tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5458172893016186479.post8275987880855098577..comments2024-03-09T03:28:44.216-05:00Comments on Thoughts on Education Policy: Why Must School be so Punitive?Corey Bunje Bowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09764159604965707919noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5458172893016186479.post-63944435242106094342008-10-21T00:27:00.000-04:002008-10-21T00:27:00.000-04:00Nancy: I agree. It's like they say, you teach the...Nancy: I agree. It's like they say, you teach the way you were taught -- not the way you were taught to teach.<BR/><BR/>I'm struck by the same quote that Rachel is. Let me mull that over more.Corey Bunje Bowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09764159604965707919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5458172893016186479.post-44438734657363512632008-10-21T00:18:00.000-04:002008-10-21T00:18:00.000-04:00punishment works only for kids who were already mo...<I>punishment works only for kids who were already motivated or have strong home supports</I><BR/><BR/>That's an interesting point. Perhaps its because those kids do have the "coach-like" presence at home -- the person who when something goes wrong, or the teacher seems unfair, says, "okay, what do we need to do to solve the problem."RDThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08566356038836885187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5458172893016186479.post-59238384521329106922008-10-20T22:16:00.000-04:002008-10-20T22:16:00.000-04:00First of all, I never met a kid who didn't want to...First of all, I never met a kid who didn't want to learn to read. Or do math. Or be moderately successful on any number of school-related things. Kids come to school, even from the most dysfunctional homes, wanting to learn.<BR/><BR/>I think teachers are punitive because their teachers were punitive, and their experienced colleagues are punitive. I have taught in a dozen schools, and in every one of them, the teachers know who cracks the whip hardest--which teacher allows one bathroom pass per year, or gives detentions for the kid who comes to class without a pencil. The culture of teaching encourages tacit imitation of long-standing practice, rather than thoughtful examination of what works.<BR/><BR/>Because that's the thing--punishment works only for kids who were already motivated or have strong home supports. It's the same kids, week after week, in the detention room.<BR/><BR/>I used to punish kids who didn't attend music performances--lower their grade, take away points, etc. I did this because my music teacher colleagues told me that you had to punish kids who didn't show up, to be fair to the kids who did attend. I got really tired of it--threatening kids before the concert with dire consequences, cornering them afterwards to lay on a little guilt.<BR/><BR/>So I changed the system. I told the kids that they would get credit for attending. And if they couldn't attend, they should let us know in advance, because we were all working on this together. Immediately, we stopped having no-shows. Literally, none. There was nothing to fight back against, and good reason to want to be present. It was amazing.Nancy Flanaganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00047575960944913289noreply@blogger.com