Response # 6 for Dr. Pytash-- Classics in the Classroom Chapter 5

Chapter 5 of Jago's Classics in the Classroom addresses the importance of teaching poetry. This is one aspect of literature which I anticipate will be very challenging to connect to some high school students' lives. When I was in high school, I remember taking a creative writing class with 30 of my male peers. When the genre of poetry was presented, I remember hearing groans from all around me. However, in the 2 years prior to my Junior year, I had written poetry of my own as an emotional outlet. Although I was confident that I was a successful poet, I kept my talent sealed, as I knew that many male high school students do not appreciate poetry.

However, through this creative writing class, I became more inspired to write poetry when my teacher praised my talent and when my peers came to me for writing advice. Another way that my teacher inspired me to write poetry was by talking about the poetry of Tupac Shakur, a well known music artist. After my teacher presented his poem "The Rose that Grew from the Concrete", she then showed me that she owned a book of Tupac's poetry. This helped me realize that even men as calloused and rugged as this man possessed the ability to spill his heart into a deep, beautiful poem. This book proved to be a driving force in my creative development as a writer of poetry. A year later, upon my first visit to the Kent State University bookstore, Tupac's book caught my eye, and my parents purchased it for me. To this day, when I am discouraged or experiencing a "writer's block", I turn to that book for inspiration. However, Tupac's words are not the only source of inspiration for me, as I remember Mrs. Sanders and the way she encouraged me to reach my full potential. To me, that is the defining characteristic of a great teacher: the ability to encourage students to pursue their true passions with an unshakable confidence.

Response # 5 for Dr. Pytash-- Classics in the Classroom Chapter 4

In chapter 4 of Classics in the Classroom, Jago states "books that demand hard thinking on the part of a reader are more likely to be remembered than those students breeze through" (67). This quote stood out to me, as I agree with Jago that students need to be challenged by the texts they are reading. However, I feel that Jago also makes a wonderful point by saying that students need to be guided to the discovery of understanding the themes of the text instead of being spoon-fed answers.

I have seen many teachers become tired of waiting for students to speak up and answer questions about the meaning of texts discussed in class. At this point, many of these teachers simply answer their own question and move on. However, in my opinion, a true educator believes in his or her students' abilities to learn from and understand sophisticated, challenging texts. This type of teacher would help students understand by stepping back from the posed question and asking what has students confused. Then, by facilitating a discussion in which students break down a text in order to find its messages, teachers can help students find their own answers to the question "so what?", which is presented by Jago on page 61. Ultimately, by teaching helping students reach beyond the who, what, when, where, and why of a text, teachers can help students reach a connection between the text and their own lives, which fosters the greatest level of understanding of a text possible.

Response # 4 for Dr. Pytash-- Classics in the Classroom Chapter 2

After reading the second chapter of Jago's Classics in the Classroom, I agree with Carol Jago that the acquisition of vocabulary is not only dependent upon reading. As students may read words that they did not initially understand, something I have noticed is that many of them will not take the time to look up the definitions of the new words presented to them. This is common, as many students are already challenged to complete the reading for an assignment that and feel that their time spent looking at definitions will delay their process in completing the text. Little do they know that learning words in one context is not an efficient way to establish a vocabulary. Thus, it is imperative that educators reinforce sophisticated, challenging terms in texts through vocabulary lists and exercises.

When I was in fifth grade, I remember having extensive vocabulary assignments, as I was required to copy the complete definitions for a list of words. As this was tedious at the time and was not a very creative way to teach vocabulary, I was able to understand the definitions of sophisticated terms much better after copying them down and reviewing them several times in class. In hindsight, I now recognize that this form of spiral curriculum was successful in fostering my sophisticated vocabulary.

I have also noticed the importance of teaching vocabulary through my field experience at Firestone High School in Akron, OH. In order to prepare students for the OGT, all of the teachers were required to help account for the general student body's difficulty understanding sophisticated vocabulary terms. I was informed of this after speaking with a science teacher about how I had been admiring her creative bulletin board devoted to a list of vocabulary terms. By having students create a bulletin board with drawings to accompany vocabulary terms, the students are able to develop a deep, multi-sensory understanding of a word. Thus, I saw this approach to reinforcing students' sophisticated vocabulary to be both creative and highly effective in fostering their language development.

Response to I'm So Totally, Digitally, Close to You

After reading Clive Thompson's article "I'm so Totally, Digitally, Close to You", I became much more aware of the impact of Facebook upon my daily interactions. This article made me realize how odd it seems that I know everything about all of my friends through my "News Feed" without directly interacting with them. This troubled me, as I realized that this takes away the event of becoming reacquainted with my friends when I haven't seen them for an extended amount of time.

Although I enjoy perusing through online updates regarding what my friends are up to, I am concerned that human communication is becoming too focused upon instant information. I am reminded of the negative effect this has upon human interactions each time I am having lunch with a friend who constantly checks Facebook and Twitter updates on a cell phone. These updates eventually evolve from an interruption into the dictating topic of conversation. Therefore, I worry that by obsessing over online social news updates, we are failing to interact with the people directly in front of us, who, in most cases, are much more pertinent to our current lives than our digital friends, whom we watch from afar.

