“All there is to thinking is seeing something noticeable which makes you see something you weren't noticing which makes you see something that isn't even visible.”
― Norman Maclean, A River Runs Through It and Other Stories
― Norman Maclean, A River Runs Through It and Other Stories
Asking Questions Makes the Heart Grow Smarter
By Emily Smith
In my teaching career and as a parent my goal is to teach my kids to think. I want my students to ask questions and truly think about what they are learning and stretch then beyond that. As a student at Michigan State, the classes I have appreciated and enjoyed the most are the ones that encourage me to expand my thinking by getting me to “go deeper.”
The first of my classes that came to mind as I thought about the most influential of my classes is TE 835 Awards and Classics of Child Literature which I took the summer of 2011 with professor Laura Apol. There are several reasons for this. The first reason is that is asked us to look at why it is considered a classic. We did a comparison between a Newberry winner, which no one has heard of and the runner up which everyone has heard of, and has become a “classic.” We also looked and attempted to define what makes a classic.
The second of my classes to affect me deeply was my KIN 854 Legal and Administrative Issues of Coaching which I took the spring of 2011 with professors Rick Atkinson. This course was important to me for multiple reasons. The first is that it was the first course I took as an online course and as part of my master’s program. I learned a lot about time management, how I worked, and the technological aspects of working through Angel (MSU’s platform for classes).
The second reason that this was an important class to me was that I was asked to look at situations for pre-corrections. In many of the scenarios we were exposed to we were asked to evaluate, our goal was to try and stop a lawsuit before it happened. As a teacher this is something I have to do constantly. All of the situations asked me to see what was most likely to go wrong and set up procedures and protocol for correcting it before it happened.
The third reason it was important was that it taught me to better look at situations with a different eye. I tend to look at situations emotionally rather than practically, and this course helped me build the skills that are necessary to look at the practical aspects of a situation rather than the emotional. I had to evaluate situations based on facts, the create relevant plans to address the issues that were addressable. I also had to give up control of things that were out of control. This is important in all sorts of situations in my life. From teaching to family life, learning when and how to use practical view points or emotional ones is a key skill of growing and maturing.
The third of my classes that I specifically enjoyed was CEP 882 Seminar in CEP: The Nature and Design of Compelling Experiences which I took in the spring of 2012 with professors Hannah Klautke and E. David Wong. When I started the course and looked at the syllabus I was a bit nervous. I was going to have to do things with technology I had never attempted before. I was excited about trying to define what makes something compelling, and learn how to hopefully help my students with compelling experiences.
By the end of the course we had looked at many compelling spokes, but what I found most useful was being asked to use technology to analyze them. One of our projects was making a compelling video. Since creating my video, I have used the program to create videos as a teacher and for personal use as well. I also learned more about how different websites work and how to navigate them more effectively and how to use them to aid teaching and learning, for example using Google plus and Google docs.
The other important aspect of this class was learning in small “groups.” Because the definition of compelling is ambiguous, and whether or not someone finds something compelling is based on personal factors, like interest, experience etc., it was really interesting and eye opening to see what other people found compelling. For example, one person looked at sewing as a compelling experience, which I enjoy doing and, after this course, would define as compelling, it wasn’t until my other classmate pointed that idea out that I even considered it. That then is something I need to remember as I am teaching. One, what is compelling for one student may not be compelling for another. Two, that I need to be more creative in my idea of what is compelling, and attempt to use students interests and experience to help them engage in compelling experiences, which could be anything from hunting to sewing to music.
The final class which asked me to push beyond my thinking was TE 838 Children's Literature in Film which I took in the summer of 2012 with professor Laura Apol. I loved this class, one because it was interesting to me. I love children’s books and I love movies and television. Of all the courses we had the option to take this was the one that I was the most interested and excited to take and was geeked when it was available in the summer. Then I got the syllabus. It had some of my least favorite movies on it and all of a sudden I was not excited. The last book on the list was a book/movie that I really enjoyed so I decided to force my way through the ones I didn’t like to at least make it to the last one.
