Journal Entry #1 -- July 20, 2015

Monday, July 20, 2015

In my EDUC 510 class on teacher research, which met for the first time today, our instructor informed us that we would be making regular journal entries during the course of our study.  

I figured it's the 21st century now, and what we do is blog.  It's easier to read, I can always find it, and no writer's cramp!  With that, welcome to my obscure EDUC 510 journal blog.

Today focused on an introduction to the concept of teacher research vis a vis some journaling prompts in class and an activity where we each had to ask questions of a fellow student.  The result of that exercise said much about the kinds of subjectivity we bring to any interaction -- how do we choose our questions, how do we interpret answers, how deeply do we probe on a given topic, etc.

I think subjectivity is part of the public relations problem from which our profession currently suffers.  No one can define good teaching the way you might define good auctioneering or good furniture manufacturing or even good medical care.  I'd venture to suggest there's far less subjectivity in the question of what is a good sandwich or a good cup of coffee than in what is good teaching.

Two of our journal prompts today dealt with describing the worst teacher we experienced and the best teacher we experienced.  What I took from that exercise, and probably others too, is that somewhere, I may be and probably am on somebody's "worst" list and someone else's "best" list.  I have not ministered to all students equally well or served all needs fairly.

My note for this in my chicken scratched "journal ideas for later" read, "I am on a great teacher and a bad teacher list: parallel universes of teacher influence."

Other random (or not so random) things I thought today:

I have done what I admire and what I despise.

A former student from many years ago passed, I learned this morning.  I am heartbroken by the news and touched that her friend (also a former student of mine) thought to reach out to me.

I never daydreamed about growing up to tell kids to stop daydreaming.

I spend too much of my professional energy reacting to propaganda (specifically "teachers are lazy and untrustworthy" propaganda legislated into educational mandates).

This job will never get easier.  Only harder.