Quinn+Johnson+TE+407

Post 10

 1. Locate and link to an “old” map (define that however you want) that you consider clearly distorted … but this is more complex than a simple exercise in googling images or copying anyone else from class: a. Try to locate the map’s date, authorship, nationality, language, and other background information. [|Old Korean Map] This map, known as the Gangnido, was created in 1402 by Kim Sa-hyeong, Yi Mu and Yi Hoe. It is Korean in origin as might be guessed by the prominence of the Korean Peninsula in relation to other landmass. b. Explain the distortion that you see AND explain WHY the distortion exists according to the questions on the top of p. 23 in Segall’s piece //Maps As Stories About The World//. The limited knowledge of Europe and Africa depicted in the map came from trade routes opened up by the Mongolian conquests. The size of both Korea and China on the map provide insight into how the map makers very these countries' importance. Korean culture has been heavily influenced by the Chinese, including information that was passed into this map much of which was based on other Chinese source maps. However as far as Korean Peninsula goes it is believed to have been intentionally made larger for easier and more detailed map of the region. 2. a. I think I find the Molleweide map to be the most accurate. All two-dimensional maps of the world's surface will have inaccuracies but in the case of the molleweide map compared with the others, it seems more readily apparent how the map is distorting the world's image. By using an elliptical shape rather than a rectangular one it does a better job in trying to convey the natural curvature of the earth.

Reflection 9

1. A. What is intrinsic and extrinsic motivation? Give an example of each motivation that you have seen used in classrooms Intrinsic motivation comes from when an individual derives pleasure directly from performing an activity. This could be seen in a classroom setting when a teacher attempts to form part of the lesson around some activity that the students enjoy doing such as through playing a game or watching a movie. Extrinsic motivation comes instead from an individual interest in the utility of an activity and how it will help them to achieve some other goal. Teachers frequently use this through the assigning of grades or making students an offer such as being able to talk for five minutes at the end of class if they quietly work on their assignment until then.

B. Explain what type of motivation was most pronounced in Ben Pineda’s teaching at Haslett Middle School on 11/16/11; be specific and justify your answer. From what I saw, it seemed that Mr. Pineda was trying to use a lot of intrinsic motivation for that particular lesson. The stories that he was telling, served to engage the students in the subject matter and give them a real interest to pay attention. His questioning of the students was also intended to provoke the students' thoughts and get them thinking about how the amendments are actually applied by law, and how the amendments affect their own rights. Comparatively there was not as much extrinsic motivation as far as giving grades and such.

2. A. What is a multicultural education Multicultural education requires that the content of a class is not dedicated solely to the interests of majority groups. Teachers need to diversify what they are teaching to include a broad range of topics and perspectives. This will help ensure that minorities in a classroom are not being marginalized in their education and have a chance to learn about issues that are relevant to themselves. Furthermore, students in the majority will also benefit from the opportunity to learn about a wide variety of perspectives other than what they are accustomed to.

B. How do you plan to employ a multicultural education in your future practice … even if you don’t have a “diverse” classroom As a social studies teacher I have no intent on simply pandering to the majority of my students. I fully plan on incorporating a diverse range of topics into my classes do my best to provide a well rounded social studies education. Social studies is not about focusing on any one group but looking at all groups of people and learning to understand their interacts and differences. And of course shaping parts of my lesson to accommodate the different cultures and perspectives of any minority students will help to engage their interest in the class. Even if my students tend to be a homogenous groups without any direct connection to such issues that I bring to the class, they will still benefit from broadening they exposure beyond what they are familiar with. Learning how to understand and interact with a diverse range of people is an important part of a social studies class.

3. We don’t teach Social Studies, we teach (diverse) people Social Studies. A. So, what is differentiated instruction and what function does it serve in the classroom? Differentiated instruction is essentially molding lessons around the students. Students all learn differently, have varying interests, and do not all possess the same levels of skill and knowledge. Thus due to these differences students will perform best when teachers adapt the course structure to best fit with the students rather than trying to force the students to adapt to the teachers preferences.

B. Also, consider figure 4.1 in the text – what component(s) of the //Learning Cycle In Differentiated Instruction// do you feel needs the most consideration in your own practice? The area in which I probably need to work on the most is general evaluation of a student's individual needs. This is an aspect in which I have not had particularly much opportunity to practice and refine, and I hope to be able to improve upon.

