ER

I do not know if anyone watched ER from Nov 20 (If you ahve not you can still check it out on NBCWebsite). On this particular epsiode there was a guy there with his wife and his wife's brother. The wife was having some problem and the doctors noticed something wrong with the husband and long story short it came out that the husband was a suspected child molester, although he was never convicted. Guess what this guys profession was....you guessed it a a male ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER....out of all the jobs why didit have to be a elem teacher?

MMEET Scholars Wordle

Below is a Wordle image. Wordle takes the content of a piece of writing or an entire website and creates a visual aid of word choice within the writing. The larger the word, the more often it is used. I will post updated Wordles periodically as we post on this blog.

You may notice that words like "school" and "teachers" jump out right away. That's not surprising. What was surprising is the word "dress" taking such a prominent role, suggesting that many of our posts have had to do with image or appearances.

Conspicuously missing from the top 50 words is "gender." We still haven't reached a point where gender can readily be used to describe our identities or roles in the schools we work. Maybe if I expand the word count, we'll find a better representation of the words we choose.


Update: I did try it again using more words...

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Number the Stars, scene 1

I was at the TRYPS play, "Number the Stars" last Friday and I was getting my kids settled into their seats and a woman approached me from another school district. She asked, "Does Grant only recruit male teachers?" We had three there that day, my co-teacher in the fifth grade and one of our fourth grade teachers. I said no, but I guess we should. Ha! Ha! She then proceded to give me the token response, "That is SO wonderful! We need more men in education." I told her that was true and then got back to watching out for my students. I am very lucky to teach at my school. It has been positive for so many reasons, one of which is the company of men that I am able to keep.

My life is better as a video game

I had a few minutes during my kindergartners' nap time and checked out an article on FOXNEWS.COM. In short, a boy's father realized a change in his son's personality and behavior after long hours playing "Call of Duty 4." As a result, Dad removed his xbox console. His son left on bicycle and was found dead in a corn field in Barrie, Ontario.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,448026,00.html

How can video games wrap up our boys so tightly that it constricts the role of the real world?

Who's at fault here? How can uninformed adults in a child's life be enlightened to the idea that giving that child the world can be the death of him?

I guess that is all I have to say.

You must be the man with all the power...

It seems as if the school year is flying by, but there is still so much left to do. October brings the great sensation homecoming, orange, brown, and yellow leaves, colder weather and of course parent teacher conferences. This is the time of year when teachers "dress up" when they come to school apparently to show the parents "Look at me, I'm a professional" this may sound a bit cynical but....oh well. This thought actually came about as I was typing and trying to introduce the real reason I got on here, but I the two thoughts tie together.

This morning as I was making some last minute copies for the day, I walked into the teachers lounge, an older man was sitting at one of the tables, I had never seen him before. I said "good morning" and he responded with the same. He then went on to say "White shirt and tie. You must be the man with all the power." I jokingly said "Only in my classroom." We had a brief chuckle and I left. I have the very bad habit of forgetting things so I had to go back to the lounge to get more papers that I had printed, the same man was sitting in the room and said to me "Oh I get it, parent teacher conferences are today and you want to look your best. I know how it is, my wife brings out the heels whenever this time rolls around." I simply stated "No. Parent/teacher conferences has nothing to do with my dress, I wear this everyday. It doesn't bother me at all." Finally he says "Oh, so when you get that administrative job you'll be comfortable dressing like this." I simply said "yep" and left.

There's nothing really new here, we've heard and have probably discussed this before, but this one particularly bothered me. I thought back to something that I said to my students yesterday when they bombarded me with the question, "Can we clean our desk out?" I asked them "Why? So your parents can think that you keep a clean desk? Why not let them see how messy you keep your desk? Why now do you care how clean your desk is? Why not keep it clean everyday?" To some degree this is how I feel about the wife of the man from this morning and some of the teachers in my school. All of a sudden it is so important for you to dress the professional part, but what about the other 175 days of the school year? Why is it so important to dress like a professional for the 6 days during conferences? Why not let the parent see you in your usual appearance?

