In this chapter, there were 5 specific strategies in order
to create a good environment for learning. They are:
1.
Make the classroom a place where students trust
the teacher and believe it’s safe to take risks.
2.
Organize learning so that students work together
and help one another.
3.
Provide students choices and opportunities to
take responsibility in the classroom.
4.
Connect learning with students’ lives and the larger
issues around them.
5.
Read aloud from engaging and powerful writing in
their fields so kids can fall in love with ideas.
What the whole chapter really seemed to be saying however
was that we need to foster good citizens. That even beyond the content we may
relay, it’s the attitudes we engender that will ensure our students success no
matter what diverse course they embark on after our class. We need to model,
expect and explicitly teach qualities
like respect, empathy, passion confidence. If they learn nothing else in our
class, but our students walk away with qualities like these then we’ve still
given them a chance to be successful. No matter what they choose, technical
careers, college graduates, stay-at home moms, musicians, artists, etc., in
order to go the farthest and get the most out of life it’s these qualities that
you need in yourself and towards others to gain the most accomplishments. For me, this is the reason I became a teacher, to help students be their best self and help their peers in doing the same. In helping each child succeed based on their own ambition and journey through life, the content was just an added bonus.
Michela, I totally agree with the connection between schooling and making better citizens. I also really appreciated how you paid attention to the fact that many students graduate high school to do things outside of the traditional disciplines like being stay-at-home moms. It is true that even outside of a school setting, the qualities of respect, empathy and confidence can and should be applied in life outside of the classroom. Teachers teach more than just content, they also teach skills in being a member of a community.
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