No Zombies Allowed/Paloma

In this chapter, Mr. Michie is beginning his fourth year as a teacher and finally has his own classroom. He is teaching a brand new course at Quincy that derived from an after school program he taught last year. The class is called Media Studies. Since this was a new course at this school, the class did not have a specific structure or any specific guidelines to follow. Mr. Michie explored whatever topic came about that interested the students. Mr. Michie used music videos, songs and TV shows to help the students learn about deconstructing things to see what the producer is trying to convey.
The approach Mr. Michie took teaching the students was inspiring. I was inspired on how he not only taught the students how to use the equipment, but also how he taught them that they can express themselves in different ways. I liked how he taught them to think critically about the things they chose to watch on TV and how he assigned them writing assignments that were true to them.
Mr. Michie learned that on assignments a limited must be set after assigning students to pick any song they want and write out the lyrics. He wanted the students to present to the class what the song meant. One student chose a song that was very offensive to everyone who read the lyrics. Mr. Michie did not want the student to feel bad, so he told him he wanted him to explain the song to him in private to avoid offending his classmates. Mr. Michie never got around to going over that song with that student. He felt bad for a long time because he let time slide by.
I learned that we must let the students express themselves, but in a respectable manner. Students are still children, so there definitely needs to be a limit to some of the things we allow students to say and do. In addition, we must not put things off until the last minute because then the opportunity may slip away.
Paloma seemed to be very head strong, intelligent and knowledgeable about what she wants out of life. After taking the media class, she changed not only what she watches, but also how she perceives what she is watching. She said that her parents are her heros because of all they are and went through to give her what she needs. Paloma said that to her there is no such thing as a bad child. Children only portray what they learn or are subjected to.
I agree with Paloma about my parents being my heros, because if it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t have half of the things I have. She mentioned that many people say their heros are movie stars and basketball players, but we can’t truly relate to those people. I agree that children have a voice and when they act out they are only expressing themselves.

Look at Your Hands/Lourdes

This chapter really enlightened me on what people really think about themselves when it comes to race and ethnicity. Mr. Michie and Bob decided on a method of teaching called Team Teaching. They decided to start the school year off by asking the students their opinion on what they thought a Mexican, American and a Mexican-America is. The students had some interesting responses. Some students said that Americans are white, rich, goal achieving and racist of all other races. The said that a Mexican-American was a Mexican born in the U.S. A few students said that Mexicans are poor, uneducated, bean eating and Spanish speaking brazers. Mr. Michie found out that the students call anyone who just came from Mexico, who is considered too Mexican, cannot speak English, do not wear expensive shoes and is not Americanized, a brazer. A brazer is what the white bosses use to call the Mexican workers that were sent here, to the U.S., to work in the mines and fields under the Braceros Program.
With this knowledge, it was shocking to find out that some students felt like they did not fall under any of the titles, while others claimed that they were Mexican and that they just live in America.
The students did not use books that semester, they learned from each other, short stories and films. The one thing that stuck out to me the most in this chapter was the lesson Mr. Michie learned when he was having a bad day. Bob was out sick, which forced Mr. Michie workload to increase. He embarrassed a student who was not prepared for a presentation that he was given an extra day to complete the work. Mr. Michie used the student as an example by making him stand in front of the class for his fellow classmates to stare at him. The student was about to cry, so Mr. Michie made him meet him in the hall. Mr. Michie later found out that the student was unprepared due his grandmother being in the hospital for the past few weeks. He apologized to Mr. Michie and told him that he has been coming straight from the hospital to school. Mr. Michie felt very bad, so he genuinely apologized. The student did not talk to Mr. Michie for weeks.
Even though we are having a bad day, does not mean we should take it out on someone else, especially our students. Everyone has a bad day every now and then, but we must keep in mind that we are professionals. Plus, all Mr. Michie had to do is ask one simple question “Why?!” and all of this could have been avoided.
Lourdes is a Mexican who loves being Mexican. She loves everything about her Mexican culture and neighborhood. She loved the loud music being played the streets and that people were always out mingling. Lourdes was not happy with the decision her parents made to move her and her brother out of the apt into a house that was in a mostly white subdivision. The people there, to her, were unwelcoming and neighborhood was too quiet. When they moved in a neighbor stopped by and stereotyped them based off the previous Mexicans that lived there. This made Lourdes sad and left her wanting to move back to her old neighborhood.
One thing I liked that Lourdes mention is that we should not judge an entire race based on one person of a group from that race actions. I also love the way she embraces her Mexican culture.

“To Be Continued” & Yesenia

       

The end of one chapter is the begging of new one. Mr. Michie sums up the whole book in this last chapter with the graduation of the eighth grade class.  He recounts the past few years he has spent with the classes and how they all have changed and how his view of all the students has changed.  His encounter with Yesenia opens up the floodgates of uncertainty.  Yesenia, rightfully so, is uncertain of her future and where she will end up in life. As her teacher, Mr. Michie comforts her and lets her know it will be okay and her future will be in her hands.  All the while, he’s not sure where she will end up.  The statistics don’t look good for her or any other of Michie’s students.  Mr. Michie teaches us all with a little faith and hard work we can do what we want.  As a teacher, he must take solace in the fact he did all that he could and pray that his students can take on the unexpected and move pat them.  

“And Justice for Some” & Reggie

“And Justice for Some” & Reggie

Mr. Michie learned a real lesson the day Reggie was assaulted by the police.  He discovered that there was huge distrust for authority in the area that he was teaching.  This was a huge obstacle that he needed to overcome with his students.  The incident with Reggie, one of the few African-Americans in the school, being attacked by the police officer “Bull” for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, gave Mr. Michie the understanding of why they didn’t trust the authorities.  The students saw first hand a case of injustice that would haunt most them for the rest of their lives.  Not only had Reggie been wrongfully attacked but his call for justice had fallen on deaf ears.  The slow response of the review boards gave Mr. Michie the opportunity for him to gain trust from his students by spear heading the effort to bring the police offer to justice.

