Semester #4 Finally in the Books

I have completed 4 full semesters of college at Fairmont State University. During those 4 semesters I have also taken some CLEP exams( took 2 yesterday, passed!!), and also took 1 summer school class that is already complete (8-5, Monday thru Friday, A) which brings my total credit hrs to 96 in 2 years. I also made the President's list again this semester, that is to say President's list 4 times (4.0) and 96 of 128 hours completed and 18 hrs scheduled for the fall semester 2012. Now I can relax a little this summer or at least til 20Aug2012 when school starts again. Hope everyone has a great summer and I'll see you this fall. Look for some summer time pontificating about epistemology and BIV theories to be blogged about, hope to engage some of my followers in this quest for understanding about; How we come to know all we know?????

Time Flies or "As the Clock Ticks"

"As the Clock Ticks" could be a great soap opera title. Time flies when you are having fun, or even faster when you are very busy. This has been a very busy semester filled with lots of projects and writing assignments. Still this is no excuse for not writing at least one or two posts, but alas I have not done so, so here I am catching up. Many things have happened in the past semester that cause you to think about all that you are doing and what you have left to do. I have finished 87 hours, just finished 3 more hrs for a total of 90 hrs completed and I am preparing for taking and completing 6 hrs more on Thursday, to end this semester with a total 30 hrs and bringing the grand total to 96 hrs in just 4 semesters of study and no Bs. The 24 hrs a semester average has been challenging, but well worth the effort I have put into making this life change at my age. I think there are still some people that do not understand why I wanted to this, stating that I could be making a lot more money doing what I have done my whole life, "Construction." And for the most part those people would be 100% correct I could be making more money, and make no mistake about it I love to operate equipment always have and likely always will, but I have also been a lifelong learner (thanks to some great teachers) and now it is time for me to earn my degree. I like many other non-traditional students have a different point of view to education and the classes we take, and motivation to get done and start the next phase of life, it may be the ticking clock we hear. We may also find ourselves a little jealous of our youthful peers, maybe secretly wishing somehow we could be that age again, but retain all the wisdom and experience we have gained through the years. It may be true "youth is wasted on the young," I know many times I have thought "I wish I had known that when I was younger," but that's enough about that. I read a couple great books over the semester that had some great nuggets of knowledge tucked inside them, Post War by Tony Judt and Coal by Barbara Freese. Both of these books were supplemental resources for classes, and both were great resources and surprisingly good reads. I may have to read Post War many times to fully retain all the nuggets it contained. The Author offered a point of view that provided a closer look at why things happened the way they did and why the decisions made caused the outcomes they did. Some of the concepts could be challenged on their warrants, but then so could the warrants you would use in your challenge. Coal was a great look into the history of coal as researched by an Assistant District Attorney in Michigan trying to learn more about "Clean Air Laws." She explored the topic from several different points of view and you would have never known that she was researching to gain a perspective on clean air legislation had I not just told you. Read both of these books and your understanding of the history about these topics will be changed. The other great topic of the semester came from an article I ran into looking at some information regarding my theories of personality class, that dealt with epistemology (check earlier posts). This coupled with meta-cognition has been a source of many hours of pondering and thesis building fodder. well maybe not thesis building more like question building which led to even more questions and now it seems I have far more questions than answers. I'll close with 2,    1- what do you think about when you are thinking about thinking? (meta-cognition)  and 2- how is it you came to believe the things you believe and what happens when those things you believed to be true change? Please respond with your thoughts I would really like to discuss these topics more.

Standards for Classrooms????

