Blog Post #1...If I built a School??

Krissy Vensodale is a very opinionated 3rd-6th grade teacher. Her aspiration to do away with a standard education makes since. Vensodale has a passion for making education innovative. Her take on education is that we as teachers should to not only make good test takers but make good people as well. As for Sugata Mitra, aside from being entertaining he was very enlightening. He proposes that the current way of education is obsolete. It was necessary when the world was operated mostly through a bureaucracy; they had to create more bureaucrats in order to keep things moving. Now technology has made this useless. He places emphasis on allowing children to teach themselves with guidance and encouragement from teachers.

My School I've actually daydreamed about creating a school of my very own. Since I have never been to a school with students who are equipped with current technology or have the desire to learn for that matter my thought process for this is kind of different. I would want to re-educate students about what their education should be. This would prove to be a challenge considering that I would want to teach on a secondary level. High school aged children aren't always fit for remolding. Still I believe my idea would work best in a boarding school setting. Subject That Matters More than anything I think students should know that learning isn't and shouldn't be a recital. I would put emphasis on subjects that pertain to more than the math and sciences. My focuses would include History, Literature, Visual and Media arts. How Am I going to Teach It's hard for me, even in my fantasy to imagine the perfect way to teach in my perfect school. However,I know for a fact that I would want the students to input on how they are taught. I want the students at my school to feel like they have a voice. Since my school is a high school I would wan't my student council and teachers to work together. I feel like that would make it easier for the students and teachers to connect. What I'm Working With Classrooms would be equipped with a smart board, a chalkboard, and all books would be online. The students who study visual and media arts would have a design center. Two whole classrooms designated for them. These rooms would have all that is needed to design. An art studio, a 3D virtual art studio, and a sound studio. The history classes would have a gigantic globe, a war strategy chart from every major war,life sized wax statues of prominent historical figures, and an interactive dome. The dome would put students in the scenarios that they would be studying. So they could better grasp what that time was about.

What My Students Mean to My School My students and teachers would form a community of learners. I'd want my students to have a major role in their own education. I'd allow them to voice their opinion and make it a requirement for my teachers to take their needs into consideration. Since my institution is one where they live most of the year I'd want to give them the ability to decide things for themselves. Teachers and administration would be there to keep them safe and on the right path, but not to control or restrict them.