Mr. Michie head already laid the ground work with Reggie by building his trust before the incident by finding common interest with Reggie.  I feel with out this trust Reggie wouldn’t have trusted Mr. Michie to help him after the attack.

The Story of Their Lives (Chapter 4)

"One of my professors at UIC, John Nicholls, was particularly influential in challenging me to continually rethink my assumptions about teaching. John was forever emphasizing the importance of listening to students and bringing their lives into the classroom." Page 56

This particular quote really ties in perfectly with the chapter. Mr. Mitchie organizes a reading group in order to create an audio book of The House on Mango Street. Immediately after auditions, Veronica, Yajaira, Marisa, Alejandra, and Nancy become completely attached to story told by Sandra Cisneros, all visualizing a portion of themselves told through the main character, Esperanza. As the following weeks progresses, the Mango Girls (as they called themselves), practiced the stories so many times that they all knew them virtually by heart while exploring a story that relates so closely to their own lives.

"I was coming to discover, that part or teaching is the willingness to explore with kids, to reach with them, follow a dimly lit path together, often unaware of the dazzling surprises that may wait around the bend." Page 63

Nancy's story provides insight into her challenge through out college at Depaul University. Coming from a community where most people don't continue on into college but instead work in the labor industry. Nancy struggles to maintain her identity as a young Mexican woman within a society where shes feels judged not only by her school peers but by those within her community. Like the story of The House on Mango Street, Nancy strives not to erase or forget what she knows, who she is, and where she came from.

TerribleHorribleNogoodVeryBad (Chapter 3)

Mr. Mitchie struggles with Quincy's after school self-contained classroom. A classroom filled with students labeled as "lower level learners". Through out the chapter, we witness Mr. Mitchie's challenge to get the students interested in what he is teaching when they themselves already believe they're "dumb". In addition, Mr. Mitchie tries to motivate uncooperative students/trouble makers (Hector) to contribute to class discussions in order to encourage the rest of the class to do the same. Needless to say, Mr. Mitchie's first day of after school teaching was a "unqualified disaster". As he contemplates the 10 weeks of after school teaching, he places his primary goal at helping class see themselves as smart, talented, and capable individuals, and not as the "slow class".

Armando: One of the my favorite passages of this chapter comes from the last paragraph before the story of Armando starts. He and Mr. Mitchie are having a conversation about the possibility of Mr. Mitchie teaching at Quincy the next year, when Armando expresses his hope of Mr. Mitchie teaching at the school again but asks to not be picked for any of Mr. Mitchie's pull out classes. When questioned why, Armando responds "I just don't want to be dumb next year". This quote really left and imprint in my mind as a continued on in reading the story of Armando. Armando's transition from a self gratifying troublemaker to a student who's only wish is to graduate high school is proclaimed through his personal reflection. He speaks about his strong and close relationship with family, expressing his dream to be the first generation high school graduate. However, he continues to doubt himself in certain subjects but ultimately struggles the most with motivation, encouragement, and understanding from his teachers.

I felt this chapter was very beneficial because it gives us a great insight into different perspectives of what we should take into consideration as we continue our fields in Education. The impact of how segregating and labeling affects the learning experience of students, not only influencing how others perceive them but how they feel about themselves as well. We must be the motivators for our students and encourage them to strive and take an interest in learning even when their environment deems them less.

You Gotta Be Hard - Juan

Gangs. Obviously prevalent across the Chicago area, gangs are forming even in the ranks of Mr. Michie’s middle school students. While attending a Mexican Independence parade in the Back of the Yards neighborhood, rival gangs are taunting gang factions against each other. Some of these gang members are some of Mr. Michie’s seventh grade students. In the beginning, Mr. Michie’s attitude towards gangs was, “ Me against them.” He categorized the students as bad because of their involvement with gangs, and originally did not care to think of them as individuals.

One of the first situations that Mr. Michie came across with gang members fighting in school was handled cooly by another teacher, Moses Green. Nicknamed the preacher, Moses really knew how to talk and be heard, something I think is key to being a “successful” teacher in the classroom. The imperative information that is relayed from Moses to Mr. Michie about the gang fight is, “acknowledging them and giving them opportunities to reflect on their experiences in the classroom may help them become equipped to make better choices. It can enable them to see alternative realities, to envision other futures for themselves.”

Juan was a bright student who had a knack for directing and videography. We start this section after Juan and a friend Tony have presented a short film to an audience, receiving great praise for their work. The feeling doesn’t last long for Juan, however, for he feels the imminent future pressing down upon him. Thoughts of not succeeding and disappointing his family and culture run rampant through him. Luckily for him, gang involvement was never an option for him, because his family kept him busy enough to where he wouldn’t be interested. Juan is worried about the economy. While he has a job, he realizes that the more money someone makes, the more likely they are to have to spend more, as well.

I think that underprivileged neighborhoods such as the ones in this book not only have the attack of a negative economy, but the social stigmas that go with that as well. From the point of view of a social society, good things do not come from neighborhoods like Back of the Yards. This is where teachers like Mr. Michie come into play. Having teachers and educators (even mentors, parents, and community leaders) attempting to change the negative images placed upon the individuals is a commendable task. Obviously, Mr. Michie knows that he can’t change the world, nor does he try to, but he knows that by impacting as many students as he can, will help create a better world, if not for him, then at least for the kids.