Tag Archives: Gabrielle Dela Cruz

Methodology Check In, Methods Check-In

Finding One’s Own Way: Methodology

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Our ASM will teach an understanding of the city and its streets on the way to the destination. This will all be depending on the individual’s actual motivation to reach the goal or in this case, the destination, which is an additional lesson for this ASM. It will also help our students learn about their partners and how to use teamwork to reach a shared objective. The students themselves would do the teaching, as they are educating themselves by choosing their own paths and following their own intuitions to find the landmark hints we will give them. The city will also help with the teaching by making students pay attention to their surroundings and increase their sense of direction. Our ASM will take place in the city; it will start at 59th street Maison Kayser and end at 74th street Maison Kayser. We chose Maison Kayser because as a group we have never heard of this cafe. This cafe is also not as mainstream as Starbucks or Paris Baguette. Our ASM will take place at 12pm noon on a Sunday because that is usually a lively time and day in the city and hopefully the amount of people on the streets will throw our students off and make it harder for them to find a way to Maison Kayser. Also, if our students get lost, they would need a good amount of time to get there before it gets dark. For the group that will receive strict directions, we will have to prepare a printout of these directions and a map to give to them. As for the group without the map or directions, we will need to take pictures of certain landmarks to give them hints. We will need two cameras to record each group during their journey to the destination.

Steps:

  1. Meet up as a group one day that is separate from the day of our ASM and we will basically go through the process our students will go through for ourselves.
  2. Half of our group, Kelly and Angela, will determine which landmarks and buildings to use.
  3. This half will also take pictures using our cameras of these landmarks and buildings and print them out.
  4. The other half, Gabrielle and Ariane, will Google and print out directions from Maison Kayser 59th St. to Maison Kayser 74th St.
  5. This half will also walk the set path with directions to determine the time limit to place on our student pair.
  6. After determining the time it takes to get there by directions, we will add thirty minutes to that for the time limit to give them some leeway in the case of any disruption.
  7. Schedule a Sunday that works for all the group members, as well as our students.
  8. Meet up on that day at Maison Kayser near Columbus Circle.
  9. Explain our project to our students and distribute the materials to each pair.
  10. Divide the groups and introduce each student to their partners.
  11. Then we will divide the pairs among the members of our group. Kelly and Angela will follow and film the pair without directions or a map. Gabrielle and Ariane will follow and film the pair with directions.
  12. We will confiscate the phones from all students to make sure they do not cheat.
  13. We will give Kelly and Angela’s group a five minute head start to make sure they do not follow the group with directions.
  14. The students will begin walking and we will begin recording.
  15. When everyone reaches the destination, we will discuss what all of the students learned about the city, each other, and themselves. This will determine the success of our ASM.
  16. We will also ask them if they liked the project and ask if they have any suggestions on what we could have done differently. We will include these statements in our paper.
  17. Then when everything relating to our ASM is done, we will eat to celebrate and as a reward for all of the walking!
"The What" Check-In

Finding One’s Own Way

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  1. Describing Our ASM

For this Alternative Schooling Moment, we will have our students travel around the city to reach one destination. We will be getting four people that we already know because it is too difficult to ask this of strangers. We will split these four into two pairs of people, those paired together will not be acquainted with each other, and their goal will be to reach the same destination. We will simulate the pressures of society on formal education on one of the groups. This group will get a printout of directions obtained from Google Maps, MapQuest, etc. They will strictly follow the directions we give them, similar to how students strictly follow the lesson plan given to them by formal education. Additionally, we will place time constraints on this group, which relates to the time limits institutions place upon students during the school year and especially during test-taking conditions.

As for the other group, we will simply give them hints on where to go, such as pictures of landmarks and street corners. This group will be left to use mostly their own intuition to reach the destination. They are prohibited from asking strangers on the street for help, for that may suppress any creativity that their intuitions may spur. Instead of coming up with their own ways to reach the destination, they would still be relying on others’ help, which we want to avoid as much as possible. Our group of five will split up to film each pair separately, and we will not attach ourselves to pairs with members that we individually know.

