I've seen lots of threads about how school sucks and people who hate their teachers. As a future teacher myself, this saddens me because it seems that by the time students get around to my classes in high school, they're already apathetic about the education system. I'd like to change some of these preconceptions and reach out to my students to keep them involved and interested in my class.

• So what do/did you like about school?
• What makes/made you stay in school and keep going/finish?
• How can schools make it more enjoyable?
• What is your most memorable experience in class, good or bad?

Please don't say I shouldn't assign homework or schools should make every period lunch. Teachers have to teach a long list of content standards and prepare you for exit exams as well as all the new regulations caused by that No Child Left Behind monstrosity. It has such good intentions, but... well, that's another story. I would love some honest and informative input here that I could possibly implement into my lesson plans and classroom management style to make students actually want to be in my class and hopefully understand and retain the skills that I'm trying to teach them. Believe it or not, information is only a small part of education. Acquiring skills, including social skills, is a large part of the microcosm of the school environment.

 

 

 

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the funny thing about this is that when i ask people why you hate school they would it's not realy school that they hate but the people because they are such jerks and fakes. but a lot time the only resons they come to school is because of the people and specialy their friends.

the thing i like about school is the extricuricular programs like the band the sport teams, and even special programs like the medical magnet program i'm in. also my old spanish teacher and many more of the realy nice and funny teachers. school isnt really that bad you just got to learn how to manage it and use it to your advantage.

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Exactly. I go to school because I know that I'll see a lot of people I enjoy being around with in school. The other motivation are all the clubs/sports that I participate in. Grades kinda come last, but still I try keeping them on an B+ average, when weighted my GPA is still above A in that case because of huge amount of AP classes I'm taking.

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The thing i like about school the most is being able to see my friends. I also love my computer classes. I think the best advice for a teacher is to associate what they are teaching to the career pathway that the student plans on going. This is what my school is trying right now, we have academies (scient & tech, medical, bussiness and human services, and fine arts). The medical academy is incredible, the students from that academy leave high school ready to be a doctor in like 8 months, it's truly amazing; however, the other academies haven't quite caught up. I think that is the best advice for an incoming teacher to get kids motivated, teach them the material in a way that they can associate it with their lives.

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I was homeschooled, for the most part. That worked out well for me because I did not like schoolwork, I wasn't particularly thrilled with most of my peers, and I was able to graduate when I was 15 (versus age 18).

But I LOVE to learn. Especially when it's something that's already interesting to me. I've had quite a few teachers since I started college. Many taught core classes, so they had the challenge of dealing with students who were only there because they had to take those classes.

The best of those teachers were the ones who were passionate about what they were teaching. You could tell that they cared because they were upbeat...they were involved...they answered questions...and they sometimes found creative ways to get the point across to us. I had, for example, an Intro to Communications professor who played music every class day because, hey, that's a form of communication. And she also used examples of things that we had with us...like the laptop computer, or the cell phone with texting keyboard...to illustrate various types of communication.

 

 

 

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I like lunch time and the end of school for the day. Why? I can talk to my friends without being yelled at in class. If i missed any homework I can do it during lunch


What makes me stay? Oh the fact that my parents would beat me with a stick and/or kick me out of the house if i dropped out of high school. And to somewhat learn

Stop giving so much homework. Countries that dont pound homework on their students supposedly score higher than those that do. Also, fire the teachers that just really suck at teaching. My Algebra II teacher got 4+1 wrong. She seems to go off to 10 different topics that don't apply to anything were learning. Some teachers need to be less uptight. My English and Italian teachers are more relaxed, and their class is alot more enjoyable. Teachers need to know what there doing and actually get us involved and enjoying it.


Oh god too many to think of

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mojoman, please at least read the first thread thoroughly. I explicitly stated,

What I'm looking for is ways to improve the quality of the classroom. How do your English and Italian teachers make the classroom into a more relaxed atmosphere? They must assign homework like the rest of the teachers, so are their assignments less stressful or done in a different way that allows you creative expression?
As for the teachers who can't teach or are older than dirt, unless they're first/second year teachers or do something really illegal, like being a pedophile, they can't be fired. Once a teacher attains tenure, which changes from district to district, they cannot be fired for what they teach. This is done because sometimes teachers feel the need to teach something controversial, like evolution, sexual education, or even religion, which can sometimes get the school board, parents, or administrators up in arms. But tenure gives teachers the freedom to expand students' minds and explore new possibilities without fear of losing their jobs. However, it also means that dinosaurs who still fight to keep their chalkboards and have taught the same way since before FDR was president will still have a job until they retire.
Anyways, I'm really interested in what to incorporate in my classroom and what I should avoid, so please, I'd like some honest and useful input here.

