It seems to me that high expectations are the hot topic of education right now. Last semester, I took classroom management, and high expectations were one of the criteria of an effective teacher. I must say, I feel like this idea has been pounded into my head over the past two years. And I am so thankful for that! High expectations are so important! What I am trying to say is that the contents of this chapter were mostly a reminder of what I will have to live out as a teacher in the future. I didn’t learn anything mind blowing.
Holding your students to high standards no matter what seems like common sense when I think about it in terms of my high school experience. The chapter talked about the “dumb kids” and the “smart kids” or, in other words, the students expected to achieve and the students expected to fail. As a student, you can tell when a teacher puts kids in the categories the students to create. And I remember it would surprise me when one of these kids, doomed to fail, would reveal their true intelligence. It always happened in English class for me when I would proof read papers or listen to presentations or participate in discussion. My English teacher did a wonderful job of expecting the same quality of work out of everyone. It was inspiring.
So, one thing that the chapter touched on when it came to expectations was having faith in and developing students’ textbook reading skills. I don’t know where I yet stand on textbook reading in a mathematics class. I was never required to read the textbook in high school. The teacher would always teach the material and the textbook only served its purpose as homework material. Should I teach/require my students to read and comprehend the textbook in a math class? Often times, math textbooks are just frustrating, poorly edited, and hard to follow, even for me! But maybe this is because I was never taught how to read them. Like I said, I’m not sure where I stand there. I expect that this class will help me decide what I think about mathematics textbooks.
The final idea that stuck out to me was the concept mapping at the end of the chapter. I loved these! As a visual learner, maps and diagrams really helped me see the connection between ideas. I know that, at first, students will think that forcing them to use concept maps is purposeless and annoying. I remember thinking the same thing in English class when my teacher made us write outlines and rough drafts. But, because of the forced practice, I was able to develop my own writing process that I use to this day. It was all about learning different ways to learn and internalize information and then finding what works best for each individual. I want my students to be able to know what learning styles, studying habits, and organizational strategies “work for me.” Like the chapter said, personalization is the key to helping students become engaged and independent learners.
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