Contemporary Film Review of Toe to Toe

1. Personal Issues: In Toe to Toe, the element that struck me the most was the affect of Jesse’s lack of a mother figure. I responded with emotion toward this element because I come from a large, closely-kinit family, for which I feel a great deal of affection and pride. I believe that the general audience of this film will connect with this element, as many people hold their family or their closest friends, whom they often refer to as family, as the driving forces in their lives, and they would sympathize for Jesse as well.
2. Technique: I feel that this film was strong in its integration of sound effects, mood-setting music, interesting and plot-relevant dialogue, and detailed editing. Its greatest strength, in my opinion, was the camera work, as unique camera angles were incorporated. An example of this is the scene in which the camera pulls away from over Tosha as she lies in the grass after being beaten up by a neighborhood bully. This presented a view of her despair that the naked eye could not provide.
3. Acting: The principle roles of this film were Jesse and Tosha. I feel that the roles of these individuals were generally type-cast, as they Jesse was cast to represent a White, teenaged girl and Tosha was cast to represent a Black, teenaged girl. However, this was not the only aspect that made their characters believable, as both actors did a wonderful job of acting.
4. Plot: In Toe to Toe, two teenage girls from different worlds battle social pressures, adversity, and the anxiety of what their futures will bring. I feel that this plot is very unique, as it voices the truth behind tragic teenage struggles, rather than the happy-go-lucky lifestyles often portrayed through young-adult characters.
5. Themes: The main theme in this film surrounds the pressure of growing up. Although the film presents the affects of social pressures and cultural expectations upon teenagers, a deeper message provided by the film is that our reactions to the situations in our lives define us and lead to great consequences.
6. Genre: Toe to Toe fits with the genre of drama, as this film presents deeply emotional and controversial topics. I believe that this is a popular genre because it presents stories with which audience members can empathize. Further, dramas appeal to viewers’ emotions with a human-interest spin to a story.
7. Representation: This film presents a significant difference between poverty and wealth, as Jesse is provided a stable, comfortable surrounding environment while Tosha is portrayed to live in a low-income community, where her mother struggles to pay the household bills. Through this depiction of poverty, the film also portrays the Black lifestyle as one filled with adversity and struggle. Additionally, the film portrays the White lifestyle as one of comfort and instant gratification.
8. Ideology: By presenting the concepts of racial inequality in schools, this film challenges the institution of American education. Additionally, this film confirms that the life of a teenager is a pivotal period in an individual’s development, which often presents a great amount of pressure upon teenagers. Finally, Toe to Toe challenges American parenthood by presenting Jesse’s mother as a non-existent figure in her life.

Reaction to the Cleveland International Film Festival

On Sunday, March 21, I attended the Cleveland International Film Festival with a group of my Multi-Modal Literacies classmates. As I drove a car-full of my peers to Cleveland, I was very excited for the road trip. However, when I got to Cleveland, I missed a detour leading to the parking garage, and my adventure became stressful. Regardless, after some instinctual driving and the reassurance of my passengers, we arrived at Tower City Mall in a matter of 10 extra minutes.

Before viewing our film, my classmates and I dined at the Hard Rock Cafe. This was a great opportunity to interact with my cohorts in a way that I do not normally have the chance to enjoy. The food was great, and the conversations were just as enjoyable.

After lunch, we made our way to the theater to purchase our tickets ahead of time. Leading up to this moment, I was determined to see the film Bomber, a comedy which caught my eye in the festival's catalog. However, after purchasing a stand-by ticket and waiting in line for a chance to see the film, a man admitting people into the theater notified us that Bomber filled two theaters. Panicked, as we had planned on seeing this film, my classmates and I rushed to another film that had begun 5 minutes earlier, Toe to Toe. Although this film was not my initial choice, I was glad that I had the chance to view it. The film was very deep, and it stretched me beyond my level of comfortability, and I enjoyed the experience.

I planned to return to the festival that following Thursday, but a snow storm prevented some friends and I from venturing to Cleveland on the late, snowy night. I was very disappointed, as I enjoyed my experience on Sunday and hoped to share the same experience with another group of friends. Thus, I plan to return to the Cleveland International Film Festival next year and for several other years to follow.

Reflection on the Costanzo Text

Upon reading Costanzo's Great Films and How to Teach Them, my life as a film viewer has changed. When I used to watch films, I would pay specific attention to nothing but the events unfolding and some of the underlying meanings of the messages presented by films. However, now that I have read about and understand the tools of lighting, camera works, and sound, I have found myself dissecting the films I have viewed. Although this approach could fade, I feel that by viewing films this way deepens my appreciation of what I'm watching.

When I was completing my Film Review exercise from the Costanzo textbook, I watched The Godfather with my father. As I have never seen this film, I was also viewing it for a source of entertainment. One thing I normally do while watching a film is make comments about what is unfolding in the film, normally in the form of a response. I do not do this very frequently when viewing a film, but rather, I will audibly respond to something that intrigues me. This is normally along the lines of "Wow... I can't believe that happened!" or "That's hilarious!" However, when I was watching The Godfather, I mentioned to my father that I really admired the unique camera angles in the film. Perplexed by my statement, my father simply agreed and returned to his viewing. Little did he know, that moment was pivotal in my development as a critical film viewer.