This Author will Control Your Emotions

It Takes You Over by Nick Healy is his debut short story collection and the winner of New Rivers Press 125^th Many Voices Project. As a native to St. Paul, Minnesota, Healy places each of his stories within the metro area. 

Readers of Minnesota will be pleased to see their native land as a setting; however, many of Healy’s characters turn out to be dislikable. His writing creates strong images of characters, who I was immediately drawn to, but with brushstrokes like an artist, Healy reveals their true personalities, and the protagonists no longer seem positive. This demonstrates Healy’s talent as a writer to control language and to change the readers’ perspectives.

One of the most memorable stories, “The Deep Route,” is observed from the perspective of a young father in Minneapolis/St. Paul. At first readers will respect the father who consciously makes the decision to spend time with his son. But through a short time with a series of events, readers begin to feel uneasy and question the character of the father. Many of Healy’s readers will follow a similar emotional ride when reading individual stories.

In another story, “Close Relations,” we follow the path of a grandmother, and many readers will sympathize with her. Early on we meet her troubled daughter who cannot seem to support herself and her young child. Readers won’t find themselves disliking Lorraine (the grandmother), but her character creates sympathy.

I had hard time rating this collection of short stories, because it isn’t one of my “typical” choice reads. Normally I prefer to relate with my characters on a personal level and love them, so it was difficult for me to feel sympathy and anger at characters. But, I do recognize the power in Healy’s writing because he was able to evoke those emotions within me as I read.

If I were to rate this story on the author’s skill, I can’t help but give him 5 for 5.

Statement of Beliefs about Learning and Teaching

1. I believe that education is a process that requires students to make mistakes, reflect, and improve while in a safe environment.

            The best way to achieve understanding is by discovery through creative thinking. If students simply memorize facts for a test, many of them will not be able to recall those details in a real life situation. Instead students can use realistic situations for learning. This allows them to apply their base knowledge and to create a larger understanding. I will create a classroom environment where students do not fear judgment from peers or the teacher and encourage academic risk taking. Every student will be expected to participate in some way and every opinion will be valued. According to Thomas M. McCann et al., all students benefit from authentic discussion, not just students in higher level classes (6). After students put their thoughts in writing or presentation, I will ask students to reflect on their work and their process of learning so that they can answer the question, “What can I do better next time?” The ability to reflect on mistakes also leads to students accepting and learning from constructive criticism. My goal is for students to not fear learning.

2. I believe that all students are meant to succeed.

            Peter Elbow claims that all students are brilliant (12). I know that students cannot be brilliant at everything they do, but they are good at something. They have a niche where they feel comfortable. As an effective teacher, I will get to know my students so that I may recognize their comfort zones and interests. These can be utilized to design effective lesson plans that capture the attention of students while creating an atmosphere with energy and excitement conducive to learning. When standards require me to teach outside of my students’ comfort zones, students can still succeed with the help of scaffolding. The final product can be broken down into smaller steps where I demonstrate, then guide students, and the final product the students complete on their own. The amount and type of scaffolding can be differentiated according to the individual needs of students. My goal is to utilize the interests and comfort zones of students to help them learn difficult topics and skills.

3. I believe that teachers should empower students while offering a quality education and helping them to create unique identities.

            It is not an obscure fact that teenagers are defining their identities and discovering their interests. At this age, students can be very vulnerable regarding their self-esteem. If students have a negative experience, they can completely turn away from an activity such as basketball or refuse to put time and effort into a class. Within my classroom, I want students to explore and discover interests, and I believe this requires students to feel confident. I will allow my students to teach me about technology, sports, or any of their other interests. Allowing students to be experts gives them confidence in their interests and strengths. This supports the foundation of their personal identities. My goal is to teach students how to utilize their strengths when learning new or difficult material.

4. I believe that a variety of instructional strategies is necessary for student success in meeting Common Core Standards.

            All students do not learn through a single strategy, such as lecture. Some students are auditory learners, others visual, and some kinesthetic. Gardner’s model of multiple intelligences acknowledges seven different types of learning styles that I plan to take into consideration when creating lessons (Milner, Milner, and Mitchell 17). Using a variety of lessons introduces students to new learning styles that may influence their ability to adapt to varying teaching styles while also allowing the majority of students to learn in their differing intelligences. It is also important that teachers use a mixture of organizational strategies for their classrooms, such as the four introduced by Milner, Milner, and Mitchell: lecture, class discussion, group work, and individualized instruction (22-23). This allows students to be involved in multiple learning environments that require students to have meaningful interaction. According to Thomas M. McCann, et al., interactions between students is necessary for learning (5). Some students learn best by receiving information from an instructor, others when they can discuss, while working with others, or through individual projects with self-reflection. My goal is to help students achieve Common Core Standards through the use of multiple teaching strategies.

