Final post

I must say that I really enjoyed this. I like writing and I think that this has helped me very much. Everytime I write i'm inmediately checking my grammar. Sometimes, when i'm writing fast I make some mistakes with speliung haha see? Spelling.

If you, reader, find any mistakes I would be pleased if you let me know right away in order to fix my mistakes. I need to learn from them.

I missed Mr Litman's last class and I'm sorry but I was working in my seminary. I'm sure Mr Litman understands.

What I didn't like about posting was the error that sometimes I got when I was trying to post. Erasing html codes it's a pain in the neck!

I would like if we could receive an email every time we get a comment. There are no notification when we get one, you just need to look for them (if any).

This is not the end of my writing, that's for sure.

If you want you can check my other blog. Even though I haven't updated it in a while. That's because I haven't got the time to do it but I'm sure I'll have it soon.

My Other Blog

Cartoons, Tv and Video games

November 18th, 08
(part 4)

This was the last presentation of this day. Felipe was in charge of it. He talked about Cartoons, Tv and Video games.

Felipe showed us that kids and teenagers see more English words that we think. In cartoon, Tv and Video games we can find many words that kids recognize and sometimes they know how to pronounce them correctly.

As an example of this we can find the anime series "pokemon" which it means pocket monsters. In this anime series we can find characters with strange names that turn out to be english words. For example "Ekans" means "Snake" and its evolution is "Arbok" which means "Kobra". You just need to unscramble the letters.

Felipe also talked about many sitcoms that we see everyday on Tv such as friends, prison break, Two and a half men, etc. These sitcoms don't change their names in latinamerican countries, which helps students to know at least some words in english.

Felipe made a very interesting and original presentation that none of us expected. Great job.

Role playing games in Education

November 18th, 08
(part 3)

After Evelyn's presentation, Claudio started his presentation about RPGs or Role Playing Games in education. He started presenting what a Role Playing Game is. Is a game in which the participants assume the roles of fictional characters. Participants determine the actions of their characters based on their characterization, and the actions succeed or fail according to a formal system of rules and guidelines. Within the rules, players have the freedom to improvise; their choices shape the direction and outcome of the game.

Claudio not only presented RPGs, he also related this topic with education. How? I'll tell you.

He said that when you play these games you develop critical thinking and speaking. Even though is in another language rather than English, you might develop a way to give ideas more clearly.

Claudio as moderator (the one that control other characters and gives instructions) can cope with his empathy and develop a better way of teaching. Yes, teaching. This has helped him to re-discover pedagogy where he can teach and feel comfortable.

This proves that even though this game looks like a waste of time, it is good for using it with students once in a while, in order to help them increase critical thinking and speaking.

Claudio did a great job. He introduced a very original topic that we have never expected to see. He related this topic with pedagogy and it turned out to be a very interesting way of teaching, and it also helps in the learning process. He explained well and made it very clear. Nice job.

Teachers burnout

November 18th, 08
(part 2)

After Pedro's presentation Evelyn started with her presentation. She started with a video of a teacher losing control of himself in a classroom. This video introduced the topic of "Teacher burnout".

Burnout: extreme tiredness usually caused by working too much*

A Teacher burnout is when a teacher loses control and get nervous, desperate, anxious and stresses and its reflected in an emotional and physical crash.

Evelyn talked about this and just like as Nicole, she presented some ideas (tips) to not lose control and remain calmed.

This was a very interesting topic which introduced new vocabulary as well. It was a very well organized presentation and not boring at all.

* From Cambridge Dictionary.

Communication as the base for a good relation with parents

November 18th, 08
(part 1)

The previous tuesday (Nov 11th) I was absent. I read and heard about the presentation that my classmate Rodrigo made. It was about course book. I might talk about it but I don't think I can add much because I wasn't there.

This day (Nov 18) We had 4 presentations. The first one was about Communication and it was presented by Pedro. He talked about the communication between parents and children and how this create a very good relation among them.