At a time when teacher evaluation and student performance is being debated; I think it is time to look at the classroom standards teachers hold themselves too, so says Anthony Culocci. I read this article and felt the immediate need to post and share the link, so you can read and decide on your own if what he is saying is true. LINK I for one think he is right on point with many of the things he feels are vitally important. Yet, I know there are standards that the state and feds will  hold all accountable for as they relate to student / teacher performance. But these are the kinds of "core values" or "core concepts" all students need to show mastery of regardless of what academic/ life path they choose. These seem somewhat common sense to many and also assumed by many to be taking place in the classroom already, but clearly they are not. These new generations of students have been taught they can "be" and "do" anything they want to "be or do;" without being taught the consequences, accountability, responsibility, sacrifice, education, and dedication it takes to achieve those goals. These students are being set up for disappointment and failure; they may even blame others like parents and teachers for their lack of achieving their goals. After all, if you have never been held accountable "it must be someone else fault." I do agree that many people can "do and be" whatever they choose, but you cannot achieve what you do not dedicate yourself to do. I agree with Anthony particularly on bullets 2,3,and 4, all students will be citizens, either taxpayers or tax consumers, not all students will be rocket scientists, all students need to responsible and accountable for their choices, and there is no substitute for hard work, I do not mean manual labor, I mean hard work where maximum effort is given even if minimal return is the outcome. I hope you read this article and find that as much as somethings change there are at the core of teaching somethings that should not. Please let me know what you think...

Reading, Writing, and well more Writing

The semester is off and running smoothly. Some of the classes I have are covering material that seems like an old hat, but hoping I will find some nuggets along the way that will renew or at least add a new dimension to way I view the subject. I am reminded of a post from a former teacher that explains this quite well, Click hear to view the explanation  (yes hear and see it's a video link) in this link Chimamanda Adichie explains her view of a single story. All this becomes relevant when we set in our minds, that we have the lock on all the ideas and knowledge, "the keepers of the knowledge, the all knowing." Even when we become so called experts in the field, there is still much to learn. What good is knowledge if we only ever view ideas from our own experiences limiting or dismissing the views of others? Coming from a lineage, a long lineage of "know it all's" and having even been surrounded on all sides by "know it all's" and well on my way to being a future "know it all" or as a true "know it all" I have learned you can  NOT know it all if you have but a single story. Well I do NOT know it all and in fact the more I learn the the more I realize just how little I know, but I am learning even about things I already know. Last semester we learned about "scaffolding" (not a raised working platform) and if I do not really learn any new material from these classes, I may learn how to scaffold or model scaffolding to my classmates. This would be a great outcome for those classes. I also have a couple very good and engaging classes, they are being taught by very knowledgeable and engaging professors, each very passionate about their field of study. Both of these classes are giving me more than a single story, challenging what I know and pushing for more abstract "cause and effect" answers. My longer life exposure (age) to some of these concepts gives me an advantage over some of my classmates but the comments from youth offer a different and sometimes enlighting viewpoint. Here are some questions for you to ponder as you drive down the road or find time to debate lofty thoughts over a friendly glass of your favorite "spirit." 
Why do you do the things you do? 
What would you have done or decided if you were the leader contemplating war?
How would you have fixed the economy in 1932? 
How would you have implemented a peace treaty?
How do you know something is true?
What justifications does a new idea have to go through to become real to you?
What does it really mean to be thinking about thinking?
How did you come to believe the things you believe to be true?

This should keep you busy for awhile, I hope you comment with either insights or questions of your own. Please check out the link it is worth the few minutes of time needed to watch.

Semester #4 Starting

Well the first day of classes for the spring semester has come and gone. Five classes all on Tuesday / Thursday starting at 0800 and finishing at 1930, and one online class, for a 6 class 19 hrs. total for the semester. I was able to CLEP a class over the break and I am now a Jr. with a total of 68 hrs completed. The first day is usually filled with syllabus details and expectations and this was the case with all five classes. I am excited to get started, as all my classes look to be very interesting and full of educational nuggets. I didn't really know I would enjoy college this much, I have always liked learning new things, but this has been an even greater experience. With every class I take I find further validation in my decision to embark on this journey. I really do have a passion to learn and teach others, and while I know some of those qualities have always been within me I am also keenly aware that many of my past teachers are the ones that have inspired me (THANK YOU!) and my current teachers are challenging me to learn even more. I know the days will be long and the work will be tough, but each day is a day closer to realizing my goal. I will give further details of courses as the weeks progress, as for now I need to finish some prep reading for class tomorrow.

Semester #3 is in the Books!

