Paradox in teaching and learning

In what ways have you experienced “suffering” as a student teacher? Has your suffering had any redemptive quality to it; that is, has it made you heart larger? What would help you deepen the redemptive quality of the suffering your experience in your work?

Since I started my teaching English practice in C.E. INSA, I have had several unpleasant experiences with my students. However, I have learnt from each of them which they have been some good opportunities or challenges to improve my weaknesses as an English teaching practitioner.

For example: In my first practice, I had to face a little problem with some of my students during the class they were not paying attention because they were playing and listening to music with their cellphones because teacher Nora was not in the classroom, and that created a little confrontation between them and I, and I said to them: "Please, pay attention and stop the music.", but they did not obey me, and I could feel that the class was out of my control, but something came into my mind, and I said to the president of the class: "Please, write down on a separate sheet of paper the name of the students who are drawing attention and listening to music, and I am going to give the list to teacher Nora, so that was a good way to stop them, but I could suffer this unpleasant experience and to learn from it.

Finally, I suppose that I have a redemptive quality because I love helping others in this case my students, and I never keep any kind of rancor, even I have had to suffer some disappoints momentums in many classes, but in those cases, the redemptive quality makes his best work loving and forgiving to myself and others because I have to learn from my mistakes and create a host close friendship in the classroom, for my students express their own thoughts. 

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Name some of your key gifts or strengths as a teacher. Now name a struggle or difficulty you commonly have in teaching. How do you understand the relation between your profile of giftedness and the kind of trouble you typically get into in the classroom?

Well, One of my best strengths is the tone of my voice because I can speak aloud with any problem in large classes like in INSA, and I know that it is a great blessing from God because all of my students who take sits at the back of the class can hear clearly the explanations of every single topic; moreover, I think that I have enthusiasm, motivation intrinsic and extrinsic.

On the other hand, In every class, I try to do my best job because that is a good way to gain students’ attention, but the most difficult thing that I have to face is to keep a classroom environment because I have to struggle for keeping a silence during my explanations, so that is not easy in my class because they are teenagers, and some of them do not have any kind of interest for passing the subject.

Finally, I am happy because I have been learning how to apply several methods, techniques, and approaches for improving my way to teach.    

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Describe a moment in teaching when things went so well you knew you were “born to teach” and compare it to a moment in which things went so poorly you wished you had never been born! Name the gifts that made this good moment possible—not the techniques you used or the moves you made, but your qualities.

I have had several successful classes in which I have felt that I "was born to teach" for example: On last term, I was teaching in seventh grade "D", but this term I am doing my English teaching practice in seventh grade "G", and I feel so happy due some of my ex-students' close to me for asking me if I never going to teaching them again. Some said to me: "Teacher we miss you a lot", so this situation makes me feel happy because it shows I am doing a good job for preparing not only in the academic are but also for their real lives because they have to be competent for having better opportunities in life; contrary, I have faced some hard, and unpleasant situations.

On the other hand, I have had several activities which I have thought that I have never wished, and I have been involved in negative and poorly situations where I wished I had never been born.

Besides, one of my best quality is to have a positive attitude which plays a good role in this area because I can see some problems in a different way, or see them in a different perspective no matter if they seem to be impossible to solve, but I think what all problems leave an excellent victory flavor when I beat them using all knowledge what I have been learning during the classes from my tutor and teachers of the university.

Finally, other qualities which I have been using during this term are the sense of humor and creative for getting my students' attention.
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IV. Palmer discusses six paradoxes of pedagogical design (pp.73-83). Choose one to focus on.  Share examples of teaching environments you have experienced where this paradox is honored.  Have you ever been in a classroom where only half of the paradox was honored while the other half was ignored? Describe what that classroom was like.

Since, I started my English teaching practice in INSA I have been teaching in one of the six paradox, and it is the third one. That says:  "The space should invite the voice of the individual and the voice of the group".

A teacher must create an environment when his students feel confident, authentic and unique, then he has to encourage them to express or explain their points of views, ideas, feelings, beliefs, confusions, fears, emotions, etc. Because the learning does not happen if the students are unable to express their doubts; furthermore, the topics must be related with real life where they can explore, discuss, affirm, answer, debate, make conclusions, or apply their knowledge which has been learnt from their teacher and the voice of the group.

