approached in Spanish and the lady told her, that wasn’t it obvious that she was English/American that she had blonde hair and blue eyes and she wasn’t like the rest. I believed to interpret that as super rude because what does it matter the color of your hair or eyes; you’re still a person just like the rest of us. I have also learned by reading this that race issues are very abundant here in the American society that it has almost become a stable component. Race is a term that could be used for biological purposes if you are talking about let’s say Asians, Americans, African Americans, etc. All races have different traits and genetics. Let’s say just because they are white doesn’t mean they will have blue eyes or be good at running. It all varies and changes and has nothing to do with race according to scientists. Ones race isn’t determined by all of this. Race has nothing to do with your physical attributes. Racism is never a good thing, because following it comes prejudism, discrimination, and a whole bunch of negative things. We shouldn’t judge others or give more importance to, those that are different from us. Every person is born the same, the only difference in exceeding the highest level of education is where they come from geographically, economic, and historical status and factors. Racism is any action in which we do that could be done intentional or unintentionally that excludes someone from something due to the color of their skin or their race.

EDF2085-Reflection #16

Genocide and ethnic cleansing are two strong words that have a severe meaning. I have never heard of ethnic cleansing, but it means to completely eliminate a certain group of people regarding their religion or ethnicity. Genocide is considered a crime while ethnic cleansing isn’t. They are both almost the same thing just genocide is something more specific and ethnic cleansing in spoken in broader terms. I think this is something that should just be eliminated and both should be considered crimes. It is like speaking about the Holocaust, because this is what it was really about. It is something so sad, and many events have occurred because of it. One of the examples of genocide in the 20th century is said to be in Rwanda the conflict with the slaughter of the Tutsi minority by the Hutu majority. A blind eye was turned into a slaughter and over two million Cambodians were killed. In Bosnia more than two thousand civilians were killed and women were raped over a hundred times, all this while their husbands and sons were being tortured in concentration camps. Ethnic cleansing caused the loss of their homes. In Darfur there were many killings by the government, sexual violence, looting of property which were some forms of the ethnic cleansing that was done there. I believe these things are really hard to accept. The fact that no one stood up for these unfortunate people makes it really sad. Ethnic cleansing should also be aborted together with genocide. These atrocities were something I never knew of before and I believe it is abuse how some people can treat others this badly over differences or what not. Genocide is a form of prejudice and this is one example on how it is being acted out in today’s society by gestures like this. I never knew that these different locations had people that were being treated this badly. This is unjust and these aren’t ways people should be treated in society. These are things we have to learn from and stick up for ourselves if they were to ever happen as hard as it is to do. The reason they happen is because no one has ever said no, or stand up for themselves.

EDF1005-Reflection #19

The children were being taught in their homes with the most important subject being reading. The homes were converted into schools which were called “dame schools”. They taught everything within English and grammar which was writing, computation, and reading skills. It was known to be that “dames” were women who were interested in education and they were the ones who took charge of the education in the communities. In the early 1900s junior high schools included 7, 8, and 9 grades and were made to satisfy and provide for the preteens. It offered a core curriculum as well as the counseling they needed. Later on, they developed all the other grades into another school and incorporated more into the high school. Boys were sent at the age of seven to learn the different trades while girls usually stayed at home with their mothers to learn homemaking skills and to learn things that a house wife should know. All these were the apprenticeship programs, some laws also required for certain areas to learn reading and writing skills. The boys who were able to pay for their education attended a school called Latin grammar school which was an exclusive school that you had to pay for your tuition just to receive an education. It is said that this was the beginning stepping stone to creating the American high school. Here, the students needed to recite and read different poems and stories. They also included all the other important subjects. Once they graduated they were expected to attend college and most of them became ministers. But, high schools were free unlike these grammar schools. They weren’t controlled by private boards, instead by the public. High school is something we hold within us forever. It is something we don’t forget, for some of us the best four years of our lives. Those are memories we cannot escape. Colonial schools were also surrounded by religion, and the high schools kind of began to move away from that. There were a couple of changes with the dame schools and the development of the high schools for adolescents. It all came together over time, and now we have elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools to follow.

"The Ruler"

The Esu is one of the deities. The purpose of the esu is to trick people and to develop some sort of maturation. It leaves people with a guilty conscious that will sooner or later come back to them if they betray it. It tests you to see what you can handle and are made of. It straightens out the parts of us that are broken, and tries to fix them. It doesn't like to point fingers at anyone. It teaches us the right way and was trying to show the ruler this. Esu tries to set a good example for us.

EDF2085-Assignment 1

The teacher does treat all students equally regardless of their ethnic background, gender, or skills levels. I wouldn’t have even noticed this antic because they are all treated like the same person. The teacher does treat all of the students fairly, with equitably, but of course according to their behavior. The teacher does respect all students regardless of the diversity in the classroom. This is a classroom of kids that are about the age of five, a kindergarten classroom. Some of them don’t know how to behave or stay in their seats, or it is the first year of school for most of them. It is difficult because as soon as one doesn’t start to behave they all get hyper and follow what that child is doing. For some of them they need extra attention and help when doing the assignments because they can’t grasp it when the teacher is doing it in the front of the class. The teacher approaches each one of them to see if they are doing it correctly. She does things orally, visually, and to watch them perform certain things. She uses different things to teach and show them. She may read a story and show them pictures and all this is incorporated with the words and color of the week. They perform assignments that require motor skills. She also performs tasks in which all students must participate or answer questions individually. This particular day they were learning about transformations, and how butterflies first become a caterpillar, then they make a cocoon, and then transform into a beautiful butterfly. Most of them were really surprised and grasped the concept. They had to draw what happened in the story, some of them knew it became a butterfly, and some of them were lost. Not all the students speak English which makes it difficult for them. “Communication differences are among the most obvious issues that must be confronted when crossing cultural boundaries” (Safford, 124). The teacher makes me help this one child who provokes all other students and behave terribly. She constantly wants me to sit with her and watch her do the work. She needs special attention and you can tell she doesn’t have any at home. The students are rewarded with a prize or candy sometimes, but only for the ones that behaved well that day. I believe this is good because this way they learn they have to behave good to receive a prize. Regardless of their age, gender, or ethnicity, each student is reward and treated on how they behave throughout the day. Each one is treated fairly and the same as the other.

