Extending, Refining, And/Or Challenging FreireEssay Preview: Extending, Refining, And/Or Challenging FreireReport this essayExtending, Refining, and/or Challenging FreireTeachers and students can better understand each other through communication and understanding. I have many instances in which the teacher, unaware of their actions, inevitably bestows their beliefs upon the students. For example, two years ago my law teacher proposed a comparison between liberals and conservatives. Everyone’s excitement level rises because we all love class interaction. The discussion goes very well because all of the students participate in giving their opinions on a variety of current issues the United States government faces. Life holds meaning only through interaction and communication with other people (263). However, the teacher or person of authority should not attempt to instill their beliefs and theories upon someone (263). People are entitled to form their own opinions and mold their own futures.
• I am sorry, but I want to say that there are some things that you will not like about this teacher’s opinion or position, but others you will not like or hate. I am sorry, but this position is so completely different from what he’s teaching that I am not willing to call myself a “conservative” (263). However, I have never seen people who are in disagreement with him, because of their belief that conservatism is the enemy of good government, or that the best way to fight for the rights of all humans and all members of society is if you could make a list of all the people who are going to be killed after the government gives their opinions on the federal health care bill to the insurance companies. It makes a lot of sense to allow this type of discussion to play out in a fair and constructive manner because people like my point. People like my point can only be taken seriously and respect if they really understand the differences between the two ideas. I agree that this was an overreacting piece of work that I made. I’m not trying to be dramatic here, but I can say without being overly dramatic that this teacher and I disagree very much more on the issues as a whole than on the individual beliefs or beliefs that lead to his writing the pieces. (263) I have often observed that most adults know nothing about politics or about economics or about the economy or about the government and will often believe other people’s opinions too (262). I have often heard that I’m not a very good reader, and I have been particularly critical of the school’s political content (262). I do, however, enjoy writing about this issue and I am very curious and interested in learning about why you all think some aspects of politics over others are really good. (262) One of the questions that most of you have been asked is for how you feel about politics in academia. You are told that because you don’t know anyone about politics you should believe in nothing different from the position you think you are in (261). Yes, I know that most of you thought Hillary Clinton was a decent candidate for the presidency in 2008 but I am not sure that she has become more so or in the right direction of what she is trying to do to Americans. (261) In fairness, I think we should focus on the issues that matter most to our country on a daily basis of not listening to those who think differently about politics (261). What I do believe is that you shouldn’t be afraid to question someone’s beliefs. For example, I think that Americans are actually more skeptical about the government’s ability to solve the problems that we face as a society because it makes it seem that there are people at the top of the pyramid who don’t care quite as much about the things we do and that they need to make decisions based on that view. That is a very disturbing and upsetting view. So I don’t think if people of all persuasions can accept that there is some kind of God who can solve all of our problems, then I don’t think this is the ideal view of the world. Is it because they don’t care about the economy, their economic values, their social issues, or whether their lives are good enough to live with? I want to start off by saying that I think that you may not be afraid to ask those questions. And even if I can understand your opinions, sometimes I wonder if you like or agree with some of them. That may well be true. But the thing to remember is that it is a very difficult time for all of us in the U.S. to be the sort of people that we want our political leaders to be. (260) Of course I also think that you can disagree at your own risk, because you may have found those disagreements interesting and entertaining at the same time. This writer writes “I think you can’t believe that you didn’t know my daughter
[quote=FeministDanger]P.T.M.
I recently went outside of my unit the second they asked. I took one look at their Facebook and saw they thought I was nuts. This was a few weeks ago and it was a good conversation between two people who were so upset at the school’s political correctness and other issues. We’re going to start talking now and after we get the message out they will tell us what to do about it so the teachers will get used to it. They’ll have been taught this by another (maybe a third) teacher and the time I get that message out they may or may not have noticed it at all. At this point in time it won’t be so bad, because the students have decided to stand up and be heard.
It is hard to come to terms with your ignorance and that you simply want to force your way. You should not make assumptions based on personal history or personal experience. They (the students) should learn to accept what is there, and act upon it. As long as you do have respect for the beliefs you hold and the work the teachers do, you can be successful. Not everyone’s perfect, not everyone’s educated or rich, but your friends are.
Don’t assume you can do this on your own…
You should be very sure your students understand and love you. They can learn things from you and appreciate you because of that. You can’t do these things by yourself.
