Tiny ants wriggling about

Teaching Highlight

            Each year you get at least one kid that is not quite crazy, but nowhere near “normal.” This was Thomas, always staying for after-school tutoring whether he needed to or not because he only felt comfortable around a couple of teachers and this way he could interact with us in a relaxed atmosphere. The other kids make fun of kids that are not just like them and middle school must be the worst place in the world to be different. Thomas would have frequent meltdowns and throw tantrums when people would criticize him. This was how it was most of last year and this year as well. As the end of the year approached Thomas made it known that he had a crush on an older girl at school. This was worrisome for me because I too remember how cruel middle school girls can be. However, despite his fears and the advice of any fellow student who he dared ask what to do, he asked the girl to go to lunch with him and she agreed. This seems like a very tiny and insignificant detail for many, but both of them were learning how to be grown ups. He had decided to go out on a limb and do something completely out of character to get what he wanted; this being the attention of the previously mentioned girl. Even though everyone saw disaster on the horizon Thomas persevered and succeeded.

Huntington, WV

Highlawn is a neighborhood on the East side of Huntington. We are a bunch of latchkey kids that rarely eat dinner at a table with people in our own family. The parents who had regular nine-to-five’s fed many of their children’s friend as often as not. Highlawn is a neighborhood where history is more powerful than desire. You stick with what you know and dare not venture outside this sanctuary without friends. This is a place that seemed more safe as a youth running the streets than a teacher coming back to keep a promise. I owe this neighborhood my life for teaching me what is to be valued and what is to be cast aside.

             Looking back, there were many dangers in this cozy corner of town that just did not seem to apply to locals.

Where I’m From

I am from Huntington, West Virginia

No, It’s not near Richmond or Roanoke.

West Virginia is its very own state now.

This place is my home.

We are the birthplace of rivers and where old mountains feel new each spring.

I am from Appalachia. I am moonshine and mandolins.

I am from family and friends.

My roots run deep here. My ancestors moved here from Ireland and Germany two hundred and fifty years ago as farmers and Hessian mercenaries.

I am from soldiers and peacemakers.
I am from the fierce dedication of my mother and the serenity of my father.

They are from their parents and I will be of my children.

I am from the cool early morning fog rolling out of the hollows only to return at dusk.

I am from the flow of West Virginians South seeking prosperity only to return to their homes.

I am from homesickness.
I am from a neighborhood where friends are closer than family.

I am from a place where truth is held over pleasantries.

I am from  music and  noise, depending on where you stand.

As a teacher/ writer what am I falling in and out of again and again? As a teacher I am falling in and climbing out of adequate preparation. Being a second year teacher, I still encounter this problem regularly. I travel on long weekends too much, spread my efforts too thin, and end up Sunday night, Monday morning scrambling to bet my bearings. Preparation is my pit of despair. I go through cycles of being a really good teacher; having Special Ed. Paperwork ready in advance, making phone calls to parents, documenting classroom performance, and then comes the bad teacher; not sleeping enough, not ironing shirts, and wearing white socks with dress shoes. The stress of teaching out of a bad kills me. It seems absurd to complain about this, but I feel you are my choir to sing to. As far as my voice, much of what my voice is saying to me is inappropriate for public discussion. I beat myself up when the bad week ends. Yet, in the end, I know this has been a cycle I have not been able to break yet. I hope this will one day change. There is a huge difference between the school year me and the summer time me. The summer is my ladder out of my pit. Yet, I somehow manage to fill my plate too full during this time of much needed rest and relaxation. Hopefully, one day I’ll finish swimming up-stream and just go with the current. All rivers lead to an ocean somewhere and the beach sound really good about now.

I recently had an incident at work involving coworkers who had been exchanging emails discussing behavioral issues. The exchange had been conducted openly on a listserv. One individual sends a private email trying to iron out differences out of the public eye. The other reposts his email on the listserv with his rebuttal. This incindent started out productive and turned nasty with the two exchanging hostile messages that would probably not have been said if face to face.

This got me to thinking about how often this sort of thing occurs. I know in cars people feel anonymous and secure and that in turn leads to aggressive behaviors. Can this be true in cyberspace? I think so. 

