Reading+Kozol+-+PS

Paige Smith 9/6/12 ECI 430 Reading Kozol
 * //What do you understand to be Kozol’s premise? //
 * I feel as though Kozol wants people to understand that they can use the first person instead of third person. People today are scared to use “I” because they have been taught in school that it is wrong. Students and adults shy away from trying to create work that uses “I.” Using the third person can make the person not feel like they are in the present. If students are taught early in schools then they will be more comfortable using the first person. Kozol says that it hinders not only students today but those who learned the third person in years before.


 * //What is your stance towards this essay? In what ways does your stance towards it reflect personal experiences that you have had? //
 * I did like how the essay was written. I liked how it was not all about third person. When I entered college, I remember my professors wanted me to try using the first person. My first experience with using “I” was when I was middle school. I cannot remember back to elementary school using these strategies. I remember my teachers always telling me to use the third person because “I” does not look right in a paper. In high school teachers were still telling me to use third person and it really was hard for me to do this. College was the first time I felt allowed to use “I” and it felt strange. I want to teach my students that they can use “I” and it is not wrong.


 * //How do you see this essay related to Postman & Weingartner’s assertions about curriculum and education? To the historical approaches to teaching literacy? //
 * I think that theses authors together agree that students need to be focused on their learning. Not all students get the same education, so it is important that we learn to make them write more for today. If students continue to write passively, then they will continue to think it is okay. These authors care about students and want to help them become centered in school. Our timeline work really showed how literacy has evolved over the years. It is easy to see more and more students coming closer to using first person and not learning in the past. I think that each timeline that was represented shows the strong points of that era, but of course times change and so do people. As times change we need to teach to that change.


 * //To whom would you recommend OR not recommend this essay? //
 * I would recommend this essay to all English teachers. I think that every English teacher needs to read this and take away the main points that Kozol presents. I do not think this essay should be limited to just English teachers. I think all teachers should read it because writing and speech is incorporated in every class.