I had a strange thing happen this morning, and the more I reflected upon the incident, the more I realized it happens all the time. Today is the day after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. I am currently talking about feudalism in Europe during the Middle Ages. In our district, Friday is a teacher in-service day, so the students are only in class for three days. I use this week to talk about the Civil Rights Movement and then talk about social inequality during the Middle Ages. A science teacher in my building noticed my daily agenda on the board and asked, "how do you justify talking about Civil Rights in an ancient history class?" This teacher was questioning (quite seriously) how I am linking my lesson to my curriculum. I answered his question with a question of my own, "did you discuss the earthquake in Haiti last week with your students, since you teach earth science?" This teacher replied that they are currently discussing erosion, so he is going to wait and talk about the earthquake when it "fits with his curriculum map". In a perfect world, students would study the scientific reasons and effects of earthquakes in science, while we discuss the socioeconomic impact in social studies, while they look at the math behind people displaced and distribution of wealth in math, and create a written reflection piece in English.
As the day has moved forward, this incident has worried me more and more. As a social studies teacher, everything is relevant to my curriculum. I talked about the earth quake in Haiti to remind students that building techniques, technology and the relationship of geography and civilization. In fact, I think it is fair to argue that the best way for me to relate the ancient civilizations to my students is to constantly use the world in which they live. After all, the point is to create students that understand why things happen and why society functions the way it does today is linked to societies of the past. Dr. King said it best, "Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly".
Further reflection led me to where this comment may have come from; as teachers we are often pressured by the administration, parents, government, etc to have specific goals and benchmarks for everything we teach in our classrooms. Teachers feel compelled to rely on standards and curriculum maps, ignoring anything that happens outside of their classroom door. This is dangerous. Students need time to discuss what is happening in their lives in a setting that is not the dinning room table or the lunchroom with their friends. None of my students had ever heard Dr. King's "I Have a Dream Speech". None of my students had ever heard of Emmett Till.
My point is that as teachers, take a risk!!! Talk about topics that effect your students directly. Go outside of your textbook and course guides to incorporate the real-world in your classroom. Even if it does not go with your curriculum. Life is more important than curriculum.
-Mike
As the day has moved forward, this incident has worried me more and more. As a social studies teacher, everything is relevant to my curriculum. I talked about the earth quake in Haiti to remind students that building techniques, technology and the relationship of geography and civilization. In fact, I think it is fair to argue that the best way for me to relate the ancient civilizations to my students is to constantly use the world in which they live. After all, the point is to create students that understand why things happen and why society functions the way it does today is linked to societies of the past. Dr. King said it best, "Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly".
Further reflection led me to where this comment may have come from; as teachers we are often pressured by the administration, parents, government, etc to have specific goals and benchmarks for everything we teach in our classrooms. Teachers feel compelled to rely on standards and curriculum maps, ignoring anything that happens outside of their classroom door. This is dangerous. Students need time to discuss what is happening in their lives in a setting that is not the dinning room table or the lunchroom with their friends. None of my students had ever heard Dr. King's "I Have a Dream Speech". None of my students had ever heard of Emmett Till.
My point is that as teachers, take a risk!!! Talk about topics that effect your students directly. Go outside of your textbook and course guides to incorporate the real-world in your classroom. Even if it does not go with your curriculum. Life is more important than curriculum.
-Mike
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