I finished my third semester on 16Dec2011. I now have a total of 65 hours completed and well on my way to finishing at least one semester early. I had seven classes this past semester and earned seven A's, and one of the classes was my 30 hour clinical I (teaching experience). I had a great experience observing and teaching middle school students, social studies. This clinical was tied to my growth and development class which by far was one of my toughest and best classes to date. We covered large amounts of good and useful information that will provide insight and understanding into the things I will do as teacher. I'm looking forward to next semester and concentrating on CLEPing two classes during the break. I have enjoyed a wonderful family filled Christmas and New Year Holiday, I am truly blessed. I plan to keep writing and sharing some of the stories and information I am covering in my classes, this is a great exercise and I find it to be beneficial outlet to express my thoughts and aid in my understanding. I encourage and welcome any and all comments.

Greek Tragedy? or Old Fashion Stubbornness

Tragedy vs. Stubbornness? Antigone vs. Creon? Eteocles vs. Polynices? Tiresias vs Creon? Creon vs Haemon? Antigone vs. Ismene? Creon vs. World? Where does it end? Antigone (a link to a version of Antigone)
Tragedy in the Greek sense stems from a character flaw or what may be your destiny. Oedipus was "destine" to kill his father and marry his mother, so to undo the prophecy he was taken as a baby, by his real parents, to the hills to die; only to be rescued by a shepherd, oops. The shepherd took the baby to the king and queen in the next kingdom... later Oedipus finds out about the prophecy (he loves his parents and doesn't want to kill them) and he takes matters in his own hands and leaves the kingdom, oops. He finds himself in the neighboring kingdom and, you guessed it he killed the King, "dad" and then married the Queen, "mom" in hopes to bring harmony back to the kingdom, oops. He fathers 4 children, two boys and two girls, oops, "Eteocles, Polynices, Ismene, and Antigone." Oedipus is feeling pretty good about life and thinks he has beaten the prophecy, but it wouldn't be a tragedy if there is a happy ending and oh yeah, NOBODY beats the "gods." Oedipus finds out the the king and queen he thinks are his parents are not his real parents (this proves you should always tell an adopted child they are adopted), oops, and the king he killed was actually his real dad, oops, and he did in fact marry his mother, double oops. Oedipus then kills himself the queen mother kills herself and the boys are left to rule the kingdom. The boys decide they will take turns being the king and Eteocles decides he'll go first, he soon finds out "it is good to be the king," and when it is his brother's turn to rule he says no "I'm the king and you are not I like being king so I have changed my mind you do not get a turn at being king, SORRY." So, Polynices did the only thing any "self respecting heir to the throne" could do, he amassed an army and fought his brother for the throne. Irony has a way of coming full circle, and there are many examples in history of this, but that's another story, the brothers killed each other in battle and now NEITHER is king. Enter Creon, who now becomes king by default. His first declaration as king is to give Eteocles a full state burial fit for the king he was and to leave Polynices on the battlefield to rot and be eaten by wild animals, an act that will punish the traitor for eternity. Here is where our story begins, Antigone loved her brothers and wanted them both honored or at the very least given a proper burial. She asks her sister to help her bury Polynices; Ismene says the king's law forbids it (line 53) Creon has said, NO! line (line 58). Antigone says, Creon does not have the right to keep me from doing it (line 59).
The rest of the play is spent with Antigone trying to do what she feels is the right thing and ends up being punished for it, but I think the real story lies with Creon's actions. Creon is advised many times by different people to do the right thing and let Antigone bury her brother. He is even told no good can from his punishing Antigone. The prophet advises him, his son begs him, and I think even his wife offered council about how he should treat his niece, Oh did I forget to mention that Creon was family, sorry. All of these things are what the Greeks emphasised in their plays, "tragedies," a lesson to be learned. A tool of education, a story about how when people don't do what is right and how they lose everything is suppose to teach us that if we don't do what is right we risk the same. All of this caused me to keep coming back to one thought, what is good advice? and why do we choose not to listen? As a child everyone has been burnt by the hot stove or pan, and YES everyone of us was warned by a parent or sibling, NOT to touch it. Yet touch we do, we later learn that the very people that warned us did not head the advice when it was given to them and they too touched and were burned. WHY? Why do we need to feel the depth of pain before we realize we should have just listened. I don't want to debate all that Creon lost or if what Antigone did was right, but would rather leave you with a parting quote. " Life is too short to make all the mistakes yourself, learn from others."