He gave some tips such as saying "I love you" or "I care about you" once in a while to make children realize how much you love them and care about. Parents should demonstrate this kind of love to their kids, maybe not using words but at least showing them some affection, a gesture or something.

Nowadays we have a lot of families facing drug, behavior, violence problems and we can find that some of the causes are the parents' fault. It all starts with the education at home. If we give our kids a good communication and good values they will grow up knowing that their families have taught them the most important value: love.

Femicide is not fashionable

November 4th, 08

After Nicole's presentation, Katherinne talked about femicide. She presented the ads from a well-known brand of clothing: FES. In this ads we could see a man beating a woman. It is a campaign about femicide but the images talk more than the words and the idea of this ads gets misunderstood by some people.

Katherinne mentioned ideas related to femicide that we have seen through other presentations, tv and newspapers but she related this topic with the idea of making it fashionable. Nowadays our society is getting used to hearing about this kind of problems. More men are killing their wives or girlfriends because of jealously, anger or just madness. This is the world we are building? Where are we going to stop? I think that our society is loosing sense. We will never become a very well developed country if we continue like this. We are not going anywhere. It's a shame but its the truth.

At the end Katherinne made a very good presentation with a very interesting topic in a fresh way.

Stress at the end of the year

November 4th, 08

This class, Nicole talked about the stress that we as teachers might cope with at the end of the year. She gave us some tips to help us control our emotions and maintain calm.

One of the most remarkable points she talked about was about not carrying the problems of the school back home. We as teachers have right to have a regular life with a regular family. If we take our problems back home it won't be good for our families and our mental health.

The end of the year is always a period of stress. Teachers, students and other professionals face this kind of situation and we should remain calmed and try to find a way to work things out. Not everything is lost. Just breathe and remain calmed. Don't panic!

I think Nicole made a very good presentation, and even though she was a little bit nervous she did a good job. She explained well and moved around. We could see that this presentation was well-prepared.

Estatuto docente: Una tragedia peor que el transantiago

October 14th, 08

The second topic which we had to make a research for was the "Estatuto Docente". Mario Waissbluth, a teacher from Universidad de Chile, wrote an article for the magazine "Qué Pasa" on August 23rd, 08. He talked about the dramatic situation that our education is going through. He revealed some ideas that were floating in the air but nobody really saw.

He made a lot of studies, researches and statistics. He interviewed education experterts, directors of schools, teachers and students with the idea of getting a picture of the quality of education in Chile. At the end the conclusions were not good at all. He made some comparisons with private universities and public universities.

At the end the situation he described showed that the students of pedagogy get into the university with a lack of knowledge in certain aspects -that can be proved with the scores that a student gets in PSU- and come out of the university after some years with the same limitations.

I think that this problem will be restricting us as teachers for a long time. The quality of education in this country is not so good and we are moving too slow if we want to change this situation. I think that solving this problem will required not some, but many years.

Here's the complete article

Educación 2020

October 14th, 08

Mr Litman told us to make a research about Educación2020.

Educación2020 is a project that wants to improve the education in Chile. 20% of the poorest students in Chile will have the same level of education than the 20% of the richest students by the year 2020. This is their proposal.

They are trying to make a change in education, where students and teachers get more importance and more equivalence. A teacher that teaches in poor schools should have the same level than a teacher that teaches in rich schools. Students from public, private and semi-private schools should have the same level of education.

This might seem only dreams, but this is their dream and they are trying to make it true.

To read more about it follow this link:

Educación2020
(Spanish)

C-ya!

Smartboards

October 7th, 08

After Fernanda's presentation Daniela talked about Smartboards and their advantages for learning. She assisted to a seminary in Universidad Finis Terrae where she could get some information and realize of the great benefit that this smartboards mean.

Only a few schools in Chile are using this kind of method to teach. It is very expensive, but very helpful. Some schools use this smartboards not only to present topics and ideas, but for playing as well. Students can learn by practicing and playing at the same time. Specially in english, where it gets easier and quicker to learn this language.

