Froebel's Theory on Education

"who laid the foundation for modern education based on the recognition that children have unique needs and capabilities."http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedrich_Fröbel

I chose Friedrich Froebel to do my research on because his methods of teaching are most similar to mine. The first thing that struck me and really hooked me to do my research on Froebel was the first article I looked up,http://www.froebelweb.org/web2002.html, which quotes, "Froebel believed that stimulating voluntary self-activity in the young child was the necessary form of pre-school education. Self-activity is defined as the development of qualities and skills that make it possible to take an invisible idea and make it a reality; self-activity involves formulating a purpose, planning out that purpose, and then acting on that plan until the purpose is realized." I think that it is crucial that we teach young children to seek out learning on their own and to learn that their ideas can become realities. Once they have come to this realization learning will be much more fun for them. Froebel's education theory involved working very closely with the family unit. He believed that parents are the most apparent and consistent influence in a child's life. I agree with this immensely. Parents shape a child into what they are going to be like. If a parent teachers their kid that school is not important, the child is most likely going to have little interest in school. I believe that parents should be greatly involved with a child's education. Froebel believed in enhancing a child's creativity and abilities. I could not agree with him more on any of the points that he has made. It is crucial to ensure that a child's abilities are improved and worked upon. Also creativity is what I believe to be one of the most important aspects of pre-k and elementary school. Creativity leads to better learning, more fun, better social skills, and a better easier way to cope with emotions. I completely agree with everything that Froebel portrays and thinks should be eminent when teaching young children. His methods are not only affective but efficient. He places stress on family, creative, and children being unique, which are all things I find to be very important when teaching young children. I think that his learning theory is very popular, widespread, and smart. 

The Truth Behind Columbus Day & Thanksgiving

I am very excited that this topic was brought up because for the longest time I have been against Thanksgiving and how we teach students about these holidays. I understand that the truth might be too graphic but that has got to be better than lies and false information, right? When I was younger, just as "What not to teach about Native Americans" states, I learned the famous saying in "1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue." It was not until I was much older that I learned what actually is celebrated on these holidays. In my research I found a great idea for a Columbus Day lesson plan,This article advises to simply teach students the truth. I plan to teach my future students that America was already inhabited by the Native Americans but that other countries did not know it existed until Christopher Columbus. And just as we teach children about African American slaves, I will teach them how the Native Americans were enslaved. Teaching the truth does not mean I have to teach violence or graphic images to young kids.  I am not attached to the tradition at all and am actually completely against it. By forming my own lesson plan and incorporating students' heritage and their own knowledge about this events I will help them to understand the actual events that took place.

The topic of Thanksgiving is a very interesting one. For years I have been infuriated that it is even a holiday. In my opinion it is a celebration of the evil things we did to America's native people. In elementary school I was taught that Thanksgiving is this big,happy holiday in which we sat down at a table with the Native Americans who helped us to survive the harsh winter and were thankful for them and everything else. Most of the articles on Google only teach this version of Thanksgiving. If it were up to me I would use primary sources, images, arts and crafts etc. to paint a picture of what happened. This doesn't mean gruesome images of the horrors we did to Native Americans, but in a way a child could understand what actually happened. Incorporating children's heritage, what they already know about the subject, amongst other things will help me to teach them. However, I do not want them to completely dismiss the holiday because it still exists, so a fabricated version of the truth is necessary. Students should respect the holiday as being thankful for what they have and that is the main point I plan on stressing. I don't think the headdresses and pilgrim hats is discriminatory or racist, I think they are cute and fun. Students don't look as far into these things as we are. Although maybe a turkey with feathers saying what the child is thankful for or one that the turkey's feathers is an outline of the students'  hand might be a better project to do.

A hot topic in education today is how to create a socially just classroom.
Think back to elementary school, what kind of group projects did you participate in ? Did everyone participate ? Were you both mentally and physically active? 