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Oh, that's a coincidence. We just had a discussion in my ENglish 4 class as to what an ideal classroom should be.

I assume, you are familiar with the banking method and liberation method? If not - here's a brief summary:

Banking method (approach).

Assumptions: Teachers know everything. Students know nothing. Students' minds are just "dumpsters" in which a teacher must dump information for 43 minutes (or what have you).
What happens: Teacher lectures for the whole period, students take notes, and that's it.

Liberation.

Assumptions: Both teachers and students are equally teaching and learning in the same time. That means that if a student proposes a point during a discussion that you did not think of - accept it and continue the discussion, you might learn a lot of new stuff. Also that will make the teacher-student relationship stronger and less "scary", as most freshmen tend to view it.
What happens: Small lecture (10-11 minutes), if someone needs to - he/she may take notes, but it's not mandatory. The rest of the class lead a productive discussion, there will indeed be a lot of people going off topic, do not use putdowns even in that case. If you see that a discussion is "flowing" in another direction - the best thing to improve it is to listen to it and try to link back to the original question by asking some other questions, or commenting. If you can't do that quickly enough - POLITELY ask to come back to the topic, don't be rude, if you don't want the students to hate you from the first day.

IMHO the best class is the second method, where a teacher is not really playing a role of the teacher, but as a guide with a light pointing at the exit of the dark cave of blindness and laziness (Example from "The Republic" by Plato)

As far as homework comes. I had 2 completely opposite teachers: D. W. For AP Physics II C and M. R. for AP Statistics. The first one assigned tons of homework once a week (usually after test, and it was due on the date of the next test), it was about 30-50 problems, which is okay if you pace yourself, but most High School people are not doing that and thus they'll have to do all that pile of homework on the last day/in school, or fail a class. What feelings other than hatred could that promote, even though it's totally the student's fault. In the second case we got like 6-8 problems each day. It might sound worse, but, trust me, it's easier! (even though you will have to do more problems than in the 1st method).

Next. Group activity. Students LOVE doing activities in small groups (2-5). If it's a group of two - let the students select their partners themselves. If more - choose randomly. Like my chem teacher, who drew lines and shapes on the sitting chart to make groups.

Last. Tests. Please, do not make tests worth as much as 90% of the grade, which some teachers tend to do. Make it around 60-70. Don't give major tests too often - once, or twice per 9 weeks would be fine with quizes every 2 weeks. PLEASE DO NOT GIVE POP QUIZES. I really hate those. Although I am always prepared for any class, but when something unexpected like that happens I get really nervous and sometimes screw up my resposes. Don't make tests excessively hard, or easy, stay somewhere in the medium. If it's an AP prep class - make tests like the actual APs. Also - make it possile to make up tests, if a studet scored really low. Some teachers tend to drop your lowest test grade to help your grade in the end, which is a nice thing if you're on the borderline.

Best wishes in school:-)

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Homework helps embed what you learned in school by making you think about it outside of school as well so you don't just leave and forget. Homework is a very good thing (I'm a student as well so don't think i'm just some adult who has no idea); however, teachers shouldn't just give it out every night because they can. I think that teachers should only give homework if there are students that don't quite understand the work or they have just started to touch on something new or they couldn't finish the work in class. If a teacher gives homework just for busy work it turns students off and creates bad feelings towards the "teacher that gives too much work".

Just my view on homework

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I hate (strongly dislike) school. The only part of school I tolerate is the socializing aspect. Lunch is my preferred class, I love to eat. Also, art and gym were okay classes because they were so easy.

The reason I keep going to school on a daily basis is because if I don't my life will go no where. Without school you can't make as much money (unless you are one in a million, and become a rapper, or part of the entertainment industry). If you don't complete high school, you can't go to college, and if you don't go to college your chances of getting a well paying job are very limited, and opportunities are closed.

If schools started later in the morning (instead of 7:35 A.M. - High school) it would be a lot more enjoyable. Also, if classes were less lecture, and more interactive, and activities were used more class fun could possibly increase. However, school can only get so good since the basis of it is to learn.

Eighth grade, the whole year, was just amazing. Even though it was a long while ago, it was awesome, that was before school was hard. All the years leading up to eighth were fun, as well.

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