The use of new technologies are doing everything so much easier than before. With this kind of tools teaching can be so much fun for kids and we as teachers can save some time and have fun at the same time.

Gender Bias

October 7th, 08

This day Fernanda presented the topic of "Gender Bias". Even though i wasn't there, I can say some things about it.

“Gender bias is difficult to detect because it affects girls and boys in different ways. In school, it is the boys who may be expected to “act out” and rebel at school work, while the girls are expected to be docile, conforming and willing to work hard" (Sadker 1994)

There has been a lot of misunderstanding with the idea of gender. In English we commonly refer to some words using "man" or "men" to talk about men and women. For example the word "cameraman" works for both man and woman but it has a connotative resemblance to man only.

I think this is a very interesting topic we just leave aside and don't pay attention to it until we see it. Somethings aren't discovered until you find them. It wouldn't be correct to criticize her movement or how she did because I wasn't there to give my opinion. But i could say that Fernanda is a great student and I'm sure she did it well.

Suicide and depression in teenagers

September 30th, 08

After my presentation, my friend Eduardo presented his topic: "Suicide and depression in teenagers". He talked about some cases in Chile where some girls have committed suicide because of bullying and other stuff. He presented some statistics with suicides and presented the common causes of depression in teenagers. We as teachers need to be aware of this topic because we don't know what's going on inside the head of our students. We need to pay attention to our students if we ever get to see some symptoms. A teacher needs to be positive and empathic with his/her students in order to help them overcome these kind of problems that causes depression and suicide.

I think Eduardo did a very good job; very well explained, organized and good distribution of timing.

My presentation about How to talk about drugs with your students

September 30th, 08

I was the first one in the class to start with the new single presentations with a free topic. My decision was "How to talk about drugs with your students". I talk about some tips that teachers may use at the moment of talking about drugs in the class. Whether you have drug problems with your students or not, it is very suitable to know how to talk with them about this topic in a good way, never too rush, never too aggressive. There are several tips but one of the most important is to talk with confidence and empathy. Students need to feel that you are near, show them your support and not your negativity to the topic. Be polite and talk about it very calmed and relaxed. If you know that some of your students consume drugs, don't look at them at all times, treat them like every other student. Being impartial is very important at the moment of talking with them. Leave your prejudices behind.

I was very confidence when i stood in the front of the class. Each day i feel more comfortable with myself. Each day gets easier to talk in front of a class. I think i caught my classmates' attention as i wanted to.

Don't be too rush with your students!

A class about future plans and group conversation

September 29th, 08
(Recuperative class)

We talked about our future plans for next year. All of us (only a few of us went to class) shared our expectations and plans for next year, where we are going to be a professional with a degree. (Most of us) We talked about our dreams and real expectations of work, personal interests and projects.

We also talked about the awareness of a group conversation. Many times we don't realize that a group might help our development in society. It works as a social contact, a growing experience where you can share experiences and criticize and debate about different topics. We as teachers need to develop these kind of contact with our students. They can share information but some of them are not very good at expressing ideas. A group conversation also increases our way of thinking and speaking. We can develop ideas easier than in others ways.

An important page to visit once in a while:

www.education2020.com

C-ya.

Curfew For Teenagers

September 30th, 08

This class we had the last debate made by Marlen, Clara and Claudia; our classmates from the other section.

They talked about a "Curfew For Teenagers" and presented the idea of using a curfew in Chile to stop teenagers of being doing bad things in the streets at night. They talked about the risks, the violence and drugs, the situation with other countries and its advantages. This discussion topic was about this; if either we could apply this curfew in Chile or not.

The majority of my classmates chose the idea of not having a curfew for teenagers because that would only bring more problems with them such as insubordination. They would feel oppressed and would feel like getting away from their parents and home to do some "illegal or bad things" because the temptation is bigger. Interesting topic though, even though the girls weren't very good at managing the debate like they should.

