Dr. Seuss

I have an obsession with Dr. Seuss. So many people think that he's just writing silly stories, but I think people often miss how much can be found in a Dr. Seuss tale. I mean there is originality with all the newly created language. Plus there is fantastic rhythm that can force you to repeat lines against your will. In addition, Dr. Seuss forces you to address prejudice. I mean just think about Green Eggs and Ham, he won't eat them just because they are not normal. And then Sam I am encourages him to see things from a different point of view.

When we talk to students about learning, especially in a non-traditional format, I sometimes think we are a little like Sam-- we have to go on and on about how great something is, but it really doesn't matter what kind of a song and dance we do. Until students are willing to try something for themselves, they will never know if they like Green Eggs and Ham or not.

Dr. Seuss encourages fun. His books are happy, although slightly didactic at times. Regardless, kids love them. I don't know why more adults don't go back to that mindset. If we have fun with learning, it's just that, more fun.

Pictures

I've decided that I want to attempt to post a picture to my blog. I think that would make it more interesting. I was told that it was easy to do, but I never paid enough attention to realize that it was just a matter of pushing the add image choice in the tool bar.

This fun knowledge of technology will make this project more interesting. At least I think so :)

So, does anyone care to guess where this is?

Ella Minnow Pea

A friend gave me this book by Mark Dunn for my birthday a couple of years ago, and I remember looking at the cover, (which my version has a picture of a minnow-- there are many different versions-- the economics of book publishing) and thinking what a strange name for a child. Then I read it aloud-- L-M-N-O-P-- now it has caught my attention. I sat down and read the book shortly after receiving it. I deemed it a clever little story. There is a town that exists as a tribute to a man who wrote a sentence that uses every letter in the alphabet. (There are several such sentences in the book to prove it is not as daring as a feat as initially assumed.) So, the town builds a statue to the man that has the sentence on it. Well, the statue is getting old, and some of the letters are falling off. So the town council decided that since the letters are falling off, that must be the town founder telling the people that they should no longer use those letters. So, as the town must quit using letters, so must the author, and the letters disappear from the text. Now the book becomes this linguistic challenge.

Upon first reading the book, I thought it was a fun play on words-- it gives a decent challenge. But now, as I revisit it, I can't help but wonder what else it might be saying. I think of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and how it stands against tradition. As educators, I don't think we can just stand against tradition as a means of being innovative. But, we should question edicts to find out why they exist. If I was told I couldn't use the letter q again, it might not be worth the fight (although I think the principle of it would make it so) but if I was told the letter a was off limits-- well, it just wouldn't work.

When we think about standards and expectations, I think it is more important to consider what they are standards off. What is the reason behind their existence? What is their purpose? We shouldn't just eliminate ideas because something symbolic happened. But, we shouldn't just exist based on the symbolic either.

Just some thoughts.

Tutoring

I'm interested in seeing the different student responses to tutoring. I work in a tutoring center, and I used to work for 2 different tutoring centers, and I've seen numerous different responses. Some students latch on to a tutor. They begin to feel that they cannot function on their own. Then a tutor has to sort of break a dependence because a tutee can't get tutored forever. Some students defend their intelligence. They are so defensive that they can't actually get any help. Others are so hostile that they too cannot receive help. And then there are ideal students. They know they have something intelligent to say but that they could improve. They try to learn something new each time they come so that eventually they will no longer need to see a tutor. This makes me wonder what the role of the tutor is. How does a tutor help a student see that seeking help is not necessarily a weakness? How does a tutor help a student get the most out of what they are learning without creating a dependence? I'm sure some of it has to do with personality and enabling, but I'm also sure that a tutoring center's mission statement has to play a part as well.

Some tutoring centers want their students to be dependent because they want the income generated from returning students. Other centers are free, so they want independent students so that they can serve as many people as possible.

I think it is important to work to help students become independent learners. If people are willing to try new things and willing to take risks, their work becomes much more interesting.

Writing in a Visual Age

This textbook sucks! I'm writing a review right now, and I keep trying to be objective about what I say, but the more time I spend with this book, the worse I think it is.

I think the concept behind the book is great. Students should use more visuals when they write. I think it would be great for students to use meaningful pictures to highlight their texts. I also think it would be great if more teachers would appreciate that. Really, the only thing a teacher would have to do would be to change page length requirements to word requirements-- and tell students to include pictures/charts and so on.

