Education has always been something that has been shrouded in controversy. Just think of the Scopes trial of 1925. That court case was one that helped determine what could and could not be taught in a classroom. This tells us one thing; education and politics are going to meet at some point. That’s why in […]
The conversation that Diana E. Hess facilitates with this article merits much nuance. While most scholars would likely agree that a balanced pedagogical approach to controversial topics is the best way to teach, true “balance” is nearly impossible, as Hess recognizes. Every teacher is going to have subconscious biases that will appear in their teaching. […]
The Democracy Education article by Diana Hess includes a recommendation from a Civic Mission of the Schools report, which suggests that schools incorporate discussion of current events at multiple levels. Students having the ability to discuss “local, national, and international” issues promotes greater interest in politics, improved critical thinking, communications skills, and civic knowledge. I […]
It’s hard to teach students about controversial subjects for many reasons. For one, there’s the risk of getting complaints from parents or winding up in the newspaper just for mentioning some topics in certain schools, no matter how well you actually handle it. There’s a real possibility that some students are not yet mature enough […]
An instrumental part of being a history teacher is getting the students to think critically about the history you are teaching. While doing this the teacher may have to deal with some forms of debate within the classroom. This puts the teacher in an interesting position because it is important to keep the classroom in […]
Throughout high school, I had one history teacher three times. She tended to hold very debate-heavy classes where you would have to argue an opinion. While there were times she assigned your side or whatnot you still had to argue for the most part controversial topics. However, she always ensured she remained neutral. I think […]
Avoiding talking about your own political stances as a teacher is something that is good for some subjects and bad for other subjects. As a future social studies teacher, it will be my job to teach students about past, and sometimes present issues that can be controversial. While it is my job to teach them, […]
Whether it is creating a new lesson or appearing ready for a job interview the word prepare comes to mind in the article and essay. I think that history should be the most entertaining and somewhat thought-provoking class a student takes. To get students to feel the same way as I, would be a pipe […]
One of the things that is incredibly important for future teachers to keep in mind is how the interviewing process occurs. Knowing what the school system is looking for is very helpful for the people attempting to be involved in that system. Many of the things that are so important for the interviewing process are […]
This article/reading goes over the hiring process from the principals point of view and how they should prepare for hiring new teachers. One thing this article talks about is the principal being prepared and ready for the candidate to come into the office. It speaks about not having a messy office and I agree with […]
The article starts with the importance of preparedness. Just like teaching, reffing deals with spur-of-the-moment events. When I conduct a nice little pregame with my other refs talking about what I expect as help, spur-of-the-moment events become less problematic. I am applying this same principle as I type. I am currently in the library previewing […]
I think the biggest thing I worry about when looking forward to my first few years of teaching, the thing that scares me the most is how to get students engaged on day one. History, especially secondary history, gets a bad rap sometimes, and the coach and PowerPoint stereotypes that we as history educators have […]
I think it is interesting to look at the teacher hiring process from the perspective of the interviewer or principal. The job of the interviewer I seem to forget, perhaps because I usually think of how the teacher must prepare and do research on the school, is to create a welcoming environment for the interviewee. […]
One of my biggest takeaways from this week’s readings is the attributes that schools look for in a “good teacher.” The most important one that I read about is “being prepared.” Preparation is vital to being a successful teacher. Not only does one have to prepare lesson plans, unit maps, tests, quizzes etc. Teachers also […]
