What I learned from the PEH seminar

The biggest thing I took from two days of health standards and assessment was that even with a visual, lecture, and material in front of them, students will not pay attention for long. If you had to present the same material that these women shared, how would you do it differently?

Bullying

This morning we had a meeting about bullying. The speaker travels across the state, visiting schools and discussing current trends in bullying. He mentioned a new proposed law regarding teachers' liability to prevent bullying, which, suprisingly, left school staff largely unresponsible for bullying within their classroom. What he said was that we cannot be repremanded for something we don't know is going on. He says that if bullying is occurring in our classroom, we will probably not know it is going on. Additionally, the kid being bullied will not go to you for help...the kid thinks you already know what's going on and are ignoring it. He said that the most common form of bullying is name calling; specifically kids call each other "gay" or "faggot" in a derogatory manner. He went on to say that this is especially damaging to girls who are often called "gay" when they refuse sexual advances by males. Related to the problem, girls are frequently sexually harrassed but will not speak up about it because they feel the male attention can lead to popularity. Often times, girls feel pressured to subject themselves to sexual harrassment because we live in a culture where a woman's (or girls) appearance is valued over her abilities. When she recieves male attention, she feels that she is valued. What the speaker did not discuss was cyber-bullying. I think this is a issue that we are largely unaware of when it's happening.

Only in Art

Wow. Today was one of those days, and I don't mean the good kind. We have been working on creating stabiles, which, are basically mobiles but with a solid base so they stand on the ground, for about 4 days now. Students are coming up with organic shapes for their base and dangling mobile pieces, and have received explicit instruction on which shapes they may use. Plain geometric shapes are out, as well as the cresent moon shape. Although they have been told this daily, students will still fight with my cooperating teacher and I about using the cresent moon! He has tried walking through steps showing them how to alter the cresent moon and make it their own, but they don't want to do that. In fact, two boys claim that they invented the shape. I asked them to change the shape to make it their own, and they fight with me. I don't know what to do. I tell them that the point of this project is to make up their own shapes, and all they have to do is change it a little bit. They complain all class about having to make up shapes, saying "I hate art, art is stupid." I know you cannot ration with these kids, and I have still tried. Do other content areas have this type of problem? Do you get asked, "Is this good enough?" Middle school art is a tough class to teach. In high school, they are more self-directed and understand how to create their own design. In middle school, they want to plagarize.

Charter vs. Public

As New Orleans tries to rebuild their community, they are facing a new problem in the public school system. Those in public schools are complaining that with a rise in the popularity of charter schools, the public school system has become a dumping ground for lower achieving kids. New Orleans schools remain some of the lowest academically achieving schools in the nation, and many more affluent parents are opting to send their children to charters. Public school advocates argue that this is creating a school culture based on lower income and achieving students. How would you feel if you were in one of these public schools? Do you feel that this is unfair? I want to know everyone's thoughts.

Am I Naive?

Do you feel like your kids are fairly honest, or do you catch them in lies? I honestly cannot tell if they are lying, but my cooperating teacher calls them on it all the time. I am uncomfortable accusing someone that they are lying unless I have undeniable evidence. Has anyone else encountered this type of situation? Could you tell if they are lying to you?

Cezanne, Inspiring artists for generations

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is hosting a new show curated by Katherine Sachs titled "Cezanne and Beyond". The show features works of Cezanne and other great masters of the medium who have been inspired by his works. I have always claimed Cezanne to be a favorite artist of mine. I am especially drawn to his handling of texture and color. Although Cezanne often uses subtle modeling in his figures, there is tremendous depth in his layered colors. A blue dress is not simply painted blue; within it are levels of color, giving his images a vibrating quality. Cezanne's paintings mysteriously feel both solid and fleeting; the depth of texture and color secure his figures, while his influence from the Impressionists give the viewer the sense that his images may disapate into thin air. When I began painting as a child, I believed that the best art was that which was super-realistic and I aspired to create this style of art. As a child, I did not appreciate the complexities of abstract art and self expression. It is a common misconception that the best art "looks like what it supposed to look like-i.e. super realistic". My idea of art has completely changed from what I was knew it as. I went from a student of art who "followed all the rules of art" to someone who takes great delight in experiementing with new ways to present an idea. Instead of seeing art as a means to creating self expression, I saw it as a great feat of patience and skill. This is not to say that I don't still enjoy pumping out a representational peice now and then to please the audience, but nothing beats the feeling of accomplishment of finding a creative solution to a challenge. Cezanne helped inspire my view of art.