I'm just putting that out there. I know it's long. Sorry. Please comment and educate me on this topic. Teaching is a profession and teachers want to be treated like professionals, and I do feel that dress is a certain part of that. Not only does it put the appearance out there, but it also places a certain professional "air" within yourself. At least for me it does.

Not sure what to do...

Just a quick note about what happened during our writing time. I had the students write about what they would do on a rainy day. I then collected their journals and read them aloud and had the class applauded in different ways after reading them. Long story short, I got to one story that said something like "I would play games and read books. Then I would call my teacher and have a sleepover..." This was written by a girl (the students didn't know that) but I felt like I had to immediately address this and say that my number is unlisted, no student has ever called me, I don't have sleepovers, etc. This just put a little uneasy feeling on me and now I'm wondering if I should make a copy of it and discuss this with my principal just to cover myself. Any thoughts.

Hey Dad!!

No it's not what you think...I am not a new father. Although congrats to Zac on his new found joy in life! The purpose of this blog is to just quickly mention how first of all teachers in general are taking on the role (whether voluntarily or not) of the parent but in this case, I have been the "den father" (if such a thing exists) at my school. Just this morning this 5th grade students were campaigning for vairous positions on student council. I young gentleman decided to wear a suit but instead of asking his dad or mom (who are very active in his life) to tie it, he left home with it untied and asked me to do it. Maybe he thought or knew that his mom or dad didn't know how to tie a tie, maybe he liked the kinds of knots I tie when I wear a tie (everyday). I don't really know and I guess this sort of thing is to be expected, not that I have a problem with it.

On a totally unrelated note, I just thought of the morning when the Title I reading specialist and the special ed teacher were switching rooms because of the large enrollment in special ed students this year. An email went out asking anyone to help move some things to get it done faster, we were told that all big things would be moved by maintainence so we only had to move small things like books. When I volunteered I knew I was being recruited to move bigger things. Not that I have a problem with this, I just noticed that the mini refrigerator, the computer, a book shelf and a few other large items needed to be moved this morning. Guess who got to move them...

Sorry, this turned out to be longer than I had originally thought, but freewriting for me is lilke opening up the flood gates, so that's it for now.

It's Pat!

Sometimes things are just different.
I have a young autistic boy this year. He's high functioning, but one of the things that come along with the diagnosis is a lack of social skills. This was made evidently clear to me yesterday when I sent him to the bathroom on his own from computer lab. About one minute later, I realized that this could be a mistake. The last time I sent him by himself, I found him 7 minutes later with his pants around his ankles, butt cheeks pressed against the wall, and hands over his crotch, all while singing "This Little Light of Mine" and bobbing up and down. Needless to say, he's had a six year-old chaperone since then.
So, back to yesterday, I dart down to the restroom to check on him. He's in one of the stalls, grunting. Next, he tells the toilet paper, "It's time to go to work." So, I go back to the room and send someone down to check on the boy. Then he comes strolling into the room. Doing the math in me head, I think that there was definitely not enough time elapsed to finish "putting the toilet paper to work," wash hands, and walk back to the classroom.
"Hey, Buddy," I say, "Did you wash your hands?"
"Oh," he says, "I forgot," and he walks back to the door. "Thanks!" and then he patted me twice on the crotch as he strolled down to the bathroom.
That's right. He gave me the One Handed Poo Pat on the Crotch.
I don't think this really has much to do with MMEET, other than, I may need witnesses when I give my deposition.
Keep vigilant.

My Excuse

I know that this has little or nothing to do with MMEET, but I did have a reason for missing our first meeting...

Lucia1 from comoprozac on Vimeo.

Nice to Meet You... Where's the Teacher?

