Teaching should be more...

Teaching should be more than just students repeating and regurgitating information back. Sometimes that is how it feels for me and I'm sure it is the same for other teachers. Welcome to the Rinkel Farm! As I was outside with the family the other evening, three cows appeared in our pasture (broke through the neighbor's fence). My 6 year old daughter, and 4 year old son, and I (being the cool dad I am) began "mooing" at them and within seconds they began to moo back. Isn't that exciting?? I moo and the cows respond the same way. This little episode reminded me of classrooms across America, even my classroom as I prepared students for state tests. We are teaching to standardized tests so we can meet government mandates. Some teachers continue teaching using methods of the 1970s lecturing and requiring students to respond back or regurgitate the material back. Teachers worldwide need to find ways to reach the students of today if they are to succeed in todays world. Instead of creating students who simply repeat the material back and forget it after the test, we need to create students who can critically think, communicate, collaborate, and be creative.

Risk

At the Indianapolis 500 Time Trials, a great amount of risk is taken to secure the pole position for the greatest racing spectacle in the world. A lot can go wrong for a driver when they are circling the track at speeds of 224 miles per hour. Can risk be good in certain situations? When does risk become negative? Many people who have become successful have taken a risk with time or finances at some point. Risk is usually seen as bad v.s. good. Where do you draw the line? When does risk become negative instead of positive?

Awesome Teaching Tool...Flip Video Camera

I recently borrowed a Flip Video Camera from my brother to check out the quality and ease of use. I heard they were very reliable and compact, but I was concerned about the quality (video and audio). The three weeks I borrowed it, I am amazed with the quality. With all the trips I have planned this summer, I need something small. The camera is very compact, it will actually fit into your back pocket. I have a small camera case that my digital camera goes in and they both fit into it. It will definitely come in handy going through the airport. The previous blog on Competition has a video the flip camera shot. You can purchase the camera from anywhere between $89-$179. They also now have HD, but you'll spend over $200 for those models. In the near future, I hope to have some video-blogs posted using this camera. My mind has been going crazy lately thinking about all the things I can use the flip video camera in my classroom with. Writing prompts, video podcasts, short videos, short commercials, the list goes on and on.

Where's the competition?

To start, I may be a little off base here. I'm not really sure and I am NOT complaining...just curious. Now that I've added that disclaimer, here we go. I took my four year old son and five year old daughter to a community easter egg hunt. They had it at the convention center with other events. There were hundreds of people in attendance. The egg hunt was divided into age categories 3-4, 5-7, 8-10year olds. As the first hunt was about to start, the announcer said that each child was limited to five eggs. He then said that if your child does not receive five eggs, they just need to tell someone and they would be sure everyone received five eggs. What that tells me is, a kid can stand around and pick his nose, make no effort, and still get the same amount of eggs as a kid running his heart out, picking up the five eggs as fast as he can. I can remember hunting eggs when I was about 8. They turned you loose and it was every kid for himself. You were not guaranteed any certain number. If you ran into the bigger kids, sometimes they took your eggs, sometimes you got pushed down. My question is: what are we teaching our kids if they work hard and do more and receive the same reward as the kid who does nothing? It doesn't sound fair to me, but what is fair?

What Role? Experiencing a lack of FOCUS...

As my second year of teaching comes to an end (7 weeks left), my eyes have continued to be opened with the challenges that plague education. We deal with lack of funding, lack of parental and administrative support, just to name a few. There are many people out their advocating for change in education, former Illinois Teacher of the Year Joe Fatheree and former California Teacher of the year Alan Sitomer to name two. At the end of year two, I’m beginning to question my role in education reform. Where should my focus be? A teacher can be pulled into so many directions. I want to be the most effective I can be, first and foremost in the classroom, but I also want to shape the field of education for the future. As I was reading today, I came across this quote by Robert Kennedy, “There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why... I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?” I do not want to be the person who sees the problem and does nothing. People can sit around and complain all day, but change only occurs with action. I want to be the person who dreams and develops the vision and does the unimaginable…I’m just needing some help with focus.

Is globalization nothing new?

People have been sharing goods, services, and ideas for many years. It is much easier today, given the technology available to us. In Cohen and Kennedy's Global Sociology, they discuss major historic events and its relation to globalization. Since 1945, the United States has become the dominant power militarily and economically. My question is, if this idea of globalization is nothing new, why do a lot of people struggle with accepting it?

A Witness to Student Achievement..at its best!

Last night, I witnessed a celebration of student achievement. In Effingham, Illinois, over 1000 people went to watch films produced by high school students. In addition to the high school films, a film done by a 4th grade student in Wisconsin and a first grade class in Alabama were awesome. It was amazing to see the crowd reaction and seeing the smiles of the students as their film was shown on the big screen. What I was impressed with most was their “people” skills as I met several of them at the seminars previous to the show. Their technology and storytelling ability was unbelievable. I am always thrilled to attend the AHA Film Festival and the seminars. The seminars this year were great. I was able to meet some great people and learn something from awesome teachers that I can apply in my classroom as I strive to be a better teacher. My students took a lot of information back and shared it with their classmates. They expressed to me several things where our school could improve and how the students could improve within the classroom. My students also touched on a real key issue. The community celebrated with the students on their achievements. Unfortunately, academics and the arts are not celebrated, which is where my students think we could improve. Great job Joe, Craig and the rest of the combined Multimedia class of Effingham and Teutopolis students! I’m looking forward to next years AHA Film Festival.