In reading chapter one I found myself laughing more and more with every turn of the page. The stories Mr. McCourt encountered were priceless to say the least. There was the sandwich incident in which Mr. McCourt, in an effort to show the class who was boss, ate on student's sandwich that was thrown at a classmate and landed on the floor. That resulted in Mr. McCourt being questioned by the principle as to why he was consuming a sandwich at 9 Am in the morning instead of teaching. Then there were stalling questions the class presented to Mr. McCourt in an attempt to avoid work. They asked him everything from what he studied in Ireland to whether or not Irishmen dated girls in Ireland. His response to the dating question landed him in trouble yet again with the principle. This was due to the fact that he jokingly and sarcastically told the students that men in Ireland dated sheep not girls. Overall this chapter was a barrell of laughs and leads me to my discussion questions:
What do you think you would do differently if you were in Mr. McCourt's position and the children acted out?
How would you respond to children's absurd questions if you were in Mr. McCourt's classroom.
How would you deal with the principle of your school if you were called into question about your teaching methods? How would you justify your responses to him/her?
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3 comments:
Hi James,
First off, I want to say that you did a great job summarizing chapters one through three. The questions you pose are all very thought-provoking and meaningful. I just hope that I do as good a job hosting as you!
Anyway, here are my answers to your questions for chapter one:
1. What do you think you would do differently if you were in Mr. McCourt's position and the children acted out?
In particular, I think it is always important to treat young adults as adults. No teenagers want to be infantilized or belittled in front of their peers, so you should never treat them like children. Instead, the best course of action, I believe, is to politely ask students to settle down. If this fails to work, then you should ask them to have a conversation with you after class.
When I used to tutor AVID students (i.e., "at risk" students), this tactic worked especially well since most teachers never gave them the opportunity to explain their side of the story. For respecting them, the students respected me in return.
This technique also worked well with the more "gifted" students I used to teach SAT content to for Kaplan. For example, one student in one of my classes would always glare at me and respond rudely to me when I asked him a question. Eventually, I asked to have a conversation with him after class. During this conversation, I asked him if I had done anything to offend him, or if there was something I could be doing to better to meet his needs. By genuinely showing concern and by not aggressively commenting on his behavior, I think this allowed him to be less defensive and to open up to me. He then revealed that his parents were putting a lot of pressure on him to succeed and to go on to an ivy league school. As a result, he tended to let all of that pressure affect his attitude towards me and the other students. After talking with him that one time, he did not become my ideal student, but things improved between us considerably.
Thus, I think respecting students and talking to them as if they were adults is the best way to handle disciplinary problems.
How would you respond to children's absurd questions if you were in Mr. McCourt's classroom.
Again, when I used to teach SAT classes, the students would sometimes try to get me off track by asking me personal questions like where I was born, where I went to school, how old I was, etc. Personally, I think it is acceptable to indulge students by answering a few questions such as these. However, it becomes a problem when this becomes all that you do (like in McCourt's case). Thus, although this never won me any friends, I think it is the teacher's responsibility to steer the class back on track after awhile.
How would you deal with the principle of your school if you were called into question about your teaching methods? How would you justify your responses to him/her?
If the principal of my school ever called my teaching methods into question, I would probably be very nervous like Mr. McCourt. I would also probably feel either offended or depressed since I always seem to take criticism to heart.
Anyway, I view myself as a very thoughtful person. As a student at Montclair, I always try to think about the overall purpose of my teaching and my lessons. So, I know I would be able to defend whatever it was that I taught (particularly in writing -- talking face-to-face might be a little more difficult for me since I tend to get intimidated by authority figures). Hopefully, in the end, however, my explanation would be enough to convince the principal that I am doing a good job.
First of all, I don't think I would've eaten the sandwich. It reminds me of the soap scene in Super Troopers. I would've probably have pulled a "No one's eating the sandwich," and tossed it.
In regards to the absurd questions, I would most likely entertain a few, to a point where I feel I've achieved the students' satisfaction. By answering the questions, McCourt is attempting to build a connection with the students.
I would use the latter in my defense to the principal. One of the most important aspects to being a successful teacher is maintaining a connection with your students. The best teachers establish a healthy teacher/student relationship; a rapport that involves a mutual level of respect.
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