Schuyler’s blog

It is my understanding that homework has been a staple in education dating back as far back as education can go.  After reading the articles on homework, my views have not changed.  Homework should be given in careful moderation.  Depending on the grade there should and should not be a certain amount of homework.  In primary school, homework should not consist of taking anywhere close to being an hour for even the slowest students.  When it comes to secondary school, the amount of home should increase.  In secondary school, students should work to prepare themselves for post secondary school.  In post secondary school, doing homework is imperative for success and should therefore be learned in secondary school.
i myself seldom give any homework that is to be turned in to me for a grade.  When homework is given it is to bring something for a class activity or to be studying for an upcoming test.  Study habits ought to be what homework is about in secondary school, too.  i quickly found out once i got into post secondary school, that i had absolutely no study habits.  Through careful perseverance i did finally learn how to study before it had become too late and i successfully completed my studies and attained my degree.
The idea of eliminating homework unless the student did not finish classwork is an excellent  idea.  i feel as though that was a very effective way of helping the students.  i especially agree that the body is important and good physical health correlates with good mental well being.  i would like to see the primary school my sister attends to adopt a similar policy before she leaves because the amount of homework per night is sheer punishment.  As if going through the school day is not enough, the students have to go home and do two more hours of school work.  As my mom one time said, "let children be children."  Children are going to want to play.  They do have tons of energy waiting to be released.
Yet and still, homework is important.  The level of education does matter.  If the students is in primary school only a minimal amount of homework should be found each day or only two or three days out of five, not four nights a week.  Before starting to teach, i thought i would be the teacher giving out homework each night.  Giving out work does also require that work to be graded, too.  The less work for me the better.  Maybe someday more schools than the one mentioned in Wyoming will abolish that primary school homework requirement.

I do not believe Mississippi is a third world country.  Mississippi is the place where i was born and raised.  That being said, i do believe Mississippi does have some tendencies.  There are a lot of really great things to be said and experience in this state.  People here are making strides in many areas of higher learning.  At the same time, there are some pockets of the state that are light years behind in terms of the Human Development Index.  Factors included in the HDI are social indicators, life expectancy, education, literacy and per capita GDP.  All those measures directly correlate with some of the issues that have plagued the Mississippi Delta for ages.
Growing up in this great state i have experienced many things.  For instance, some of those factors listed above may mean the the world to me but to others, it may not even be a word; it could be a conglomerate of letters.  i grew up in south Mississippi.  Deep south, there are not many cotton or soy bean fields down there but there is lots of pine trees.  Down south it is different.  i say so because i spent time in the delta.  During the summer as i grew up, i would stay with grandma.  During my many summers and extended winter holidays i learned a lot.  Seeing the way things worked up there was very different.  i could go as far as saying, seeing what was seen deep in the delta is somewhat responsible for what i am yet doing now.  Pursuing this education can help me to get a better job and be an effective provider to my family.
Mississippi is not a third world country even though the HDI is .799 with many states falling in the .900s.  Just because everyone in the state does not think as those in New York or Rhode Island does not mean this is a third world country.  Besides, everyone in the world does not go to college and become billionaires.  Some people have to do other things such as become nurses, plow the field to bring in our crops, police our streets and even stock the shelves at the local Piggly Wiggly.  Everyone has a place in society.  Everyone should also dream, and dream big, too.  Being from Mississippi should not put a ceiling over anyone's head.  People from Mississippi can do the same thing if not more than people from other areas of the United States. 
Besides what other third world country is known as the birthplace of the blues?

Byhalia is a very small community.  At first glance, it seems smaller than it actually is and quite frankly it is smaller.  There is exactly one stop light.  Though only one stop light, there is a few gas stations.  Speaking of the gas stations, it appears that one in particular is the hangout after the football games have ended.  That in itself should tell you, Byhalia is SMALL. 
i am a football coach so i meet a few people from time to time.  Each time i meet someone, it seems that they are kin folk or know the kin folk of everyone on the team.  After that comes the relation of me to them of the next person.  Living in Holly Springs is not too different.  One evening on my way into my apartment, i met a lady.  She was talking and talking and by the end of the conversation she said, "i can tell you're not from around here...you talk different."  Before that moment i did not notice.
In all honesty, i felt no different from from the people i see and come in contact with daily.  i take that back.  in all honesty, i felt as though we grew up in a similar situation.  Sure i did go to a private college but before i graduated high school i was working, playing football and scuffling to make it.  No two situations are the same but i am unsure about how different some situations may be...
One of the students i coach, after practice one day i saw tears in his eyes as he waited for a ride that seemed to never come.  Expressed was how much pressure was felt...i could understand.  At the same time, i said just worry about you, yourself.  What other people think and say is them and their opinion.  You do what you can do and do your best.  What others want you to do is not of relevance.
What i came to realize is that the students i teach and coach live a life like many others in different areas of Mississippi.  Working and attending school, living pay check to pay check.  The small community of Byhalia has already opened my eyes that much more...especially when students do not come to school because of teasing.  They wear uniforms but the shoes of this student were clearly worn past wear.  Other students have one pair of khakis and one navy polo which is worn each day.  i can tell.
Not that it took coming to Byhalia High School for me to be able to tell, but i am and have been blessed.