4. A. According to the //multiple intelligence theory//, what intelligences do you feel are most pronounced in yourself? I suppose that I would most associate myself with logical-mathematical intelligence, probably followed next by either spatial or naturalist intelligence.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 95%;">B. What intelligences, in your opinion, are underrepresented and thus in need affirmation in Secondary Education <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 95%;">Intrapersonal intelligence is probably the one which secondary educators need to focus on more. High school students should be thinking about what they want to do with the rest of their lives and learning how to manage their own affairs. In order to do this they should possess an understanding of how their own mind works and knowledge of their own strengths and weakness. Teachers need to help push students to question and reflect on themselves so that they might develop both a sense of what direction they want their lives to take as well as the self discipline to focus their efforts. And in many ways I feel that all the other intelligences are underrepresented as well in the sense that there does not need to be one single form of education that is applied to all students. That will always leave some students with a suboptimal experience.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 95%;">Reflections 8

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1. An objective descriptio n of an issue should not have a goal of taking one side over another. The goal should be to look at the facts from the issue, and not just the facts that support one side, it must try to be an inclusive view of all relevant facts and be willing to incorporate new facts that may have be initially overlooked. An objective person will simply be presenting the realities of the issue without encumbering the facts with preconceived notions and assumptions that may only hold true for the individual. Subjectively engaging in an issue instead means that a person is actively trying to promote a specific side of an issue. In this case the individual is likely invested on the issue on some personal level and thus they are more close minded and unwilling to consider the issue from all sides. Essentially the subjective view is one where an individual looks at an issue from their own personal point of view, while an objective individual is trying to consider the issue from an outside perspective without any personal ties to limit ones view. These are not an either or position for humans but rather a sliding scale. Humans will always have some bias towards an issue that prevents a truly objective analysis, and so the closest we can come to objectivity is to try and be aware of our biases and put them aside as best we can.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2. If students are to form well thought out on controversial issues they cannot get the impression that there is one side of the issue that is absolutely correct. This can happen if the teacher appears to support one side over the other. This is why it is best for the teacher to try and remain impartial so that the students are free to gravitate to an opinion of their own choosing rather than feeling that they have to side with a correct answer in order to get a good grade. Furthermore if a student is on a side in opposition to the teacher's apparent position this too can cause problems in the classroom. The students may feel that their view is being invalidated or attacked. This may cause them to shutdown and not participate or become extremely defensive. Loaded language can further exacerbate this. Such language carries many emotional subtexts and can cause a discussion to be derailed simply by being framed in a manner that clearly promotes or attacks on side.

3A. The purpose of teachers should not be to teach their personal opinions on issues, their job is to present students with the facts of the issues and teach them the skills needed to critically engage in a meaningful discussion and be able to come to their own conclusion. Thus impartiality is need so that the students are not guided towards simply following the teacher's views to get the right answer or even disagreeing just because they don't want to share the teacher's views. 3B. I suppose if a situation arose of students yelling or becoming hostile in their discussion, a good thing to do would be to put a greater emphasis on the code of conduct that is expected of participants in a meaningful discussion. After all their is more to teaching students how to engage in discussion beyond critical thinking skills, students also have to learn that hostile attacks on opposing views will do little to change anyone's opinion. If they wish to promote their views they must try to focus on appealing to others through the use of logic, ethics, and emotional appeals. Thus as a teacher I need to teach the student how to defend their view in a more mature manner rather than simply lashing out whenever they feel opinions are being challenged.

Reflections 7

A. What obstacles and excuses exist to teaching about controversial topics? Among the reasons that teachers may have for avoiding controversial topics is teacher costs. This can include reasons as simple as how teachers chose to delegate their limited class time. Also teachers may feel that engaging in controversial topics is not an area that most students are well equipped to deal with, and many will avoid participating or simply not understand the controversy. It also can come from fear of a potentially explosive situation that could be initiated by students, their parents or even the school. This ties into another reason of school culture. If a school has strong ties with a particular cultural, economic, or political position teachers will avoid certain topic because of the controversy the would cause or even because they are simply not seen as controversial. Just as a school's culture can cause an issue to seem uncontroversial, so can subject perspective. Depending on a teacher's personal understanding of their subject area they may not being presenting controversial topics as being a divisive issue, or a least not in a manner that the students will get. And so too can political bias warp what subjects teachers will teach as being controversial or not. The education system can tend to favor the supporting the status quo rather than actively challenging how society works, and thus controversy is avoided.