I really don't have an issue with the idea of the book; it's the execution. It has all these charts-- they are so busy that you don't know which things are important and it took me too long to figure out why the pages were colored the way they are. Also, the questions it asks are really leading. It doesn't ask students to think freely about something-- it guides them-- this isn't analysis-- it's barely a step above reading comprehension. Plus it's section divisions are useless. The first half of the book is just writing styles. All of the useful information about the visual is in the second half of the book, but the authors spent more time gathering information for the first half.

It's probably unprofessional to spout off like this about how annoying this book is. I'm sure there will be loads of instructors who use it and love it and think it is so innovative, but I find it really difficult to follow, and I think the creative aspect of it is extremely limited.

Harry Potter Rocks!

I got in my car at lunch today, and there was some guy on the radio talking about the evils of Harry Potter. He was ragging on parents who read Harry Potter with their kids, saying that he does things with his kids too, but that means that he doesn't let them do drugs, drink alcohol, or read Harry Potter. Since when does reading anything equate with letting an 8 year old do drugs or drink?????? The guy was trying to market anti-Potter crap to pass out for Halloween. I can't help but see the irony here-- How can you boycott Harry Potter (about witches and wizards) and support Halloween (again about witches and wizards). I'm just not sure.

I, as you can probably tell from my heading, am a big supporter of Harry Potter. I have read all of the books. I had my copy of book 6 reserved 3 months in advance, and I had it read within 4 days. And I was slow. I can't wait for the next movie to come out on November 18. I will make my husband go with me that weekend to see it. He already knows and is looking forward to this.

So, why do I like Harry Potter so much? For the same reason I chose to go into Children's Lit in the first place. There is so much to dissect and look at in children's fiction, and it is all frequently overlooked. People look at a children's book and they say-- oh it's a nice story about this or that. They don't evaluate it the same way they would evaluate an adult text. Although a text geared at children might use a simpler vocabulary or a simpler plot line, doesn't mean that there aren't other literary elements to the text. The Harry Potter series has complex characters who change and evolve. And it places characters in moral dilemmas that force them to think about more than just the obvious right and wrong. Although it is fantasy, it makes a statement about cultural criticism-- it creates a culture of its own-- and that culture is not a utopia-- it has ethics and civil situations. People can glean far more from the text than merely a good plot. I enjoy the novels, but the exciting plot is not the primary reason why.

Alright-- now that I've defended Harry Potter in this "public" place, maybe I can get some work done :)

James Berlin

James Berlin's text about reinventing English studies is making me think-- especially as so many schools want to discontinue basic writing. It's interesting to me, because at the university, I've met far more people who claim to be Marxist in thinking or at least democratic in thinking than anywhere else. And yet, it is often these same people that want to make sure that education remains a priviledge. We can't have anyone getting into university-- that would be wrong. No, we need to keep the gates closed to the university. We shouldn't let anyone in who won't be able to successfully complete what they set out to do. I mean I understand competitive programs. I also realize that it is unfair to flood the market with ill-qualified job candidates. I even understand the idea of supply and demand and wanting to be able to have more demand before there is too much supply, but I don't think that is Marxist or democratic thinking. I think that is capitalist thinking. I don't think all students enter the university equally, and I don't think they should all be placed in the same classes. I do think they should all have the same expectations. We can't lower standards for less qualified students, but I'm not sure we should shut them out either.

odd behavior

Today I was in the bathroom at the library-- and I couldn't wash my hands because their were two girls washing their feet. in the sink. I'm not sure why it's appropriate to wash your feet in the sink in the bathroom in the library. I'm also not sure why you would not let people wash their hands. but, this is Wayne State-- people do strange things.

Academic Responsibility

I can't help but wonder where the line is on academic responsibility. When does that responsibility cross over to civic responsibility. If a student doesn't want to do his/her homework that shouldn't matter to the instructor, right? But then, what does the instructor do if the student's homework involves other students. This semester I'm teaching a service learning course, so if my students don't do their homework and serve, they are cheating others out of something. Other people are counting on their work.

I don't think people feel very responsible these days. People just want to do what they want to do-- they don't care about what other people think. I also don't think it's the place of a composition class to teach cultural ettiquette. I know that I put a heavy weight on my students grades if they don't behave responsibly, but I don't want to have to do that.

I guess maybe that's the difference between college and jobs-- you can get fired for a bad work ethic-- in college, it just means you don't get an A.