Byhalia High School is different.  My first two weeks of school have went well.  A teacher or two have told me, in the beginning, when students did not know me and needed to find my room, she would say, "look for the man in the bow tie." i found that to be quite interesting.  The man in the bow tie.  Additionally, i have become known to give out writing assignments quite freely.
Before i knew much about writing assignments, i thought i would be against them totally.  After our first two days of school, i gave out more writing assignments than i could count.  Word made it back to me that i was giving out too many and students began to attempt to get out of my class.  i was surprised.  i knew i would be hard on my students but i had no idea they would realize it so quickly.  Naturally i expect the best out of my students so i do hold them to the highest standards possible.
Waking up at 5:50am each morning has gotten old but by the time fourth period rolls around, i am good and i am on a roll. My first two weeks made me realize that maybe i am doing some things right...one day one of my students wore a tie.  The tie was not tied properly so as the rest of the students were working on their do now assignment, that student was instructed to come to the podium.  i taught him how to tie a tie right then and there in the classroom.  Little things matter.  As i began to think, he may have a job interview one day and need to know how to properly tie his tie to look that much more presentable.
One thing i must do better job of is getting my homeroom class managed properly.  i have a homeroom full of freshmen.  Things went well very early on and i was anticipating getting our student handbooks, but now there is no excuse for the absence of real work for them to do each day.  Here lately i have allowed them to do homework from other classes but that will happen no more.  Technically it is supposed to be a "reading period" so from this day forward it will be a reading period in my classroom.

Summer training has been well different.  i had no idea about what to expect when i got to Oxford to dive into the Mississippi Teacher Corps.  Now that i have completed summer training i am convinced that i should not be able to effective go into my classroom on August 6th and effective convey any lesson and manage my classroom to the fullest.  Day one was something, day two was something more and day three i was in the groove of things.  With the many advices i received from Dr. Mullins, Ben Guest, Mr. Barnes and Dr. Monroe, i have all the tools i need.  In addition, we were given two books to read, actually three.  Those books are great references.
Experience gained while doing summer training was priceless.  Even though i had but only one student, i gained a lot of knowledge.  i will not dare say or imply that i know it all but i know some...The role plays were amazing.  i could never think of some of the scenarios we were exposed to each afternoon.  They were great.  i had control of the entire class of first year teachers and i saw what it would be like to have a classroom full of students.  It was crazy...surely every class will not be as unruly but as i have been told, it only takes one student to disrupt a class and totally change the environment of the class.
i will not forget my summer training of my first summer with the Mississippi Teacher Corps.  The days began with meeting scores and scores of new people from all over and ended with us scavenging for supplies on the last day of summer school.  Sometimes i wonder, is this really how things will be this fall.  Will things be much easier?  Will things be much more challenging?  i did enjoy the summer training a lot although, i did get tired of waking up at 5:35am to eat my pancakes with my roomy Justin Sealand, who taught me quite much, too.  Now after my summer training, i am prepared to walk into the doors of my new school and effectively shape the minds of the young people of Marshall County at Byhalia High School.

Everything about the interns presentations impressed me.  There were four presentations.  One was a video by Tahina and the other three were orally presented by Asia, Kelly and Shanika.  In order, they were titled Muted, Mississippi Prioner's Rights, When Abstinence Fails and Freedom Schools Then and Now. 
I really enjoyed the video put together by Tahina.  It gave a view from a perspective that we, as teachers, may not get to experience each day.  She interview a teacher and students as well.  Very interesting i found it to give the views and goals of some of the students.  Teaching over such a short period of time without much out of class time kept us from really connecting with the students.  Asia, who researched prisoner's rights in Mississippi, showed me another side of the issue.  Initially, i mentioned the prison should be explicitly self sufficient.  After the presentation, i say even more so..from the amount of money those prisoners generate from the various jobs they work, we as tax payers should not have to pay for their necessities.  Back to the issue, they are people and they ought to be treated more like people and human beings and have everything they need to live.  Then again, that does not mean give them every ammenity available on the outside, but do give them their case files readily, a speedy trial and medical care...Life threatening or not, they should be treated like WE would want to be treated.  Being from the Mississippii knew about the two cases of "murder" happening down in Harrison County and that is purely senseless to treat people that way.  No one would want their son or daughter treated in such a way.  Kelly open a few eyes with her presentation of fallen abstinence.  In additon, she gave some very interesting statistics to go along with her graphs and other information of the failure of abstinence.  I can only shake my head when i see the average lowest income for white people in Mississippi earn about $21,000 annually whereas the highest average black person in Mississippi earn about $25,000 annually.  Another striking find for me to learn about was the disparity between the whites and blacks human development level score...it really blowed my mind.  i can surely say, the state of Mississippi is not where it ought to be, especially with the pregnancy rate almost double that of the national average.  The Freedom School findings brought to the table by Shanika was really good, as well.  i had known about some of the early Freedom School developments and organizations.  To hear again, presented in a different and related to modern day Freedom Schools was amazing.  The relation between us and the old Freedom summer was nice...i never thought of us, first year teachers, and the Mississippi Teacher Corps as modern day Freedom Riders.
Everything was impressing to me.  i had not thought back to any of those issues any time recently.  To revisit some of them was good and it made me think...i will not say next year i will begin to advocate for prisoners rights in Mississippi, but it really gave me something to think about.  Questions i still have are:
What happen to the two people who wrote letters from the prison?
What happened in the end in both cases back in Harrison County?  i know one family, for the younger victim, was compensated well but i do not know the details
What will be done by the Mississippi Department of Health about the preganancy rate of teens?