On the other hand, on this space learning and teaching must be focused more than a forum for individual expressions.

The teacher task is to listening what group's voice is saying.

A Culture Of Fear

A CULTURE OF FEAR: EDUCATION AND THE DISCONNECTED LIFE

FEAR IS A POWERFUL FEATURE OF BOTH ACADEMIC CULTURE AND OUR INNER LANSCAPE—THE FEAR OF HAVING A LIVE ENCOUNTER WITH “OTHERNESS” IN A STUDENT, A COLLEAGUE, A SUBJECT, OR THE VOICE OF THE INNER TEACHER.

FEAR IS FUNDAMENTAL TO THE HUMAN CONDITION AND TO THE ACADEMIC CULTURE.  WE WILL ALWAYS HAVE OUR FEARS—BUT WE NEED NOT BE OUR FEARS.

I.       What are some of your fears in the classroom? How have you dealt with them? What have you learned about yourself and about fear as a result?

In my case, one of my fears is to seem that I am not able to teach. For example: If I make many mistakes during a class, and my students can think that I am not prepare to teach them, another is to have not the whole control in the classroom.

I know some fears are normally in human kind, and we have to face them when they appear because we have to accept that we are not perfect and that creates an insecure feeling called fear. A better way to deal with them in my opinion is to learn of my own mistakes and to make an evaluation what I learnt about them for doing better in the time or situation.

Finally, I think that we never stop to learn of our fears, and we have to face them, whenever they come, whatever they are, or wherever we find them.

II.     Palmer writes, “Good teaching is an act of hospitality toward the young, and hospitality is always an act that benefits the host even more than the guest” (p. 50). In what specific ways do you think a teacher has to be hospitable to students? In what ways do they treat them as unwelcome guests? How do teachers benefit from practicing hospitality toward students?

A good teacher must practice the hospitality because he plays a good role in the class room. He has to create a good atmosphere and make his students feel comfortable and confident; furthermore, he has to create a good relationship between them, but he has to take into account one of the best teacher’s values such as: respect what his students deserve not only inside the classroom but also outside, and he has to focus on their students' learning needs because they feel happy when the teacher has positive attitude. 

Another important thing in hospitality is when the teacher gives to his students the tools for improving their previous knowledge, and to offer hospitality is when the teacher has the opportunity to help them with their needs, and try to be a good model.

Finally, students feel unwelcome guests when the teacher acts in a bad way, or shows that he is very strict or authoritarian, and that attitude creates uncomfortable feelings, and they start to lack of confident which affects the environment and the relationship between the teacher and the students, and the students’ motivation decreases in every class.

III.    Write about a fear, not necessarily related to teaching that once controlled you, but no longer does.  What caused you to confront that fear? What helped you get loose from it? What were the results? What did you learn?

When I was a child, one of my neighbors had a furious dog called Oso, and Oso hated children. I remember that I was bitten trice by Oso, and that was one of the worst fears that I had had until I faced my fear when a friend of mine encouraged me saying "what dogs are lesser stronger than us." And I remember that my fear was disappearing when I kicked them, and I used to be prepare with my belt or club for some possible attacks.

On the other hand, I know that it was not the best way for facing my fears, but it helped me. Finally, I learnt that some bad experiences can create some future fears, but we have the key to confront them, the force to do it and time as a medicine for healing us.

Nowadays, I do not hate dogs, and I do not have any fears when I see them.

  Evelyn Fox Keller says of Nobel Prize—winner Barbara McClintock that her knowing came from “the highest form of love, love that allows for intimacy without the annihilation of difference” (pp. 55).  Does this kind of love have a place in education? If not, why not? If so, how might it be taught? How might it make a difference if we could teach students to love the world in this way?

First of all, in my opinion this kind of love takes place in education if teacher has intrinsic motivation because he/ she has to love his/her job; furthermore, if the teacher has no a commitment or love for his/her job, that it is impossible to reach because he/she has to create a good and close relationship with his/her students making students feel confident and comfortable in and out the classroom, but that could be possible if the teacher teaches the value of the respect because students' behaviors are different, and they have their own personalities. On other words, teacher has to respect students' differences.

The Courage to Teach

THIS IS RELATED TO THE COURAGE TO TEACH BOOK.