EDF2085-Reflection #15

I believe the Holocaust was an awful thing that happened and no one deserves to be treated or to die like that. People were being separated from their families and tortured for no other reason than for being Jews. It was pure abuse and something really disturbing to watch while looking at the video we watched in class. Everyone should be treated equal in this world. It hurts to know that those people had to suffer as much as they did for us to have the freedom we have today; including segregation and slavery. I guess people learn through their mistakes, and we as a society have learned that we are way better than to be treated that way by anyone. These were innocent people, some in which didn’t even know this would be done to them. The people in denial that believe the Holocaust did not happen must think historians are unskilled for this event, which is untrue. I believe the people that think that none of this ever happened are in great denial and can’t believe such an awful thing did occur and are covering it up in ways in which they think they can convince people otherwise. They know they can’t prove themselves right with the history of it that happened, but politically with their beliefs. Hitler and his followers were obviously ethnocentrists and believed they were better than anyone else and if you weren’t one of them then you should be dead. The sad part of this is that this is what they carried on, which made a huge part in history. The people that say it didn’t happen, I think don’t want to face the fact that it did. It is something so sad, something to mourn about, that they may not even want to remember it. They don’t want to be reminded of it and how it was allowed to actually take place, so they block themselves with it and say it never happened. They might also be afraid a riot or something might be formed or take place. People might look at them differently knowing that they actually experienced this awful tragedy hands on. People shouldn’t think like this because we will be learning from their experience with this. They should share their experiences and what they went through.

EDF1005-Reflection #18

From the quote “In America, education has always been viewed as a vehicle for improving the society at large”, I do believe this is true. Everyone can improve themselves in every single slight way through education, which will help improve the society in which we live in. Everything will have more definition and meaning, and everyone would be able to see more eye to eye on things than what they are now. Almost half of the population does decide to continue to receive an education which helps build great businesses, meaning better jobs, which means more money, which also leads to a more modern and better place to live. Schooling also forms some sort of structure, an example being with all the educational reforms such as the National Education Summit. It teaches us how to behave around different types of people and form good relationships with others. A perfect example is that education started in the colonial times, and ever since we have developed it and made it better and easier for children to learn. We have formed better schools with the help of our society. Thanks to education we have doctors and people who can take care of us and our health. It has specialized people to do certain things and help out everyone in society. Benjamin Franklin had a huge influence in the education we carry on today because he established the academy which was a secondary school that offered a variety of different practical subjects to learn. Students were also able to choose which classes or subjects they wanted to take. As you can tell it was a big influence in the society of America because we have continued this method of choosing which courses you want to take and a variety of subjects as well. The purpose of getting education is to improve our knowledge to make wise choices when we are faced with them. Education is something you can’t get enough of, you can always improve and learn more. Every day we each learn something new, it may be about each other or about society, but every day is a learning experience which is why it is seen as a vehicle that does not stop moving. If our education is always improving, we will always have something concrete to back us ourselves up with. We will always have a point in our arguments. If we all would have an education, we would all be able to get better jobs which will help out the economy which can help form more job openings and change people’s lives.

EDF1005-Reflection #17

Back in the days in England the Puritans wanted to reform the Church. They wanted to establish the religion of the Puritans. They formed schools that taught the children how to understand and read the Bible. In the U.S. this doesn’t happen unless you attend a private school, besides that religion isn’t even mentioned in a regular public school. I learned all this because I attended Catholic school my whole life. The Puritans had strong religious beliefs that helped them move through everything. Education was given only to whites in New England. Nowadays, in the present time thankfully education is something that is provided to everyone equally. The most important books to them were the hornbook and the Bible. Although books were scarce, they had to memorize most of the content. In America we have plenty of books to choose from now. The boys would begin their school day at 7 am, and then have breakfast at 9 am, and dinner from 2-7pm. They had a few breaks in between and studied math, science, history, Greek, Latin, etc. afterwards they would help at home. In the U.S. we still have school really early but not all day. We come home just in time for lunch and then dinner; dismissal from school is usually around 2 or 3 pm. Schools is provided to boys and girls, girls didn’t have to stay home and learn. Also, teachers were dominated by men, now is when it has become mostly a female career. In the earlier colonial times parents had the freedom to choose the education of their child. Neither regulatory boards, nor teacher certifications were required, and they didn’t have to pay for schools they did not approve of. Many things have changed though, teachers do need certification, and children must go to the public schools around the area in which they live, unless they want to attend a private school and pay for their schooling wherever they want. Female teachers attended a seminary and then graduated from it and were allowed to teach until they were married. Many whites didn’t want the blacks to attend schools, but there was finally several laws passed to change all this.

EDF2085-Reflection #14

I learned through reading “Understanding Prejudice” that there are many different types of prejudices. One of them is intentional prejudicial actions which is most common among people that had tough childhoods. Most of them can’t form serious close relationships with others and it’s because they’ve been. These acts are planned most of the time. They do this in order to defend themselves and their identities. It is really hard to change these behaviors in people that are like this. Then what follows unintentional prejudicial actions, which the intentions of this behavior are never really noticed. They will throw little things here and there but not as bad as the things the person went through throughout their childhood. When we give people the benefit of the doubt we are allowing them to change the way in which they behave. The good thing is there are ways we can avoid unintentionally prejudicial actions by practicing non prejudice thoughts, and removing our guilt factor. It is incredible how the way you were brought up can affect the way you behave in the long run. The early stages of life and elementary school are very crucial because this is what begins to form who you are and what you are going to be. Prejudice is the worst of the negative attitudes of multicultural awareness. When you are prejudice of a certain group you are prejudging them and the qualities of that group. For example, if I were to say Amy is in the popular group in high school because she is in the dance team. I am being prejudice because just because you are in the dance team doesn’t mean you are popular. It is just our mentalities of things and what we assume. Amy can be friends with everyone and in everyone’s group. This is the mistake people make nowadays; they always judge others and make prejudice comments before making an encounter with the person. Prejudice is formed by a group and also with others and their judgments. I do understand how prejudice happens because it is with the help of others. We all get influenced by others beliefs, as well as make judgments prior to our interaction with someone.