Teaching in July was different.  i chose to record myself teaching towards the end so i would appear to be polished as possible.  Again, i looked comfortable.  Note i was being evaluated by another team teacher and not the one that evaluates my teaching daily, i was still poised as ever. The lesson i taught was continuation of the lesson i taught the day before.  The day before i taught a lesson on meiosis.  Meiosis only occurs in the gametes, accounts for our variability and by the end of the entire process, it creates four genetically different haploid cells.  That, in a nut shell, is what i taught my student on Tuesday and Wednesday.  My teaching on those two days did vary and it was energetic but some might say it was kind of boring.  i have learned that every lesson will not be the most interesting lesson to every student in the class but in each lesson, the students will learn.  In addition, if the lesson does not go well, i shall make my next lesson my best lesson...and continue to do so each consecutive day there after.
Class began well although my set was not the best.  The student was paying attention and engaged in the lesson.  Specifically, i explained in detail, the second part of meiosis, meiosis II.  By the end of the period, the student had effectively grasped the material.  A comment i received did say i talked  good bit during the first half of class.  Questions were asked and he was gaining more and more knowledge about meiosis; only, the lesson was not a lesson to jump up and bite you in the foot.
My strengths express my keen ability to stay constant.  Toward the end of the period, due to a lunch room mishap, i had to become more stern.  i am able to communicate my authority and at the same time, be able to express my enthusiasm.  Before the evolution of my teaching i was probably a lot more stern and monotone.  My teaching style has become the style of a teacher that is fun to have because i will teach and give examples but i will also allow the students to teach and create their own examples.
Weakness i have include the newness or overwhelm-ability i could feel when i have a class full of 25 students rather than a class full of one student, which i have now.  Moreover, i have only taught one lesson per day this summer.  i did, however, teach block periods in July but to go an entire day will also be a breath of new-ity for me.  I remember Mr. Guest saying, "sit down" we will be teaching all day and the students need to be involved in the learning rather than me as the teacher being up talking the entire period.  At the same time, he did not mean to sit down all period or sit down and teach.  Movement around the classroom is critical.
I worked on those three things i saw that needed to be worked on from my June evaluation.  In particular, of the three, my informal assessments has shot through the roof.  The other two points i needed to work on were talking too much and knowing too much.  The informal assessing has come around wonderfully.  i now plan questions to ask and along with such, i ask questions that are closely related to those questions.  Not to stray from reality and say informally assessing is easy, but it required time and proper planning.  In addition, i have begun to zip my lips and know when to hush.  Before, i would go and go and go telling the student everything or at least a lot, too much about the subject at hand.  i now leave out the fluff and padding.  By staying strictly with the lesson and lesson plan, i can be a more effective teacher.  In June i learned, "..you only have a certain number of words...when you use them up, that is it..."  I used up all my words and everyone words, too too back in June in my second lesson.  In the lesson i taught and recorded, i did not use all my words up, but i did come very close.
My July recorded lesson was pretty good.  It went well but it could have been a lot better in a number of ways;  nonetheless, i met my objective and my student could identify meiosis at each stage and compare and contrast meiosis and mitosis.  i have learned so much through my summer school experience and our afternoon class.  It was shown in my video.  Questioning is better, my talking has calmed and even if i know too much, the students will not know it.  i enjoyed watching my video.  This time it was like the camera was not even there, whereas before i was conscious of the lens being on my in my earlier lesson i recorded back in June.  

