In light of the recent natural disasters, both globally
and locally (i.e. the typhoon in the Philippines or Hurricane Sandy here in New
Jersey), do you think elementary school teachers should be discussing these
disasters and their consequences in the classroom? Should teachers be the
ones to start a discussion of values and “helping thy neighbor” or should this be left to the
family? Is it the teacher's
role to broach discussions that address value systems or is the role of the elementary teacher one
that just addresses content ? In
essence, should we teach our students about being empathetic, or should we
focus only on the subjects we are required to teach and on which the students
will be tested? Does school play a
role in teaching children how to be sensitive toward the plight of others or is
the role of school to teach reading, writing, arithmetic, sciences, music, art
and physical education leaving that other "stuff" to the family? We would like to have your input.
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*You may wish to reflect upon some of the chapters in the
Ellis text.
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I think that elementary school teachers should discuss these disasters and their consequences in the classroom because it helps in showing students how to become well-rounded people. Students should know what is going on in the world and the ways that they can help those in need. I think it is the teacher's responsibility to have discussions about values and "helping thy neighbor" because that is a part of being good citizens. The Ellis textbook discussed the importance of teaching about being a good citizen through social studies. Teachers can use these opportunities to discuss how to be a good citizen and that helping others in time of need is how one can be a good citizen. Teachers should teach students about being empathetic and sensitive toward others in time of need. The teacher can discuss by example, and show the class how so many communities came together to help the communities in need during Hurricane Sandy. There are so many great stories about people being amazing citizens and going out of their way to provide people, strangers, with food, clothing, and shelter. I believe teachers should be teaching and discussing these topics with the class to address being a good citizen, which can be done through social studies. There are also standards directed toward citizenship, which shows that it is important for the teachers to teach the students. I also think that teachers should discuss these disasters because it is teaching students about current events and that it is important to know what is going on outside of their community and the United States. I also think that when discussing these topics, the teacher should lead the discussion in an age appropriate manner. The teacher can find kid friendly articles or use pictures that show how people come together to help one another.
ReplyDeleteI believe that students in elementary school should have the opportunity to learn about these disasters that are happening in the world. Our textbook talks about how we need to educate our students about being good citizens and by discussing such things like Hurricane Sandy can help them have a better understanding of how to be a good citizen. After such disasters, communities have come together, people helping complete strangers to get things back to normal, to recover from such a thing. Think about Bloom's taxonomy: if you teach about such incidents in the classroom, it allows for higher level thinking. Discussing such natural disasters in the classroom also teaches students empathy. Many think that school is not the place to shape students in any other way then the basic subjects. I believe that a teacher should have the right to help shape her students to become good citizens. Teaching about such things as natural disasters and their consequences is a way that we could do this. When and if you choose to discuss these things in your classroom, you have to be aware that not everything can be shared. You would have to find kid friendly sources about it if you were going to discuss these disasters in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ali 100%, especially with the Blooms Taxonomy thought. Discussing natural disasters brings about a cause and effect aspect of teaching, calls for discussion among the classroom and helps children put themselves in others shoes. I believe it is the role of the school to bring about some great ways to get involved and help others. At home, it can be difficult to gather things and send them to relief funds or relief places to help those in need, it usually is easier in mass numbers. Getting schools to participate in relief drives gets the children involved and helping those in the community and in the world. Its a great way to teach citizenship but also to teach students to be thankful for what they have, some have lost everything. Natural disasters are horrific events we hope no one has to endure, but can be amazing teachable moments to reflect with the students.
ReplyDeleteI feel that it is the responsibility of both parents and teachers to be role models for students. Teachers should create a foundation for what I means to be a good citizen and empathetic towards those who are in need. Even though the main focus of teaching is based on subjects, teacher may be already incorporating the ideas of values and ethics into their lesson plans without even meaning to. In the beginning of the school year, teachers usually set up the rules for their classrooms: raise your hand, do not call out, keep your hands to yourself, help your friends etc. The review and setting of these standards for students demonstrates that teacher do generally care about their students overall attitude and demeanor when it comes to values and caring for others. Teacher can set the main foundation for this type of learning but it is in the home where students generally learn what to value, how to respond certain world events and overall how to treat others respectfully. While a teacher can only cram so much in to one day, the school district as a whole can engage and encourage students to help those who are in need by giving a prize to the classroom who collects the most canned goods for the food pantry. Another example is creating a food drive, bake sale or clothes donation drive in the school for those who have been affected by disasters. Overall, the school district and teachers can help students have an idea about what it means to be a good citizen and person but it is the family’s role to actually teach the child. Any school can initiate good citizenship but if the family chooses not to participate then that is what the child will generally take away from the experience.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it is both the family and the teacher's responsibility to bring up these topics. The teacher is there to reinforce what parents are teaching and/or what they might not be teaching. I believe teaching students about natural disasters and there effects can be tied into a lesson, but they can also be taught to students as part of being a good citizen. However, events like school shootings and other events to that effect should be left to the discretion of the school. The younger students may not be able to handle this type of information as well as the middle school students. Therefore, I believe that it depends on the incident.
