Message from smontano

[Anonymous]

Okay first of all; Matt- GREAT topic! I'm going to use it the first week of school for a reflection piece: Write a paragraph about what you learned this summer, and another about what you taught someone else this summer. I know, I may be playing with fire with the 9th graders, but who knows, it might be wonderful!

Secondly, I am stunningly aware that I'm following Connie's deeply thoughtful, intellectual ruminations on the state of the intellect in America today, particularly in view of the technology we are graced/cursed with. May I just say that I have taught, for the past nine years, 7th through 10th graders, ELD students, at risk students, budding AP students and immigrants, and I am gratified to report that, given the chance and a stimulating critical thinking exercise, they come through. I'm not saying they all come through; but they do come through. So I have faith. I think we are catapulting ourselves technologically into experiences we had never imagined (I personally will ALWAYS have a savvy 12 year old for a friend) but, really, isn't that why we are teachers? Isn't that 'gray area' where people start to really look at things what makes us salivate when we hear it? Works for me. Nice job on the analogies and metaphors, though, Connie - some killer phrases in there. I'M LISTENING TO YA, BABE! (By the way, I really like pancakes.... 😐 )

Okay, that being said, the first chance I had to teach anything about China was when I sat down with a bunch of friends to watch the start of the Olympics. Everyone was blown away! We started talking about our respective cultures and differences and the similarities between our societies. The spectacle took everyone's breath away, but even more so when they saw things like the people underneath the columns that made the wave. I was the only one in the room that said there were humans under there; everyone else said it was hydraulics. I had the last laugh, of course. The majority of the people there were teachers - if I get to China, my assigned mission is to find out what cultural values teach the amount of focus the athletes have, as wel as the amount of precision it takes for 2008 men to dance in circles and never miss a beat. Incredible.
The next opportunity was Sun. at breakfast when I told my cousin, who is my age, and whose major in college was British and Medieval History, that I finally understand why. He said "It's fascinating." Yes, I agreed, it's fascinating.[Edit by="smontano on Aug 13, 7:00:51 PM"][/Edit]