So, we had Grandparents' Day at school last week.  It's always a lovely affair.  The constant rain of September let up for a day so our students could eat outside with their various Pops, MeMaws, Nanas, and other assorted generational predecessors.  It's a day when you get to introduce yourself to some of the most important people in your kids' lives.

Outside, I carried on a conversation with an elderly gentleman about sports and other manly things, when his granddaughter - my student - came over and hugged him.

"Oh, is this your granddaughter?"  I asked.

"Yep, she's the jewel of my eye."

"I can see why," I told him as I noticed the time.  Then the six year-old hugged me, too.

"Are you a teacher?" he asked, sizing me up.

"Yes."

"Her teacher?"

"Yeah.  Nice talking with you."  Then I led his granddaughter and the rest of my kids back to class.  I never checked to see if he picked his jaw up off the floor.

Despite this, I can tell that I'm making great inroads in the community.  The longer I'm there, the more accepted I become as a teacher.  I've never been the most confident teacher.  I know I have a ton of things to improve on as a technician in the classroom, but I think I've convinced our families that I care about their kids.  I field questions about what grade I'm going teach the next year.  I get parents who tell me they have requested my class for their kid.  Things aren't perfect, but it's nice to go to work at a place where you feel needed and respected.

Having a male in an elementary setting is a tough sell for many parents initially.  I think my big thing was helping parents to overcome their fear.  I've been to a lot of our after school activities, am very involved in the PTA, and try my best to be outgoing around parents and kids (despite a natural tendency towards introversion).  I don't know when it happens, but eventually, the tide turns.  Things get easier.

My reflections on gender and media

Throughout MMEET program of 2007-2008, I came to know that my kids have been affected by media in spite of my efforts. I thought I had been selecting quite a bit materials when my kids were choosing books, games, and, movies. I was surprised to see my two kids' concepts on gender. It seems that my kids have been influenced by more media than I thought. Originally, I expected that their concept on gender are shaped by mainly myself and my wife, but it seems not. I think this is a very personal realization on raising my kids. It seems that my kids have learned more about societal norm, rather than family norm which I had expected so long time. MMEET program gave me a time to think about my kids and also other kids in regard to media roles. I feel I need to change my course that I have taken for 12 years for my kids into different directions. Maybe it may not be possible. But I became alert and aware of the power of various media.

My Year of MMEET

MMEET has primarily fulfilled two purposes for our group this year. The first purpose was as a support group for men working in or preparing to enter a predominantly feminine field, elementary school teaching. The other was to provide discussions about gender that men rarely have.

Aside from the normal frustrations of teaching in public schools, our group was able to discuss issues and concerns that pertained almost exclusively to be a man in a woman-dominated profession. Many of us work with few men, if any. It makes for a lonely existence in our schools or places of work. There's a culture in our schools in which we never quite feel comfortable no matter how enlightened or modern we may be.

One issue that came up time and time again but never received as much "treatment" as maybe it should was the idea of a male elementary teacher being perceived as gay or sexual predator. Often, the two concepts were confused for one another. Although this was addressed, I don't feel it was given the resolutions we need to be able to comfortably talk about and resolve. Instead, there's this sense of anger or embarrassment that any of us could even be confused for homosexual or as a molester. We all seemed to establish that we were neither without really getting to the center of the issue, why it upset us so much, or why it held so much validity for both the community and even ourselves.

A topic that I have never heard enough of since moving to Missouri schools and especially not in our MMEET group was the idea of teaching as a secondary profession, particularly the roots of that idea in gender bias. Frankly, public schools and their teachers are not valued monetarily. I feel there is an exact correlation with the perception that it is "women's work" despite the fact that we, as men, do this work and that it has a wide-reaching effect over all our students, including boys. Other professions that require as much education as teaching are compensated more than teachers. Many professions have significant pay raises as well as professional advancement without any of these things tied to the whim of the voters.

