journal 14 - Isel Lee

Most of the teaching strategies I have encountered were more of the “banking system” where I was fed information and expected to regurgitate them on very objectively designed tests. Through these experiences, I realized how “hollow” I became—whatever information/knowledge I had learned had always been spilled out, leaving nothing left in my mind. My mind felt so empty and numb that it was difficult to adjust to the learning environment demanded at Cal. Many of the humanities courses I took here demanded a different type of learning—one where I needed to REALLY understand and know the material that I read and learned in class, and also show my mastery within the tests. I was also expected to interact with other students and professors through discussions and office hours. The existence of an environment where students were allowed to speak in class, present their opinions, and also participate actively was an overwhelming experience for me, who was used to sitting quietly as a submissive student in class. I remember my surprise and confusion when the GSI in my English writing class explained to the class that she wants to see our own interpretation and ideas in the essays assigned. I was always taught to integrate the themes and ideas presented by the teacher rather than coming up with our own in our literary essays—I had an experience where I got a bad grade because my interpretation of symbols within the book were wrong and was given a better grade when I only included the interpretations and ideas presented by the teacher in class. Thus I had come to think that whatever I thought never mattered because it was wrong and whatever the teacher says was right. Yet, now they’re telling me to do something I have always thought was wrong?! Adjusting to my new educational environment was a slow and difficult task, but it was worth it because I feel like I own my education more. Before, whatever I learned was only at a level where I was able to “recognize” the information without actually “knowing” it. My approach to educational material has begun to change to one that is more subjective. I wish that I encountered such a learning environment earlier in life as an active member in my learning community rather than being brought up to be a passive, mindless student.

Journal #14- Alternate Pedagogies (Ashmi)

I feel like my education has revolved around the classroom. Teachers giving the same standard test, over and over. I think this comic embodies how I feel about my education. I know teachers want students to be innovative and independent, but the way they educate is not conducive to accomplishing this. Students are confined to books and classrooms which does not provide them with the skills they need in the real world. I took a botany class in high school where I was able to grow my garden and conduct experiments with my own vegetables. I was able to get hands on experience which provided me with valuable skills that I can now use for the rest of my life. I think that teachers need to start shifting towards hands on learning and working in different environments because this actually allows students to be creative and innovative. It gives students a break from the repetitive routine in classrooms and allows them to gain experience and new perspectives on their education.

Journal #14 - Teaching Stategies

It’s really interesting but when I look back on what I’ve actually been able to learn throughout my college and my high school experience, I feel like I haven’t learned very much in terms of the actual content taught in the classrooms. Most times, I was just forced to sit in my seat and listen to the teacher speak. Then all the material would leave my mind as soon as I finished my tests. It’s the same even now with all my lectures. I realized, I don’t remember crap unless I have to. And I really believe this is what John Dewey and Burkhardt was speaking about. It doesn’t make sense to force students to sit quietly and absorb the materials that teachers teach. Furthermore, much of the material we learn do not have real life applications. It does not make sense to us because we cannot understand how it relates to our own personal experiences.

However, the few times that I really enjoyed learning was with teachers that had interesting teaching strategies. For instance, one of my teachers taught in a very Socratic way. He always asked us to analyze U.S. history and the way it has been written. He also made us question how history relates to us nowadays. These lessons definitely influenced me in so many ways. Its probably the reason why I started loving history and why I would love to teach it later in life.

Furthermore, currently I teach history and poetry to high school students at Berkeley Technology Academy. Throughout all of our lessons, we break it down into three parts: We broke it down into 3 parts: a historical event, a current issue, and an activity. For example, during our lesson on imperialism we decided to focus our topic on the theme of home. We decided to teach about one, how Native Americans are constantly being pushed out throughout history, second, gentrification nowadays in their own community, and lastly, a poem about home. By doing this, we were able to teach history lessons that made sense to the students. Furthermore, the activity was an outlet for them to connect to the material, to express how they feel about the topic, and a method of assessing the students’ maturity on the topic. Through this experience, I realized that there was a possibility of teaching students in more effective and practical ways.

April 5 Funding Poetry-George

Education in America is a funny thing.
Because of varied standards, you can be the king
Of one institution, and a naive child in another situation
And our teachers are so underpaid
For the work they contribute
To the Future of WORLD
Funny thing is how America downgrades
Its education and pay tribute
To prisons and war swirled
In party politics
We want a nationalized standard with a curriculum
that prepares us for life
Just like Finland and Singapore
But Education in America is a funny thing
When the solutions are there, and nothing happens.

Journal April 5th (Funding Poem)- Fazal Mogaddedi

On the brink of graduation
excited to start my life with a good education
i have 2 classes left to complete my degree
but because of budget cuts, summer sessions is where i'll be.
The heads of the university are living care free
while the students are struggling to complete their degrees!

Journal Entry on Funding - Palm Trees

Here's my lil poem on my school. I always like to say that there is no final draft with poetry. But here is what I have so far for this assignment. Its about how my school struggled with funding but masked these problems by putting on image that we were an amazing new school.


My school is a billboard without content
Flashing laptop guarantees
Collaboration unheard of
College style classrooms teaching me how to move about the rest
As if competition didn’t already fuck up our society

And hey! We got palm trees
Palm trees planted into our “new innovative school”
Portraying a learning paradise
Trying to catch the sunrays of our community
With their smooth green leaves reaching for a hopeful sky

But palm trees, shit
They are fuckin expensive
As we plant and plant images of richness
We forget that money needs to go to more important things
We rip out the roots of our schooling
Leaving it without the critical groundwork to sustain itself
We cramp classrooms
Making students hustle for help
And we slash all forms of creativity
Of an outlet
Saying art classes and sports are not valuable

But hey! We still got palm trees, right?
Coconut pleasures so sexy
But a reality untouched by many
Achievement gap growing as fast as my parents’ hustle for money
Teachers laid off as much as my brother drops out
Laptops stolen by young teens believing that
this is the American Dream

but hey, we still got palm trees…
we got no problems..
we got palm trees

Journal 13 | Funding, Control, & Reform | Wendy Wu

I sit here,

crowded classroom,

as if

the walls

close in on me,

absorbing each breath that I take,

leaving me empty,

empty of knowledge.

Books,

cry in the corner,

untouched,

pages dangling from the edge,

damaged from

colliding with walls,

rather than

soaking

children with knowledge.

Desks,

scream of pain,

left a

welcoming, warehouse home

of appreciation

for a

mad scientist experiment,

to be scraped,

scarred with the

sharpness of knives.

I sit here,

in this crowded classroom,

with a thirst for knowledge,

but this thirst

is not quenched,

I ask for

new

books

desks

an education

so

please

abolish proposition 13.