2. Our Audience and Our Students

The audience will be those who believe that formal education and the society attached  to it should be the main motivators for a student’s education. Our second audience would be supporters of non formal education methods. Our students will be friends, two of whom will be chosen by asking them if they want to go on an adventure in the city, thus creating our motivated group. We are choosing friends that do not know one another because we do not want their existing relationship to influence this ASM, and two people meeting and learning about each other for the first time should also be a nice additional lesson.

3. The Three Main Objectives of Our ASM…

  • Understanding of the city, the students’ surroundings, and even of their newly acquainted partners by those who have no “societal pressures”
  • Creativity in the way to get to the destination by the group with the freedom to pave their own path
  • Evoking and receiving passionate and genuine motivation to reach their destination from the students

4. …And How They Reflect Our Group’s Philosophy on Education

The understanding that will hopefully be obtained by the group with no “societal pressures” will reflect how we believe that motivation to learn coming from within the self achieves the best, long-lasting results. The group with constraints will be pressured to strictly follow the directions we give them and therefore will not be able to enjoy their surroundings and learn from it as well as the group with freedom. We also hope to garner as much creativity and fun from the group without pressures as well, and this will help them think of it less and less as a task that we are asking them to achieve. The creativity and fun will also help our next objective, which is to evoke and receive passionate and genuine motivation to reach their destination. This passion and true motivation will bring our philosophy back full circle, because if they are able to bring this kind of reaction out, they will obtain the best results of understanding the city, their surroundings, and their partners. Those who are more motivated with no pressure from anyone except themselves are more likely to be open to learning lessons from everything that surrounds them, instead of limiting themselves to the mindset presented to them.

5. Two Readings Reflecting Our Group’s Philosophy on Education

Rousseau:

Rousseau’s insistence of Emile learning from and for himself allows our group’s philosophy to support it. Rousseau writes, “This is also the time to train him gradually to prolonged attention to a given object; but this attention should never be the result of constraint, but of interest or desire” (17). This quote comes from Rousseau’s instruction on the ideal education for man, as he says that it is best for Emile to be trained gradually to give attention to a certain thing, but this attention should not be forced or limited to certain constraints. Instead, it should come from the student’s own interests and desire to learn. This relates to our philosophy that the student who motivates himself to learn and has actual interest in the topic is the one who obtains the ideal education. This is why we are allowing one group to be free of constraints that one usually has on his or her education, so that the group’s motivation to reach their destination will come purely from their own interest and desire.

Additionally, Rousseau believes that one learns when they reason and experience things on their own freely. He writes, “”Let him know nothing because you have told him, but because he has learnt it for himself. Let him not be taught science, let him discover it” (Rousseau 15). The students with no direction also will have to heavily rely on their own instincts in order to reach the destination. Like Rousseau gives Emile no set plan on what to learn and does not teach the latter things, the students with freedom must learn and discover their own way to the destination. This gives the students a clearer and more personal understanding of where they are going and how they get there. Students with direction, however, won’t receive the same understanding since the directions are directly given to them. They will strictly follow the directions and therefore, they will not be free to admire their surroundings, learn mistakes, or have much fun on the way to the destination. They aren’t discovering anything new, instead they are only learning within the constraints set upon them.

Shelley:

The reading written by Shelley, specifically with the monster motivating himself and paving his own way to education is also a text that our group’s philosophy supports. The monster, after being abandoned by Victor Frankenstein, finds “that [he] could wander on at liberty, with no obstacles which [he] could not either surmount or avoid” (Shelley 209). Because the monster was not a part of society and had no expectations from others he could go around without being held back by anyone or anything. He was able to find Frankenstein while also gaining knowledge in his own way. The motivation to find his creator influenced his decisions to observe and learn from others even though he was rejected by humans. He did not give up the hope of wanting to communicate with others. This relates to what our philosophy is trying to reflect, that one should not base his or her own motivation to learn on what others think or try to tell one to. Whether or not others are in support of one’s journey to education should not affect the individual’s desire to keep going.

This motivation can come in different ways, and the monster displays that. Hope to communicate with others is one way, and another way is his fear that he will never be able to reach that goal. The monster “tried to imitate the pleasant songs of the birds” however “the uncouth and inarticulate sounds which broke from [him] frightened [him] into silence again” (211). Though afraid at first and drifting back into silence, the monster quickly gets over that in his determination to learn the ways of humans. Similar to how the monster’s inability to communicate and learn language frightened and motivated him at the same time to educate himself, the students without directions will be motivated by their fear of getting lost and not reaching their destination.