B. According to Werner, is controversy worth addressing? Why or why not? There are many important reason for teaching controversial issues to students. Part of social studies should be to teacher students how to be come engaged and active citizens. Being able to tackle controversy is am important part of being a good citizen and students need to learn how to handle such issues rather than avoid them.Furthermore, as far as the social studies discipline goes it is not an exact sciences and their are many areas which are debatable. Thus students need to learn that not all issues are clear cut one way or the other, and they need to be able to look at these issues and analyze them in a critical manner. And Werner also believes that some issues are just so important to humanity that it is necessary to pursue them even if they are controversial. Beyond the importance of the issues is also the fact that controversy can be a useful means of convening information and engaging bored students.

C. Interact with the text: how do you envision your future practice as a teacher relating to controversy? I agree with much of what Werner says about the important and difficulty of teaching controversy. When I am a teacher I hope to be able to engage my students on controversial topics and get them to thinking and challenging their preconceptions. I believe that learning how to view societal issues from an object view point is an important part of social studies. If students are going to learn how to interact with social systems and people different from themselves in a civil manner, they need to learn how to identity issues of potential controversy and know how to properly handle such issues. I suppose my biggest concern of reasons for avoiding controversy would be the potential risk cost involve in confronting issues that may provoke a hostile reaction from parents, school administration, or an part of the school community. Not all people will be willing to deal with controversial issues in a civil manner and hostile backlash could reach the point of harming standing as a teacher and ability to teach. But the fact that some individuals don't react appropriately to controversial issues is one of the important reason for why students should be taught how to engage in them.

Personal/Political Tests

PERSONAL Q's: a. What is your temperament type, what are the specific letters associated with it, e.g. INTP? I am an Idealist, it is represented by N(Intuiting) and F(Feeling). b. In your own words, summarize the personality type in a paragraph or so. Idealists are people who look towards how they desire the world to be rather than focusing just on how it is or what direction it is moving in. They look towards how they think the world and themselves should be improved, and tend to be passionate and intense in their feelings. c. Give some famous examples of your personality type according to the test ... how do you relate? George Orwell as also an idealist and a teacher. I don't know too much about him but I have enjoyed his writings concerning political issues. d. Searching the page, locate where the Keirsey site suggests ideal jobs for you; how well does education match these suggestions - if not at all, what job(s) fit best? Education is a suggestion for idealists its a good fit in that idealists are looking to shape the future.

POLITICAL Q's: *(This can be kept to yourself, but be sure to answer these in electronic writing to show your instructor that you have done this.) a. Take the test, then (if you feel comfortable) post the coordinates of your location. -2.38, -4.41 b. Considering the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election, who are you closest to - if this is surprising, how so? I guess my score would probably put me closer to Obama though I would not consider my views to be in line with his own. But its not really surprising considering how simplistic the test is in trying to lump all views into neat little 2D representation. In reality I voted for Nader, not because I side with his views but because the views of Obama and McCain are both so different from my own as to be essentially the same, and so I went with a third party canidate as I hate the two party system. c. Click [|this link]to find the analysis of the vertical and horizontal spectrum test ... who historically and internationally do you best identify with? It seems I align fairly close with the Dalai Lama, though again not someone I would identify with. d. In a paragraph, how does this relatively simple (but better than most other tests) exercise illustrate the diversity of belief and reality of compromise in our political system? Further, how can our (essentially) 2-party system function in a healthy manner In general this test does not illustrate diversity in our political system. The entire format of the test creates a very either or mentality with each question essential only having two choices each of which is then divided into degrees. Furthermore the questions and answers are framed to address currently dominate issues with either or answers that disregard other possibilities. As for the compromise that the test shows, it seems clear that clear that minority opinions will often have to compromise on beliefs in order to fall in line with one of the two dominate political forces. Personally I don't believe the two party system can ever be a healthy one, there is too little incentive for cooperation except in times of desperation, and too much incentive for opposing the other party not on ideological grounds but merely for use as bargaining chips or even retribution.