5. I believe that the purpose of CAL classes is to instill a desire to read and the ability to effectively communicate.

            Reading can be very difficult for students, but the benefits of being able to read are significant and detrimental to students throughout their academic and professional careers. According to Jane Kiel, studies have shown that a connection between reading and learning (1-17). Children learn grammar rules and base knowledge without direct instruction through reading. I plan to encourage students to read by introducing them to a variety of genres and reading strategies. Also, when students are in middle and high school, they are still creating social relationships between their parents, peers, employers, co-workers, teammates, and the list can go on. Relationships require communication, and students need to be able to effectively communicate in different manners depending on the situation. It is necessary for students to learn how to communicate, and this includes reading. My goal is to guide students as they learn to enjoy reading and how to communicate with an array of audiences.

Works Cited

Elbow, Peter. Everyone Can Write. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 2000. Print. 11-14.

Kiel, Jane. “How Language is Learned: From Birth Through the Elementary Years and Beyond.” Lessons to Share on Teaching Grammar in Context. Ed. Constance Weaver. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook Publishers, Inc. 1998. Print. 1-17.

McCann, Thomas M., Larry R. Johannessen, Elizabeth Kahn, and Joseph M. Flanagan. Talking in Class: Using Discussion to Enhance Teaching and Learning. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, 2006. Print. 1-7.

Milner, Joseph O., Lucy M. Milner, and Joan F. Mitchell. Bridging English. Fifth Ed. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc., 2012. Print. 17, 22-23.

WARNING: This collection of poetry will send your head spinning.

4 stars out of 5
  

The Way of All Flux by Sharon Suzuki-Martinez is a modern collection of poetry that will interest readers in search of quirky poetry that they can return to again-and-again. Many of these poems reference popular culture, in the shape of zombies, dragons, and “A Shocking Display of Sexual Dimorphism.” Read a poem and two, and you would be able to add to my list.

If looking for a setting for this collection of poetry, readers will be surprised. Suzuki-Martinez takes her readers from the island of Hawaii to Arizona, from the Midwest to New York. She even inspires with the call of the common loon, Minnesota’s state bird.

What seems to tie this collection together is a deep appreciation of the small things in life. Suzuki-Martinez includes everyday items in her poetry, from cabbages to ladybugs and stars. This suggests a childlike innocence within the collection; however, this is no Shel Silverstein. 

With realistic language and eccentric imagery, Suzuki-Martinez engages readers of an age group older than most Silverstein fans. The title poem uses slang, such as “fugly.” (If you are not aware of the meaning of this term, you may ask any teen or college student.) And she flips reader expectations in her poem “Dragon Flight.” Rather than a graceful journey above the clouds, we are presented with a humorous situation on an airplane. 

Suzuki-Martinez’s first poetry collection can be read as a page turner, which for me is not common among poetry, but it is not the easy read of children’s poems meant for humor. Yes, Suzuki-Martinez successfully entertains her audience, but the quirkiness of her imagery choices suggest deeper meaning that requires readers to go back to read again, again, and yet again.

Thinking about A White Teacher Talks About Race by Julie Landsman

Political or Personal Discourse: A White Teacher Talks About Race

Is it asking too much to include them all? Is it too much to ask our schools to encompass the mixture of all these kids’ lives, in what they read, in whom they see? And my frustration, even my anger, is to realize, every day, in different contexts, that we are not even close to including them. (Landsman, 2005)

            Writing has a purpose. The author has a reason to write, whether it is to inform, entertain, or persuade his or her audience. Julie Landsman has the background and experience within the education field and working with at-risk students. She has seen first-hand the struggles and triumphs these kids, their families, and their communities cope with. This has given her inspiration and a strong purpose for writing her book, A White Teacher Talks about Race.

Author’s Purpose

            A lot of debates encompass education, and these discourses are extremely complex since educational concerns are personal and political. In the U.S., we claim that we are country of equals and that all deserve an education. If all humans have a natural right to education, then education should include the perspectives of the individuals within our society. Julie Landsman uses the following questions to instill her thesis in the minds of her readers: “Is it asking too much to include them all? Is it too much to ask our schools to encompass the mixture of all these kids’ lives, in what they read, in whom they see?” (Landsman, 2005). Landsman has taken a positional stance that educators, administrators, politicians, and the general public need to support an inclusive atmosphere for white, black, brown, or yellow, dark or light.

