lara mentorship

For the final assignment of the year I will be reflecting upon this semester in my mentorship class. First and foremost I would like to say that my second period mentorship class is the best class I have ever been part of. No other placement could have been a better fit for me. This ESL class and this experience as a whole is something I will never forget. I have learned so much from every student and Mrs. DiTullio. They welcomed me into their class and allowed me to be who I am and feel comfortable. It makes me so sad knowing that these are my last couple of weeks with the class.

The students taught me so much about gratitude. Hearing all these students stories and backgrounds really made me appreciate how lucky I am to have been born in Canada. Some conditions the students were in before were heartbreaking but it warms my heart knowing they can all feel safe in this community that has welcomed them with open arms They taught me that there is so much more to a person than what we know. They taught me that every person is unique in their own way. Each student has such a kind heart that inspires me to be the best person I could possibly be. I owe a lot of what I learned this semester to these 10 wonderful students who have helped me see the world from a different better perspective. Mrs. DiTullio is also a big factor in the amount that I learned from this experience. She taught me that a challenge is nothing but a challenge that we can always overcome if at least try. Mrs. DiTullio deals with students who struggle to speak English every single day yet this is a challenge she overcomes every single day of her life for the education of the students. She is such a patient and forgiving human whom I admire very much. The most important lesson I have learned from her is that no matter what I'm going through I should always be who I am and not let anyone tell me otherwise.I have gained so much self love and confidence from this experience. Best of all I get to walk away from this experience with 11 new amazing friends.

The most surprising thing I have learned is how open these students are to learning. Even though some struggle with the language they were always so determine and always tried their absolute best. Another thing I noticed is that they struggled with answering questions they were being asked in class. It was frustrating at times but you still could feel the passion they had for learning. What I realized was that they understood the material and knew what was happening in the class but they were scared. They were scared of being wrong. I hope that these students can realize that it is okay to be wrong and making mistakes is how you learn in life. I hope I was able to help them in the class even in the slightest way possible.

Education from a student's view is much different than a teacher's view. I definitely think this experience has taught me that teachers deserve more credit they do for what they do for students. Most teachers work so hard to make sure the students are getting the absolute best education. Teachers can be so patient with students it's unbelieveable. Going through this experience i've noticed that it's okay to lose patience sometimes and that there is no such thing as the perfect teacher. Something else that I have observed is that students are not the only ones learning in the the classroom. Teachers are learning from the students the same way the students are learning from the teacher. Take me for an example, I learned so much from the students in my mentor class when I was supposed to go in there and help them learn. Life is a constant learning experience and the learning never stops. As an anonymous author stated, “never stop learning, because life never stops teaching.”

In terms of my career plans I am still very unsure about what I plan to do with my future. My placement in this class has made things slightly more clear. One thing that I am sure of is that no matter what I do in life I always want to be able to put my best efforts into making others happy and helping others when they need someone. Also, what I do know is that I would like to study within the field of law and social sciences.

The most important thing I learned from my mentor teacher is to be grateful for what I have in my life and not to take anything for granted. She taught me that to succeed in life you have to work hard. Nothing comes easy in life and working hard pays off in the long run. These are all lessons that I will keep with with me for the rest of my life.

Some advice I would give someone taking this course is not to let your fears stop you from doing your absolute best. Take advantage of the time you have in your placement. Don’t be afraid to become friends with the students. Those students are a big part of my life now and I do think of us all as friends. Each student has inspired me in a different way. Also, don’t be afraid to talk to your mentor teacher or ask her for help. Whether it is for other classes or mentorship assignments your teacher will be more than happy to help. Last but not least, have fun, work hard and put your best efforts into everything you do during this journey.

I am so glad I was recommended to take this course. It has helped me in so many ways. I have grown not only as a student but also as an individual. I would recommend this course to anyone and if I could take it again I would. At first I thought mentoring an ESL class would be difficult, turns out all you need is patience and an open mind. The biggest lesson I am taking out of all of this is that every student has the ability to learn no matter the circumstances, we just all learn at our own pace. Like George Evans said, “ Every student can learn, just on the same day or in the same way.”