Reflection 6 Should Columbus Day be celebrated?

Whatever your opinions of Christopher Columbus, there is not denying that his voyages to the Americas played an important role in human history. This importance around him is undoubtedly the reason why various ethnic, political, and religious groups have gravitated towards using Columbus's image towards their own ends. But while Columbus's importance may be viewed by some in a positive light, others see his actions more negatively due to the large degrees of turmoil and strife that follow followed, whether inflicted directly by Columbus or those who came after.

The reality is that Columbus fame is largely circumstantial. His actions where driven by and made possible mainly by greed and not out of any of the nobler attributes that some would give. The idea of Columbus as having discovered the Americas is ridiculous, the Americas had been inhabited long before he arrived, not to mention the fact that he died still thinking it was Asia he had gone to. At its heart Columbus's fame was based on luck and greed with the true significances being that his actions opened the door for further contact with the Americas.

A smaller but similar scenario to Columbus's voyage was James Marshall's discovery of gold in California. The ensuing gold rush certainly resulted in a large migration to the west coast and created an important legacy, but ultimately its origin was just a matter of happenstance. Such events happen frequently throughout history in which an individual just happens to be in the right place at the right time setting off a chain reaction. The instance of Columbus is quite possibly the most significant of such occurrences go, but it was only because of the actions of those who followed that people chose to celebrate Columbus, as standing alone his voyages would have been of little significance to the world.

Overall while Columbus's journeys did mark an important turning point in history, it was for all practical purposes the result of luck rather than any distinguishing characteristic of Columbus himself. The general idea of celebrating Columbus Day tends to be based on the idea of celebrating an era and Columbus just happens to be a very convenient symbol to wrap it around. The supposed reason's for Columbus Day are wrong not only for the warped views about Columbus but also for the tendency of people to overplay his important in an era in which he was but one of many key players.

Reflections 5

A. Give an example of each type of curriculum discussed in the reading. Formal: A textbook that the class will read through for a history class. Delivered: A government teacher putting a planned lesson on hold so the class can follow a breaking news story on a presidential election and discuss it with the students and gauge their thoughts. Learned: Students being able to place all fifty states and their capitals on a map after covering the U.S. in geography. Hidden: Using just multiply choice tests for assessment can cause students to see memorizing just the facts as more important than learning mental skills such as critical thinking and analysis. Null: Various minority experiences which are often left out of standard history curriculum, instead focusing on history from a very WASPy point of view

B. What does figure 1.2 (Curriculum and the Stake Holder diagram) tell you about a teacher's position in the "Hierarchy of Curriculum Influence?" - what role does the teacher really play with curriculum? The figure seems to indicate that teachers are fairly far down on the curriculum decision making process, with a whole lot of government and school bureaucracy being the primary actors. This is true in many ways as standards are set to as to keep all schools on the same page as to what students should be learning which if done properly can be very useful or harmful if done wrong. But while the government and schools do set general standards for what is to be taught, teachers still have influence on the specifics of what goes into their curriculum. While there are certain topics that they are supposed to cover, the actual details of how this is to be done is largely in the hands of teachers, and for the most part teachers are free to include other relevant issues into their classes. Unfortunately while teachers have power over how the curriculum is presented and assessed within their own classroom, they still can be challenged by the constraints of things like standardized tests which can force their hand on what and how to teach.

Reflections 4

A. What you know & want to know about the 'Modern Middle East? My knowledge of modern Middle East history is not extensive but I know many of the basics. The areas I am most familiar with are the Iranian Revolution and some of the various aspects of U.S. and Soviet involvement in the region during the Cold War. I would like to study more on the topic of Israel, while I do have a general grasp of the situation I have never taken an extensive look into its creation and the many resulting conflicts. B. What do the terms, "Modern" & "Middle East" mean? The modern era of the Middle East can generally refer to events occurring in about the last hundred years. The fall of the Ottoman empire and the events of World I were responsible for some of the important changes that resulted in the formation of the nations of the modern Middle East. Geographically speaking the Middle East does not have a clear demarcation but general area is composed of southwest Asia and north Africa. In the east it is bound by India and the Central Asian countries, and by Russia in the north. In Africa it is limited to the more northern and strongly Islamic counties. C. Why is this subject important for citizens of the United States to study? The United States has been involved in numerous military and political incidents in the Middle East which is certainly a good reason for U.S. citizen to be aware of whats happening over there. The fact that there are many people in the Middle East who harbor resentment towards the U.S. and its allies is another reason to want a better understanding of the region's history and how such feeling developed. Furthermore as the region has significant oil supplies it is of considerable interest to the global economy and oil consumers which definitely includes the United States.