The first of my expected negative book/movie conversations was Charlie and the Chocolate. I was dreading watching the movie as I started the book (which was the first of the assignments). I started reading the book. I finished it in one setting, and it wasn’t until I closed it that I even realized I had read it in one setting. Next up was watching the movies. I had seen the 70’s movie and knew I didn’t like it. I had avoided the 2000 movie because of my dislike of the 70’s movie. I managed to make it though both, with each looking at various aspects of the films (i.e. sound, color, and interpretation of the book). In both cases I still did not enjoy the movies, however I could find aspects of each that I found valuable and had interesting and engaging “conversation” though angel about the interpretation. By the end of the Charlie unit I had a slightly higher appreciation of the movies and I defiantly had a higher opinion of the story after reading the original by Roald Dahl.
Within this module we read a critique of Dahl (and teachers) by Eleanor Cameron. Now, let me remind you, I had just now come to find I enjoyed Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and now we are reading an article about how “watered down” it is and how it “is probably the book most read aloud by those teachers who have no idea, apparently, what other books they might read to the children. Charlie, again along with Charlotte’s Web, is always at the top of the best sellers among children’s books, put there by fond aunts and grandmothers and parents buying it as the perfect gift, knowing no better. And I do think this a most curious coupling: on the one hand, one of the most tasteless books ever written for children; and on the other, one of the best.” (McLuhan, Youth, and Literature: Part I By Eleanor Cameron http://archive.hbook.com/magazine/articles/1970s/oct72_cameron.asp) This was an interesting article for me because after I was finished being offended, (because I spend a lot of time thinking about my read alouds) I tried to look at what the heart of the article was which I believe was this: we need to be careful to expose children to quality literature and keep our standards of literature high. This is something I can get on board with. What was interesting to me was this was yet another time when I could see two sides, and the ideas and the discussion forced me to go deeper into the ideas, to get passed my initial reaction, think about it harder and in turn asks me to be a better teacher and a better student.
The next unit was on the Wizard of Oz, and while I may be anti-American for thinking this way, but I can not stand Wizard of Oz. What I learned is again what I dislike is the movie, since after I read the book, I was a much bigger fan of the story. Also, once I got passed my ignorance I learned about the series of the books, and more about the author, L. Frank Baum.
Mr. Baum led me to one of the most surprising revelations, that I found myself returning to over and over, which is the idea that I think when popular culture abuses a story it is a crime. His idea was that when popular culture has accepted it and adjusted it, it makes the story richer. Adding peoples perspectives to the story make it more complex, and thus the story, which seemed more as if it were a living thing, could grow, thus making it more successful.
The final unit which I couldn’t wait to get to was Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. My prejudice to this movie/book combo was that I thought the makers of the movie did a great job remaining true to the story. However, after all we had done throughout the course, and then looking at the different aspects of the movie, it ended up being my least favorite part of the course.
Overall, I loved learning about how popular culture affects books, how movies affect books and how books affect both. I learned one very important lesson about literature throughout the course as well: don’t judge a book by it’s movie. This is a lesson I thought I knew, but I didn’t know it as well as I should have. I learned to be a better, more specific critic of movies as well, and in today’s world I believe that both of these lesson are important in building the necessary skill of being able to be a critic of children’s literature so that we can expose our children to all sorts of quality stories.
In all of these classes I was pushed outside my comfort zone. Through peer support and professor support I learned more about myself and what I feel is important, specifically in regards to literature. I learned to push past what my initial ideas and thought were and delve deeper into a discussion with others or even with myself on why, which is one of the most important things we can learn to do as students because that is where real learning occurs.
My master’s classes have taught me to ask the next question. That may or may not be a harder question, just a deeper one. I have learned that I do not want to be complacent in what I read, write and think, I want to be an active participant and engage with the material, whatever the medium, book, movie, or internet. I have become better using technology and while I am a self-proclaimed scrooge about technology I have a better more concrete reason for feeling that way, but can see and appreciate the other side of technology. I have learned to make more educated decisions about why I feel, think and act the way I do, and my expectations for my motivations are higher because of my education through these courses.
