First day of class

Still to this day after so many years of schooling I can honestly say the first day of class I am a nervous wreck. You walk in to a classroom full of new faces and a professor that you never had before and you’re thinking to your self oh god please let everyone like me and if you go to sit next to someone let them be friendly and try not to embarrass yourself. After you are seated you introduce yourself to the person next to you so you at least have some one to talk to before the teacher starts talking. But for some reason for me it’s the hardest thing because I am so shy. The first day is somewhat easy, the professor basically introduces themselves and gives a brief introduction about the course and goes over the syllabus. Throughout the semester it gets easier and easier because you become more comfortable with the surroundings and make some new friends.

The first day of Public Purposes in Education was scary for me just because I am not a big computer person. If I don’t need to go on a computer I won’t, but I have to say this class seems really interesting and I am looking forward to seeing what this class has to offer.

Schools, Students and Teachers

On planet earth we have educational facilities called schools. The way they are structured are from grades one to six, which are known as elementary school, seven to eighth, which are known as middle school, and nine to twelve known as high school. The content knowledge of the student in known by their grade level. Students are required to know certain subject areas such as Math, Reading, and Science. As shown by the PEP, Math, reading, and Science scores have risen from 1990 to 2005 in elementary and middle school, yet in high school scores have declined from 1990 to 2005. This decline is due to low moral from students, lack of resources and educational funding. By improving this, it will show an improvement on scores in the upcoming years.
Most of our students come from a Caucasian background. There are about 53% whites, 5% Asians, 15% African Americans, 24% Latino, and 6% American Indian. Due to the surrounding areas that we live in we want a positive and successful education for our students. As successful educators we find ways to connect language, music, cultural background and lifestyle of different students to make them feel comfortable not as an outsider. Our main goal is to push our students and motivate them to succeed in what ever they choose to do in life.
Our teachers often begin at or about the age of 22 and having received a bachelor’s degree. Many continue to pursue their own education as well as working to educate their students. 47% of our teachers have achieved a master’s degree or doctorate, and 58% of our teachers have been working in the field of education for over ten years. The majority of our high school educators are trained specifically in there are of content, ranging from 79% of Mathematics instructors to 84% of Social Science instructors. Although the Federal “No Child Left Behind Act” does not require instructors to have a degree in their field of teaching, it does require them to, “demonstrates subject matter competence.” A constant flow of new ideas about teaching is coming into our education system through an average of 14-21% of full time teachers with less than 3 years experience. These instructors, though lacking in experience,, more than compensate with a passion for teaching and a wealth of new and exciting ideas!