In class, upon reviewing why perhaps the wizarding world of Harry Potter is not as appealing as it appears to be in The Prisoner Of Azkaban, I’ve come to the conclusion that education really is only what you make of it. People are naturally attracted to the things that are unavailable to them, and the Harry Potter series acts as the epitome of adolescent escape. Children and young people can read JK Rowling’s novels, and escape into a world that will never be available to them. However, even if it was readily available, would it be a desirable world to spend one’s youth? Constantly evading death and destruction? We discussed this in class, and it certainly made me think.
In the beginning of The Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry doesn’t know about his imminent doom until overhearing a conversation between the Weasleys. Because he had no knowledge of this danger before eavesdropping on them, he had no fear when he saw the grim while away from Hogwarts. Once he does arrive at Hogwarts however, he is constantly bombarded with fear, stress, and pessimism from his peers. He is now extremely concerned about seeing the grim again, and his divination professor only makes matters worse, further escalating this anxiety. Kant says that enlightenment is the escape from self-incurred minority, and that it coincides with the truest freedom. In Harry Potter’s case however, he is less free, and more confined than ever after finding out the truth. His freedom from the Dursleys ends up leaving him with more knowledge, but that knowledge doesn’t keep him “free”. Although I don’t personally believe that it is ethical to keep people in the dark regarding things that will upset them, keeping someone ignorant could potentially protect them. This idea presents itself in the conversation between the reverend and Grant Wiggins in a Lesson Before Dying. Mentioned in my prior post, the reverend claims his lies are better for his community than the truth.
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Extra Credit Post
My favorite part of the course this semester was when we watched and discussed To Sir with Love. I enjoyed watching that dynamic between Sir and his students, because its not one that I’ve seen often. Sir taught his students how to be functioning members of society. He connected with them on a personal level and I feel as if that connection made his lessons more impactful. It didn’t seem like Sir was shoving information down their throats, it was more like a conversation. Instead of teachings students to pass , he taught students what was to be expected of them as young adults. Even though in the beginning of the movie teaching wasn’t a passion of his, Sir seemed to be passionate about helping his students grow. Educators should be more aware of their impact on their students. They have the power to shape the future of so many young people and in my experience many of them don’t take advantage of that. I understand that there a specific curriculum that teachers are sometimes expected to follow but I believe it would be in the best interest of all parties involved, if the lessons were somehow made more relatable. speaking as someone who sometimes struggles with the stress of schools expectations, I strongly believe that if educators were held to same standards that Sir displayed, students would gain much more from formal education.
Different Kinds of Knowledge- Extra Credit Post 1
Upon reading A Lesson Before Dying, I came to the conclusion that sometimes the truth is too difficult to bare. Also, the text proves that having status and formal education does not always mean that you have more knowledge than others. Grant Wiggins, an educated, intelligent man comes face to face with the fact that not matter how much he tries, his education has not equipped him with the ability to free his students from their place in society.
One part of the novel that really gained my attention was the conversation between Wiggins and the reverend. On page 178, they’re discussing what Wiggins would do if Jefferson asked him about the existence of heaven. Wiggins, a skeptic, says that he’d rather not think of something like that even happening, and the reverend has a quick change of attitude. He quickly addresses why even if you tell people lies, they help people cope a lot of the time, and that that’s perfectly alright. The reverend says that he “lies at wakes and funerals to relieve pain” and to help people overcome their sadness. The reverend finishes his rant with “that makes me the educated one, and you the gump” implying that Wiggins has no right to judge him for his actions, and that he doesn’t have the same firsthand experience that the reverend has. This all shows that even though Wiggins is well educated and full of formal knowledge, he lacks this basic understanding. I think this really taps into the theme of “school isn’t everything”, and that a lot of the time we don’t learn important life lessons about humans, their thoughts, and their coping mechanisms.
Intro
The civil rights activist Malcolm X was born intellectually capable, hopeful, and adept. Although he lived during a period of severe racial injustice, through his capabilities, the chances of him succeeding and living out a normal life were high. By being told he was a lesser human, his perspective changed, bringing him down a path of fighting the same entity that denied him hope. The students to To Sir With Love, show signs of having experienced a similar disillusionment, until Mark gives them love and support. According to Locke, humans have no innate understanding of their limitations or status, meaning that the key to a successful education is not through discipline, but through positive reinforcement. This can be seen in the education of both Malcom X and the student body of To Sir With Love.
One of the first things to make note of, is the fact that Malcolm X was able to teach himself a great deal despite leaving the standard education system. This is why he acts as such a great example of why formal education has failed. He proves himself highly intelligent through his journey of self-education, but if he himself, a bright and promising young man, was rejected from the American schooling system, one wonders how many intelligent pupils have been lost for the same reasons.