This weeks blog topic is whether exams are necessary in high school or not. I believe that they are necessary to a certain extent. It used to be that anyone with an 80 average did not have to do the final exams. That system I agree with. I believe that if you have a grade above average then it is completely unnecessary to write the exam. Not everyone is good at tests and the exam counts for a lot of our final grade. Those who don't need the extra chance to improve their mark should not have to right the final exam. This way anyone who wishes to do the exam will and those who don't need it aren't bothered by it

Another reason I believe exams are unecessary is because I think that putting an entire semester into one test is very unreasonable and it sets very unrealistic expectations for students. For most, it is already difficult enough to write tests unit by unit. To mix in an entire semester which is 5 months long is even harder. What comes with all these expectations is stress. Students stress level go much higher around exam time. Students spend hours and hours studying. We study, lose sleep and stress over an exam that I don't believe will benefit us in the end. With already so many things to worry about near the end of the semester, the exams definately add on too much unnecessary stress. By the end of the semester teachers are rushing to finish lessons, projects and tests. To balance all that plus having to right exam reviews is a lot to handle.

Also, I believe that students don't actually learn much from writing an exam. Student's last minute try to memorize all the information for the exam. Nobody will learn anything through memorization. There must be a significant amount of understanding in order to succeed in school and no student will have any understanding if they memorize everything. I think that instead of exams students could write more assignments during the year or make the final project worth more. By writing assignments or projects they require research and through research students do the most learning. We learn through what we read and what we research. Personally I believe that I learn the most during my written assignments as oppose to the tests or exams.

Finally, I do not think it is fair to judge a student's intelligence from an exam. From personal experience, I know that a test does not reflect a single bit of my intelligence. I know that I am a fairly intelligent person but I do not test well. It is very discouraging receiving test after test with disappointing grades knowing that the mark will define my final mark. As a student it is hard not think that a teacher judges you based off of your marks. I found a quote that says, “Exams and grades are temporary but education is permanent.” (anonymous) I completely agree with this quote which is why I believe exams are unnecessary. I believe that there is more to a person's intelligence than how well they do on an exam. I spoke to Mrs. DiTullio about the subject and though she does have a different perspective than me I respect her opinion that exams are necessary and I understand her point of view.

All in all, I do not think exams are necessary in all circumstances because they are causing more negative effects than positive.

This week I found some activities and stories about the history of christmas for the students in my class. I chose to do the history of christmas because the students are new to Canada so I thought it would be cool for them to learn about some history and traditions. There are many things that are different for the students between where they used to live to how things are here in Canada. I chose a story about the origin of the christmas tree which included some questions to get the students thinking and understanding the text given. Another worksheet I gave was about the story of Saint Nick and how he came to be known as Santa Claus. The last worksheet was just for fun for the students. As we are nearing christmas break this last week has been very stressful for all the students and I thought it would be a good idea to have an activity that they would enjoy. Since they are in an ESL class their entire curriculum is based off of learning the language and strengthening their vocabulary and knowledge of the language. This activity will help the students with their writing skills, reading skills and will further expand their knowledge in this wonderful holiday.

This weeks blog is about behaviour. In my class I chose to use the reinforcement theory on one of my students, Joe. The reinforcement theory suggests that people with good behaviour should be rewarded and people with bad behaviour do not get rewarded at all. The student may also receive a negative reaction. I chose a student in the classroom that does not always have the best behaviour in class. I personally believe that that this theory is one of the most effective to getting good behaviour from students. When students see positive results when effort is put in.

This student does not necessarily have terrible behaviour, but there are times in class when he does not participate or refuses instruction. It is not necessarily a daily occurrence, but it does happen often enough. There have been many times in the class when we would have to encourage him time and time again to do the classwork and put any effort into it. I believe by placing this behaviour theory in the classroom it will help the students improve and make the overall environment better. Using the behaviour theory I have begun to see fair changes in the student's behaviour. When one student notices others getting good marks and good comments from working hard and putting effort they realize that need to start to change. Whenever other students participate and engage in the class the teacher will encourage that and give very positive comments. When students don't participate they are not rewarded with positive comments. The are told that what they are doing is wrong and they need to improve. Many students wish to hear positive comments about them from their teacher. Seeing other students get these comments with help motivate them to do better.

