Journal 14: Alternate Pedagogies- Aimee Liwanag

Of all the teaching methods that I have read, I must admit that I do admire John Dewey's view of education, especially when it comes to how education should be interactive between both teachers and students.  As amazing as it may sound to interact on a one-on-one basis with your teacher, this doesn't always take place.  During my first semester of college, I had a math professor who was all about lecturing.  In fact, the lecture would take so long, and he would be so into his lecture, that he never stopped to ask questions to ensure that his students even grasped the material and understood what was being taught.  Whenever someone would stop the lecture, and ask a question, he would ask that we wait until after class to discuss this with him, however by then, most of us would forget our questions.  It is the fact that we were silenced, and asked to remain silent until we were allowed to speak that made learning Math extremely hard for me.  To this day, I hate math for I don't feel as though I have ever had a teacher that fully engaged me in the material.  I wish that I would have had a math teacher throughout middle school, high school, and even college, that made an effort to ensure that his/her students understood the material.  Perhaps if I have ever had a math teacher that fully was fully engaged with their students and the material that they were teaching, I would like math more.  However, this is not the case.  Because I have been silenced throughout my education, I don't feel confidant to go out there and ask for help.  If all teachers and professors could just know the importance of interacting with their students and being engaged with the material that they are teaching, then they would realize how effective their actions are when it comes to teaching their students.