You have to want it.
Is school the only place where you can receive an education or can you learn from studying on your own? Malcolm X testifies that with books you can not only expand your vocabulary but your way of thinking. Now, he did not go to school past the 8th grade but because of his self discipline and hard work he became one of the most articulate and powerful leaders of his time. This text is an affirmation that education can be self taught and that freedom is possible through your own studies. This “new world” that Malcolm X was exploring brought about many questions and answers. It became an essential knowledge that he was earning, which manifested into a tool and his motivation to enlighten his own people. In order to demonstrate this claim, we will first go through the people who had an influence on his pursue of education. Next, will be the beginning steps Malcolm X took to develop his stock of knowledge. Finally, how committed he was to understand everything he was reading to contribute to society.
Teaching method that actually worked!
E.R Braithwaite, a new teacher at Greenslade School, a secondary school, learns how to teach a group of students who are classified as “difficult” because they do not comply with the traditional forms of education because of their lack of respect for authority. Being black was definitely a disadvantage for him, seeing as the students did not respect him because of that fact, but he persists and tries a different approach to teaching them, giving them respect for their age, and asking them to have certain manners now in class. I think this made a huge difference in their minds for many different reasons.
By giving these students respect, Braithwaite earned theirs because they finally felt like someone genuinely cared about them and saw them as blooming adults, which they were. Giving them this sense of power gave these students the drive to prove their self-worth, to actually accomplish and learn things. By letting his students choose the topic they discussed in class, the students expressed real interest in the topic and the conversation just flowed. There was nothing strained about the conversation, since Braithwaite gave the students permission to ask anything they wanted. He let them explore the thoughts in their mind, answered any questions they had, and let them expressed their opinions. This was completely new to them, and being treated differently and learning in this kind of environment made these children not only better students, but better people, being able to survive in the real world with the different topics they discussed, like sex, love, marriage, etc.
I believe this was very important to them, treating these students like adults and teaching them things that actually meant something to them, to entice real interest from them. One can see how the students perception of their teacher changes throughout the movie, with good reason! In my opinion, Braithwaite could not have gotten through to his students any other way since I believe that in order to learn, a student must first be motivated to learn and express interest in the topics one is learning.
Brainstorm Exercise # 2
Brainstorming Exercise # 2 – Moral Man
Malcolm and Bach
There were many parallels between the excerpt from The Autobiography of Malcolm X and the other passages we’ve read through out the semester. Malcolm X’s journey to education began upon his increasing fascination with the Nation Of Islam and its founder Elijah Muhammad . While incarcerated, X began to read dictionaries and self educate. He found enlightenment through books, and his newfound knowledge on the brutality of Americas history sparked his career as a an activist. If Malcolm X was to give a speech on education and its importance, I believe it would be similar to that of Bach’s in A Buccaneers Scholar; aggressive and persuasive. They both found their passions outside of formal education and had no interest in educational institutions. Malcolm states that “[he] certainly wasn’t seeking any degree, the way college confers a status symbol upon its symbols”. They both achieved their goals through their thirst for knowledge …and (having knowledge of Malcolm X’s “by any means necessary” civil rights movement) they both seem dogmatic.
FREDERICK’S FREEDOM VS. KANT’S ENLIGHTENMENT
Immanuel Kant defied “enlightenment is the human being’s emergence from his self-incurred minority”(Kant, p1), which he thinks that minority is the ability to understand something on their own, without anyone’s direction. However Kant stated that people become lazy, when they found someone who can guide them, teach them and do everything for them, people are comfortable to be a minor, therefor it is difficult for any single individual to enlighten themselves because they have never allowed to do so. Kant also believes freedom is importantly related with enlightenment, he stated ” For this enlightenment, however, nothing is required but freedom”(Kant,p5). Kant thinks the society limited the way of how people thinking, and doing things. He gave out examples of tax office, officer and the clergyman, they were all regulate people in the way of how they will like things to be done, “there are restrictions of freedom everywhere” Kant said. Therefore it is even more difficult for people to think freely and not to follow others direction .
In Frederick Douglass’s narrative of his slavery life, Kant’s idea of how enlightenment related with freedom can also be seen. Frederick was a slave, enlightenment at that time is way far for people to think, when they don’t even know their own birthday, can’t even write their own name. But Frederick learned how to read and write, his education encouraged him to escape from the slaver, pursue his own freedom.
Kant believes the freedom is the key of enlightenment , but for Frederick, without knowledge , without enlighten himself, he will never achieved his freedom.