I speak from personal experience. I used to be that student in the classroom that did not participate and did minimal work. At some point you realize how awful it feels to only be seen in a negative way in the classroom. I used to get so embarrassed and shamed when a teacher would call on me to answer a question and I wouldn't respond. Hearing all the nice comments that the other students were getting motivated me to want to participate and get better marks. This has done nothing but benefit me in the long run. I have been able to come out of my comfort zone little by little and I have seen a significant difference with my marks.

Every class I notice this student consistently improve. He participates more and more and his mark is changing reflecting the new effort he has been putting into school work. There will always be challenges in the classroom like this but the most important thing is know how to come back from these setbacks and move forward to improve. I am so proud to say that I was placed in a classroom with such amazing students with minimal negative behaviour. This student continues to put himself out there and work harder in the classroom.

The next part of the blog this week is about the curriculum and how people are marked. One current curriculum states that students marks should be assessed separately from their learning skills. I think that students academic marks should be separated. I do not think it is fair to mark someone based on attendance, submitting work on time or completion of homework. You can be a very intelligent person but have a bad work ethic. A bad work ethic i believe does not change your intelligence and it should not affect your overall mark. Some students miss a lot of school for reasons that can not be controlled. Something like that would not have a say in a student's academic marks.

I think there is one main negative in this. Students will take advantage of the fact that they can still get a high mark and only put minimal effort. Most students will see this and take it as an opportunity to not do much work. I do believe that this can be avoided by setting limits between teachers and students so some things won't end up consistent repeated problems.

Also speaking from experience, I have trouble submitting work on time, getting to school on time and many other things that have no say with my academics. Even though there are times I hand assignments in late it does not make the effort or the quality of my work any less proper. It can be handed in a day late or on time and it should still be marked the same way. When and how the assignment is being handed in should not play a role in the overall mark. As students get older they start to develop more and more responsibilities. It becomes a very hard task to do all schoolwork for a certain time and at some points in the year it gets harder for students to get to school on time. For example in the winter it is much harder for students to get to school. The school depends on the public transit system to get all the student to school on time, which I think is absolutely ridiculous. Public transportation does not care about the student getting to school on time and there have been many times where an OC transpo bus has passed right by me and made me late to school. The school is relying on a system that transports thousands of people every day. Students rarely get sympathy from teachers for lates when 70% of the time it is not the students fault. I do not believe that me being late to school affects my academics. Students have multiple responsibilities and it is hard most of the time to balance everything. With a job, school, family and extracurricular activities the students can get overwhelmed very quickly. I am an honour roll student with good grades in my classes, who is not that great with time management. None of this changes my intelligence and it definitely should not affect how well I do in school.

To conclude I believe that learning skills should be separated from marks for all the reasons stated above and more. Work ethic and time management are definitely important to succeed in life but it should not define how a student does in school. Everything has negative aspects to it but here is no problem we can not overcome. No system will ever be perfect but in my opinion this is the better one.

This weeks blog topic is how I deal with challenging personalities in the classroom. My approach to dealing with challenging personalities in the classroom is to try to change the way I act and teach with the students. There are only eight students in the classroom so it is not very difficult to adapt to so many personalities. Every student is unique and many students have different personalities. Though i have yet to deal with any difficult personalities in the classroom, I believe I have an idea of how I would deal with them. I think there are many ways to deal with difficult personalities. Some ways are: setting specific rules in the classroom, remaining calm in all situations, use positive tones, allow the student to understand that their behaviour is unacceptable, reward good behavior and never letting a student think that you think any less of them.

To start off I will talk about using specific rules in the classroom. Every classroom should have a standard set of rules so the students know the expectations for their behaviour. If the students don't have any expectations or rules set they will act how they like and not fear consequences. Some standard rules could include: being respectful in class and listening when someone else is talking. If the student does not follow these rules then the teacher can move on to other methods.

Next, I think that a teacher should always try to stay calm in the classroom. If the teacher gets very angry and starts to show it, it will not work out for them with the students. Students’ behaviour reflects how the teachers behaviours in class as well. The teacher is a role model for students in the class. Teachers should be teaching students how to be rational when it comes to their emotions. With this a teacher must also be positive. Positive teacher leads to a positive classroom. Students must be in a positive environment in order for them to be motivated to have good behaviour in the classroom.

