Faces of Me

How does one measure the true influences on his life? With so many friendships made, places visited, and experiences had it takes a lot for something to be truly influential. In my life I have had many little things influence my life as an individual and a teacher, but all of those branch off of the three major themes; my family, my environment, and my hobbies.
Author Anthony Brandt once said, “Other things may change us, but we start and end with family”, and this rings true in my life as an individual and a future teacher. Although there have been many influences in my life my family has been the most significant. I grew up in a family that is its own melting pot. I am Irish, Scottish, German, French, and Hungarian. Not having a true culture lead me to grow into the concept that my family is my culture. Everything from the festival’s we attend, the way we speak, the mannerisms we all have, and our Parrothead (die hard Jimmy Buffett fan) way of life is the culture that I have developed. In my house I was the fifth youngest of six children (three older brothers, one older sister and one younger sister), and this was a big influence on the development of my communication skills. Being able to hear five different points of view and multiple sides to every story really helped me learn to keep an open mind at all times and to be able to listen to their thoughts but not pass judgment on them.. Another benefit to having a lot of older siblings is that they were constantly motivating me to succeed in sports, make the right decisions in life, and were never a negative weight dragging me down. This has helped me develop my own interest in motivating others to succeed which is a key element in teaching. Growing up in a family of Parrotheads (die hard Jimmy Buffett fans) lead me to believe in a very relaxing and laid back lifestyle. Similar to my communication skills and desire to motivate others my laid back demeanor will play a role in who I will be as a teacher, and not only who I am as an individual.
Although my family has had the biggest influence on me, my environment growing up played a vital role as well. I grew up in an upper-middle class suburban neighborhood in northern New Jersey. This gave me a chance to live out my laid back lifestyle (people always say everything in the city moves faster), and also allowed me to create the network of friends that I still have today. In some occasions friends grow apart as the years go on, but I am fortunate to say that I have stayed close with my friends since high school ended. They have always been there to support me and have been an important part of who I am as an individual. Another part of my environment that played a role in my life is my high school, Northern Highlands Regional High School. Unlike my elementary and middle school I have fond memories of Northern Highlands. I was able to connect with teachers, recognize my full potential as a student, and develop more as an individual. My teachers showed that they cared about their students (I never got this feeling in previous schools) and I feel this has had a large impact on me as an educator. It helped show me that those types of emotions did not exist only in movies, and that dedicated teachers can make a difference in their student’s lives.
The final influence on my life as an individual and a teacher are my hobbies. Listening to music, watching movies, and sports (playing, watching, and coaching) are a part of my everyday life and help define who I am. As I said above I am a huge Jimmy Buffett fan, and his music has encouraged me pursue a laid back and relaxed lifestyle. Although some say this can be a negative quality for a teacher to have I feel for me it is positive. I want to be the same person in the classroom that I am outside the classroom. I want to work with high school students and they can tell when a teacher is being genuine or if they are just playing the part, so being yourself is a good quality to have. Movies are another form of entertainment that has influenced me throughout my life. Some of my favorite movies are Shawshank Redemption, Big Fish, It’s a Wonderful Life, and Braveheart, each of which sends an important message. From these films I have learned valuable lessons such as sometimes life isn’t fair but you can’t let it drag you down, never take friends and family for granted, live life to the fullest every day, and never take life to seriously. These messages have all been important to how I have lived my life in the past, and how I intend to live my life in the future. Although films above have influenced me as an individual, the film Lean on Me has a great deal of influence on me as an educator. It helps portray each student as one with ability and a desire to succeed; all they need is a little motivation and a strong positive influence to help guide them in the right direction. The final hobby of mine that has had a large influence in my life is sports. Growing up in the suburbs I was able to play/practice sports whenever I wanted. There was always a court, field or yard that a group of friends and me could gather and play a game. My love for sports helped shape me as a student-athlete in high school, and has given me a set of disciplines that I would not have had if I were never an athlete. I have learned to never give up and give one hundred percent everyday towards your goals. I also learned the importance of teamwork, dedication, and self-sacrifice are all necessary towards the accomplishment of a common goal. Knowing how much I have learned and grown through these principles I now pass them on to my own players and help them to become better student-athletes each day.
My goal in life is to be the best person I can be. As an individual I have lived a very fulfilling twenty five years, but as a teacher my future is only just beginning. I have to keep brain open to new influences and new ideas to help further my knowledge in the classroom. I must always remember that “the roots of success are formed through hard work, but grow strong through dedication.”

