Feb 03 2008
Freire: Second Letter: Don’t Let the Fear of What Is Difficult Paralyze You
This was an eye-opening chapter because there are times where this is exactly what I think I do. I let the fear of what is difficult paralyze me. I think back to the IRB proposal process in the fall. Fear would paralyze me at each step of the process. I would send in a draft and when I got it back, I waited a day or two to read comments and remarks. I was too scared of what I might read. Once I read the comments, I would wait another day or two to make the revisions out of fear about how long those revisions would take. Looking back, I wasted a lot of time. I should have just pushed through the hard parts like so many other people in the class did. I think the reflections that the professors shared with me will help for the next group. I was more fearful about the process than actually doing the task. I know that it has been suggested that people do group projects. I think this will help with the fear of the project. I also think that Caitlin talked about being there when we are completing the IRB proposal online to answer any questions about wording. I think this is a good idea since many have not been through a process like that. It would be a less anxious process if we could ask questions as we were constructing the proposal online.
The next idea that Freire talks about is how to approach reading for studying purposes. One thing he talks about is being careful not to proclaim that we understand any knowledge without putting the knowledge to the test. I wonder about how many teachers do that with some of the instructional strategies that are taught. I find that in the area of balanced literacy. Many people understand the premise of guided reading, and have that under control. But, when you ask them about another part like the difference between shared writing and interactive writing, many get confused. I think this could be because people get so secure in the guided reading portion that they don’t go on to experiment and try the other portions of the balanced literacy approach. Then, after a few years pass, they can tell you basically what it is, but not much more. I think if we can continue to encourage people to try and improve an area of instruction that they feel is weak, we may be able to get on a more common playing field with our colleagues. When we take on the role as learners within a group, we can move our understandings forward and feel more comfortable in putting that new learning to the test. When we can put this learning to the test, we can better understand the concepts and provide feedback to colleagues about pitfalls that might occur during the initial implementation. I think this should improve the integrity of instruction as a whole and lift the progress of our students.
I thought Freire’s comments about imagination during reading are so true. I can’t tell you how many times, I have found my thoughts wondering and had to go back and reread to really take in the text. He also takes about an open-mindedness that needs to occur to “co-author” the text. I wonder how many of us miss out on good reading because one phrase or idea has turned us off. There were times initially in the program where I allowed that to happen after reading a text. Now, I think I am alot more comfortable in my questioning and can express that in class. Towards the end of the chapter, my mind wondered towards the children. How many of our children have teachers that don’t teach them how to truly interact with a text. I think that is how our children gain a misunderstanding that reading is word calling. When we as teachers fail to facilitate the interaction that must take place with a text, we teach the wrong concept of reading. I think that is what happens when we focus too much on phonics. Reading is about making meaning of text. I think we have to start shouting that important idea from the roof top. We also have to speak up if we see a pattern of that occurring within our schools.
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Isn’t it refreshing to read what Freire has to say?
His thoughts about fear reminded me of something. I have often thought that as adults we have come to a realization of our strengths and weaknesses. We’ve lived life long enough to know what we’re good at, and usually no one makes us do anything that we don’t want to do. For example, if I know I’m a good cook, I am not intimidated about trying a new recipe or sharing the results of my cooking with family and friends. But if I were asked to waterski with a group of friends, I would feel extremely intimidated because I tried that once with very poor results!! The memory of a past experience would be fresh in my mind if I were placed in that situation.
On the other hand, we constantly ask children to do things they don’t want to do. Even when we lead them by the hand, offering encouragement and guidance, they are entering an unknown or untested area of their lives. Granted, they need a wide range of experiences and sometimes they need a push from adults, but we should be aware of their fear. As teachers, we take our students into the difficult arena of reading comprehension in all of the academic content areas, and we asked them to perform math calculations. As we teach, we have to be aware of how hard it is to face what seems like an impossible task.