Another point is to make sure the student understands that their behaviour is unacceptable. In this case actions do not speak louder than words. Not only does the student need to understand that what they are doing is wrong, they also need to know how they can make things better. There will be now improvement in behaviour if the student does not fully understand that what they are doing is right and how to change it into something positive. As well, the student must also understand the consequences of their actions. Every bad action has a consequence. One very important point to remember within all of this is to speak to the student privately. Studies at UC Berkeley show that a student is more comfortable in the classroom when they are not being ridiculed for their actions. Always speak to a student privately while discussing their behaviour. This will instill trust between the teacher and the student.

The last point is to reward good behavior and never let a student believe that they are seen any different because of how they act. A student needs motivation in order to improve behaviour. Once a student sees that there is something positive coming out of good behaviour they will start to change how they act and how they treat others in the classroom.

Mrs. DiTullio and I discussed this topic and we both believe that there is a way of dealing with all sorts of personalities in the classrooms. Though she does have different ideas and opinions than me we both think there is always a pay to appeal to students. With these reasons and more, this is how I would deal difficult personalities in the classroom. All students deserve a chance to improve, we just have to be willing to give them that chance.

For this weeks blog post I will be reflecting on a quote. The quote is: “We learn 10% of what we read, 20% of what we hear, 30% of what we see, 50% of what we see and hear, 70% of what is discussed with others, 80% of what we experience personally and 95% of what we teach someone else.” -William Glasser (Glasser, as cited in Glenn, 1999) I agree with this quote from William Glasser. I think this quote completely describes how students learn and how teachers teach as well. Through teaching others we learn from our own mistakes. Two brains is always better to work with, depending on the type of learner you are.

Being a mentorship student, I assist students with anything they might need within the classroom. I am in a ‘esl’ class, which stands for english as a second language. While teaching them in the classroom, I have learned an incredible amount myself. My knowledge and my vocabulary grows every single day through teaching them. The students ultimately learn from me, but at the same time, I am also learning from them. Also, the quote shows that students learn in various ways. There is no one specific way which is correct to learn. Every form of learning, in my opinion, is just as effective and justifiable as any other form, as it really all depends on how each individual learns best. An effective teacher will use all of the methods listed in the quote in order to allow students to reach their full potential. By using all of these teaching strategies, teachers are also gaining knowledge and strengthening their abilities when it comes to methods of teaching. There are no limitations to our learning abilities and to the expansion of our knowledge on learning strategies. As a tutor in the classroom, I try to do my best to teach the students in all sorts of different ways in hopes of appealing to as many students’ learning habits as possible. I have found that it helps the students even more when they try to assist each other, as they grow more familiar with the material when they try teaching it to someone else themselves.

I would adjust my learning styles based on each student in the classroom. In my class, I mainly work one on one with the students. Each student, and there are only 8 of them, have different learning capabilities. Some students are visual learners, so I help them by using pictures and posters, while others are more independent learners. In that case, I allow them to work mostly on their own while still keeping up with any questions they may have about the material. Every student is unique, and with every student I come across, I feel the need to adjust the way I teach them in order to meet their studious needs. My goal as a mentorship student is to make sure that all of my students reach their full potential within the classroom. They will not be able to reach this potential if I’m not flexible when it comes to the way I teach. Being a student myself, I completely understand how hard it is to learn from a teaching style that I am not comfortable with. It makes learning in the classroom that much more difficult, especially if it was a subject that I found difficult or more challenging. It can be difficult for a teacher to appeal to every student, but showing some sort of effort to do so is enough for a student to feel more motivated in the classroom. Every student should feel like they are truly learning and advancing in their class, and that their teacher cares to take part in their advancements as well.

I believe that some teachers struggle with finding more than one way to teach. Some teachers are comfortable with adapting to something new and others are not. In my experience in the classroom as a tutor and as a student, I have realized that teachers depend more on having the students adapt to the teacher rather than the teacher trying something new. I think that some teachers don't completely understand the lengths some students go to to try and do well in the classroom and not be able to reach their fullest potential. Students rely on their teacher for guidance to aid them in succeeding as a student and further on in the future. At eacher can leave a life lasting mark on students life. We just need to make sure it's a positive influence rather than negative because what a student sees in a classroom they may bring with them in the workplace later on. I intend to try to teach the students with all the effort I can give and do my absolute best to see each one of them succeed this semester and further on in their lives. If it takes a little sacrifice of time or anything on my side, it's worth it to see that I was able to help someone's else.