ReplyDeleteI think teaching students about helping others and being a good citizen should be a shared responsibility between the teachers and the parents/guardians. Unfortunately, because of the emphasis on doing well on standardized tests and therefore on the subjects of math and language arts/reading/writing, these values are too often not being taught in the classroom to the extent they should be (they are either not taught at all or very briefly taught). I think the conversation about these kinds of values can be started in either the classroom or in the home, but either way, the conversation needs to be continued in the other setting. I also think that teaching students about natural disasters, etc. can also be used across the curriculum, such as understanding where the country is (geography/social studies) and why they are prone to natural disasters/how the natural disasters happen (science). Students' skills in critical thinking, discussion, brainstorming, and leadership can also be developed by teaching these values if they are challenged to do something as a response to a natural disaster, etc.
ReplyDeleteI believe that teachers can and should discuss values and morals in elementary classrooms. Such subjects can be discussed after learning about such disasters as Hurricane Sandy and the typhoon in the Philippines. As a future teacher, I would first address the natural disasters as a science lesson, and follow up this lesson with an informal discussion regarding what we can do to help. The teacher should be a role model for his/her students. By addressing the fact that we can directly and actively help fellow citizens in need, the teacher is showing that we are all citizens and a part of this planet and it is our duty to assist others just as we would wish to be helped when we are in time of crisis.
ReplyDeleteI believe that teachers should discuss these natural disasters and consequences in their classroom. Teaching about natural disasters can promote local and global awareness, critical thinking, and a sense of active citizenship. Our textbook talks about the various ways to promote citizenship and discussing events like the Typhoon in the Philippines Hurricane Sandy can encourage that. Teachers can lead discussions on how they can help thy neighbor during disasters and how they can be a good citizen and assist those in need. Natural disasters often bring the best out in people and it is important for children to realize how communities can come together and work towards a greater good. Communities team up to send food, water, supplies, and basic necessities to those in disaster areas. These actions not only display good citizenship but also display empathy. We are able to understand and share the feelings of those affected and teachers should teach students how to be sensitive towards others in time of need. There is no denying that there are many subjects that teachers need to cover in a day and finding time to teach about natural disasters is hard. However, it can easily be incorporated into other subjects such as language arts, social studies, or even science. Last semester, my cooperating teacher used the TIME for Kids magazine to discuss natural disasters. The magazine did a fantastic job of explaining complex events in kid friendly terminology. The students were really about to understand what was going on. Furthermore, it usually has an article about a child who went out of their way to help someone in need. This shows students that kids their age are displaying good citizenship and so can they. The Scholastic News magazine also has similar articles. Discussions about natural disasters can also occur during social studies as well as science. Teachers can discuss how hurricanes and typhoons form and their affects. I think teachers should be discussing natural disasters in their classroom as it will make their students well-rounded individuals.
ReplyDeleteI definitely think teachers should be discussing these disasters in the classroom. It is important for children to know and be aware of what is going on in the world around them. By bringing these conversations into the classroom, it also teaches students how to be prepared for these disasters as well as how to react. Teachers should also be teaching about “helping thy neighbor” because students should be taught at a young age to help others. This can easily be taught in the classroom because classmates are already helping each other, whether it is with an assignment or just by helping to pick up their spilled pencil case. I believe teaching about values falls on both the parents and teachers, especially in today’s society, where students spend just as much, if not more, time with their teachers than with their parents. I believe teachers take on the role of parents during school time, and therefore life skills and values should definitely be touched upon within the classroom.
ReplyDeleteMany U.S. citizens suffer from a sense of ego-centrism where the fail to understand the relevance of events beyond U.S. borders. Technological advances in recent decades have allowed the world to become a closer knit community, but the motivation has not been instilled. As teachers, we are tasked with raising future generations to be good citizens and one key aspect is instilling global awareness. Empathy and understanding are important; unless they are reinforced they will be lost.
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