Profs on Blogs

The Open Scholar: Professors Are People Too

New York Times
March 20, 2008
The Professor as Open Book
By STEPHANIE ROSENBLOOM

IT is not necessary for a student studying multivariable calculus, medieval literature or Roman archaeology to know that the professor on the podium shoots pool, has donned a bunny costume or can’t get enough of Chaka Khan.
Yet professors of all ranks and disciplines are revealing such information on public, national platforms: blogs, Web pages, social networking sites, even campus television.

[http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/20/fashion/20professor.html]

Effects of films

Feature film and teaching/learning
Michael Sturma

TL Forum 97

What are the effects of feature film on student learning? While it seems widely assumed that the use of feature films in teaching serves to pique student interest and facilitate learning, there has been relatively little study of learning produced by films. What work has been done in this field mainly focuses on educationally designed instruction/training films rather than popular cinema productions. This is an area of special interest to me, since in 1997 I will be offering a unit titled Hollywood and History. The course examines twentieth century America through the lens of feature films such as JFK, Malcolm X and Apocalypse Now. For some time many historians have accepted the intrinsic value of feature films in teaching history, but without specific examination of how this affects student learning. I am interested in exploring this dilemma.

Teacher as Hero

THE TEACHER AS HERO:THE EXPLOITATION OF NICENESS

Kenneth Futernick
California State University, Sacramento

Much has been written on the teacher’s role as moral educator. In “The Morality of Niceness,” Suttle considers a related topic that has received far less attention — teachers as moral agents. He argues that a teacher’s obligations should not be limited to the achievement of academic objectives, but should include being a caring, sensitive, and sympathetic person with one’s students. In short, teachers have a moral and professional obligation to be nice. The problem Suttle sees is that many people, including philosophers, regard being nice as supererogatory — that is, going beyond one’s obligations. He tries to convince us that within the context of teaching, being nice is not supererogatory. If he succeeds in demonstrating that teachers have a duty to be nice, he believes he has established a “morality of niceness” which entitles us to say that teachers who are not nice are incompetent and morally irresponsible.

Metaphor Teacher's journey

Metaphor

Becoming a Teacher as a Hero's Journey: Using Metaphor in Preservice Teacher Education | Teacher Education Quarterly
Find Articles at BNET.com

In this article, I share the results of a recent study that explored the ways in which the hero's journey metaphor offered support to a cohort of preservice elementary school teachers during their first field placement experience. Because "the hero is a universal ideal that helps people think about their lives in a more profound and creative way" (Noble, 1994, p. 30) and because the hero's journey's emphasizes transformation and growth, the hero's journey is an appropriate and potentially powerful metaphor for nascent teachers.

Poetry and Disabilty

DISPOET

Discussion for and about poets with disabilities, sites for submitting work, contests. Interest in personal accomplishments of poets with diabilities. Also comments about disability studies or poetry in general

Representatie Reflection

REFLECTION BY USING MOVIES - ITQ


Reflections on the way that teacher quality is identified in teacher movies (or sitcoms)can be a starting point for teachers to identify teacher quality.

Dahl: representatie

Sharon E. Royer, Roald Dahl and Sociology 101. ALAN Review - Fall 1998 Volume 26, Number 1

Een visie op maatschappij in het algemeen en instituties in het bijzonder:
Largely known as the author of James and the Giant Peach (1961) and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964), Roald Dahl is also the author of three full-length works for early adolescents. It is of this group of young people that Dahl once said, " 'If my books can help children become readers, then I feel I have accomplished something important' " (West). Dahl's books for adolescents have caught the attention of young people and adults alike. The view of society revealed through his books--his implied criticism of adults and his contempt for social institutions--has made his works popular with adolescents. This same view has brought mixed reactions from critics.

Een specifieke visie op scholen, leraar en directie:

The title character in Matilda is a five-year-old child genius whose corrupt parents are practically oblivious to her existence. When she begins to attend school she encounters Miss Honey, her quiet and lovable teacher. She also meets Miss Trunchbull, the headmistress, an ex-Olympic hammer thrower who continues to practice with children. "The Trunchbull" refuses to acknowledge Matilda's genius and promote her, but Matilda finds that she can channel her brainpower to manipulate objects. She then develops a plan to use her power to get rid of Miss Trunchbull for good, and to rectify the wrongs done to Miss Honey. These three books, with their young heroes and heroines, are major contributions to the young adult market, due to the high level of commonality that Roald Dahl's protagonists share with the readers.