This weeks assignment is to list and explain 5 traits that would make an excellent teacher in today's society. These are the five traits that I think make a great teacher.

Patience

I believe that a teacher must have lots of patience to keep a class in order and to keep students happy. A teacher must be patient with all students and be able to take time to understand that all students have different learning abilities. A teacher must be willing to take time to help students with different abilities. Whilst being patient the teacher must be adaptable as well. The teacher must adapt to all the abilities and be willing to change lessons or activities to help the students.

Caring/Compassionate

A good teacher must also be caring and compassionate towards their students. They must be able to go that extra mile to make sure every student will succeed in one way or another. A teacher must get to know their student and learn their interests and personalities. They must get to know the students because if there is no relationship between the students and teacher then the two being in the class together for an entire year would be very difficult. A teacher must also be able to notice when students need some extra time or help. All students have problems outside of school and teachers must be compassionate and kind enough to help the students and have school be a more positive place so the students can come be more motivated to come to school.

Dedicated

A teacher must be dedicated to what they are doing. There must be a passion and a dedication or else nobody would be happy inside the classroom. Showing up every day with a smile on the teacher's face and engaging in the lesson and showing a true love for what you're doing can really change a student's day. A teacher with lots of dedication will know how to constantly improve their classroom for the better of their students.

Determined

With determination a teacher can accomplish so much in a classroom. Teachers must be willing to do as much possible to ensure all the students will be receiving the education they all deserve. With enough determination we can accomplish anything we set our minds too. If the students recognize the determination coming from the teacher then that will influence the students and teach them that with determination they can do anything.

Inspirational

The last trait that I believe makes a good teacher is to be inspirational. As much as a teacher can inspire their students the better. By using and showing all the traits above teachers are inspiring the students to be better every day. We don't go to school solely to learn facts and subjects. We also go to school to learn more about life and ourselves. Children need to be taught more than just school, children need to learn communication skills and social skills. The teacher need to make students believe in something bigger than school. They need to be inspired to go back every single day and get a proper education.

Miss. DiTullio and I discussed these traits and we both believe that these five traits will help a teacher in the classroom and it will allow students to feel more welcome to go to school everyday. The biggest thing when it comes to students is make sure they are happy and motivated to go to school. If they aren't they wont think that getting an education is a priority.

I have learned multiple things about myself during this week's assignment. I have discovered many new traits and characteristics and have come to many conclusions about the truth behind who I am. In the human resources quadrants theory I realized that I fit into two quadrants. Quadrant number one which is analytic and quadrant number four which is amiable. In quadrant number one the person is generally fact based, makes slow decisions, is calm and dislikes being rushed. I think I fit fairly well into those characteristics. Some of these characteristics are: trusting facts and statistics, needing lots of time to make a decision and is most frustrated by those who make emotional decisions. I think those are the three characteristics that apply to me most because while making a decision I always need multiple opinions and will never be able to come to a conclusion on my own. The fourth quadrant is amiable, some characteristics I relate to are: needing lots of time to make decisions, avoiding using power and is supportive and cooperative. I am for the most part a very cooperative and supportive person and always try my best to make sure other are happy. I believe that I have characteristics in both quadrants and they both appeal to my personality.

Another part of personality is whether a person is an extrovert or an introvert. I believe i am an introvert. I have been my entire life. Some characteristics of an introvert are: being calm, reserved, measured, talking less and listening more and like time spent alone. I really enjoy my privacy and am not very social. I am shy around strangers and it takes me a very long time to trust others. I have always kept to myself and have had a really anxious and nervous personality. Hopefully, one day i'll be able to break out of my introvert fade and become more of an extrovert. I personally believe that being an introvert has set me back a lot of time in my life but I don't dislike it about me.

