In class the other day, Jim set up sykpe conversations with teachers working all over the world. I thought this was a brilliant idea to not only learn about education abroad but to also connect with someone who knows first hand what it is currently like to teach outside of the United States.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Week 10-14 (#8)
In class the other day, Jim set up sykpe conversations with teachers working all over the world. I thought this was a brilliant idea to not only learn about education abroad but to also connect with someone who knows first hand what it is currently like to teach outside of the United States.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
week 9
Friday, April 9, 2010
week 7/8
Knowing that students consume so much sugar from milk, (regular, chocolate, and strawberry flavored) I was disturbed to find out that Decorah High School participated in and won a chocolate milk drinking contest. The students drank an average of three cartons of chocolate milk a day, exceeding the suggested daily sugar intake by vast amounts... and all for what? $15,ooo for the school. In reality, the students spent $15,000 drinking this milk to win them money to spend on exercise equipment and wellness programs. Does something seem wrong here? YES! Why are schools putting the health of children at risk for monetary reasons? Isn't this morally wrong? YES! Isn't this teaching our kids poor eating habits and thus contributing to their potential obesity? YES! So why are schools doing it?
The control money has in schools is disturbing to me. Administrators and school boards are putting the health and education of students at risk in order to earn "free" money. Nearly all decisions are financially driven, and while this is somewhat understandable because schools run on tight budgets, there is no excuse for it. They need to get creative and raise money in ways that benefit all aspects of students. We can't let businesses who are looking to sell their product (like the Dairy Company in DHS) be the financial support for our schools. They don't really care about the health and education of kids- they just want to make a profit. The bottom line is we need to always work to improve the health and learning and we can't let people who do not care about kids dictate what is present in our schools.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
week 6
1 a : of, relating to, or associated with an academy or school especially of higher learning b : of or relating to performance in academic courses
2 : of or relating to literary or artistic rather than technical or professional studies
— ac·a·dem·i·cal·ly \-mi-k(ə-)lē\ adverb
(http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/academic)
Now I will admit that I do not know anything about the dance major at Luther College or anything about basketball (imaginary major), but I personally know what is entailed in a music major at Luther. Therefore, I will consolidate my argument to music as it is what I know. According to the definition above, I do not see how music is not an "academic major."
1) Music is taught at a school of higher learning (1a, 1d). It is an accredited subject and quite frankly, it is a difficult one. Typically what non-music majors think is that music majors just play instruments listen to music all day, learn notes and musical terms, and learn to improve our ability to perform on our instruments. While this is true, this is only the surface level. Music challenges the mind, body, and spirit, and it takes endless hours studying, listening, playing, exploring, practicing, etc to understand and overcome these challenges. (I apologize for beginning to rant, but it helps to have at least a shallow understanding of being a music major)
2) Music majors are constantly performing, both intellectually and physically (1b). Playing on instruments is an everyday event, and must be done everyday if one has hopes to improve. Also, composing and improvising challenges one intellectually as these activities involve much thought and analysis of musical ideas.
3) Learning a subject without practical experience occurs in all majors, including music (1c). This is the point of college right? We learn in order to leave college to apply our knowledge in practical experiences.
4) The second definition speaks for itself when it says relating to the artistic (2). Music is an art form and fits into the realm of the artistic.
So my point in all of this is that music is an academic major, NOT just a major done out of pure interest or as a hobby. My analysis of music through this definition of "academic" can be applied to many other subject areas. We, as future educators, need to be careful in what we label as "academic" or "non-academic" because if we mislabel a subject area, it may not be taught in schools and students would be deprived of an academic experience. Since students have different learning styles and interests, it is important that we provide them with every possible learning opportunity.
My hope with this entry is to dismantle the idea that music is not an academic subject and to challenge everyone to have an understanding of what "academic" means before designating majors as "academic" or "non-academic."
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
week 5
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
week 4
JENGA!!! This game challenges us physically and mentally as we decide which pieces to eliminate from the tower while keeping the tower standing. Oh don't forget that pieces can be added on to the top to create even more of a challenge. Hmm... sounds hard doesn't it? Welcome to the world of education and making decisions in U.S. schools.