EDF2085-Reflection #13

I think most of the facts on “Understanding Oneself” are so true. We, as humans, are very complex creatures. A perfect example that was given was that we can be super nice and loving to those people we do not like, but yet to the people we truly love it is difficult for us to show our love and affection towards them. We, ourselves as human beings, don’t even know how we function ourselves. If we were to be asked this question we would spend quite some time thinking about it. Most of the time we begin to just do things without even thinking about them. There are three very important questions we have to ask ourselves to know our identity and where we are going in life. These questions are: Who am I? Where am I going? And what route shall I take? These are three questions that we ourselves must know the answer to. There are great questions to think about because this is how we know if we are doing something with ourselves. We should always have an aim for what we are shooting for. Everyone needs a goal in life, if not then there really is no purpose of living. Our self concept is a very important part of who we are. It makes us up individually by putting all of our ideas, thoughts, and beliefs together. How we act is determined by our self concept. If we see ourselves as something really important we are going to act superior to everyone and not hide under everyone else’s shadow. On the other hand, our self esteem is how we value and protect our self concept. It takes a long way for one to transform their issues with self esteem and concepts and it all comes with experience from life as each day goes by. All these qualities I believe are really important for a human being. They make each one of us up individually regardless of our differences. The “self” is made up of many more other things that make it up. It is what we can call our own and cannot be changed by anyone but ourselves. I found it interesting that everyone automatically changes their behavior without knowing in front of others. The reason we do this is because it is something that is expected and over time have realized this is the only way people will love us, like us, listen to us, and etc. I believe this is true because I have seen people act a certain way in their house with their parents, and once they go out in public with other people they change their attitudes and/or behavior right away.

EDF1005-Reflection #16

Rhetoric was the study of speaking and writing in an effective way. Rhetoric was a speech with a given theme. It also became something that the teachers would use to train the students and demonstrate how to use language orally and to learn how to apply it when speaking or writing. There were teachers who were called rhetors who taught this writing style. This study of rhetoric became a huge part of Roman society. It was a form of art. Rhetoric became a genre and a huge part of literature and all. The declamation had three parts to it and was considered to have been formed from rhetorics. Rhetoric was a way of putting something into an argument. It was the way to persuade someone into a belief, or by what was being said at the moment. Rhetoric was being able to say something in one way and how it would be interpreted in another way. For example, if I apply for a credit card because I was pursued by the way the associate entrapped me into applying; even though I know having credit cards aren’t good. It was the center of all Roman education. The most famous rhetoric at the time was Marcus Tullius Cicero for being the most read rhetorician of the Classical period. He elaborated and developed new ideas. Rhetoric is something that was inherited from Greece. It was mostly the study of language and thought together. There were two types of rhetorics that were used. One was quaestiones which were themes that were general and abstract. The other was causae which was themes related to a particular person or situations. The declamatio of rhetorics is what dominated schools in the areas of literacy. The Romans put great emphasis in rhetoric once the child was about the age of sixteen. They believed this was important because they needed to learn how to read and write correctly in public. It would help them lead in society of government. I believe using rhetoric was a good way of learning grammar and speech in a sort of particular way because it was a different type and way of saying something. For example, Aristotle the famous philosopher was famous for using rhetoric. It is from him where we get the rhetorical “proofs” anyways. Although rhetoric was a major part of Roman education.

EDF1005-Reflection #15

Education in these two cities had many similarities and a few differences. Education in Ancient Rome was taken very seriously. Most of them were taught how to read and write. The people of the higher class though, were tutored privately at home. “Schools” which we know them as today, were supposed to be only for boys. As soon as they did something wrong they would get beaten or hit. There were no books and not many subjects to be learned. The regular school day for them was much longer than ours is today. Girls were also allowed to go to school but it was done at home. Their week consisted of seven days and they had no weekend to rest. No tests were ever given out but there was much competition. Almost everything was considered a competition for them. The teachers didn’t really have an assessment. Anyone can just walk in town and claim to be a teacher. On the other hand, education in Athens was pretty much to get the children ready for the arts. They weren’t worried about specifying them for a certain job like most of the Romans were. They wanted them to know a little bit of everything and be well rounded. The girls were taught the same things they were in Ancient Rome as well, which are to cook, clean, sew, and keep up with the household. Education for the Athenians took place in the home. They had three types of different teachers; each would have a different occupation. One was an elementary school teacher, the other a secondary school teacher, and the third was a rhetor who taught the students how to make speeches. They were each in charge of teaching something different to the students. This was a big contrast between the Romans and Athenians. I believe the teaching style of the Athenians was more effective and the closest to how our academics and curriculum are taught in today’s society. They were both similar in how they taught their girls of their society to take charge of the household. The Romans were mostly trained for fighting and for an occupation, not really any subjects unlike the Athenians. Education was an important part of both of these cities though. The Romans were more focused on getting their boys ready for the military and ready to fight. They began to train them since they were young boys. All together, both cities did not have many differences and were pretty similar to each other.

EDF1005-Reflection #14

Aristotle saw the world in a biological way which is how we derive most of the organisms we see today. He made a chain which was considered “Great Chain of Being” which had all types of species and what would connect each one of them would be their logical progression. We would be the highest one on that Chain of Being. What would differentiate us from the other organisms was our form of reason. With this he tried to form a relationship between all living things. Aristotle had Four Causes that were the most obvious. Each one of them was in the form of questions. The first two causes being the classificatory causes. Number one is “What kind of thing is it?” which is a formal cause. Number two asks “What is it made of?” which is the material cause. These first two causes show how the material/thing came about. The final two causes were the dynamic causes. Number 3 asks “What were the functions or the specific design of the object?” which this is the final cause. The last cause, Number four asked “How did the thing come to be?” which is the efficient cause, the effect. Aristotle wanted everyone to be happy and believed this was the most important thing in life. I agree with him in this statement because at the end of the day it is important that we, ourselves are happy. In order for this to happen we must be the best and succeed the best way we can. Aristotle believes motion is eternal. He believed that things that were in motion were set to be moved, and something causes them to do so. He said that the primary cause of motion was locomotion which is what causes something to move. To Aristotle, the “Unmoved Mover” didn’t cause anything to set in motion. It was usually contemplating and was something beautiful. He said this was eternal and was neither created nor can be destroyed. The influence it has on today’s Western civilization is that according to Aristotle, this is what causes the world to move in motion. The Unmoved Mover was superior to everything else in the world. It is what caused everything else to move. Aristotle brought about all these ideas and theories which have been reviewed and developed further. He made many observations with the world around us and the things living in it today.

