Does character matter?

I was sitting in church last Sunday thinking about Christina Rosetti and a thought floated to my mind. "Does character affect what an author writes?"

In today's world, so many people argue that a person's private life has nothing to do with their professional one. I disagree. I think that every experience we go through in life affects how we look at things. This is especially true with authors.

Idea for a Creative Writing Assignment

Have students listen to Brad Paisley's "Letter to Me."
The assignment is to write a letter to yourself:

• Give yourself advice
• Prove that it's you
• Address a crisis you're going through while reading the letter

This can be a letter from your present self to your past self or a letter from your future self to your present self. Be creative (of course!)

Communication 100: Unit 13 Assignment

As a future teacher, I found that Unit 13 had a lot to say about how I should communicate with my students, my fellow faculty members, and those higher up in the chain of command. From this chapter, I can take away three principles: as someone in a leadership position, be fair; as a member of the organization, I should do my best to not spread sensitive information; and to be aware of the way I present myself in relationships with those around me.

I should always be friendly and fair to my students without choosing obvious favorites because it could create tension in my classroom. I remember in high school, some teachers would call on some students more or would allow those students to hang out in their classroom during lunch while excluding other students. This made some of my classmates feel left out. Teachers should be kind to everyone because they set an example for their students of how adults behave.

I shouldn’t gossip about students or other faculty members with anyone because it could create a lot of problems for everyone involved. Paying attention to the grapevine may be important, but I will refuse to listen to or spread information that may hurt someone. I’ve heard that some teachers sit in the teacher’s lounge and complain about certain students. This poisons other teachers who haven’t had that student yet against that student and creates a hostile environment for them. School should be a welcoming place for students.

I should do my best to choose my workplace relationships wisely. When I went to high school, my friends and I were always trying to figure out who were friends with who among the teachers and which of our teachers was dating the other. It’s fine for teachers to be friends with each other, and even date each other. However, there are some teachers who cross lines and become more than a teacher to some students. Being a mentor to a student is fine, but some teachers actually date their students. This is never appropriate. Students are young and easily swayed. Taking advantage of the student-teacher relationship is wrong.

Unit 13 really just pulls everything already discussed in the book all together. It shows how each piece of what we have learned to far fits in with all the other pieces and how to apply this knowledge in the workplace. I will keep all that I have learned in mind in order to be a better teacher and a better employee.

Interview with a Future Educator

My little sister, Rebecca Warnberg, is also attending the University of South Alabama in hopes of obtaining a degree in Elementary Education. She is a freshman and has not taken EDM 310 yet. I wanted to know what she thought about technology in the classroom. Here's what she had to say:
Caitlyn: In your opinion, what makes a technologically literate teacher?
Rebecca: A tech literate teacher knows how to use Microsoft Office and the internet.
Caitlyn: So, you don't think that teachers should know , for example, how to blog, use Skype, or use a Promethean board?
Rebecca: I think those things may be useful, but they're not necessary for someone to be a good teacher.
Caitlyn: Do you think that teachers should at least be familiar with these things so that they could use them in the classroom?
Rebecca: Yes.
Caitlyn: Should all teachers be tech literate?
Rebecca: Yes.
Caitlyn: Could you explain that answer? Earlier you said that all teachers needed to know was Microsoft Office and how to use the internet.
Rebecca: Like I said before, those are the basics. Other things might be useful, but they are not what makes a good teacher. I don't think teachers need to know much technology in order to run a classroom effectively.
Caitlyn: How would you use technology in your classroom (if you would at all)?
Rebecca: I plan to teach kindergarten. I don't anticipate using much technology with children of that age. If I do end up teaching an older grade, I might have my students play interactive computer games, but I can't see using them very much.
Caitlyn: Thank you for your time Rebecca.
Rebecca: Technology is stupid.

I'm glad that Rebecca will have to take EDM 310 in the future. She need sto be exposed to other opinions and ideas. Even if she doesn't change her mind, I think it will be good for her to be exposed to all of the ways that technology can be used in the classroom.

What Do We Value As Educators?

A discussion of what Elizabeth and I think are important in any classroom and what we think is important when teaching literature and composition specifically.

EDM 310 by Caitlyn Warnberg

EDM 310 is a class I have been taking that is supposed to be teaching me how to utilize technology in the classroom. In the beginning, I was a little resistant to it. I now see that education can be made better by technology. However, I do think that there are a lot of people who are so caught up in the zeal of using technology in the classroom that they miss out on their students and the material that they are supposed to be teaching. To be completely honest, this subject is getting so old. I don't know if I ever want to talk or read about technology in the classroom again. I wish I didn't feel this way.