i look like i am kind of comfortable.  In this lesson i taught way too much material.  The things included in this lesson could have been extended throughout at least two to three weeks.  Another note, i used lots of different types of technology.  As i watched and listened, i used words that were too big.  In retrospect, i see now, from listening to myself, i should not have used any of these huge words with a middle school science student.  For example, simple squamous?  How many of you reading this blog can explain to me what simple squamous means and use it in the correct context?  At the same time i will expect a lot out of my students i will teach, at the high school in the fall, but this is indeed a bit much...pseudostratified ciliated columnar?  Of course, not the place to hear such in middle school.  Overall, my lesson was good, if i were teaching at some accredited university or college.
What went well is how i did take out time to explain what i was talking about to him.  Yes, i was teaching to one student.  Another thing i did wel was to use all the technology.  Maybe it was a bit much, but it did enhance his learning.  The powerpoint slide show really gave him a better idea about what was being taught.  Since there were no microscopes available, the pictures served as his slides.  The link to him playing sports and the three types of muscles being discussed hit him.  With that, he was provided with a link to relate those skeletal mucles being discussed.  Even with me using an overhead projector required me to stay close to it, i did move around the room as i taught quite well.  Having him used his textbook was also good.  It showed him that what was being taught did not only come from my head.  It was actually in a book, his book.  
With use of the book, does come with using the book effectively.  I had him read some things out of the book silently.  i do not know if that was the most effective way of teaching.  Almost sure of the fact that i cannot really informally assess it until i ask questions of give him some independent work.  If it was a small amount of information and he was to read it aloud, it would be a little different.  One more thing that i should not have done was talk so much.  i talked for the majority of the period.  Almost the entire 50 minutes of the class period.  That is not good.  Especially when the students get to that point to where they tune you out...then i will only be talking to myself and they will learn nothing.  i sat and watched.  i began shaking my head, boy was i ever new to this whole teaching thing.
i learned that in my second day of teacher i was still light years away from being anywhere close to the potential i may possess.  It is good that i have now watched my self teach.  i see now that it is so many more things i need to work on in July.  July will be a much better month instruction wise.  As i type right now, i still think back to the recording of the lesson on animal cells and tissues.  i literally talked and talked and talked and talked.  i am glad i did not opt to go directly into my high school classroom.  For one, i would have talked them all the way to graduation and back from college graduation, too.  By the end of the lesson, i now, could see where this is way too much for anyone in a middle school.  Not saying that middle school students are not capable, it is that they may not need eight pages of notes given to them in a 50 minute period along with pictures to look at and be able to identify.
All and all, the histology lesson i taught was way over his head.  Yet and still, he did learn and retain some of that information.

In July i will work most on three particular areas.  The first being my informal assessments.  My second area needing the most is for me to not talk so much.  i corrected this problem for my formal assessments but as time wore on i reverted back to my unpolished ways a couple of times.  Lastly, i was told, "you know too much for my own good" that made me rethink a lot.  As i work out these few kinks, my teaching should sail and be very effective, along with stellar classroom management.  In the week that i was to be formally evaluated i did pretty well on each other those.  Surely i did not do as well on my first evaluation compared to my last evaluation, but it was not the worst.
Informal assessments are not the hardest thing to do but they can easily be overlooked by a first year teacher, who is not quite accustomed to teaching.  Traditionally, from what i have heard and been told, informal assessments are just the teacher watching and observing the students to be sure they grasp the objective or close to getting all the information.  What i need to do is question the students a lot more and be sure to ask questions with a deeper depth of knowledge.
i can talk.  i have been told i can talk a lot.  In the beginning, i was talking way too much.  The lesson i was teaching was coming in the form of direct instruction.  i was telling the the students all that he needed to know.  Class began and ended with me.....with a lot of me in the middle.  i have learned well from my mistakes.  Now worksheets have been incorporated into my lesson, as well as times for the student to show me what he has learned.  Doing things this way, i can, too formally assess the students' grasp of the lesson being taught.  Coming directly from the lecture rooms of Millsaps College, i know only what i have seen for the past two and half years.
The last area i need to improve on is my depth of knowledge.  i know way, too much for the level of students i will be teaching.  i began my teaching career shooting for the zone of proximal development.  i actually shot completely over the level of the student i was teaching.  He did retain certain aspects of what was taught, but i am sure he did not get every little that i presented to him.  i have corrected this problem to an extent.  During the week of my formal evaluations, i did the best!  Thereafter, regression occurred.  i began using the same terminology one would fine in the hallowed halls of an institute of higher learning, not a high school classroom.
In conclusion, the professor from the 1950s, as deemed by the second years, should be sure to bring everything down to the level of students he will be teaching.  i will certainly work on all three of these aspects of my teaching.  My goal is to be the best teacher i can be and do all i can to be sure they understand all i present to them.  Let the work on those areas of my teaching repertoire now begin to be enhanced and bettered, so our student in middle school science will completely understand each lesson taught by me.