Some things about which we did converse in MMEET were issues of gender. Gender, like race, is rarely discussed outside of a college course on the subject or without primarily being about a marginalized group. Gender applies to both primary genders...as well as all those variations in between. We spoke ad nauseum about how gender roles affect men and boys in education and life in general. This was a powerful exercise for so many men that have not had gender studies courses or thought of gender as only applying to women.

The only problem with these discussions was the inability of the group to move beyond dualities. In other words, the conversations revolved around the popular ideas of men are from Mars, women are from Venus. We were stuck on how men and women are different. We defined one as being the opposite and completely different from the other. This binary existed in our talks despite the evidence that we nurtured children or cried when emotional. We really need to get to the root of these ideas and figure out how to move beyond the dualities of men and women.

Of course, I found similar ideas of gender roles and characteristics in the artifacts I collected. Fifth graders were asked to write about what they thought a made a man and/or woman. At first, I saw no real trend, then I realized the students were relying on similar dualities to identify men and women. One was often described by explaining what the other was not. For example, a man could be described as lacking the maturity of a woman instead of describing a man's maturity on its own or what made a man immature. And despite similar evidence that contradicted their opinions on gender, the students primarily stuck to cliches and stereotypes.

I hope to bring my findings together in a multimedia presentation in the coming days that will better express this point. Look for it to be posted on this blog.

Overall, I feel the discussions were informative for all involved. I'd like to see everyone return next year and to add a few new members maybe to help move our conversations forward. I enjoyed meeting everyone and hearing their unique stories and perspectives on issues I have grown too complacent.

That was my year of MMEET.

Life Goes On

April 10, 2008
As seasons come and seasons go I find that my season of 7th and 8th Communication Arts has come to a close for a time. Not for a lack of great effort, but instead because I found myself better qualified than all else for a position in the sixth grade. At first I was unhappy to leave a position that I had worked so hard to improve by writing curriculum, assessments, and a good rapport with the high school teachers. After a long and careful look at what was best for my family and me, I realized that the move to sixth grade would be beneficial. I will have less students, 50 versus 100, and my coworker is much more pleasant to work with. I am still teaching communication arts, but I also get to teach geography. All in all I look forward to the move down the hall.

With fewer students I feel that I can focus more on mentoring a few rather than trying to reach out to so many. The more we have read and discussed this year the more convinced I have become that mentoring students is as important as the teaching of students. My one wish is that I could find more books to read on advice for working with male students. Raising Cain was great, but I wish there were more books to give advice and tips on how to work with the male students.

Since we last met as a group I did partake in an interesting activity that drove home just how much men are needed in the teaching field. At the Youth Writing Conference this year I was the only male teacher to bring students. The year before, in 2007, I remember that there were at least a couple of other men, but this year I felt like the Lone Ranger.

As the Lone Ranger I look forward to coming to class and to the Round Table so that we can again share ideas. I feel that I learn more in the three hours a month than I ever did in a semester in another class.

Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll

Sex, drugs, and rock and roll all complicate our lives. And it seems like they were all created to really have an effect on boys. It was no accident that Kindlon and Thompson wrapped up Raising Cane with chapters on the subjects. (I'm equating rock and roll with anger - it's the only way my argument can hold any water.)

We are inundated with images of sex, especially those images appealing to heterosexual men. When something is deemed "sexy" or "sexual" in manner, it usually refers to scantily-clad women making advances on men, not the other way around. Boys are told from day 1 that sex is there for their enjoyment, and that the women (or sometimes men) are the objects of that enjoyment...that is, until they start asking for things like emotional intimacy or commitment.

And what is sex often used to sell? Alcohol.

Take the ad to the right for an example: a degrading, sexually suggestive photo with a bottle of the advertised vodka prominently place in front. What's the message here? This vodka will lead to sexual enjoyment for the man who chooses to drink it.

The connections between sex and violence even go further in confusing male identity. Nowhere is this more played out than in film, especially those in the horror and action genres. Check out this trailer for the 1978 film, Halloween.