The readings for this past week were very interesting.  This is my first opportunity to really read about urban schooling systems and the lives of some of their students.  The first two chapters of Urban School Public Will were really powerful.  The part of chapter one that interested me the most was how Camden, NJ used to be primarily a white town, but just before the “Negro invasion” began the white families moved to the suburbs surrounding the city.  A few years ago Maxim magazine had an article that depicted Camden as “murder capital USA” for it’s extremely high crime and murder rate.  It’s hard to picture a city like that being primarily white only 50 years ago.  The two main stories in chapter two were also an eye opener.  Reading how Gilyard had to have two images of himself to fit into both his neighborhood group of friends and his school friends (a white institution), and how he fought back from extreme drug use to achieve his goals really shows how difficult the life of an urban child can be.  I also found it interesting reading about Robby and how he never wanted to pursue a proper education until he was behind bars. 

The second reading helped to bring some of the realities of rural versus suburban versus urban education systems.  In the area I grew up many of the parents would rather send their children to private schools believing that their child will receive more personal attention and receive a better education.  Learning that the teacher to student ratio is practically the same throughout each of the systems was something that I never would have thought.  The section that discussed the crime rates was also a statistic I never would have believed if I had heard it.  The fact that these stats are not based on percentages but factual numbers is amazing.  Suburban areas experienced nearly double the amount of reported crimes of urban centers, and three times the amount of rural areas.  The discussion we had in class about the different reactions we see from the public to the same type of crime committed in a suburban setting as opposed to a urban setting only makes this section intriguing.  The “good old boys” of the suburbs are in reality more violent than the “animals” that live in the ghetto.

 

 

Some of the influences that help shape urban schools are as follows:

-         Larger populations and numbers in the schools

-         Racism and difference in families economic status

-         More diverse/difference in cultures

o       Bilingual education is one of the areas the government funds more in urban schools than rural and suburban schools

-      Difference in environmental setting

Rural, Suburban, and Urban Media

 

Movies:

Rural: In & Out

Taking place in a small Indiana town this film brings you through the identity crisis of Howard Brackett.  When it is made public that Howard is gay we get to see what it’s like for a rural community to react to an issue that has been very popular in America.  During the movie we see his students act differently around him, mock him behind his back, and ultimately losing his job (briefly) in the end of the film.  Even though Howard is a dedicated and loving teacher he is at times ostracized by members in his own community.  I feel this helps to show us how some rural communities aren’t used to dealing with issues as sensitive as this, and in this case their lack of preparation only lead to wrong decisions.

 

Suburban: 10 Things I hate About You

This movie, which takes place in a suburban town in California, follows the lives of two sisters and their classmates at Padua High School.  This film not only shows the everyday problems that students have (relationships, friendship, college, and parental disputes) but also does a great job early on in the movie mentioning the variety of cliques that the school has.  The faculty does not seem fully invested in their students, the students are more concerned with their social lives than anything else, and the father of the two daughters is constantly trying to use his high school lingo (“I’m down, I got the 411, and you are not going out and getting jiggy with some boy, I don’t care how dope his ride is”) to communicate with his children.

 

Urban: Lean on Me

Based on true events this film tells the story of Joe Clark, the new principal at Eastside High School, and his struggles to prevent the school from being taken over by the state.  This film does a great job showing the struggles that urban students have.  There are drug dealers in and around the school, issues with teenage pregnancy, students being expelled/dropping out, and the biggest issue of all…a lack of literacy and proper education.  Mr. Clark’s persistent efforts to connect with the students and encourage the school’s faculty result in the passing of the minimum basic skills test; a feat that the community felt was impossible.

 

 

T.V.