EDF1005-Reflection #13

Plato believed that the basis of all things was truth which is how idealism is formed. Everything came from truth, starting with mathematics. The best thing in life was truth and everything else was important. Plato’s theory of ideas was known as Forms. His theory of Forms was a separation between the worlds of different ideas. He believed that Forms was knowledge known for sure, for a fact that was unchangeable, and things that were actually discovered were insignificant. He also thought that things that change aren’t real. If something were to be real is had to be unchangeable, and stay as is. Idealism is something that is “ideal” therefore the truth of something. Forms were something concrete and which couldn’t be changed, but were examined intellectually. For example, a circle is a Form because it has a radius, a circumference, etc. Love isn’t a type of Form because that is something abstract that changes from one person’s view to another’s. A Form was for example, putting all types of different things into a group that had similar characteristics with each other. Something that would change would be considered unreal to him according to his Theory of Forms. One form of idealism was Platonism. Plato’s theory of Reminiscence believed that we were born with Forms and a sense of knowledge but we tend to forget them once we are born. A lot of people don’t believe this theory today, because we tend to learn from others that are older than us as we grow and experience things in life that they once did. This is almost like being the first born child, they are the ones that experience everything first and pass on the information to the younger siblings. One of the ideas I believe are still being used today by Plato is his belief that children should be taught by the society as a whole rather than just their parents. I believe this is a fact, because even today we learn something new every day from one another. Plato believed that the main concern in life was to live a happy and good life, but in order to do this one must have the knowledge of what is good. The process of this involves the Form of Good.

EDF2085-Reflection #12

The reason Freud’s Theory of Personality is seen and considered as important is because it is influenced a lot in the world we live in today, it is still continued to be used. I find it to be a reasonably true theory that can be believed today. According to Freud in today’s world, the most important things are to reproduce and keep a life living (a human being), and to fight to stay alive which is not allowing anyone or anything interfere or get in our way of succeeding or doing what you have to do. I believe Freud was a very wise man. His structural model completely makes sense and seems appealing to me. Once we are born, we have something called the id. The id is something that has to be satisfied at that specific moment in time regardless what is going on at that certain moment, or where we may be. It has to be satisfied regardless the scenario or circumstances. Then, we have the ego which is developed when we are about the age of five, a toddler. It satisfies the id, but is considerate about the moment in time when we need that satisfaction. For example, if they are hungry and are at the doctor’s office they will wait till they leave the doctor’s to get something to eat. Finally, there is the superego. The superego is what forms our moral restraints that our parents give to us. It is what helps us determine what would be right or wrong. I believe it is true what Freud says that our behavior is determined by our pleasure. There are many instances where this is true. Everything we do is split into two instincts which are what motivates us, and is the result of our behavior. These two instincts are our sexual drive and aggression drive. Our sexual drive is what is constantly reproducing and allowing a streamline of different generations, etc to live. Our aggression drive is what helps us fight for our things that we need or want, and what tries not to let anything get in the way. Each of Freud’s stages represent the different stages between being an infant and being a mature adult. Freud believed we were born with a need for pleasure. When we are infants we find ways to satisfy this pleasure by sucking, chewing, biting, etc. But, as we get older, this pleasure becomes something else. Freud remains so important because he was the one to invent an iceberg model of how our mind works, as well as through our personality. His theory can be applied to our human personality.

EDF2085-Reflection #11

Many of the topics discussed in Beliefs, Values, and Attitudes are very important when speaking of the concepts of teaching. For example, the same way we have authority in cultures to assure us that a belief or something is true, it is almost exactly the same thing teachers do. Many beliefs end up being determined by the culture through observations and day to day activities. This is how they determine certain beliefs. Values are something very important to us. It is something that we should carry with us everywhere throughout our lifetime. Each and every one of them represents the goals we have, our judgments, and pertain to all of our different beliefs. I learned that us as teachers will be able to observe a student’s values by seeing the way they are and act towards different things. These types of values are called conceived values. A person’s attitude is also a really important attribute because it relates to our beliefs, and this is where feelings are also involved. It is important to be able to judge a student’s attitude to determine if it is a negative or positive one and why. These are all different strategies that I learned about, and different things lead up or determine something else. Everything is like a chain reaction. It is all part of a cognitive component. It is important to know that beliefs, attitudes, and values can be changed or altered. If they wouldn’t be able to be changed then we wouldn’t be able to function with multicultural awareness. What was also very striking for me was all the different acts of prejudice that can come about. Because once you are a teacher, you also have to make sure not to avoid or discriminate any individual for any matter. This is another one of the things that I found most important because it is important to apply in a classroom with students. This will cause them not to learn to their full potential because they will feel a block in the relationship between the two of you. All these behaviors are the result of rejection and a student will feel this tension. You have to be aware to form a comfort zone for the student and make all of them feel superior equally, not one group more than another.

