Watching the video 'is anyone listening' on youtube really made me appreciate all the things I was fortunite enough to have as a child. There were times when I would hear my parents talking about being concerned about bills, but for the most part we had everything we needed. Both of my parents worked so we spent quite a bit of time with my grandma and at after school programs, but we made the best of it. It is so sad when children are stressed out about not knowing if they will have a place to live anymore, or having to drop out of school to help pay bills. Some of these children have had to grow up way to fast and deal with adult problems they should not be faced with. From what it sounds like most of the parents encourage their kids to focus on school, but the reality is they have to be able to eat and have a place to live. I think instead of focusing on other countries and how poor and starving they may be we should look at our own backyard and help people in our own country that are in serious need.
Our school system is headed in a very bad direction financially. Not only are students starving and dropping out to get jobs, but they are cutting the school budgets so bad, especially in California. In the next couple months, just in Apple Valley, we are closing two middle schools because of lack of funding. All of these students are going to be crammed into other middle schools that already have huge classrooms. How can a teacher have any one on one time with a classroom of 40 students? The state is also cutting funding of preschools all together, where are all these kids going to go? How are these young kids suppose to get a head start in learning without having a preschool to attend. How are these parents going to pay for daycare so they can go to work? There are so many financial problems in our school system right now, on top of everyone else's personal financial burdens.
I enjoyed all of the new things that we learned in this class. This class was a real eye opener about the potential for using technology in the class. Not only can it improve learning but it can make our lives as teachers a lot less complicated being able to integrate technology in our classrooms. I think my favorite thing that I learned was google docs, I love being able to work on a project and being able to open it on any computer. And being able to share those documents and have other people edit them is a huge time and paper saver! I believe the thing I learned in this class will come in handy time and time again!
Hi Jaime,
ReplyDeleteWe are ging to have the same feeling about the economy. And you are so right about are education going bad, and that is putting it midly. And I feel so bad for these teachers who have up to 35 children in elementary schools and even more in high school.
And are children today should not be hungry and making choices about dropping out of school and working but the reality is they are. I don't know when the economy will get better?
I know you and many of us have learned a lot in this class. And it did become overwhelming, but we are done, and we will take what we learned and apply it to new careers.
Ophie
I think it is insane how badly our school systems in the high desert are going. School closures, furlough days, and staff cuts are not helping the children at all.
ReplyDeleteI also learned a lot in class and I hope to be able to use some of it in my future classroom.
Jaime,
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I can't believe Apple Valley is closing two middle schools. It makes you wonder who is making these decisions and is it solely about money? I feel bad for the parents and the poor kids that are going to be shuttled across town to school and crammed into a classroom. What have they done with their funds to be in such a mess and have to close two schools?
It really is sad to hear about schools closing, it makes you wonder where all of the money is going?
ReplyDeleteI also liked google docs, it makes my life less complicated without havng to save my papers on a USB drive and than upload it to another computer, with Google Docs you do not have to do any of this, which is really nice.
I definately agree with you. Kids are dealing with adult problems. Kids shouldn't have to worry if they will have food on the table or a place to live. It is unfortunate that our children have to go through this. Just thinking about makes me want to cry. I feel helpless. Educators during this these times are finding it difficult captivating the attentions of their students.
ReplyDeleteThis class showed us many technological tools are available for educators. I definately plan on using Jing and Google Docs in my classroom. It was very nice meeting. See you in our next cluster of classes.
Jamie: I'm so glad you were part of the class. Despite the incredible challenges you face as a new mother, I'm so happy that you were able to join us and contribute. Teaching is a challenging profession but there is nothing more challenging--I think, that being a mother. That is the ultimate job. But both teaching and being a mother have great rewards. I hope you seek these out in your own classroom in the future. Thanks for your contributions here. It's been a pleasure reading your entries and responses. Best wishes to you and your new family!
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