In my teaching career and as a parent my goal is to teach my kids to think. I want my students to ask questions and truly think about what they are learning and stretch then beyond that. As a student at Michigan State, the classes I have appreciated and enjoyed the most are the ones that encourage me to expand my thinking by getting me to “go deeper.”
The first of my classes that came to mind as I thought about the most influential of my classes is TE 835 Awards and Classics of Child Literature which I took the summer of 2011 with professor Laura Apol. There are several reasons for this. The first reason is that is asked us to look at why it is considered a classic. We did a comparison between a Newberry winner, which no one has heard of and the runner up which everyone has heard of, and has become a “classic.” We also looked and attempted to define what makes a classic.
The second of my classes to affect me deeply was my KIN 854 Legal and Administrative Issues of Coaching which I took the spring of 2011 with professors Rick Atkinson. This course was important to me for multiple reasons. The first is that it was the first course I took as an online course and as part of my master’s program. I learned a lot about time management, how I worked, and the technological aspects of working through Angel (MSU’s platform for classes).
The second reason that this was an important class to me was that I was asked to look at situations for pre-corrections. In many of the scenarios we were exposed to we were asked to evaluate, our goal was to try and stop a lawsuit before it happened. As a teacher this is something I have to do constantly. All of the situations asked me to see what was most likely to go wrong and set up procedures and protocol for correcting it before it happened.
The third reason it was important was that it taught me to better look at situations with a different eye. I tend to look at situations emotionally rather than practically, and this course helped me build the skills that are necessary to look at the practical aspects of a situation rather than the emotional. I had to evaluate situations based on facts, the create relevant plans to address the issues that were addressable. I also had to give up control of things that were out of control. This is important in all sorts of situations in my life. From teaching to family life, learning when and how to use practical view points or emotional ones is a key skill of growing and maturing.
The third of my classes that I specifically enjoyed was CEP 882 Seminar in CEP: The Nature and Design of Compelling Experiences which I took in the spring of 2012 with professors Hannah Klautke and E. David Wong. When I started the course and looked at the syllabus I was a bit nervous. I was going to have to do things with technology I had never attempted before. I was excited about trying to define what makes something compelling, and learn how to hopefully help my students with compelling experiences.
By the end of the course we had looked at many compelling spokes, but what I found most useful was being asked to use technology to analyze them. One of our projects was making a compelling video. Since creating my video, I have used the program to create videos as a teacher and for personal use as well. I also learned more about how different websites work and how to navigate them more effectively and how to use them to aid teaching and learning, for example using Google plus and Google docs.
The other important aspect of this class was learning in small “groups.” Because the definition of compelling is ambiguous, and whether or not someone finds something compelling is based on personal factors, like interest, experience etc., it was really interesting and eye opening to see what other people found compelling. For example, one person looked at sewing as a compelling experience, which I enjoy doing and, after this course, would define as compelling, it wasn’t until my other classmate pointed that idea out that I even considered it. That then is something I need to remember as I am teaching. One, what is compelling for one student may not be compelling for another. Two, that I need to be more creative in my idea of what is compelling, and attempt to use students interests and experience to help them engage in compelling experiences, which could be anything from hunting to sewing to music.
The final class which asked me to push beyond my thinking was TE 838 Children's Literature in Film which I took in the summer of 2012 with professor Laura Apol. I loved this class, one because it was interesting to me. I love children’s books and I love movies and television. Of all the courses we had the option to take this was the one that I was the most interested and excited to take and was geeked when it was available in the summer. Then I got the syllabus. It had some of my least favorite movies on it and all of a sudden I was not excited. The last book on the list was a book/movie that I really enjoyed so I decided to force my way through the ones I didn’t like to at least make it to the last one.
