BD+PREP+WORK+FOR+CLASS+3+-+9-5-2013




 * Link to LifeMap:**

[|Life Map] Reflection: One of the most passionate teachers I've ever had was Dr. Mullins. His energy, enthusiasm, and general love for what he was teaching was contagious. He reinvented my idea of what a literature class should be like and made me genuinely excited to wake up at 8 in the morning to go to his Friday class. I was challenged to be an active reader and a critical thinker and writer. I think Dr. Mullin's passion came from his own positive experiences with literature and his desire to help us have similar interactions with literature and culture.


 * Envisioning English from //Milners' Bridging English//:**

Invitations to Reflection 1-1, #5: Language/ print and nonprint lit the act of teaching adolescent students the life of schools

Traditional Practices vs. Alternative Beliefs According to Milner and Milner, the traditional teaching practices focused primarily on the teacher, generally viewing education as teachers is passing along knowledge on to students who then are required to regurgitate this information on tests. However, the alternative methods are student based, allowing students to become active participants in their education, learning how to construct meaning and think critically about the information being discussed. I whole-heartedly agree with the new push towards a student-centered learning environment, especially as the population becomes increasingly more diverse and multi-faceted. Since we teach a predominantly communication based discipline, where answers are often subjective, student-centered learning allows us to be able to learn along with our students, facilitate discussions about meaning, and teach students to interact critically with each other and the information they are constantly inundated with.

Take Away One of the most thought provoking elements of this chapter for me was the challenge to be able to articulate my own vision for my class. I can see how defining "English" as a discipline can be formative for me as a teacher, but I had never given it much thought. Reading through this chapter caused me to spend time nailing down some of my core beliefs considering English as a discipline and what I will use as guiding principles for my class.