Sexually suggestive situations and attractive girls are juxtaposed with images of extreme violence.

All of these confusing elements can also be seen or heard through rock and roll music. The term "rock and roll" was even used at one time to describe sex. In addition to the sexual undertones, the music has often been associated with images of excess. This excess has been particularly associated with sex and drugs. To demonstrate some of the effects, here are some scenes from the classic documentary, Heavy Metal Parking Lot.

Of course, this excess in music is not limited to rock music...Go to this link to see a satirical look at hip-hop videos.

My argument is not that sex, drugs, and rock and roll are bad. However, the ideas and images associated with them can be confusing for young boys. They need to understand that none of these things should be enjoyed in excess...well, except rock and roll.

It is important for boys to understand how to properly translate these images and messages, plus how to express their feelings about their masculinity or relationships. To leave them with nothing more that some images of sex, violence, and excess without any coping mechanisms is asking for trouble.

For most of my childhood, I was exposed to many of these messages in mass media. The thing that helped me understand why these images of manhood exist and their true purpose was the conversations I had with my dad. He explained what Prince meant when he sang ," I knew a girl named Nikki/I guess you could say she was a sex friend/I met her in a hotel lobby/masturbating with a magazine."

We watched films like Up the Creek or Porky's and my dad discussed how these sexual situations were not real, they were fictionalized to entertain. The was a clear difference between entertainment and real life in our home.

As I look back over my years of teaching, I've seen many, many students struggle with these images. Most, if any, did not receive the same guidance I did in learning to reconcile these confusing messages with our identities. I remember having to teach boys that calling a girl a "chicken head" was not acceptable. They didn't understand what the problem was.

Then there has been times when the kids have called each other "gay" or "faggot". The fights boys have been in over someone saying "your momma" have gotten out of control. The combination of confusing images and lack of parental guidance that is gender-neutral can cause many problems for these boys as they grow an develop.

Gendered Extremes

I honestly haven't read any of the posts on this week's readings. So, I apologize if I'm repeating any of your points.

I wanted to address the argument in "How Boys and Girls Learn Differently". I avoided this piece until the last possible second. Statements like this make me cringe. It limits how we address boys and girls. It totally ignores the progress in society due to movements in feminism and the queer community.

Men are not from Mars and women are not from Venus. We both live on Earth.

The authors make very valid points as to the physical differences in males and females. I won't deny that. But they seem to overvalue the importance of biology over social conditioning and evolution. Is it possible that certain parts of a person's brain develop better when they receive stimulation that supports brain development, like lifting weights to build an isolated muscle? Could humankind have slowly weeded out characteristics that were more androgynous than others over the course of time? It's obvious that males and females are different, but how have our behaviors and traditions perpetuated these differences?

The authors point out how our current society (I assume they mean the West) demonstrates both more androgynous developments as well as more traditionally gendered outcomes. They accurately attribute the differences due to the struggle of resources. However, the scarcity of resources has little connection to biology. Maybe they should look at how power structures skewed by the uneven distribution of resources has an effect on gender roles.

Additionally, why does the growth of more gendered households mean that sex dictates it so. I see widening gap in political and social views in the US. While feminism has allowed women to choose motherhood, careers, or both, many families, communities are trying to hold onto what they feel are traditions in family structures. I see extremes in gender roles that are due more to choice and privilege than sex.

How do we explain families of single-sex parents?I have female friends who are raising their child together. As far as gender roles, there are overlaps everywhere. Their son loves balls as much as dolls. He plays with his blocks in equal amounts with his kitchen set. When will biology make this all void?

I go back and forth on the authors' arguments...

When considering the advanced growth in only men due to raised levels of testosterone, I realize the authors have neglected to mention that similar patterns have existed in women as well. My wife is nearly 5'11". Her grandparents were both 5'4". Could there be other factors? Her father (over 6'2") is a chemical engineer and grew up in an auto worker's household during the automotive boom. His shorter parents grew up in a much more impoverished environment. Could malnutrition/greater nutrition have had a much greater effect than lower/increased levels of testosterone?