Rural: Roseanne

Although taking place in a rural town in Illinois this show’s family suffered from many problems that are commonly associated with urban living.  Throughout the years the Barr family had to deal with issues such as poverty, teenage pregnancy, adolescent maturation, drugs/alcohol, and obesity.  I feel that this show did a great job making it public that those types of issues are not just for immigrants or urban citizens, but that even the common American family has to deal with an assortment of issues as well.

 

 Suburban: Saved by the Bell

This television program follows the lives of their main characters from middle school all the way into college.  This suburban school has had episodes that deal with many problems.  Episodes focused on everything from the shock of drugs being found in the school to a student trying to hide his grades from his parents so that he could go skiing during spring break.  Some of the teachers throughout the years were systematic and going through the motions, while others (such as Miss Bliss and Mr. Belding) displayed true affection for their students and their success.  This show did a great job showing the importance of education and how sometimes students who don’t put school first must deal with the consequences that come with it.

 

Urban: Married With Children

This family sitcom takes place in Chicago, Illinois.  Although this show is a comedy it does touch base on some of the problems that low socioeconomic families face in urban communities.  The Bundy family lives a life of poverty and misfortune, they have an illiterate daughter, and their son who strives for success through a good education sees every opportunity taken away through the actions of his family.  The community looks down on this family, the schooling system is nothing to be proud of, and even the illiterate daughter must work just to help get by. 

 

Books

 Rural: To Kill a Mockingbird

Although this book takes place in the late 1930’s it helps to show how the educational systems in some rural towns were.  The members of this community were born and raised there.  Families know each other’s past, and when Miss Caroline (the schools new 1^st grade teacher) comes town how out of place she is.  We see her look down upon students who learned to read at home, she hits Scout’s hand with a ruler and sends her off into a corner, and she doesn’t understand what it means to be a “Cunningham” (raised in poverty).  This may only be a footnote in this great novel, but it is great to see how different rural schooling systems were back then, and how some teachers try to do to much when they first arrive. 

 

Suburban: Queen Bees and Wannabes

Before it was turned into the movie Mean Girls, this book did an excellent job portraying some of the problems high school students go through.  The author, Rosalind Wisemen, was a schoolteacher in an upper-middle class community.  She used per personal experience to illustrate issues such as teasing, relationships, drugs/alcohol, and high school cliques that ultimately helped shape this novel to becoming almost a survival guide for teenage girls.    

 

Urban: Freedom Writers Diary

After discovering a racist drawing in one of her classes Erin Gruwell, the English teacher whom this novel is about, decided to have her students read two very moving novels (Zlata’s Diary: A Child’s Life in Sarajevo, and Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl).  These novels inspired the students of her class to keep their own diaries, which helped them to learn new ways to fight the issues in their lives.  By using writing and creativity as self-expression they were fighting some of the stereotypes that their society is labeled with.  Throughout their journey these students also learn that thing like race, poverty, religion, or dissimilar family situations are problems that they have no control over, and that they should not let uncontrollable issues lead them to becoming a victim.  This story shows how a teacher’s dedication can go a long with in the lives of those who need it the most.