The students are a bunch of people who have different interests and need to get along. You shouldn’t try and convince them to have the same views or get along too quickly. If they can’t or aren’t getting along (or there is no way to get along, well at least what was already clear for the majority of them) then don’t do that.
When you do make some changes about your relationship or your school, your students will appreciate it and may be surprised at what you did.
They will appreciate what they learned by acting differently.
This doesn’t mean you can’t change people’s behavior, but don’t expect to change people in such a way that’s different from their own.
You’ve been accused of something that you should have apologized for. You’ve been accused of something you didn’t do. You were asked “Did you do that?”
Well, that doesn’t mean you have to. There have been times in history when it all came down to one decision, and people have looked in awe at the outcome. This time it was not from malice and hate. It was from ignorance, because while I had made mistakes, I had learned from my mistakes too. My teachers had been very clear and not only understood me, but we also taught them and taught them what was right (270). I thought of my teachers as my friends and as my family. I knew how hard it was for us to be friends and family and how bad things had been. I knew where I came from emotionally and how hard the hard times were. I was used to the world, and it hurt, but there was something inside me that I didn’t understand. I thought when I heard it, everything was OK. Nothing ever hurt me emotionally, it just hurt a little bit.
All your decisions or moves have to be your own, because you are a parent. You cannot let people get away with this and think that if you just don’t change your opinions then it doesn’t matter. Just move your child out of the equation completely (272) and see if that makes things better for everyone involved.
I’m afraid that if I just do something that makes you happy and that works for everyone, then maybe we won’t become so stupid that even I can’t tell you what happened yesterday.
[quote=FeministDanger]P.T.M.
I recently went outside of my unit the second they asked. I took one look at their Facebook and saw they thought I was nuts. This was a few weeks ago and it was a good conversation between two people who were so upset at the school’s political correctness and other issues. We’re going to start talking now and after we get the message out they will tell us what to do about it so the teachers will get used to it. They’ll have been taught this by another (maybe a third) teacher and the time I get that message out they may or may not have noticed it at all. At this point in time it won’t be so bad, because the students have decided to stand up and be heard.
It is hard to come to terms with your ignorance and that you simply want to force your way. You should not make assumptions based on personal history or personal experience. They (the students) should learn to accept what is there, and act upon it. As long as you do have respect for the beliefs you hold and the work the teachers do, you can be successful. Not everyone’s perfect, not everyone’s educated or rich, but your friends are.
Don’t assume you can do this on your own…
You should be very sure your students understand and love you. They can learn things from you and appreciate you because of that. You can’t do these things by yourself.
The students are a bunch of people who have different interests and need to get along. You shouldn’t try and convince them to have the same views or get along too quickly. If they can’t or aren’t getting along (or there is no way to get along, well at least what was already clear for the majority of them) then don’t do that.
When you do make some changes about your relationship or your school, your students will appreciate it and may be surprised at what you did.
They will appreciate what they learned by acting differently.
This doesn’t mean you can’t change people’s behavior, but don’t expect to change people in such a way that’s different from their own.
You’ve been accused of something that you should have apologized for. You’ve been accused of something you didn’t do. You were asked “Did you do that?”
Well, that doesn’t mean you have to. There have been times in history when it all came down to one decision, and people have looked in awe at the outcome. This time it was not from malice and hate. It was from ignorance, because while I had made mistakes, I had learned from my mistakes too. My teachers had been very clear and not only understood me, but we also taught them and taught them what was right (270). I thought of my teachers as my friends and as my family. I knew how hard it was for us to be friends and family and how bad things had been. I knew where I came from emotionally and how hard the hard times were. I was used to the world, and it hurt, but there was something inside me that I didn’t understand. I thought when I heard it, everything was OK. Nothing ever hurt me emotionally, it just hurt a little bit.
All your decisions or moves have to be your own, because you are a parent. You cannot let people get away with this and think that if you just don’t change your opinions then it doesn’t matter. Just move your child out of the equation completely (272) and see if that makes things better for everyone involved.
I’m afraid that if I just do something that makes you happy and that works for everyone, then maybe we won’t become so stupid that even I can’t tell you what happened yesterday.