EDF2085-Reflection #10

I believe this article is really helpful for all of us as our futures as teachers. It shows us ways on how to treat all students equally while at the same time teaching them as a group (classroom). It is really important to know your student and who he or she is by learning their names the first few days of class. There is nothing like addressing someone by their name, it shows importance for that individual. We can’t assume just because a student doesn’t explain themselves to the class constantly and speak out, that they don’t know what’s going on. I was taught to listen more than to speak out, and I would consider myself an average, above average student. Us as teachers cannot assume things, but we must know. All the respect and attention for each student has to be shown the first few days of class so they don’t begin to shut themselves out or feel left out. It is important to let everyone participate and make everyone response seem important in the classroom while the other students judge as well. It’s also a good idea to set rules for the classroom, to let all the students know the respectful and right things to do with one another. You should never make a student act as a spokesperson for the group. Each student should have an opportunity to speak out in class and express their opinions. I learned if we were to be talking about a certain topic and that topic represents a student in the classroom, avoiding eye contact makes it even more obvious. I have learned all of this because if it wasn’t for reading this article I wouldn’t know how to react or what to do if this scenario happens. But, if the student is always participating and getting involved, then the student is already warmed up with the atmosphere and will feel comfortable sharing his/her opinions or views on the topic. The most important thing is to pay attention to all students equally and try to know them each individually. Try to learn and explore their learning style, and teach them as a group of diversity. As a teacher you have to be very precise and careful with what you say because you may offend a student by saying something wrong.

EDF2085-Reflection #9

Awareness is the process of being conscious or unconscious processes or activities. It is like a “space” for our memories where beliefs are stored. When you become aware of something your body reacts to it. You begin to feel sad, happy, hot, cold, cry, joyous, etc. It is all as soon as the body begins to process what it is encountering. For example, if my body is aware that I am touching a hot object, it is going to react by automatically removing my hand and probably scream from the paint. I also agree with Zetty, that awareness is like our observer. It knows everything and sees everything. I believe that the story of the epiphany was really impressive, I have never had that happen to me but I would like to experience it. An epiphany is like a hit of reality through a certain new perspective. In the quantum theory both matter and energy have particle like and wave like properties. They both change forms. The quanta is different levels which is part of different molecules. Our consciousness is a part of our awareness. Awareness is keeping track of something and when we are conscious of it we do not notice it is being done. Osho was the one to make the distinction between these two terms. He differentiated between awareness and consciousness. Conscious is a quality of the mind, but awareness isn’t its just mental. When we are conscious of something we are putting our thought into it. Let’s say there is a bee flying around where I am standing, I am conscious of it being there and I am aware that it may possibly bite me. There are many different categories consciousness falls into, and there are eight levels of it. We can also experience transformation with our state of consciousness. But all this requires different types of transformation. It happens anytime we learn something new we apply it to our lives. If I learn something today that changed my life I will transform and change my ways according to what I learned new. There is different types of transformations that happen, but all this depends on our level of consciousness or unconsciousness.

EDF1005-Reflection #12

Sputnik changed many things in schools in the 1950s. Sputnik was a race in space with the Soviets which was to educate the scientists and engineers. What Sputnik actually did was advance the curriculum of education for students. Things weren’t centered around the students anymore; they required a more rigorous study. People wanted more precise learning and teaching on different things. They wanted students to think more like actual scientists or mathematicians, and to study the more traditional subjects like Math and Science. But, the launch of Sputnik put an end to this debate for a temporary time. These things needed to become the main focus. The launch of Sputnik was a space race between the US and Russia, which eventually led to the accomplishment of the first man landing on the moon. This is how Sputnik began to arouse new and advanced performances in different things. New technology was discovered and teachers had to begin new methods for teaching so students can become more aware and filled with insight. Students were offered scholarships for colleges that allowed them to major in the major subjects, loans, and teachers were also being better prepared for a classroom and how to approach students with this new approach. After this launch, Congress passed the National Defense Education Act which enhanced the nation’s security and also advanced technology and resources for young men and women. The United States viewed education as an important tool to succeed in reforming education. Many people wanted a more progressive education for the nation’s curriculum. When they performed a test in which was more effective, either the progressive approach or traditional approach, and progressive seemed to outnumber the other. As more time passed education began to become an important influence. They passed the Land Ordinance Act and Northwest Ordinance which required townships in new territories that were bounded by Ohio and the Mississippi Rivers to ensure a piece of land that was doable for educational purposes. The government made education encouraged for everyone.

EDF1005-Reflection #11

Socrates was an important figure in history and we have developed things today because of him. Socrates, along with the other great philosophers at the time formed the Western Philosophy. He viewed happiness not as having a life, but as having a good one. His views on happiness were different from ours. He believed if we didn’t examine our life then we were just wasting it. We are wasting our gift of critical thinking and wisdom. He liked to look at things closely and precisely to examine them and conclude why they came out. I believe this is very true because we should examine our life, and set goals for ourselves to see how we are going to live it. On the contrast, some people like to believe the complete opposite of this. They rather just go with the flow and with whatever they feel like doing that day. I like to live my life examined with a set of goals and things I want to accomplish. By doing this you know what you want to get out of life and the things you want to achieve while living in it. He developed an idea in which is carried on today in classrooms, court houses, etc, and it is called elenchus. Elenchus is used in the western civilization as an ongoing process. It is the method formed by him which asks questions about moral concept. You argue with what you believe. It makes you doubt your own moral beliefs. He thought this was supposed to be applied to life and put together there. Socrates wanted people to believe and understand his ethics which lead to his belief that happiness is moral excellence. He would philosophize to everyone and wanted everyone to elevate in thinking in an ethical manner. Many of his ideas and thoughts are still being used today or have been evaluated and enhanced even more. All our different forms of religion have different ethical concepts and morals. He brought about these new ideas and methods to society, some in which are still being used today. Socrates liked to examine a person’s character. Pleasure to him was different forms of virtues. But, many people disagreed with him because you may be overcome with anger, guilt, or sadness, and act differently than what pleasure is to Socrates.

EDF2085-Reflection #8

My parents always taught me to be happy with what I have. I think I am fine in my social class, my parents always taught me to share what I have with others. They taught me that we were always middle class working people because we work hard for what we have. The media makes it feel as if being high class is the way to go and is so easy to accomplish, and everything has to be labels, designers, brand name, you name it. This is why everyone tries so hard getting all these expensive things because they see how the media flaunts what they have. Everyone tries to follow celebrities because they are the famous ones. When it comes to gender, my parents always taught me that baseball, football, and basketball was for boys, and girls had to do ballet or cheerleading. This is what all the girls in my family did, we danced and cheered. My brother played baseball for a bit. But, this is the way I was brought up, that girls really weren’t allowed to do masculine things. The media teaches us that no matter what your gender you can do anything. You can play volleyball, become an actor/actress, and regardless of all that succeed in life in whatever you do. I was taught that in a relationship the guy is the one that has to ask you out, for your number, and ask to marry you. The media teaches this also through different romance movies, which is how they reinforce it. My parents always taught me the right thing about sexual relations and they shouldn’t be any done before marriage. I have learned this in my schools throughout my whole life in a private Catholic school. I was always taught that is something that should be done if you truly love someone and have certain feelings for them. You shouldn’t just go around doing that because you can get diseases, or get pregnant and regret it later. But, on the other hand the media does not teach this. They have explicit message in their songs and there are constant rumors about different sexual relations with people other than their wife/ husband. The media is the big influence for many people in today’s society. Many people think that just because it is in the media it is the right thing to do, but it isn’t actually.