Project Zero

September 22nd, 08

This day Daniela, Katerine and Nadia talked about Project Zero, a project at Harvard studying Multiple Inteligences. It was founded in 1967 to study and improve education in and through the arts. This project says that arts should be studied as a serious cognitive activity to motivate the new communities of reflective independent learners to improve their critical and creative skills.

The girls said that there were not much information about this project because it is limited. We can realized now that this is true. If you look for it on the internet you won't find much information about it. The creators from harvard wanted that way.

The debate was about having a project zero here in Chile or not. At the end we realized that to accomplish this we would need more money to spend in education and right now education is facing other problems such as the LOCE. This wouldn't be a good time to start spending in this kind of project, even though is a good idea.

I think the debate was very well controlled by the girls, as well as the presentation itself. Very interesting topic we didn't know about.

Pre-Universitarios in Chile

September 9th, 08

Even though i missed this class, i know what the debate was about. This day Claudio, Marlene and Paula presented the topic of Pre-Universitarios in Chile and the question for the debate was whether we agree with the use of Pre-universitary courses or not.

The class was divided into "for" and "against" as usual and a lot of people said that they were very helpful with the PSU, which allows you to get into the Universities. Some other people said that we don't actually need this kind of Pre-universitarios because we have all the studies we need at school. We just don't study enough.


I think this is a very interesting topic and in my personaly opinion i don't think they help very much, because it is all in your own effort. You could save some money if you study on your own, you just need some routine or some guidance, that's all.

My presentation about if anyone could be a teacher.

September 2nd, 08

This day, Fernanda, Felipe and I presented our debate. First, we talked about two different realities where teachers are highly rewarded in terms of prestige and income; Finland and South Korea. Then, we talked about the reality in Chile, where we only have "Red de Maestros de maestros" to support teachers' training program. We (teachers) don't have enough resources for education and we don't get a high wage. In Chile there are some teachers that don't neccessarily required a degree in pedagogy to teach, they only required some knowledge in the specific area such as maths. Is a shame but in Chile anyone could teach, but to be a teacher you need passion and devotion for teaching, otherwise you would be teaching for obligation and you won't teach well.

Anyway, our presentation turned out to work well. My classmates participate in the debate and we did all right. There were some mistakes in the power point but i don't care really; those are just silly mistakes we didn't notice at time.

My result of The Test

Keirsey Temperament Sorter Test

This is a very interesting test which helps you to discover the personality type you are. There are 70 questions you have to answer honestly and after that you will get the description of your personality.

My personality type is Artesan.

Artisans have exceptionally keen senses, and love working with their hands. They seem right at home with tools, instruments, and vehicles of all kinds, and their actions are usually aimed at getting them where they want to go, and as quickly as possible.

This devil-may-care attitude also gives the Artisans a winning way with people, and they are often irresistibly charming with family, friends, and co-workers.

Artisans want to be where the action is; they seek out adventure and show a constant hunger for pleasure and stimulation. They believe that variety is the spice of life, and that doing things that aren't fun or exciting is a waste of time. Artisans are impulsive, adaptable, competitive, and believe the next throw of the dice will be the lucky one. They can also be generous to a fault, always ready to share with their friends from the bounty of life. Above all, Artisans need to be free to do what they wish, when they wish. They resist being tied or bound or confined or obligated; they would rather not wait, or save, or store, or live for tomorrow. In the Artisan view, today must be enjoyed, for tomorrow may never come.

I must say that at the beginning i didn't agree with my result but once i read the whole description i realized that there were some similarities with my personality. I am impulsive and I do live each day like there were no tomorrow. I live the Carpe Diem. I am also very competitive but generous as well.

I think this is a very interesting test to discover even more about yourself. Sometimes you just don't realize of some characteristics you have until somebody tells you about it.

Peace!

http://www.keirsey.com/sorter/register.aspx