There is also sensing versus intuitive. I believe I am a mix of both. I am part of the 65 percent of people that speaks in a direct straightforward way. I like to make sure I get my point across with whoever I am talking to. When I am talking I use both metaphors and synonyms as well as facts and real life examples. I don't put a limit on the way I speak or write. I like to explore all different ways of speech and writing. For the reading aspect I am more of an intuitive. I love to read and I will read any type of book given to me. The type of books I most prefer are fiction books. I find more interest in them and I am very fascinated by the different imaginary worlds we can enter. Another part I see myself as intuitive is how I am always looking into the future and remember nothing about my past. I am always trying to look ahead into the future and plan my life early on. For the listening aspect I am a censor. I am more of a listener than a talker. In any conversation I have I will always be the one doing most of the listening. I like to listen to what people have to say so I can understand the person better and help them in any way I can. The last aspect that best fits my personality is about jobs. In this case, would be a sensor. I believe in practical jobs and don't enjoy doing things that involve creativity. I don't believe I am a very creative person and would rather be doing something practical and organized.

The next topic is thinking versus feeling. As well, I believe I fit on both sides. I think that I come off as a sensitive, friendly and gentle with others. I am a very emotional person. I enjoy small talk, avoid conflict at all costs and tend to keep to myself in certain situations. On the other hand I am also a thinker. I like to look at life in a realistic sense and I base my opinions and knowledge off of straight facts. One other way that makes me a thinker is that I love to argue. I love debates, discussions and anything that allows me to get my point and opinion across in a civil way.

The last topic I learned about in the lesson is judging versus perceiving. For this topic I believe I am mostly a perceiver. A perceiver is casual, playful, unconventional and tentative. I am the type of person to put off any decision until the last minute possible. I am indecisive and can never make a decision without the help of someone else. I procrastinate all my work and leave everything until last minute. I am very messy but love to be organized. I don't mind a mess as long as it doesn't last for too long. The Myers-Briggs personality test states that my type is “INTJ” which states, “ Usually have original minds and great drive for their own ideas and purposes. In fields that appeal to them, they have a fine power to organize a job and carry it through with or without help. Skeptical, critical, independent, determined, sometimes stubborn. Must learn to yield less important points in order to win the most important. In my opinion, these statements and topics define me really well.

All these things affect my learning in one way or another. Some positively and some negatively. Me being the type of person to procrastinate almost everything is not a trait that helps me excel in school. On the other hand, me being a hard worker and always striving for success helps me accomplish more things with more effort. It allows me to push myself to the best of my ability. Though there are many negatives and many positives to my personality and who I am, every trait and every characteristic is a sense of who I am as a person. I also use these traits to better understand others. Though I do believe that before you can go and begin to understand others you need a firm grip on who you are a person first.Nothing can ever stop me from showing my fullest potential through all these traits. I will continue to make all the negative aspects into positive ones one way or another.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFnMTHhKdkw ;

I will be describing this video in one word. Feel free to give it a watch! 

Describing word: UPLIFTING 

I agree with the statement that all students should have to complete 40 hours of community service in order to receive their Ontario Secondary School Diploma. There are many reasons as to why completing 40 hours of community service is beneficial to high school students. Several reasons are that students can gain experience in the workplace, it is a way for students to give back to their communities, more experience looks better on a resume and it allows students to begin to learn how to manage time between work and school.

Students can gain a tremendous amount of experience through community service. Through community service they would be helping different charities, organizations and churches. There are many different opportunities for students. They can learn many things such as leadership skills, social skills, responsibility and also many skills that the student may not be aware of. While volunteering students will be working with many different people. In social situations like these people need to be able to know how to react in certain situations with different types of people. Also, it is very important to learn responsibility. They will learn how to communicate with people and solve problems without letting anyone get angry.

Another reason is that students can give back to their community while gaining experience. It allows students to have a sense of gratitude and thanks for their community. Everyone at some point wants to make a difference whether it's a big one or a little one. It also helps strengthen a community. Students have a chance help and support families, improve schools, help and support youth and help out by making the community clean. An article I found on CNN states that we are now paying more tax than our basic necessities. Lots of the money we put into paying tax is used for schools and to allow children to go to school for free. The least students can do for the community and citizens is help out and let the community know we appreciate what they do for us.

