Blog #6, March 10, 2011, Mary Kay Ward
Roles this week are Creative Connector and Literary Luminator

Beginning on page 206, M. Gurian starts with one of the most controversial innovations in all of the middle school configurations - Single Sex Education.  This is an issue that is very near and dear to my heart for many reasons; mainly because I do have a daughter who goes to an all girls school and this is her third year attending this school.  She is currently a freshman.  Secondly, I teach middle school in a public arena and I see what goes on everyday between males and females.  On page 208, M. Gurian makes a statement in regards to single sex education at any level can solve many problems at all levels, but so many of the learning and discipline problems can be curtailed at the middle school level if single sex options were utilized.  I strongly agree with statement because my daughter was in a co-ed school from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade and has many problems with both learning and discipline.  Since she has been in a single sex school environmnent, she has florish not only academically but also there have not been any discipline problems.  She has found her niche and really enjoys going to school every day and being herself.

In another section of this chapter, beginning on page 218, the idea of school uniforms are discussed.  I feel this issue dovetails the issue above with single sex schools and education.  Again, I can relate to this issue because of my daughter.  She has to wear a uniform to school everyday and life is so much more simplier.  There is never a fight between the two of us about what she has on and how she looks when she goes out the door every morning.  She gets the chance to accessorize her uniform her with her purse, her shoes, socks, stockings hair ties, etc. that do not detract from the real reason she goes to school every day - to learn and be the best she can be.  Being a middle school teacher in a public school I get see what clothes the girls are wearing and I have to question where are the parents of these girls when they leave for school every morning.  On many occassions, I have to call girls to the back of the classroom and ask them to "put the girls away" by zipping up their sweatshirts and going to get a jacket out of their locker in order to cover up.  This type of dress is definitely a hugh distraction to the boys in the middle school and if everyone had to dress alike or similar would take the focus off of the sexes and put towards what is most important - learning and education.  On page 209, M. Gurian makes the statement "It is useful to remember that our present culture, especially through media imagery, forces early mating, romance and sexualization on children."  I can't agree more because these middle schools kids are still children with so much ahead of them.

Another part of this chapter that I can relate to is Bonding and Attachment in the middle school.  Our students need to feel a sense of belonging and need to have a soft place to fall.  On page 223, M. Gurian says to a great extent the child's emotional well-being is a foundation of good daily learning and our students well being is a large part of their self-esteem and figuring out who they really are and what they are all about.  One of the bullets on this page speaks of overreacting to a small problem that becomes a major production - making a mountain out of a mole hill.  With some many upheavals in the lives in our students, such as divorces, mothers gone, fathers gone and other support systems shattered, teachers are sometimes the most stable part of these kids on a daily basis.  On way to build self-esteem in our classrooms, is to call on each and every student everyday so that no one feels left out.

Literary Luninator

On page 208, under"The Logic of Single-Sex Opitons in Middle Schools", the sentence "In all settings, children going though cognitive and physical trransformations are likely to pick extreme behaviors "
from eating disorders and violent behavior to simple behaviors that affect learning such as not raising their hand, or blurting out the answers,dominating class discussion and being the class clown just to get attention that they are so hungry for.  I see these behaviors every day in classroom, usually from the same students and  now I have a better understanding why some of these behaviors are happening.

On page 221, Single-Teacher Emphasis is something I had not really given much consideration to until I read about this.  Research suggests greater learning takes place with the presence of one teacher for the whole day and other teachers coming in and out of the classroom to teach specials.  Many schools  use the one-class-every-hour method, in which students change  classes every 45-60 minutes, my school included.  I can see where a  stronger teacher-student bond can develop and the teacher can become a mentor to the struggling child and help nuture the whole child.  It is much harder to get  to know the student when you only have them for a short period of time, especially if you only see them in an every other day situation.

On page 235, M. Gurian talks about Commuity Collaboration.  A middle school  teacher was asked what she felt was most needed to help middle school discipline.  Brenda Bock's answer surprised Gurian by saying "Actually, if I were ever to do an educational study I would do it on the following: to show that there is a direct relationship between chores and responsibilities carried out at home and discipline and completion of work at school."  I have said on many occassions that the reason that  many students have problems at school is  because  they have very little direction, discipline and guidance from their parents and have little respect  for authority.  If parents set the expectation early on at home, then there would be fewer discipline problems at school and much more learning could take place.