More often than not the answers to these questions are no. Classrooms today fail to properly engage students, thus producing students that do not understand how to think critically,how to question,  and how to make real decisions.  According to the article "Rethinking our Classrooms","In a “rethought” classroom, concepts need to be experienced firsthand, not just read about or heard about. Whether through projects, role plays, simulations, mock trials, or experiments, students need to be mentally, and often physically, active."

 In order to create a classroom in which students are both mentally and physically active a teacher must ensure that every student is included, questioned, and often pressured to achieve higher goals. By assigning students to sit in groups or pairs it might help to engage more students. Mostly a teacher should assign projects that get students to experience things first hand. I remember in first grade doing "dress-up book reports" which really helped to get me to read the book I was assigned and to feel as that character felt. Dressing up as the character not only got me involved but helped me to understand what being that character felt like. 


As I continued my research, http://www.simteach.com/, helped me to better understand how to create a classroom such as this. They go on to say that it is all about "creating a balance" between having fun and getting the work done. Another method I found could be helpful was asking students to read aloud and even act out what they're reading. This helps the students that are listening and the student reading to better understand their reading and also helps them to imagine what they are reading. I can remember my teacher having us stand up and do jumping jacks just to get our blood pumping and our minds to refocused. Methods such as these greatly advance students to be both mentally and physically involved with their school work.

I think that creating a school environment that students can participate and be active in is a great thing for teachers and students. It will make class more exciting and beneficiary to all members of the class. Mostly it will make learning more fun for everyone! 
 

Politicians and their views on education

Going into the profession of teaching, it is imperative that we pay attention to what our governors, senate, and president think about education. It is obvious that we all want a politician who is going to support and improve our school systems. The subject of politics is hard to wrap your head around and even harder to believe what any politician has to say. But by doing research and reading articles from multiple sources can prove to be very informational. 

The politicians running in the election today that have positive platforms in favor of advancing our school systems include but are not limited to, President Obama, Elizabeth Warren and John Tierney. I chose these three because they're beliefs are coincide with mine so I find it easier to discuss them with you. Along with the NEA I support President Obama in today's election because compared to Governor Romney on the topic of education, Obama blows him out of the water. 

President Obama's has enacted a reform on the student-loan program, the increase funding in pell grants, and the new income based repayment on federal loans,which greatly effects us who are in college today. As stated by Obama himself "We Democrats have focused on making sure that taxpayer dollars support high-quality education programs, but Mitt Romney is a staunch supporter of expensive, for-profit schools—schools that often leave students buried in debt and without the skills for quality jobs and that prey on our servicemembers and veterans." Obama is a huge supporter in the subject of higher education which is why he earned my vote today. He goes on to attack Mitt Romney once again and says "Tuition at public colleges has soared over the last decade and students are graduating with more and more debt," the platform went on to say, "but Mitt Romney thinks students should 'shop around' for the 'best education they can afford.' And he supports the radical House Republican budget that would cut financial aid for more than one million students while giving tax cuts to the rich." According to www.http://uffingtonpost.com/2012/09/05/dem-party-platform-college-education_n_1858987.html, the democratic platform also mentions support of tax credits for families that have children in college.President Obama has and continues to make great advances in education.

Another current politician who supports higher education is Elizabeth Warren, who wants to create a bigger focus on public schools and public universities. In her own words she describes her platform on education as "Good public schools, good public universities, and good technical training can give us a workforce better than any in the world. Well-trained workers are cost effective, and they can give us a powerful competitive advantage in world markets. Investments in our people pay the highest dividends." Voting those who want to advance our education system until office can only improve our country. 

http://www.johntierney.com/issues/Education states that John Tierney has been seated on the Education and Labor committee where he has since worked tirelessly to educational opportunities for Massachusetts' families. Being from Massachusetts this holds great meaning to me. 

From my research I can deduct that democrats place a much greater priority on education that republicans do. Reading on this subject and doing the research made me realize that I'm a democrat. It also gives me better insight into who I should vote for in future elections. Knowing about your politicians platform on education amongst other things is important to me seeing as I am a U.S citizen.