When I look to my students over the last ten years, I again see the differences primarily caused socially, not biologically. Fathers and mothers of sons celebrate athletic achievements and allow their sons certain liberties with their speech. Girls are coddled, protected. As a result of the differences, they act differently.

Of course, I have found that when there are students who diverge from these gendered characteristics, there is also a divergence in their upbringing. More athletic, "butch" girls have relationships with their fathers revolving around sports or more (so-called) masculine activities. Conversely, boys more attached to their mothers (usually single parents) with strong female role-models such as sisters and aunts tend to demonstrate supposedly feminine characteristics.

Biology alone cannot explain these differences and variances. Again, I'm not saying they're not factors, but a more balanced argument has to be made.

Two points

"A boy's desire to be powerful isn't as much about muscle as it is about heart and the fact that if you allow yourself to be dependent on someone--for a smile, for love, for sex, for self-respect--then you can be devastated by her as well." (Chapter 10)

When my proposal was rejected by my first love, I was in despair for a long time. I was at 19. I was frustrated for a long time. I was trying hard to fix it many ways. But I think I was too bold, too naive, too innocent and too ignorant at that time as to my maturity. The moment that I was rejected by her was like I felt a big humiliation. It was difficult to accept it. Why, why, why! I just ketp asking myself and thinking about her. And I knew the answer. I know the answer.

"With boys, the combination of anger and alcohol is a recipe for violence." (Chapter 11)

While I was in despair due to the unsuccessful love, I started to drink. And I was also angry at our government at that time due to killing civilians with military force. I was surprised by my drinking habits. I noticed I became aggressive and violent while and after drinking. I often broke the beer mugs while cheering up hard. I punched hard a punching machine after drinking to realize that all my knuckles were bruised next morning. And I even climbed over the second floor of the building from the window side using only two poles outside to sneak in for a sleep on campus. As I remember, it was a dangerous act. Due to my bad drinking habit, I decided to try refraining from drinking ever since.

Chapter 11 & 12

Chapter 11

One of the toughest things to combat with junior high students is that need to be in physical contact with each other. For instance boys in my school love to hit each other in the genitals in the same manner discussed in the book. To me it seems to be a cruel and pointless game in which the boys will pick on one boy and that everyone is to gang up on that boy.
The only way I found to effectively combat this behavior was to threaten to have the boys call their fathers at work and explain to their father why they were touching another boy’s genitalia. It did stop the “ball tapping,” but the physical contact still exists. The boys are always pushing, shoving, stealing from each other and then responding physically because of the loss. I agree that a certain amount of physical activity amongst students is to be expected. I wish that my school was able to provide someone for the most violent of the boys to visit with; some type of anger management.
One way that I do allow the boys to explore their feelings and express their more aggressive nature is in their writing. I encourage the boys to write about battles, warfare, zombies, and anything else that they want to talk about. I believe as long as they are writing about it then they have a way to let it out of their aggression. My fellow teachers are unsure, but I think that the boys need to have an outlet for their aggression.


Chapter 12

I found this chapter to be full of good advice on how to work with young men. Overall what I learned is that boys need relationships that are open in communication so that the boy has someone to help him try and figure out who he is as a person. This final chapter was a great way to end the book. I enjoyed the advice it gave to me on how to mentor my students and help them to make the passage into manhood easier than what I faced.
“The only way to make a difference with a boy is to give him powerful experiences that speak to his inner life that speaks to his soul and let him know that he is entitled to have the full range of human experience (Kindlon and Thompson 258).” I feel that I need to encourage and inspire my students through words, actions, and deeds and this book has given me some of the tools need to do that. Perhaps I can find a way to help my students to have a life changing experience such as described at the end of chapter twelve. This book has really forced me to question what it is that I want to do with my career. How can I best make a positive impact on my students? Do I remain in the classroom or do I move on to counseling or administration. So many times over the course of reading this book I have questioned what the best place is for me in education. What position will allow me to have the most positive impact on my students? All I can say for sure is that I truly enjoyed reading this book and that I have enjoyed sharing this book with my coworkers.

