CEDO 520 Musings #2

As this year has come to a close, my reflection on the year has left me in a state of melancholy. When I was hired, I was told that grades would not be a motivating factor for my students to do quality work, or even to do work at all. Being the optimist, I thought that my passion for literature would magically transfer to my students, and that they would willingly immerse themselves into their studies. Unfortunately, the administration's sage advice proved prophetic, and I feel that I have failed my students. Never before had I seen students so willing to fail my class because they didn't want to submit missing assignments. Even when counseled that a submission of a sheet of paper with a name and some meaningless drivel would suffice and allow them to pass the class, many opted to repeat 18 weeks of hell. Obviously, expectations of my impact on students' achievement, as well as students' attitudes as a whole fell well short of the desired outcome.
I did not become a teacher to give up on my students, even when they have given up on themselves. After talking with one of my colleagues that shares the responsibility with the lower achieving students, we have concluded that a change of philosophy is needed for our students to be successful. Although it may be disappointing, we can no longer expect students to empathize with the ethical battle faced by Huckleberry Finn, nor be amused by the misanthropic nature of Holden Caufield. The words on the pages of our beloved novels currently hold no meaning for our students, but that is where technology can help. Everything that I am learning in this program will be evaluated as a possible tool to get students excited about learning. There is one thing that I have found does interest my students, and that one thing is technology. Now it is essential that I find and develop the technological tools that will help the unmotivated become motivated.
I think that a good starting point will be the introduction of Noodle tools and Google alerts. I was amazed at the response of my students this year when I had them create a Google docs account. Students who hadn't submitted anything to that point were the first to complete that assignment. Part of the problem lies in the fact that somewhere along the line the blueprint on how to be successful in school was misplaced or never fully understood by my students. Noodle tools will be a great starting point to help reestablish or create a blueprint for success in my classroom, and hopefully give students tools that will serve them for a lifetime. Google alerts allows students to be weened off their apathetic habits by having the information come to them. With the information coming to my students, I can then focus my attention on how to help students decipher the information received, and to ultimately use this information in an effective manner. By introducing Noodle tools and Google alerts in the beginning of the year, I think that my students will have a better chance of being successful in the classroom and in their lives outside of school.