Racism in schools

"It is your responsibility to change society if you think of yourself as an educated person" This is a quote from James Baldwin and it is the best quote I have ever heard. Todays classroom is full of racism and hate, students of color are taunted after school, and when I say color, I mean every color, black, white, hispanic. I think that all it takes is one racist person to bring down an entire community. And by this I mean one student to bring down a classroom, or for that matter one teacher. Everyone thinks that racism will never come to a complete end, as is the same with hunger and violence. I beleive that one person can make a difference, if only one person is to change their thoughts and behaviors towards racism, then that is the beginning to an end. I recently read an article where a teacher had posted pictures in her classroom that portrayed racism in a light where the students thought it was not an option to be racist. Children learn what they see, and most of what they see is at home or in school. I think it is a great idea to hang up posters that teach students to love everyone regardless of color or race.

On a different note, I can admit that I grew up in a racist home, and my father was not one to like white girls to go out with black men, or any man that was not white for that matter, and I am proud to say that I am the opposite and it was from his ignorance that I learned to be this way, I decided at a young age that it was not ok to hate other people because of their race, and I made sure that I was friendly to everyone in school and I teach my daughters the same thing. The point of saying this is because their is no excuse to be racist, not even that you grew up that way, everyone has a mind of their own and the best mind to have is a non racist one! I hope that my daughter treats everyone equal in the classroom becuase it starts with one person to end it all!

Montessori School's

Montessori schools where began by a women by the name of Maria Montessori, she was an Italian doctor who prided herself on educating the children of Romes ghetto. Although since Montessori is not a legal copyrighted name, Montessori by the way of a name of a school does not mean that the school adheres to Montessori philosophy of education. So basically while researching this type of school I learned it kind of came with a"buyer beware" sort of philosophy, I guess kind of a, what you see is not what you get. Most schools offer education from infant through 8th grade, The following is a description of a montessori school, written by Ruth Hurvitz, of the montessori school in Wilton, CT. which I found on About.com.

"The Montessori School's culture is devoted to helping each child grow toward independence by building confidence, competence, self-esteem and respect for others. More than an approach to education, Montessori is an approach to life. The program at The Montessori School, both in philosophy and pedagogy, is based on the scientific research work of Dr. Maria Montessori and on AMI Montessori training. The School respects children as self-directed individuals and fosters their growth toward independence and social responsibility, while creating a joyful, diverse and family-oriented community.
Montessori classrooms are designed in a multi-age mix from toddlers through adolescents which allows for both individual and social development. The classrooms are beautiful by design. They are set up in an open style, with work areas throughout the room and materials available on accessible shelving. Most lessons are given to small groups or individual children while other children are working independently.
The school uses stories, Montessori materials, charts, time lines, objects of nature, treasures from the wealth of cultures around the worlds and sometime conventional tools to teach the children. Guided by the teacher, Montessori students actively participate in planning their time and taking responsibility for their work.
Committed to diversity, The Montessori School community is inclusive and depends on the tenets of respect. The school believes in sharing what we have with those in need and encouraging children to learn to live responsibly in the world. At The Montessori School, students are inspired to live both passionately and compassionately in a global community."

I think that this type of philosophy in teaching children is beautiful, it allows children to learn from others, such as younger and older children and it allows the child to learn from there mistakes without almost being grading on them. I think that this type of schooling is more passionate about a childs life in whole and not just about their school educations, these type of settings allow for more family invovlement and more love and compassion to be shown towards each student, my only concern is that after 8th grade where do students go, to a public or private school and how do they adhere to such different settings after 8 years or more in a setting like this.

Do you think that these types of "different" schools are good to have as an option when schooling your children?

Would you send or do you send your child to this type of school?

Soren Kierkegaard, Existentialism

Soren Kierkegaard is said to be the originator of existentialism, which is a philosophy that emphasizes the human experience. He was born in 1813 and died in 1855, which means that he was a pretty poweful man to become an originator of a philosphical idea in such a short lifetime. Basically he beleived that there was no meaning to the universe other than that of the human experience, so it is safe to say that in this lifetime he would have been a pretty hands on teacher, defintely not a preacher! Human life exists but that we are only what we make ourselves. The idea of existentialism showed that every individual is the subject of his or her own reality, and no two realities are the same. The importance of individual creativity and personal choice can not be stressed enough when speaking of this philosphy and philospher. I guess you could say that this man learned by experience and if all children where taught to think before doing and learnign from their actions this world would by far be abetter place to learn and grow.