The reading we were told analyze for our first blog post was “The problem with common sense” by Kumashiro. The first question we were giving was “How does Kumashiro define common sense”? Reading through this article I gathered a few points on how common sense was defined. It was defined as something that is questioned if it is done differently than previously. For example, instead of the teacher using force and hitting the kids; words were used. This was questioned by the students, because it was not what they were used to; it was not “common sense”. It was also defined as clear ideas and objectives. It is explained how the students already has an idea of what teaching was supposed to look like and attempting anything different seemed to be outrageous and just did not make sense to them. For the final point of how common sense was defined I noticed that if you did not follow these norms you were judged and talked about like you were crazy; we saw this with the children talking to other teachers about Kumashiros’ teaching methods. All in all, Common sense was defined as something that takes place repeatedly until it becomes a norm, and once someone tried to change that norm it goes unnoticed with no questions asked about how it affects society.

 

Common sense is everywhere. It is used in schools, at your job, and in everyday life. It is important to notice common sense mainly so you don’t look “dumb” or “silly” in certain situations. Although sometimes you have to go out of that comfort zone like Kumashiro did in Nepal. Noticing common sense can be tricky when you have been following by certain rules your whole life. You might have to change the way you speak, dress, and approach people; all because of the area you are in. Paying attention to common sense is very important in some areas of life. Different places around the world have different morals and beliefs, so if you don’t pick up on these things you could be considered disrespectful or rude. You need to always be aware of your surroundings and sometimes change your own views to be respectful.

Some of my Goals going into my field experince include:

• Learn how to build strong relationships with students
• Learn how to respect all the childrens learning ablities
• Being able to listen to other teachers ideas
• Working with other teachers
• Leave the field experience with a good understanding about teaching and relationships

 

Some areas I grew in include:

• Going into the field I was nervous about the realtionships I would be able to build qwith the children, but by the end I was able to have a individual realtionship with every child.
• I was never a great public speaker, but I definalty got a lot better at being able to talk infront of a crowd.
• I have alwasy been a good listener and good at comprehending tasks, but after this field I beleive I have inproved in this aspect even more.
• Knowing which children need extra help has been harder for me, but I think i have a better understanding of how to tell when a child needs this help by watching the teacher interact with the children.
• I really think i have grow in the area of getting children to engage in tasks. Before i couldnt keep kids on tasks, but watching the teaceher i have a better understanding now and can think of different ways to engage children.