Also, the more experience a student has the better their resume will be. To apply to a job you need a lot of experience to be chosen. If you have no experience then it will be harder to get employed. Jobs are looking for people with experience with customers, coworkers and all people in general. With professional experience in multiple areas it makes it easier for some students to chose their paths for the future. Some skills employers look for on a resume are problem solving, teamwork and the ability to follow instructions.

Lastly, as we get older and school gets harder, the workload gets much heavier. Being able to learn how to manage your school life with your outside life is a very important skill to have. Miss.DiTullio and I both agree that the 40 hours of community service should be mandatory. We also think that the school should be giving the students more opportunities to earn all 40 hours.

For this blog entry I will be discussing how I believe physical education should not be mandatory for all high school students. I don't think physical education should be mandatory because physical education should be something people chose to do, as opposed to it being forced upon someone. Though some people need that extra push to get active, they should be doing it because they wish to not because someone is forcing them to. Furthermore, I do not think it is fair for students to be marked in a class like physical education. Physical education has to do with personal goals and making yourself better with each physical activity you do, which is something that can’t be truly and accurately depicted through a percentage mark on a report card. I also don't think students should be marked and criticized on something like this because not everybody is in the same shape. As humans, we physically excel and push our limits in different ways based on our different and unique bodies. Some people may also have insecurities with their bodies and how they chose to be active. Not all students have the same physical abilities as each other, which is why they cannot all be marked for physical activity under the one same curriculum. If the student is not athletically inclined, they will feel ashamed and will have no motivation to participate with the class. Getting a bad mark in the class due to personal fitness can really put a dent in some people's confidence and they can become very insecure about themselves. Another thing is that once you reach grade 11 and 12, getting an extra course is pretty hard. Grade 11 and 12 is when we get to chose a variety of our classes because we are preparing for university. If physical education were to be mandatory, that is one class space we are eliminating, just in order to take physical education which will not necessarily benefit our future’s academically. Students should have the freedom of choosing which classes they wish to take part in. Physical education is not the only source of exercise a student will have. There are many other interactive ways to stay healthy outside of school, such as eating right, playing sports, and investing in gym memberships if they wish to do so. Another point is that if all students must participate in physical education, there is more risk of injury put upon these students. Sports, fitness and all physical activity can lead to injury. A study called the “Canadian Community Health Survey” found that only 8 percent of kids and teenagers are obese and 18 percent are overweight. Unlike several other countries, that is actually a very small percentage. This means that there isn’t a real, serious need for mandatory physical education. The other 18 percent may chose not to be active or it could just be a health issue. Everyone should have control over what they do with their bodies, in my personal opinion. Miss. DiTullio and I both agree that academics should be the student's priority at school and that there are many other ways for students to keep active outside of school.

This week's entry topic is equity. Equity is when there is a mutual respect between the teacher and the student. The teacher listens to the needs of the students and feel good about lessons taught in classroom. The students must be engaged and participate in class. One way I believe we can promote equity is by having the teacher try to understand their students. When students notice that teacher is truly making an effort to understand and know the students they show respect to to him/her and may lead to lasting friendships after high school. The more the teacher knows about the student and the more the student knows about the teacher the more comfortable they will be in the classroom. Another way to promote equity in the classroom is to make sure the students aren't afraid to fail. If every student has a fear of failure then the classes environment will not be comfortable for them. Teachers must make their students comfortable with participating and answering questions even though they may not always be right. The most important thing that a student needs to know is that we must learn from our mistakes, not hide from them. Another way to promote equity is to have students embrace their culture. In her recent book, Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain, Zaretta Hammond states that: "Culture, it turns out, is the way every brain makes sense of the world." If students embrace their culture they can use it to their advantage in the classroom in order to excel. Another way to promote equity is by making lessons interesting to the students in specific. We are now in the era of technology and that is ultimately what this generation is all about. If teachers continue to teach lessons in ways that bore students, then they will never want to engage themselves in what’s going on in the class. If the teacher finds new ways of teaching and goes out of their way to scope out interesting topics, the students will surely be more excited to learn and will look forward to class time. Finally, I believe that the student should look forward to going to class. The students need to feel comfortable and excited to go to class. This comes from how the teacher treats the students. Teachers should be positive and open to new ways of teaching. Also, the same respect teachers expect from students is expected from teachers. Students are much less likely to show respect to a teacher if the student is not also respected. Miss. DiTullio and I were discussing the topic of equity in the classroom and we both agree that without it, students would have no motivation in the classroom and education would not be a priority for students.