I-The following task is about my personal statement trying to express what is at the heart of my life as a future English teacher, and I took into account the following questions:

Why do I want to become a teacher? 

I want to become an English teacher because it is a good way and excellent opportunity to help students at the same time I learn from them, so it is a little interchange of learning and teaching process where the teacher plays an important role, not only in, but also out of the classroom due some of the students might want to follow teacher´s steps.

What do I stand for as a student teacher?

It is important to think back for answering this question, for example: When I was a child, I saw some of my teachers as a kind of heroes because they were excellent professionals with positive attitudes; moreover, they always taught or spoke with knowledge and authority.

For example: in some cases, when I had had any type of problem with my parents, a teacher asked to me: if he/she could help me in any way, then he/she spoke words of wisdom, and that attitude created in me a good concept of them.

 What do I want my legacy as a teacher to be?

To leave a good legacy is one of my best dreams and desires, but that is not easy to reach because I will have to face several problems or differences during the process, not only with my future students but also with my colleagues, and I will have to control them with positive attitude, and learn from them.

On the other hand, that will be one of my main goals as a future English teacher, so I will have to prepare good students not only in the academic area but also for the real life, due they will have to be ready for the competence of the real world.

What can I do to keep track of myself, to “remember” my own heart?

I think that intrinsic motivation is going to help me to keep on track of myself, to remember what my heart says.

When did you first realize that you wanted to be a teacher?

As I said, I noticed that when I was a child.

What were the circumstances of this realization?

I remember that I wanted to be a person who makes the difference in this society because I liked to help others.

How close are you to those feelings today?

I am so happy because I am closer than ever.

 

II-Palmer writes: “ My ability to connect with my students and to connect them with the subject, depends less on the methods I use than on the degree to which I know and trust my selfhood—and I am willing to make it available and vulnerable in the service of learning” (p.10). What does it mean to rely on your selfhood rather than methods?

In my opinion, it means what a good teacher needs to use his own identity, and he does different things in the classroom, and takes some risks because he works with the students´ hearts, emotions, spirits and their affective feelings, so he is able to reach students feel confidence that they learn from an excellent teacher; furthermore, he acts with enthusiasm and joins the students with himself and the subjects.

Finally, creating a good concept and relation between them is one of his main goal than the way he uses methods of teaching.

III. Reflect on your earliest encounters with teaching. If you are drawn to teaching, when did you first feel drawn to it? What was it that drew you? What within you was evoked by teaching—its values, its methods, the way it names and frames reality? What does the nature of teaching reveal about who you are? If you aren’t, share a story about one of your favorite teachers. What do you recall most vividly about that teacher? What was his / her relation to the subject taught? What was the ethos of his/ her classroom?

My first encounter with teaching was some years ago when I started to do my English practices in INSA, and it was a good and unforgettable experience because I taught my first class in a large class, I was so nervous, but I thought that I was well prepared, so during the class I felt secure to myself because I could get control the class. At the end, my tutor who is teacher Nora congratulated me because I taught in a good way. However I know that I have several chances to improve through my English practice.

On the other hand, I was drawn to teaching because I had a great teacher who made me feel especial, he created amazing ties of friendship, and he taught us how to learn in an easy way, and give us clear explanations of real and academic topics. So those were some important values that I could identify of him, but he applied discipline in his classes. 

Besides I could feel that all the students were his priority and his reason of being a teacher. On other words he always searched the best way for helping us by using different methods and techniques.

Moreover, the ethos or climate in the classroom played a good role because he found the way to encourage us to participate in each activity he made. His classes were considered on high quality due everyone learnt in playful manner.

One day, he spoke about the importance of working on you love to do, and that class woke up my wish of teaching, and I said to myself: "I want to be like him when I grow up."

IV-Jane Tompkins discovered that her goal as a teacher had been to put on “performance,” thus distancing herself from students and subject (pp.28-29). Do you identify with her self-criticism? If so, do you share Tompkins’s diagnosis of fear as the driving force behind this distancing? In what ways other than “performance” do teachers set themselves apart?

I am in a disagreement with Jane Tompkins discover because one of the main goal of a teacher is to help my students through their needs and interests rather than showing them my own proud about how smart I am; or showing them how well prepared and knowledgeable I am for my class, due that can build a wall or create a distance between students and a teacher.