EDF1005-Reflection #10

“The teacher is the gatekeeper” in my opinion is a statement that proves to actually impact. The teacher is the one that controls everything in the classroom. She/he is the one that has access and authority for the students to pass on to the next grade level. She/he is the one that unlocks the door for the next years to come in their academics. It is up to he/him to change their lives. She/he is the one that holds access to the key for that gate. They are the ones that help the children become involved and are the ones that influence what will be learned. They manage the classroom and are the ones that “direct traffic”. They choose who can talk and when to talk. It is up to them if students can interact with each other and the time and place for that. Teachers need to find a way to benefit their students with their gatekeeping. They need to find ways to make the learning environment for students somewhere fun. Sometimes they control the classroom too much and talk most of the class and they don’t give the students a chance to respond or react to the facts or situations preached to them. This will sometimes cause boredom to the students and make the students look at the clock the whole class time and it will close their mind from learning. At the end of the day it is all up to the teacher. This is why it is so important to have a good teacher you can learn from, not one that will make you tune out. They are the ones that control the atmosphere around in the classroom. It is all up to them. It has a huge impact on how the children will learn. It all depends if the teacher wants to take action and become a gatekeeper. The teacher is the gatekeeper because it is up to her if she wants her class to interact with each other or not. She is the lead of the class and has to be followed and listened to. Teachers teach to help students and make a difference in a child’s life. They ask questions to get students involved, which most of the class time consists of this talking. At the end of the day it is all up to the teacher, and her style of teaching, and if she wants to be the gatekeeper or not. It is difficult to control students to not be able to communicate with one another, and most of the time they are tempted to. This is where teachers play an important role into directing when, where and how is the best time for the students to talk in a classroom.

EDF1005-Reflection #9

Sumerian schools had to begin paying tuition which is how the teachers were paid. It mostly consisted of the wealthy because the poor couldn’t afford the tuition or time need to earn an education. The Sumerians began to learn how to write which is the reason as to why we have records of things that happened in the past. Students used to write on practice tablets which are how we now have evidence of what they did. Teachers wrote a lot about school life and their aim for the school was to be “professional”, even though researchers say at that time they most likely didn’t use it for the same meaning we do today. Sumerian schools played a huge role in different forms of writing. But, in Egypt they learned their occupation which is what they will be doing in the future. Boys followed the careers that were in the family. Some were either home schooled or trained to be scribes. The students pretty much learned on their own. They would write down what the teacher wrote or memorized it, for arithmetic for example. Physical education was only taught to the prince. Not everyone was allowed to learn all types of tasks; each person had their own occupation they were in charge of learning. The teacher plays a huge part in a classroom. He/she is the example of the room and they demonstrate how we have to play our role. It is important to be able to engage with the teacher unlike what they did in ancient Egypt or Sumerian. There needs to be a relationship formed between the teacher and the student. There are certain subjects and material that needs to be covered with some sort of explanation, not everything can be learned on one’s own. You need to hear personal testimonies and scenarios on everyday life. There are different tricks learned, ways to learn things faster, and all this is done with the help of a teacher. You need a personal relationship with the teacher for the learning to become more effective. It isn’t the same as just lecturing to the whole classroom. This is why teachers are so effective in the class in the role they play in today’s society. Now, we learn more than one subject and try to be best all around with the help of all our teachers. Women and men can choose whatever occupation they choose to do and not have to be worried to be a boy or a girl to do certain things.

EDF1005-Reflection #8

The state passed down several laws to change and improve education in schools. These laws were called the three waves of educational reform. The first wave reform saw schools as a national defense and economic competition. Many companies were complaining that their employees didn’t know how to read or write and do basic skills that they figured were supposed to be known. Students were scoring poorly on international state exams. They believed that if they were to establish new schools that they would perform better. Corporations were frustrated with the fact that their employees didn’t have the basic skills of reading and writing. The second wave reform started with a couple of important educators. They wanted to focus on school practices, and suggested teachers should cover fewer topics but more profoundly. They wanted to create more potential for the school principals and give them more authority to form structure as well as in the corps of the teachers with things like salary and creating more trained ones. The third wave noticed the needs of those children that needed help financially and didn’t have a family structure at home to help them continue and do well with their education future. They formed full service schools which would provide these students with transportation, health care, and different social services. School policy was replaced by children’s policy which would react to the multiple needs of children instead of just education. This wave provided a variety of community services. In my opinion the one that has been most dominant has been the first wave which is said to still be in use today. Almost the whole population knows how to read and write which is why they have their jobs. I believe it is a necessity to know these basic skills in order to stay stabilized in a company. If not, then you will be constantly transferring from job to job because you can’t deal with it. Also, students are improving in standardized testing which is the result of grading each school as an A, B, C, D or F. This is a huge part of that grade, and teachers are also preparing their students throughout the year for these types of tests. This wave is important because without a good score on most of those tests you wouldn’t be able to precede to the next grade level nor get a decent job.