Chapter 10

One of my students at the beginning of this year asked me if what her older sister had told her about me was true. She went on to explain that her older sister that I was always managing to break up the boyfriend girlfriend relationships that I heard about. She said that her sister told that it was best to avoid letting me know who was dating. The best part is that she is right. To me junior high is too young to be dating. To me dating starts with holding hands, then you get bored with that, and then you kiss until that is boring, and when that starts to get boring sex happens.
One of my first days at Auxvasse a fellow female teacher said to me, “Have you watched that girl, she is in heat.” Sure enough by the end of the year she had developed a type of reputation that no one should have. It seems that she truly was experiencing raging hormones that she just couldn’t control.
The class that this girl is in are now freshmen and some of the male students have come back to tell me about their sexual exploits or conquests. It disturbs me to know how casual the students treat sex. What I feel is worse is the types of things that I hear about they are doing as they have sex. One young couple was reported to have recorded their session on a videotape to share with their friends. It seems that sex for high school students is like a right of passage for them into high school. It is no wonder that the statistic that I heard about Detroit is true. I heard on the radio that 60% of the children born in Detroit do not know who their fathers are.
One of my daily goals is to teach my male students to have the upmost respect for the female part of our class. I tell them daily that chivalry is not dead. Genteelness, chivalry, and good manners are things that can and should be taught. I think that teaching such manners teaches students to have respect for themselves as well as those around them.

Chapter 9

As a young man I drank to rebel against my parents and everything that they stood for in my life. My father was a part time minister and a full time highway patrolman. Growing up everyone thought that I was a goodie-goodie and so I started to drink. I never realized that my drinking which at first was to rebel soon became a way to fill an emotional void. My parents had seven kids and my dad worked two jobs. My parents didn’t have a lot of time for each of us and it only got worse when my younger brother died. I was sent to live with the neighbors for a time as my mother struggled with a bout of depression. I have had a lot of opportunity to look back on my life and I realized that my drinking which started in eighth grade was for me a way to hide the pain of being forgotten my mother and wanting to prove that just because my dad was a cop and a minister I could be just as tough as everyone else.
I can look at some of my students and realize that they are doing the same thing. The one’s I know are drinking and experimenting with marijuana are the one’s who are seeking to fill a void created primarily through divorce. The student’s who I know are experimenting are the one’s who are craving their parents to notice them and spend time with them.
The stories that they tell of their experiences with the drinking and the marijuana are filled with dramatic acts and deeds that if they were sober or clearheaded the students never would have considered doing such stupid things. I find myself sharing some of my experiences and trying to guide and caution my students to avoid the traps and pitfalls that their experimentation will bring. My one hope is that possibly some might listen.

I really enjoyed the reading on "How Boys and Girls Learn Differently" because it was a great follow up to a discussion that my co-workers had at the end of last year. We had proposed to our school administration that we should be allowed to segregate the classes between boys and girls essentially giving us a class of all boys and a class of all girls for English and history. My coworker even wrote an annotated bibliography citing sources for reasons why it would be great for our students. However we were told that it was to radical of an idea and that the parents in the district would never accept it.

I appreciated the article because it supported the ideas that my coworkers and I had concerning our students academic needs. We all felt that it would be great to be able to teach to the needs of the students rather than allow the social interaction to have an influence on the learning environment. I agree that the social interaction of male and female will always have an influence, but if we could teach to one gender at a time then wouldn't we be better serving the needs of the students. This article seem to confirm a need to teach to the differences that exist in the way that males and females learn. It was a very enlightening read.