1. LaToya Washington, Cleveland, OH, toyawash@gmail.com
2. Toya
3. I am getting a Masters of Education in Middle Child Math and Social Studies
4. I like to paint. I have an 18 month old son who keeps me very busy. I am currently a substitute teacher in Cleveland and have been so for about six years. It is an interesting job.
5. I am always concerned about my grade, so as long as I know that my professor is open and accepting, I won't be afraid to try new things. Other than that I do what I need to do to get a good grade.
6. I think I am a good student. I always try to prepare for class because I want to be able to knowledgeably participate in class discussions although I hate to read so it is often a struggle. I prefer to work alone. I am not a fan of group projects because I don't like to have to rely on others for my grade.
8. I attended Cleveland public school from kindergarten through high school. My experience was very positive although not typical of public education because I was in honors classes and schools from 4th grade on. I had for the most part wonderful teachers and counselors who really cared about us and did everything they could to help us get into college and get all the scholarships we could.
As a substitute teacher I have a few memories that stand out but I'll just talk about one. In my second long term position, my first year subbing, I had a 6-8 special ed class. For some reason a few months in we had to rearrange the classes and most of my students were placed in another class. One of my lowest children's grandfather came to me and begged for his granddaughter to be put back in my class because he felt she was really learning with me and making progress. He even brought samples of the work the other teacher was giving her to show me that she couldn't understand. I felt bad for them, but it made me feel like I really made a difference.
9. Education is challenged by financial problems and federal mandates that require students to pass an unfair test that does not truly measure intelligence or knowledge. Teachers are blamed for student success when in fact there are factors facing students that are totally separate from the school environment. Teachers are not just teachers any more. With the absence of counselors in school and the numerous things that face students outside of school the teachers now have to take on several roles in addition to maintaining the responsibility of successfully educating each student.
11. How many times do we need to post to the blog and respond in order for you to think we have satisfactorily completed this portion of the class?
A soon-to-be-parting thought.
ReplyDeleteToya, you are going to be such an excellent role model for both your son and your students! You have both school smarts and common sense smarts: the best of both worlds! And on top of both, a caring heart that yearns to help people be the best they can be. It’s absolutely clear to me that you are going to change lives for the better!
And you’ve got flair too!