EDF1005-Reflection #7

Early Egyptians were sometimes trained in the home relating a lot to the modern home schooling that exists today. Many of the sons took on the inheritance or profession of their fathers, a lot like we do today with family businesses. All parents tutored their children except for the King. Their lives were a lot like the adults and they didn’t have much of a childhood. They had to take on responsibilities early. The less wealthy were taught craftsmanship, fishing, and so on. For the girls it was sewing, spinning, and cooking. You would ensue whatever occupation your guardian did and if you were less wealthy you learned how to harvest, sow, and catch fish. They would be sent out on apprenticeships to learn all these tasks and they were taught by colleagues. If they failed, they had to return any payment made by the father. The students that were learning to be scribes however had it tough. They were disciplined by being hit, had to sit Indian style, attended school from morning to afternoon, and learned different styles of writing. The Egyptians had many temples that had been discovered but none of them were public or open to everyone as they are today. Only the priesthood or King was allowed to enter the sanctuary or ceremonies. They all had a particular duty. The Sumerians which settled in Mesopotamia developed the cuneiform style of writing. On the other hand, Egyptians developed something called hieroglyphics. The temple schools for the Mesopotamians were where the children learned how to write cuneiform since it was very difficult to learn. In Mesopotamia the main people that they wanted educated were the priests and scribes. They learned everything from writing to medicine and religion unlike the Egyptians. Apprenticeship was covered in the Code of Hammurabi. The Mesopotamians recorded everything as soon as they began to write. The teacher would write it on one side of the clay tablet and the child would copy it the same exact way on the other. This is very familiar to what elementary school teachers do nowadays for children to learn how to write their name or what not. They either write it on the board and they have to copy it or they write it in their notebook for them to trace. This is how the school for scribes worked out.

EDF2085-Reflection #7

Rites of passage are stages of your life, like becoming an adult or getting married. It is what separates you from your previous “stage”. They represent many cultural aspects. Usually the most common rites of passage are the evolving into adulthood, which usually includes initiations that last for some period of time. To the Sambia’s the most important part of a man was his semen and the most important part of a woman was her menstrual blood. They believe when the woman gets her menstrual cycle for the first time it means she is ready for sex, marriage, or to give birth. The men on the other hand are said to be born with nothing, they begin to produce the semen during adolescence but with the help of a certain process they have to undergo, an initiation that takes several years. An example of rites of passage is that when the young boys reach 7-10 years old they are taken away from their mother/home. They then live with men who teach them the key acts of maturity and show them ritual secrets. All this happens for ten years or so. They teach them all these different ways and things they are supposed to know at this age which relates a lot to formal education, because in the end they see if they are finally ready almost like a test. Just like formal education, they are tested at the end of the year to see if they’ve learned all the material and are ready to go on to the next grade level. Facing Mt. Kenya they circumcise both sexes as their way of uniting them into the organization. They include dancing and singing ceremonies before the actual operation. The girls are put on a special diet before the initiation and have to have their head shaved as well. A race is performed and a boy is the judge of who wins, the next day the operations occurs. In Sitting Quietly the two boys had to kill something in which would bring them into the life of adulthood. They were frightened and tired when they had to face it, but they would not show it. They finally overcame it and were known as “men” in the city and no longer “good for nothing”. Rite of passage shows you and teaches you how to do things into becoming an adult or becoming more superior just like education does. A formal education helps you for the future, into becoming an adult, and teaches you what you need to know to progress.

EDF1005-Reflection #6

With the invention of writing we have been able to discover ancient civilizations due to the language recorded or form of earlier writing such as pictographs. The establishment of writing brought about the alphabet, advanced language, and different forms of communication including pictures. Everything in today’s society develops and advances more and more as time goes by. For example, I’m sure in the future we will have virtual teachers, or even flying cars with no gasoline used. The invention of writing progressed and began to build civilizations and bring people together. The Sumerians used tokens to keep track of their inventory of merchandise and it helped them economically to label things. In other civilizations glyphs were used to record different events. Thanks to all those pictographs and symbols used to represent sounds we have developed to the invention of writing which takes place in today’s world and I don’t know where we would be without it. Everything around us is revolved in writing, from text messaging, writing letters, television, billboards…almost everything around us! Writing gave us written records of what we have today which is the most important thing in society today. This is how it became so crucial to ancient civilization because they began to learn from other civilizations and people began to grow more knowledge about things. Civilization began to develop more and more as time went by. It is said writing began in Mesopotamia, and an earlier civilization invented the alphabet. Without writing we wouldn’t know what the earlier civilizations invented, therefore we wouldn’t have developed anything or become such an advanced society like we are today. We have to give appreciation to writing and the invention of pictographs and hieroglyphics we know what happened in the ancient times. It has lead us to many great things in the world. Each culture or civilization for example like the Chinese, South Asia, Egyptians, Sumerians, Mesopotamians—each had their own form of writing that they invented. The Egyptians began hieroglyphics and from there many things arose.

EDF1005-Reflection #5

Initiation rites and rites of passage ceremonies have a relation to teaching in which they both accept new people into their group, society, and classroom. They welcome all the newcomers, just as teachers do. It is the coming of a new member. But, sometimes initiations are done for different purposes. For example, they may be done for an introduction to a group or a transformation that has come about such as becoming an adult. Initiation rites relate to learning because when an initiation occurs, you may have to learn new things, customs, beliefs, or even new responsibilities come about. The new members and old member both learn the same way it happens with teaching and learning. When you are teaching someone something they are learning the material or technique, but you are also learning something new about them that you never knew before over this period of time. You get to learn a new experience, and we learn through our experiences that form paradigms. An example of a rite of passage is the Sambia, they used their strong men for war, and men who were able to reproduce were to be put with women. It is the same thing as if you were in a classroom. For example, it’s the first day of school and you don’t know your teacher, she welcomes you and shows you her customs, technique, and way of doing things in the classroom. You begin to learn all these things and master them which help you develop. It is just like an initiation, you are shown the new customs and way of doing things you believe in, and then you learn, succeed, and begin to grow in the hierarchy. Mount Kenya also has a strange ritual that deals with girls shavings their heads and carrying a bell around there calf, then they have to race to a tree and are considered sacred. Most of these initiations are traditions that have been passed for a long time, and we have continued them to keep the culture going. Everyone has different ways of celebrating occasions or different parts of a person’s life. In my family we don’t do any crazy initiations but I have heard that Jews for example celebrate when the boy becomes a certain age. Everyone has a different way of doing things in life, which brings us back to what culture is all about.

