MAT 402: Blog Reflection #1

My adoration for books began at a young age.  I can remember my mother reading me infamous children books such as “The Giving Tree” or “Love You Forever” as a young child.  I soon began to memorize the words (I still called it reading) and would rummage through the pages reciting the words out loud.  I have always been an avid reader.  My enthusiasm about reading can often be motivated and overwhelming.  During the summer of my sophomore year in college, I read a novel entitled “A Thousand Splendid Suns.”  The novel details a story of two women living in the Middle East and their struggle to escape lives of oppression and violence.  The novel was interesting and captivating, but it did not have a profound affect on me.  In the months prior to entering the program I re-read the novel.  The second time around the characters were real and heart-breaking.  It was then that I realized that characters, novels are a means of living someone else’s experience.  I believe that my affection for books, rich stories, drive my passion experiences in an English classroom. 

Initially, when reading Ball’s article I was turned off by the rhetoric that was used.  I felt somewhat attacked when she emphasized the idea of being a master of your content.  It was discouraging because, as a first year teacher, I felt like the level of mastery that was being stressed was unattainable as a first year teacher.  As we discussed the article in class, it became more apparent that the emphasis being placed on content was to highlight the idea that an in depth knowledge of your content allows you to captivate the interest of your students.  During the discussion, I became less critical of Ball’s argument because it became apparent that this “mastery” should be something every good teacher strives to acquire as their career unfolds.  Ball highlights the idea that the good teacher, the motivate teacher, will strive to delve deeper into their content and seek to uncover new territory which they can then bring into the classroom.  I agree with Ball on that front.  Teachers should constantly seek to refine and redefine their craft, but it is the passion within the teacher that drives the quest to obtain more knowledge.  Although it may place another task upon the shoulders of the teacher, it is important that teachers have a passion for their content and that passion should drive them to continue to uncover as much as possible about their subject.

At this point, I have no focus for my capstone project.  I am playing with two ideas- but as I continue to focus on them, I am not sure how fond I am of either idea.  The first question focuses specifically on ELD students.  My interest is in what programs can be placed in schools to heighten the chances for ELD students to attend four year colleges? Also, why many low performing students tend to drop out of community colleges. The second surrounds the idea of the “great books.”  What is taken into consideration when deeming a novel a “great book.”  Are the “great books” an essential aspect of content and delivering skills in the classroom? Could more current novels heighten student’s interests in reading? I either need to work to drastically reform one of the above ideas or refocus on another topic because I am not happy with either of these as of now.  At this point, I think it would be wise to do more research on both topics to see if the research could lead me to a more concrete topic and question.

See my Comments for Colleagues:
Alana Scott: mademoisellescott.blogspot.com
Mike Rose: Mikejas.blogspot.com
Sheridan Arrendondo: sheridanarredondo.blogspot.com