Another instance that supports our philosophy occurs when the monster was in the woods, when he “quickly collected some branches, but they were wet and would not burn” (Shelley 212). The monster sat and observed how “the wet wood which [he] had placed near the heat dried and itself became inflamed” (Shelley 213). He reflected on his mistake “and by touching the various branches, [he] discovered the cause and busied [him]self…that [he] might dry it and have a plentiful supply of fire” (Shelley 213). The monster’s lesson of learning how to start a fire relates to our project and philosophy. The students without directions will be learning from their mistakes because if they ever get lost, they now know never to go that way again if they want to go to the same destination. This way of thinking also reflects on our philosophy because the monster was motivated to supply himself with fire, not letting his mistakes destroy his determination to survive and instead learning from them. Learning from mistakes are lessons that stay with individuals for life, because they learn that there is nothing to gain from that route.

 

Theory Check-In

“I Let My Curiosity Motivate Me.”

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Have you ever thought about the advice given in children’s movies? In the movie Antz, Barbatus says, “Don’t follow orders your whole life. Think for yourself.” Society has always consisted of people deciding for others, resulting in one forgetting to think for himself. Man’s natural curiosity then becomes suppressed in an attempt to conform man’s education to fit what society deems best. However, those who let their curiosity guide them have the advantage of broadening their horizons of knowledge and therefore becoming more successful with their own education. Therefore, our theory on education is the idea that man learns best when the motivation to become educated comes from within himself, instead of allowing the pressures of society to be the main influence on his education. In order to prove this claim, we will be exploring Shelley’s theory on education and how our claim reflects some of its ideas, highlighted by Victor Frankenstein and the monster. Next, we will support our theory by discussing Frederick Douglass’ curiosity for information, which led to his successful education. After that, we will discuss how Emerson’s idea of the “American Scholar,” pushes men to be their best and therefore reflects our theory. Lastly, we will analyze how Rousseau’s idea of society influencing man challenges our claim of achieving an education through one’s own drive to learn.

Mary Shelley’s illustration of her theory on education reflects our own claim very well, having the characters of both Victor Frankenstein and his monster ignore societal influences on the road to educate themselves. When Victor Frankenstein was just a little boy, he fell in love with the way specific theorists thought. However, people whom he respected were constantly calling the things he studied nonsense and a waste of time, but instead of listening to them, this just motivated him to keep learning.  At the age of thirteen, he began reading a book about Cornelius Agrippa, becoming entranced by his theories and showing it to his father in excitement, but this only garnered a reaction of: “Ah! Cornelius Agrippa! My dear Victor, do not waste your time upon this; it is sad trash” (Shelley 34). By emphasizing this quote in Victor’s past, Shelley lets the audience know that this would prove to be a crucial moment – the answer his father gave him did not satisfy his curiosity so he kept pushing himself to obtain the education he desired. This motivation follows him to university, where he encounters a professor who gives him a similar reaction when hearing about Victor’s interest in these theorists. Instead of resenting this advice to give up the things he believed in, he took his professor’s words and incorporated it into the lesson plan he had for himself, finding “a great deal of sound and sense” to add to what he had already learned (47). All of this motivation to gain intellectual success allows him to do what has not been done before – create life in the monster through artificial means. Life is not the only thing Victor seems to have given the monster, however, as the latter has received his creator’s passion to learn and understand. Despite the constant backlash the monster receives from society due to his appearance, he pushes forward with his desire to educate himself, spending his days in “close attention, that [he] might more speedily master the language” taught by Felix to Safie. The monster is so successful with his study plan that by the next time he meets with his creator, he is well spoken and well read, having already finished the books from the abandoned bag that he finds in the forest. He is able to narrate his story to Victor and ask the latter to create for him a companion. More importantly, the monster is able to get Victor to understand what the former has gone through due to Victor’s neglect, and this is all a result of his unwavering determination to educate himself in the ways of man.

The idea of providing education to slaves was immoral and never accepted by the society of Frederick Douglass’ time. Society and man forbid slaves of education from the very beginning of their life. Black children didn’t even know their age, but white children could say the exact year of their births. The discrepancy in education between whites and blacks made Douglass realize the injustice of slavery. Additionally, the lack of knowledge that Frederick Douglass had further motivated him to pursue a greater education. Sophia Auld, Douglass’ mistress, had given the “inch” to Douglass by fulfilling his request on teaching him how to read. Master Hugh Auld intervened and stopped his wife from teaching Douglass any further because it would awaken the latter’s curiosity. However, it was too late; Douglass’ suppressed curiosity due to society’s standards had been aroused and Douglass wanted the “ell” to his “inch.” Douglass’ own desire for knowledge grew more intense that he became willing to sacrifice whatever he could to obtain it. Douglass traded bread for lessons on how to read, he copied words from little Tommy’s books, and learned how to write by watching others at the shipyard. To Frederick Douglass, if he did not have that self-desire for knowledge, he would not have gotten an education that led to greater things upon his life later on.

This same desire to learn is what fuels Emerson’s idea of the American Scholar. His theory encompasses the concept of an independent mind, free of influences that may suppress the inner truth that the self is attempting to conceive. Emerson says, “In the right state, he is, Man Thinking. In the degenerate state, when the victim of society, he tends to become a mere thinker” (Paragraph 6). In two sentences, Emerson summarizes the consequences of man relying on what society encourages him to learn to base his education on. If man follows accordingly to society’s study agenda, he loses his ability to create a study plan based on his own personal interests and curiosity. If he loses this, he loses his potential to think like a true intellect. This is what Emerson wishes to avoid as he insists that man find truth within himself, as that is the most effective way of reaching progression. He says, “[The mind], instead of being its own seer, let it receive from another mind its truth…and a fatal disservice is done” and goes on to talk about how over influence hurts the genius. External influence on one’s education is acceptable to a certain extent; anything past that will only damper man’s ability to achieve educational greatness within himself.

Rousseau’s theory of man influencing education by societal pressure challenges our claim of man learning best through his own motivation to learn. Putting the pressures of society on man is ineffective on one’s education. Rousseau states: “Society must be studied in the individual and the individual in society” (31). He believes that one should compare themselves to the customs and traditions of society in order to mold them into what is socially acceptable. Here, Rousseau is man influencing, while Emile is man being influenced. Rousseau believes that he should “put him in his place from the first, and keep him in it, so that he no longer tries to leave it” (8). This explains how people tend to categorize one another, which then builds boundaries on one another’s way of learning. By formal education, one is learning the core curriculum that the teacher wants him or her to learn, which might not be within their interests. With this, one becomes complacent, and halfheartedly achieves their grade, rather than excelling in the topic because they have expressed a true interest in it. This hinders one’s ability to think and reason if they are not passionate about the topic, which then confines man to the scope of their knowledge to what must be taught and learned. There are many cases when those who have dropped out succeed because of their motivation to learn on their own. Rousseau expresses the importance of gaining an education through the influence other men. However, this would only stop people from reaching their full potential. Instead, one should rely on his own motivation to influence his education.

 

Introduction Exercise #1

“If you give a nigger an inch, he will take an ell.”

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Why is it that Douglass focuses so much on a master’s insistence that a slave be illiterate? Why not focus on something better known, like a slave’s struggle to work for said master? Instead, Douglass brings to light something that may not be obvious to the reader/audience. He desires to explain how this education that the slave master tries so hard to prevent is how he obtained the very freedom that has allowed him to write this autobiography. This text argues that education is the resource that frees slaves from their master, so depriving them of this resource illustrates the white man’s ultimate power to enslave. This essential power does not only take control of a slave’s body to produce hard labor, but also controls a slave’s mind and brainwashes him to think that he is not capable of anything else, nevertheless question being a slave. In order to demonstrate our claim, we will follow through on how Frederick Douglass got a hint of education from his mistress, but was stopped abruptly. Next, we will discuss Douglass’ consistent pursuement for further knowledge despite the method. Finally, we will look at how Douglass’ determination to be educated despite constant backlash from his master is what finally gives him the freedom he only used to read about.