EDF2085-Reflection #6

It must have been really tough for the “Little Rock Nine” to consistently be rejected from a school. It must have been so difficult for those nine students that year to accept any one since no one decided to accept them in the first place. I can just imagine wanting to go to school to learn and not being allowed in because of your race. I really would not have liked to be one of those students at the time. I believe this was really unfair; they should have integrated those schools in Arkansas the same way almost all the other ones in the other states had began to do. I would have been so angry with the way they were treating me, especially with all the screaming and shouting as if I were some sort of alien. I wouldn’t have done what they did in the cafeteria because that’s just not something I was taught to do. But after so much frustration that had be held in for so long I’m not going to say I wouldn’t have done that because I probably would have if I was in their position. I probably would have just kept walking and tried to ignore them, even though this is easier said than done. I don’t think I would have shouted anything back because it really wouldn’t solve anything, they most likely would have just laughed. It must have been a terrible position that I would have not wanted to be in. I would have been super frightened to know that I needed to enter the school with armed guards. I wouldn’t have felt safe at all because you never know if you are going to be someone’s rival or target. I believe there was no reason to have armed guards with them to enter. What were they going to do that no other white student would not have done? Thankfully, the Supreme Court passed a law and the Little Rock School Board committee resigned and the case was solved after more than a few years. . Finally, after insisting and fighting for their rights they finally integrated the schools. I admire the “Little Rock Nine” because they did not give up; they kept fighting for their rights until they got them. They struggled a lot but in the end they got what they wanted and deserved. This is the problem nowadays. Most people have problems with something and it is super unfair and no one does anything about it because they were denied or rejected the first time.

EDF2085-Reflection #5

I learned that culture isn’t just where we came from or just our customs. It is what makes us individuals in today’s society. Culture is experiences, laws, customs, and morality all put together. To some experts, such as Lewis Morgan, he saw culture as a pattern that happened over and over. Every culture is valued the same, not one is more important than the other. They are all given the same evaluations. There can be different meanings of culture. It could be a variety of things such as different customs, attitudes, groups, and rituals. As well as things learned and new things formed because of our experience. I also gained insight on culture being something you learn, not something you are born with. I always believed culture could be being Cuban for instance, something you are born into automatically. For example if you are a Jew, you are not born a Jew but you learn and are taught to be one. Culture isn’t something that is individualized; it is something that is shared amongst others. We learn with others’ conflicts, the way they communicate or solve their own problems. Intercultural competence is being able to accept other cultures other than your own. In order to be able to fulfill this you must learn to be nonjudgmental. With all this comes knowing how to communicate correctly with others. It is important to be able to listen to our peers because one word might mean something else to someone else in their culture for instance. The way in which we interpret messages listened or received depends on our culture on how we react towards it. Responding and communicating the message is shaped by our culture. Many words or phrases we use might mean something different to someone else of another culture. I learned every culture has behavioral constraints and emotional constraints which are different ways of reacting when angry, sad, mad, or customs done. For example some other cultures might think we are crazy for crying and screaming when we are mad and frustrated. These constraints affect communication. All theses expressions are different and vary from culture to culture.

EDF2085-Reflection #4

I have not had many experiences that have me prepared for diversity, but I have had a few encounters here and there. I attended a school from Prek-4 through eighth grade in Hialeah. The school consisted of all Hispanics; almost eighty percent of everyone was Cuban or American. I grew up being surrounded by people that were just like me, but this isn't how the real world is. There are all types of people out there nowadays, far beyond the ones that are exactly like us. But, of course after eighth grade High School comes into place, and this is where everything changed. I attended a High School that was located in Opa-Locka and had a diversity of cultures attending. There were Hispanics, Americans, Africans, and Asians. At first, I didn't know what to expect since I wasn’t used to the diversity of ethnicities and cultures but as soon as I started everything was fine. I had friends from different races, and none of that mattered because we were all the same on the inside. It was a Catholic school but there were other religions involved as well. In my perspective, none of this mattered to me or changed anything because we were all young adolescents in school for the same reason. This childhood experience will now help me for the near future and the present time I’m living in, with things such as attending college and for my career. I hope to learn more about how to approach this with students when I will have my own classroom, but to me diversity doesn't make a difference and every child is the same. I am a very fair and equal person and will take this into the classroom and look beyond diversity of religion, beliefs, learning styles, or cultures. Diversity class is really important because it teaches you how to approach certain problems that may come about in the classroom that you may not even know about because you have never experienced. It should be necessary for preparing for a major in education because you are faced with challenges teaching in a classroom that’s filled with children from all over the county and/or area. Sam should have learned why it is useful, and so far I’ve learned a couple of things I would have never known you may encounter in a public school classroom so this has been really useful, now I know the importance of it.

EDF2085-Reflection #3

Paradigms are the way in which we see reality and things going on around us. We have others to influence these paradigms and change how we see reality. Paradigms are put into different categories in our brain and it affects how things are interpreted. It is our interpretation of what is right or wrong that has been engraved in our head since we were young. In order to replace a paradigm or change it, which is difficult, you must replace it with another one. You have to try really hard and really want that change. We can change these views of paradigms through our own experience or those of others. Different experiences and scenarios sometimes change our paradigms or the paradigms of others. Paradigms help us make decisions and are made from previous experiences and things we have learned. I believe I have been stuck in a paradigm because I have attended Catholic school since I was a child; therefore I have been Catholic all my life because this is how my parents brought me up. I live by the rules and Ten Commandments and feel this is the right way of living life. This an example of a paradigm because it is what I know that is “right” through my perspective and those of my parents. This paradigm can be changed if someone shows me something different and I believe through all the paradigms I have built, for example. A paradigm shift is a change of the way of thinking. Just like the story, a paradigm shift occurred with the evolution of the first human species. Paradigm shift is when something changes and evolves into something else. Almost like something that is seen in a different perspective. It is important for teachers to experience a paradigm shift because it is good for them to see things from different perspectives because not all of their students are going to think or act the same. They have to change the way they think for their students, and they should learn to put themselves in the student's place. Many student’s have problems at home or learn faster a certain way. I believe the teacher needs to take time to get to know each of his or her students individually and encounter their needs.