The first of my expected negative book/movie conversations was Charlie and the Chocolate. I was dreading watching the movie as I started the book (which was the first of the assignments). I started reading the book. I finished it in one setting, and it wasn’t until I closed it that I even realized I had read it in one setting. Next up was watching the movies. I had seen the 70’s movie and knew I didn’t like it. I had avoided the 2000 movie because of my dislike of the 70’s movie. I managed to make it though both, with each looking at various aspects of the films (i.e. sound, color, and interpretation of the book). In both cases I still did not enjoy the movies, however I could find aspects of each that I found valuable and had interesting and engaging “conversation” though angel about the interpretation. By the end of the Charlie unit I had a slightly higher appreciation of the movies and I defiantly had a higher opinion of the story after reading the original by Roald Dahl.
Within this module we read a critique of Dahl (and teachers) by Eleanor Cameron. Now, let me remind you, I had just now come to find I enjoyed Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and now we are reading an article about how “watered down” it is and how it “is probably the book most read aloud by those teachers who have no idea, apparently, what other books they might read to the children. Charlie, again along with Charlotte’s Web, is always at the top of the best sellers among children’s books, put there by fond aunts and grandmothers and parents buying it as the perfect gift, knowing no better. And I do think this a most curious coupling: on the one hand, one of the most tasteless books ever written for children; and on the other, one of the best.” (McLuhan, Youth, and Literature: Part I By Eleanor Cameron http://archive.hbook.com/magazine/articles/1970s/oct72_cameron.asp) This was an interesting article for me because after I was finished being offended, (because I spend a lot of time thinking about my read alouds) I tried to look at what the heart of the article was which I believe was this: we need to be careful to expose children to quality literature and keep our standards of literature high. This is something I can get on board with. What was interesting to me was this was yet another time when I could see two sides, and the ideas and the discussion forced me to go deeper into the ideas, to get passed my initial reaction, think about it harder and in turn asks me to be a better teacher and a better student.
The next unit was on the Wizard of Oz, and while I may be anti-American for thinking this way, but I can not stand Wizard of Oz. What I learned is again what I dislike is the movie, since after I read the book, I was a much bigger fan of the story. Also, once I got passed my ignorance I learned about the series of the books, and more about the author, L. Frank Baum.
Mr. Baum led me to one of the most surprising revelations, that I found myself returning to over and over, which is the idea that I think when popular culture abuses a story it is a crime. His idea was that when popular culture has accepted it and adjusted it, it makes the story richer. Adding peoples perspectives to the story make it more complex, and thus the story, which seemed more as if it were a living thing, could grow, thus making it more successful.
The final unit which I couldn’t wait to get to was Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. My prejudice to this movie/book combo was that I thought the makers of the movie did a great job remaining true to the story. However, after all we had done throughout the course, and then looking at the different aspects of the movie, it ended up being my least favorite part of the course.
Overall, I loved learning about how popular culture affects books, how movies affect books and how books affect both. I learned one very important lesson about literature throughout the course as well: don’t judge a book by it’s movie. This is a lesson I thought I knew, but I didn’t know it as well as I should have. I learned to be a better, more specific critic of movies as well, and in today’s world I believe that both of these lesson are important in building the necessary skill of being able to be a critic of children’s literature so that we can expose our children to all sorts of quality stories.
In all of these classes I was pushed outside my comfort zone. Through peer support and professor support I learned more about myself and what I feel is important, specifically in regards to literature. I learned to push past what my initial ideas and thought were and delve deeper into a discussion with others or even with myself on why, which is one of the most important things we can learn to do as students because that is where real learning occurs.
My master’s classes have taught me to ask the next question. That may or may not be a harder question, just a deeper one. I have learned that I do not want to be complacent in what I read, write and think, I want to be an active participant and engage with the material, whatever the medium, book, movie, or internet. I have become better using technology and while I am a self-proclaimed scrooge about technology I have a better more concrete reason for feeling that way, but can see and appreciate the other side of technology. I have learned to make more educated decisions about why I feel, think and act the way I do, and my expectations for my motivations are higher because of my education through these courses.