Growing up in a society where the term “melting pot” is known to be our culture it is difficult for someone as myself to be familiar with the urban schooling systems. I grew up in an upper-middle class suburban community in northern New Jersey. My graduating class was 25% Asian, 70% Caucasian, and 5% other; of that 5% there was only one African American student who just so happened to be half Irish. From the environment that I grew up in I was never faced with the hardship of diversity in the classroom, culture clashing, or classmates who live in poverty. Each one of my fellow classmates was raised with the notion that they can be anything they want to and achieve any goal that they set for themselves, however, with movies, music and the news being my only source into the life of an urban school teacher I can’t see that scenario being the same for urban students.
When I think about the school systems in urban areas most of the images that first pop into my head are negative. I see the schools themselves to be under funded; by not providing the students with the proper tools and electronics that they need to keep up with the fast paced growth of today’s technology. Student’s not having computer labs to do research in, functioning calculators to help them figure out mathematical equations, or even enough books for each student to read are very detrimental to the development of a student’s education. This is why I feel the literary level and drop out rates are such a problem in urban schools. Another problem I feel is that many immigrants move to urban areas since they are more affordable. This can make teaching more difficult since some of the immigrant students have never had a formal education before. This not only makes the teaching process more difficult but also contributes to the literacy problem that many schools face. As well as being under funded and diverse I feel that the schools environment can be dangerous for students. Schools that are in deprived areas and have high crime rates can help contribute to the negative stereotypes that the students in these schools already face.
When schools face the difficulties of crime, lack of funds, diverse populations, etc… it is very easy for teachers to sit back and let their students fail while they collect a paycheck. Teacher’s in urban areas have a more difficult time connecting with their students, and can often let them slip into the problems of the society that surrounds them. This can be the case for many different reasons, but one that I can relate to is teachers coming in from suburban communities. Students who feel that their teacher “doesn’t know where they are coming from” will have a more difficult time looking up to them as a role model, and a good role model is very crucial in a struggling student’s life. In a recent study about the effect of President Obama’s recent election on the academic performance of African American students the results showed positive outcomes. The New York Times article stated “the inspiring role model that Mr. Obama projected helped blacks overcome anxieties about racial stereotypes that had been shown, in earlier research, to lower the test-taking proficiency of African-Americans” (Dillon, 2009). If teachers work hard towards creating a positive self-image than I feel that this will help students to connect with them better, thus performing better in the classroom.
With views like this I cannot help but have a strong desire to make improvements in the urban school at which I will work. I believe that creating a positive network of piers will be a very important first step, but not an easy one. Since the views that I have of the current urban school teachers isn’t the greatest I will have a difficult time interacting with them at first. Not only am I an outsider trying to work his way in, but also it may be difficult to bring new ideas to a system that many teachers feel may be hopeless. The most effective way for myself to interact with my fellow teachers will be to try and seek out the teachers who care for their students and not the ones who sit back and collect paycheck. I feel that this will not only make me feel more comfortable but will help give me hope that change is possible. If I were to interact with teachers who have negative views of their school and their students it will only reinforce the negative views that movies, music, and the news have implanted in my head. On top of creating a social network of positive teacher I aim to have positive relationships with my students as well. This will be difficult since, as I stated earlier, I have no experience dealing with students in an urban school system. The most important part of this relationship will be showing my student’s that I am there for them. In an essay I previously read by Ennis Cosby he talked about being a healer in the classroom, and about how teaching is more rewarding if you “heal the people who need it the most”. This caught my eye because that is the relationship I am looking to create with my students. If a teacher can properly heal a student who has problems than he will gain that students trust, and trust is a very crucial part of the teacher-student relationship.
When it comes to the classroom that I look to create I firmly believe that a positive classroom is an influential classroom. I will look to create a classroom that my students will want to go to, one that promotes only positive images all around. I feel that little things such as hanging up posters or pictures with diverse positive role models will help students realize that things such as ethnicity, gender, and coming from a low socio-economic family is not a limiting border. If students have a more positive look on life than they will also have a more positive look on education. With a more optimistic look on life there is a chance my students will work harder to achieve what they formerly knew as the impossible dream. As well as creating a classroom with a positive feel to it, I hope to create a classroom rewards children for succeeding. When I was in school my chemistry teacher would throw out candy to students who answered questions correctly, and a gesture as little as that created a classroom full of students raising their hand to get called on for the answer. Some teachers may see this as more negative than positive since students who try but don’t succeed aren’t rewarded, but that is why I am going to look at every aspect of the classroom and not just academics. Students who promote good social behavior, help clean up, volunteer, do well on quizzes/tests, etc… will be rewarded for their good efforts. I feel that it is important for teachers to show that these types of good behaviors don’t go unnoticed.
As a future teacher of America my goal is to help make our youth as well rounded as possible. I aim to help my students become better people both in and out of the classroom. I will first need to break the negative views that society has helped shape, but I feel this is something that will come with time and effort. Since students from urban schools face a wider variety of problems than students in suburban areas it will be more of a challenge to help heal those students, but with great challenges come great rewards.