Fifty-Four Days To Sweet Blessed Freedom...
Today has gone by quickly for a Monday due to a Mock Bench Mark Assessment Test (BMA) given to my eleventh graders. Even as I type this, they are sitting quietly and working diligently- something my tenth graders could never accomplish.
Speaking of tenth graders, today I attempted to discuss Zen parables with them. I think they liked them but I'm not sure they "got" it. They definitely couldn't relate when I told them that Buddhist monks tried to eschew pleasure.
I began teaching an ACT prep course in the mornings for the fun of it, because I think that most students don't understand the importance of college tests. A few points here and there can make the difference between an acceptance and an acceptance with scholarship money. In a high school like this, grades are so inflated that 4.0's are commonplace; thus, the only way to differentiate yourself from the crowd is a high SAT or ACT score. I chose to teach ACT prep because I'm more comfortable with it, and I feel that it's the easier test for most people. Also, the new writing section is optional, and most colleges don't yet require it.
My greatest fear- and the one I've fought hardest to combat- is that schools are ceasing to teach people how to think. Most teachers are content to simply pump their students full of knowledge, which only serves to cause a mess when it slowly oozes back out in poorly constructed phrases combined with a total lack of understanding. It's high time that the school system focus its energies on providing the student with a quality learning experience, not one that skips over every issue like a rock flung across a lake.
Knowledge without meaning or the ability to connect it to one's experience is worthless.
Speaking of tenth graders, today I attempted to discuss Zen parables with them. I think they liked them but I'm not sure they "got" it. They definitely couldn't relate when I told them that Buddhist monks tried to eschew pleasure.
I began teaching an ACT prep course in the mornings for the fun of it, because I think that most students don't understand the importance of college tests. A few points here and there can make the difference between an acceptance and an acceptance with scholarship money. In a high school like this, grades are so inflated that 4.0's are commonplace; thus, the only way to differentiate yourself from the crowd is a high SAT or ACT score. I chose to teach ACT prep because I'm more comfortable with it, and I feel that it's the easier test for most people. Also, the new writing section is optional, and most colleges don't yet require it.
My greatest fear- and the one I've fought hardest to combat- is that schools are ceasing to teach people how to think. Most teachers are content to simply pump their students full of knowledge, which only serves to cause a mess when it slowly oozes back out in poorly constructed phrases combined with a total lack of understanding. It's high time that the school system focus its energies on providing the student with a quality learning experience, not one that skips over every issue like a rock flung across a lake.
Knowledge without meaning or the ability to connect it to one's experience is worthless.
posted by Yorick at 9:54 AM
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