I feel that people of every generation feel that the next generation is different in most ways, not only in thinking patterns. Music, art, style, foods, etc. are always changing. I, for instance, enjoy punk rock. This style of music is very different ftom the music of my parents. The songs generally last about 60 seconds, are political in nature, and share none of the musical qualities of the bluegrass my father listens to. To say that they learn differently is to say that they are not us. This is not profound or ground-breaking news.

It is foolish to pass judgement on whether or not it is better or worse, but merely different. I did not take the classes that my folks did, nor did the teachers teach it the same. I do, however, agree that the attention span of today’s youth is getting shorter. My attention span is not that of my elders, but neither are my intersts. I can study for hours on topics that they would deem irrelevant. So you say tomatos and I will say potatoes. We do not have to establish a cause to agree that we are not them and vice verse.

If we are to educate the youth of the future we must identify what works for this population and needn’t worry why it is different. Simply look for what works and use those strategies. I never saw a smartboard or an Elmo in my school and would not have cared if I did at the time. We have new technologies emerging daily and must utilize each opportunity to its fullest. The future lies inour hands and we must assert our professional opinions to ensure that the next generation will have the same compassion, trust, and patience that our teachers afforded us. These are the things that do not change in our profession and we must hold tight to them if we are to have any success with our students.

I feel that I am more of a digitally naturlaized citizen than an immigrant. I have been around technology more than most of the professionals I work with. I still have trouble integrating these skills into my curriculum.  I can see where students of today are more focused on playing games than learning from reading text. However, I still read books that are made from trees and I was raised on Nintendo and television.

I find the largest problem in the companies that publish educational materials. These are the projects that our top technical professionals should be engaging in. Helping to engage the next generation of learners will be more difficult if we are delayed by personal technical savy. I have tried some of the digital programs that are offered in our building, Compass, etc. and always left feeling that it is more trouble than it is worth.  After all the time you have dumped into it, it seems like a waste of time.

I feel the internet has revolutionized researching topics most of all. With very limited technical abilities, one can still find most anything that you could ever hope to find in a traditional library. This is the most revolutionary advancement that I have personally witnessed. The internet can reference any topic that may be assigned to a student.

When designing software for students, educators need to have to avenues to influence the content of these programs.  Instead of teaching what is availible on software, one could design the program around what is deemed important to the state superintendant. With all of the money flying around in educational budgets, why is it so slow to trickle down to the ones who need the most? I am talking about teachers. Through in-service training teachers could be made more aware of the technology availible to them. I have had only a few hours training with any of the software they want us to use with our students. I think I have only spent about two hours training of my two years of teaching on Compass.  If teachers were more confident, they would feel better about backing these sorts of programs.

Blogs have recently become more open to me. I use Myspace to keep up on what my friends are doing in their lives. In a few minutes, I can check if anyone in my friend listhas posted a new blog. I can quickly rewiew these and read any at my leisure. I see blogs replacing journals in the classroom in the next few years. I have opened my eyes to the possibility of keeping a blog going after this class.

I don’t have any idea where to start. If you don’t know me, well, I’ll begin with a general introduction. I’m Jason Dillon aka Jake to many. I am originally from Huntington, but I have travelled and lived a few other places. I enjoy intelligent conversation (debate), most outdoors activities, old cars, basketball, guns, motorcycles, low-brow art, short stories, sociology, and researching odd names. I hope to broaden my swriting skills through this class. If I could give you a best case scenario, I would eventually write screenplays or short film. I feel that this is a very hot media today and someone could make a living telling real world stories to people who are isolated, whether it is geographically or ideologically. With the state of affairs today, I feel people need that release that good films provide. I have been moved by many films in the past. A few of them are, in no particular order; Fight Club, Bladerunner, Crash, Adaptation, Happiness, Hedwig and The Angry Inch, Hero, What Dreams May Come, Full Metal Jacket, various documentaries, and anything on IMAX (if you have never been, GO!!) This is where I will start…I just decided.

Greetings to all. I am getting everything squared away and will be blogging shortly.