Support

            Landsman supports her argument that classrooms need to be inclusive for all racial backgrounds, rather than claiming to be “color-blind.” This is not the answer the education system needs. As an individual, Landsman “cannot deny their perception of the world. Rather, I have to start with an understanding of this perception, go on from it and plan with them how they will study, make it in college, stay on the job” (Landsman, 2005). Students come into classrooms with their personal experiences, and these experiences have been affected by their racial backgrounds. So how can a teacher hope to engage students by ignoring a trait that helps define their lives? With a lot of difficulty, but many teachers claim it is difficult to reach out to their cultural backgrounds. The path is difficult no matter which fork you take, so now the decision rests with which path leads to results.

            If students cannot connect to a teacher or the curriculum, they can make the conscious decision to “not learn.” These students find ways to discredit their teacher or the material being taught. In his book, H. Kohl explains that “Not-learning tends to take place when someone has to deal with unavoidable challenges to her or his personal and family loyalties, integrity, and identity” (1994). When the students cannot relate their lives to what is being taught to them, they will continue to focus on the larger, higher order problems of their lives, such as homelessness, divorcing parents, or their parents’ financial situation. What does this have to do with race? Statistics show that blacks and other minority groups are more likely to experience rates of poverty and have lower health (Levin, 2005). A teacher cannot ignore that the relationship between hardships and race exist, so to ignore a student’s racial background is to ignore his or her challenges. When a teacher does not acknowledge the struggles individual students face, they cannot teach to their needs, providing an inadequate education.

            The road to providing an adequate and relevant education is extremely difficult. A white teacher claiming to have the same experiences as a black or Asian teenager is not legitimate. Landsman explains her way of dealing with the situation: “I can make explicit what I know about jobs and how to keep them, about finding homes, getting into college. I also feel a responsibility to make sure I do this without asking them to give up anything of their own culture, their own language” (Landsman, 2005). Do not deny a student their experiences, especially when related to their racial or cultural background. Those experiences are very real and play a role in their lives. They are not the definition of their race, but their race is a small part of who they are.

Evaluation of Arguments, Opinions, & Issues

            Landsman’s claim against “color-blindness” is valid: “Whites are considered the norm, so are asked to speak only for themselves as individuals. We assume we do wrong as individuals. Meanwhile, blacks are often expected to speak for and represent all blacks” (Landsman, 2005). Not only is blame placed differently according to racial lines, but it moves into academic areas. The “white man’s” history becomes the correct history, because that is the view of the dominant culture. This emphasizes a racial ideology that takes away from individuals and whole communities. To fully understand history and other cultures, we need to embrace their histories and incorporate them into our classrooms, otherwise we demean our students.

            Once students see themselves belittled in the eyes of their teachers, they give up on learning. Kohl explains, “Other causes of failure I searched for were mismatches between the students’ language and the language of the schools or between the students’ experiences and the kind of experience presupposed by their teachers or the reading of texts” (Kohl, 1994). Teachers need to communicate on a mutual level with students. This is done by earning a student’s respect and engaging him or her within the curriculum. Lessons should relate with the challenges within a student’s life or personal interests. This engages students and earns their respect by knowing the teacher has taken a genuine interest in their lives.

Personal Response

            As I read Julie Landsman’s book, my expectations of the importance and roles of teaching were reaffirmed. One reason I went into English education is because I know I can engage students with literature and writing due to my enthusiasm, hard-work, love of challenges, and want of knowing each student’s passion. I have always believed that anyone can love reading as long as they find a book of relevance and interest. My plan has always been to get to know each student’s background and interests. Landsman’s work has reinforced the idea that greater levels of learning can take place when teachers try to see each student as an individual.

Sheila is Sheila. She does not represent ‘teenage mothers’ or ‘African-American’ teenagers. Just as Sarah is herself: a model, a novel reader, a homeless young woman; so Sheila is herself: a whiz at computers, a good writer, a mother of one daughter. This is how I struggle to see them, to see every part of them. It takes patience with ourselves to get rid of the impulses we were brought up to feel. I believe it can be done. (Landsman, 2005)

The inspiration I have taken from A White Teacher Talks about Race, I Won’t Learn from You, and The Social Costs of Inadequate Education will continue with me each time I walk into a classroom of individuals: Sheila’s, Tyrone’s, Sarah’s, and Alan’s.

Works Cited

Kohl, H. (1994). I won't learn from you and other thoughts on creative maladjustment. New York, NY: The New Press.

Landsman, J. (2005). A white teacher talks about race. Lanham, MD: First Rowman & Littlefield Education.

Levin, H. M. (2005, October). H.M. Levin (Chair). The social costs of inadequate education. Paper presented at Teachers college symposium on educational equity.