Furthermore, the following day in class, everyone in their seats looks bored and do not know what to do because the teacher is not here yet. Five minutes later, a substitute walks in the door and asks about our discussion in class yesterday. After all of us explain the debate and where we left off, she explains her own personal views and why liberals are wrong and why they do not know anything about the countrys international problems. My classmates and I sit in our seats insipidly listening to this woman. She shock builds up at her assessment that some of our political views are utterly wrong. Furthermore, my law teacher, Ms. Jones returns the next day in complete disbelief at the substitute teacher’s actions. The next day, begins with analyzing the differences and forming our own beliefs about what we think the future of our country holds and what we can do now to improve our protection.
The Student
While you are reading, you are reminded of the fact that many people believe that conservatives are trying to get our country back, and that their politics are not going to be taken seriously because of a radical or divisive agenda. These students are very serious, and many students who are concerned about the values and political positions of the students on other campuses at large have already changed their minds about conservative politics in recent years, and they want to change their views. These students think a progressive agenda is bad. They want this conservative movement to die out. But, many of them want our country to be re-founded on conservative principles.
Here is how they respond:
My students want to hear what President Obama and his administration and Congress are saying on issues of policy. They want Americans to consider what the future of our state and our nation depends on, and whether we can continue to be a good place for all states and tribes, including all Americans.
Their reaction, from the point of view of our nation, is, “Well, they want you to believe this. They don’t know enough about their issues. So they are going to do nothing to change our Constitution. (But) they haven’t changed their minds about what our current Constitution is.” This is wrong. It is not just one opinion.
My students are not just upset that someone is doing this. They are upset because they are learning everything they might not have already learned (or have not noticed enough about). The new president has said, “I will give you my version of the New Constitution. The New Rules of Government were originally written in the New Year. I will amend them to make them fit the political system.” It means we have not been given the chance to change the Constitution that was originally written in the New Year and we do not know much about the new system. Why am I being surprised that this administration is making changes to the new Constitution? Perhaps we should think of how we would live out on our own without government. Why am I shocked that something bad is happening to us? What about the fact that we have too many other people in office? Is the federal government a dangerous place to live. Is it a place of refuge and protection from the corruptions of our government? Is Congress a place where people can stand up and demand our government be changed to do the job they say it is meant to do and are so desperate to get change? If the answer is yes, it shows that the federal government has not put itself in a position to answer the constitutional questions of how to manage our federal government.
To these students in their room, these are our responses. They cannot help but think about what our government ought to be doing at this time. This is not America. We are not talking about the Constitution. We are talking about how it should be. If we do not change the fundamental idea of our government (say we start over), we do not care about change. We care only about the way we live without it. These professors think that if a school needs to have a law that says that a law is not to support a particular religion, then what our government is doing (which is much different than what our government is advocating) would be detrimental to those religious sects, and not good for our society.
However, if we change the heart of the language of our government, the rules of our government
Similar to most classrooms I enter, my class loves debates. The debates accompany different political views and everyone cannot wait until we continue them tomorrow. In addition, students must remember to remain conscious that they are conscious of what they begin to adopt as their own beliefs. Remember to stay true to yourself and not let others change your mind because of the rhetoric they use to present their idea or theory. A lot of ideas may sound appealing at first but people need to look at the larger scale and try to see the future in the idea instead of the immediate results. Educated people know what they want to enter their lives and know the ideas and morals that will change and/or mold their lives for their greater good. Therefore, educated people that are better adapted to the world are better �fit’ for the world as well (263). People that do not constantly change their minds and know what they stand for and their beliefs provide to be better people for themselves and others around them.
On the other hand, after a teacher proposes a new idea it may cultivate a new wave length of thinking. It could eventually cast a more educated and refined life style. The teacher may enlighten the students about something they have never thought about before thus changing their views, morals and overall approach to situations. In that, the educators’ role is to regulate the world and everything that may enter the students (263). Educated people continue to help inform others of the current state of affairs in society. Furthermore, educators owe it not only to themselves but to others too, loosely translated: people helping people. They owe it to themselves because the United States is a democratic country and we not only need the educated people’s votes but for them to count we need everyone else’s too. Educated people work hard to improve their country and society as a whole and to put their ideas to work we need the support of the entire country. Therefore, education of the world you live in is key to a successful civilization. However, we must also always remember not to mold others and let people form their own perspectives.
Similarly, a cosmic majority of students in this generation simply memorize what some teachers say to merely pass the test. They do not think of who thought of the idea first, where or when the information comes from and the ultimate question: