Feng Mengbo: Long March

while in New York this weekend, I managed to make a quick stop at MoMA PS 1. I was geeked to wander into the Feng Mengbo exhibit Long March: (Restart) 2008. I was drawn in by the music and then stayed a while playing a video game projected on two long walls. The game used elements from classic games like Super Mario Bros & Street Fighter II while incorporating images of Communist China.


I pulled a picture from the museum's website to get an idea of the amazingness of the installation.

crush

While looking through the AREA Chicago site, I came across an article co-written by Therese Quinn and Erica Meiners and was quickly reminded of my respect and admiration for both of their work...

How Real Does It Get? Editorializing on critical pedagogy, wankstas and the fear of teaching like a girl 

 

There is a lot to think about and take into consideration, especially given that I am thinking about critical pedagogy for thesis work and just in general in what I hope will be my approach to teaching.

Rethinking Schools Resources

I subscribed to Rethinking Schools at the beginning of last semester. I used to come across different articles here and there, but I really like this journal and the multiple resources they offer.

I recently received an email notifying me of a great resource:

Teaching About Labor Issues and the Wisconsin Worker Fight Back

You don't have to have a subscription to access this information. They provide links to other sites, information on books, movies, articles, and songs that address labor issues, they even offer lesson plans and give target grade recommendations. 

I know that this site and journal are going to be major reference I will continue to revisit when I become a teacher.

on hiatus

i've been m.i.a. for a bit, but i am back, at least i hope so. i will spare you the whiny excuses about not having enough time and being overwhelmed, this is what i signed up for. i think i would be more concerned if i was not stressed out, i would be pissed actually that i was spending so much money and feeling like i wasn't getting anything out of this experience.

so, i am trying to set a schedule and stick with it. this will be the a practical skill that i can use in multiple areas of my life. i know some bad ass people who manage to do so much work and still find a healthy balance with family, and their physical and mental health (at least it looks that way from an outsider's perspective). so, what will i do differently? i am creating a schedule and i am going to try my hardest to stick to it. i have a loose schedule now, but I typically find distractions and excuses to do other things as a way to avoid getting work done. and at this point in the semester i cannot continue to veer too far off course. it just ends up being worse in the end. i have work that needs to get done and it can go one of two ways, i either pace myself and get stuff done in a productive and timely manner, or i can procrastinate and stress myself out and be anxious and uncomfortable and crabby and self-conscious. i like the sound of the first option, but like anything, its work. and its easier said than done, but i am going to try.

Catalyst March 2011 Issue

I really like Catalyst Chicago, its a great resource and has tons of articles and information mostly about Chicago but in general urban education.

This month's issue is about teacher education and preparation programs and includes a few stories about students from Illinois State University working in Little Village and Auburn Gresham communities. I had the opportunity to work with a few of the student teachers featured in this issue and there are quite a bit of thought provoking comments and structures that might be worth looking into.

You can access all of the information for free and download a pdf file of this month's issue, just follow the link bellow.

March 2011: Teacher Preparation

article for discussion in class on March 8

What's Right With This Picture? Chicago's YOUmedia reinvents the public library by Karen Springen

CReATE: Chicago School Reform Forum

Our class attended the Chicago School Reform: Myths, Realities and New Visions Forum last night at UIC. I'm glad we had the opportunity to go, especially because lately I don't make it out to this kind of event on my own, just because I've been so all consumed by school.

Anyway, the Chicagoland Researchers and Advocates for Transformative Education (CReATE), a group of bad ass researchers, educators, and just flat out amazing people, put together a document that highlights myths, realities and their vision for what public education should look like.

I guess what stood out for me most were the final remarks by the student, parent and community representatives on the panel. Especially Jitu Brown from the Kenwood Oakland Community Organization. I guess they helped to contextualize this document, its great, but now what?

Jitu said something very important last night, he made it clear that what we will find in this document is nothing new. This is not to invalidate the work or the panel, if anything it was to light a fire under our ass and push everyone to action. There is a lot of value to the document and to the collective voice of CReATE and all of their individual members. Its just that this information is not new. I love hearing Jitu Brown speak, I always feel re-inspired, we need more action, we need more organizers. We have to stop putting it off or relying on someone else to take action for us, if we do, its never going to happen.