Reflections 3

A. //Planning, Managing, and Motivating// asserts that “Without planned units, daily lessons lack focus.” According this text, what should units be developed around? Units should be developed around some central concept which is being taught to the students. Individual lessons plans can focus on the details and basic skills, but each of the unit's lessons should be designed to complement one another and tie into a broader theme. Having developing around a core concept will make it easier to properly convey big ideas and keep individual lessons relevant to the course as a whole. B. Use the answer to the question A. to explain why a teacher’s practice must be theorized – why do educators have to think long and hard about teaching units? Because units have to be developed around a central premise teachers will need to spend plenty of time figuring out how to fit it to the needs of their classroom. For one thing all units need to be developed to include the basic requirements determined by the law and school, and beyond these parameters unit development needs to take into account the elements of the teacher, students, content, and the environment. These elements both individually and interacting with one another can present both challenges and opportunities for how to successfully developing a unit and need to be taken into consideration to avoid having a theoretically sound unit plan fall flat due to some classroom element that just doesn't sync with it. C. What practical benefits does a thoughtfully planned unit have for teachers and students? A well planned unit will ensure that the individual lesson have synergy with one another and have the momentum to maintain student attention across multiple lessons allowing them to better grasp the big ideas behind the unit. Good planning will keep lessons relevant so that students aren't having to focus on a completely new topic everyday. This will help students in making connections between the lessons and how all the basic ideas fit together. And of course planning the unit out in advance will allow the teacher more options in how to direct the class and make it easier to track and access the students progress. D. How can unit planning compliment a well-developed teaching philosophy? Taking time to plan out a lesson will allow for units to be better tailored to a specific teaching philosophy. Unless the philosophy happens to revolve around pure spontaneity, unit planning will give teachers the time to think about how they want to conduct heir classroom and how best to align that with the goals of the unit they are planning.

Reflections 2

What is a lesson plan? Why do teachers need them? Are they always useful?

A lesson plan is basically a way in which teachers structure their course content to the class. It serves as a general outline for things such as how class time will be managed, what teaching methods will best fit for the students, and to lay out the intended goals of the lesson. Creating even a rough outline for a lesson can help teachers find a good rhythm for the class and avoid derailment or any straying from the lesson's goals. Sometimes interruptions to the plan will be inevitable or even provide a netter option, but often some form of lesson plan can serve to keep both the teacher and students focused and be able to smoothly progress through the material. Besides for the basic structuring aspect involved in lesson planning, teachers will also have to think about what they want to cover. What is it that the students are meant to take away from the lesson. Thinking about this beforehand will make it easier to not only present the material in a manner that is clear and engaging but also allow the teacher a better framework in which to assess the progress of students. Having clear cut goals before hand will help in tailoring the content into a viable teaching strategy for the lesson plan and make it easier to adapt the plan when confronted with possible tangents which may or may not be in keeping with the lesson's goals.

Reflections 1

I really don't have any particularly fond or bad memories about my social studies classes. For the most part they were quite boring and forgettable being made up of mindless busy work and repetition. The most notable moments came not from any brilliance of my teachers but from incompetence. My interests in social studies came solely from following my own pursuits and were most often driven on by a mixture of curiosity, boredom, and a competitive nature.

My reason for wanting to teach social studies is simply that it is a subject area which I am interested. However social studies is not the only subject area I am interested in, but merely the area in which I will first get certified. I intend to get certified in other subjects, math being the next one. As for why I think students should learn social studies, I believe that social studies will better prepare students for participating in society. The modern world is increasing interconnected making it all the more important for individuals to understand how various sectors of society works whether it is interacting on a economic, political, or cultural level. A better understanding of how thing work will benefit both the individual and society as a whole.