Thursday, September 8 2016

Lara Naim

Hello Miss. DiTullio,

My name is Lara Naim and I am a grade eleven student here at St. Pius X High School. I have been at St. Pius for the past three years and every year gets better than the previous one. I have been looking forward to being a part of the mentorship program all summer long. When I was told that I had the chance to chose the class I would be in, I immediately knew that I would chose your ESL class. English is my favourite subject, but it has never been the easiest for me. I grew up in a home where English was not our first language as I grew up speaking Arabic and didn't actually start learning English until I began junior kindergarten. I was never an ESL student, but I understand how hard it can be to adapt to a new language. I want to be able to bring my skills that I have acquired through experience into the classroom and help to make your students enjoy the english language and enjoy learning it.

I have not been as involved in the school as I would like to be, but last year I was a peer helper which served as a great experience for me. I thoroughly enjoyed helping the new students and showing them around the school, mainly because I knew what it was like to be in grade 9 and be new to a school. I have been to five different schools in my life, so I understand what it’s like to be new somewhere and it isn't always the most comfortable situation to be in. I recently got a job at a restaurant named Colonnade Pizza. It is a family run business and is owned by my uncle. I have been there for five months now and it has served as a helpful learning experience for me. My dad and my uncle are opening another branch of Colonnade Pizza and I will be working there when it opens. My experience at my uncle's restaurant has taught me a great deal of lessons and has prepared me for what is to come next for my family. One of my biggest academic accomplishments took place last year. Grade nine was a tough year for me academically. I finished with a final average of 79.5 and I was very disappointed with the outcome of my effort. My sole goal for grade ten was to make the honour roll and redeem myself from my grade 9 year. I worked tirelessly all year and ended up surprising myself, my parents and even my teachers with the extent that my marks had progressed. I ended the year with an average of 86.5 and have never been more proud of myself. I plan to do the same in my last two years of high school and work hard in anything and everything I do, because nothing has payed off more for me in my life. Something I also thought I should touch on is that I love to travel. My favourite place to travel to is Lebanon. Lebanon is by far my favourite place to be simply because of the friendly, loving atmosphere that comes with vacationing there. A few other places that I have been to are Halifax, Toronto, Kingston, Montreal and Ohio. With each place that I’ve visited came endless memories and stories that I’ll always have with me to tell. The next place on my travel bucket list is New York City. There’s something about the reputation that New York holds that sparks a certain wanderlust in me that I just can’t shake. In the future, I aspire to be studying in a university, although I’m not sure which universities I’m interested in yet. I am not quite certain what profession I would like to take on in the future. With that being said, I do know that I love to help people and that my strongest and favourite subject in high school is English. Hopefully after school I will be able to travel a lot more.

Finally, I would like to touch on the skills that I can bring into the classroom while being a part of the mentorship program. I am very good with people. I always try my best to be as attentive as possible and to provide as much help as I can to those who need it. I am very patient with others, I am open to many new ideas and I am able to stay calm in stressful situations. Although, I do know that this mentorship experience will allow me to broaden my range of skills and expand my abilities that I have already acquired.

So far, I am having an incredible time in your class and am getting along with all of the students. I am so grateful for this opportunity to learn, to interact with others, to be creative in a classroom environment that is not my own and to make some new friends in the process.

This week I found some activities and stories about the history of christmas for the students in my class. I chose to do the history of christmas because the students are new to Canada so I thought it would be cool for them to learn about some history and traditions. There are many things that are different for the students between where they used to live to how things are here in Canada. I chose a story about the origin of the christmas tree which included some questions to get the students thinking and understanding the text given. Another worksheet I gave was about the story of Saint Nick and how he came to be known as Santa Claus. The last worksheet was just for fun for the students. As we are nearing christmas break this last week has been very stressful for all the students and I thought it would be a good idea to have an activity that they would enjoy. Since they are in an ESL class their entire curriculum is based off of learning the language and strengthening their vocabulary and knowledge of the language. This activity will help the students with their writing skills, reading skills and will further expand their knowledge in this wonderful holiday.