**All of my references to the "text" will be regarding Sociology of Education by Joyce Barakett and Ailie Cleghorn. Class references will be Education 4320 with instructor Robert Runte**
This was one of my most interesting first reads of any class. I was delighted by the reviewing of some of the basic sociology terms. I think this will make for a much easier understanding of the concepts that we will be addressing and therefore will be able to get much deeper into the actual "meat and potatoes" of the controversy versus trying to decipher all the jargon.
While reading the paragraph about notions of what girls and boys should act like it made me wonder or question if there are even defined ways to act anymore. In reflection upon classes that I have either been a student in or have been teaching, actions are varied in many different aspects. Kids used to always raise their hands if they had anything to say, is that the status quo anymore? Does that happen in all of our classes? Shouldn't we be completely trained? What about all the variation in teachers as a whole? Are we all the same? Do we all have the same exact ways of doing things? *I don't think we can say that students in the present, especially a gender separation, have set ways to behave.
The text almost stated (perhaps I was a bit too offended) that elementary school was basically a facility to watch the kids while the parents were away. If elementary school is just a place to "babysit" the children, why is it then that children learn how to read? do basic math? Learn pretty much every basic skill that is needed for every grade after elementary school!?!?
Honestly, I think that elementary school teaching is most likely the most important and hardest age level to teach. Students do not yet have the skills to teach themselves, read, make informed decisions or even interact on the "accepted" basis. I was quite irritated by the way the text portrayed elementary school or teachers as a "custodial function".
That seemed quite negative, however, I did feel quite positive about this text. I am intrigued by what I will read next. :)
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The point is there are many ways we could organize ourselves to help kids learn to read -- the question is why do we use schools? One answer is that getting all the kids in one place and one time so one adult can teach them while the rest of us go off and do other stuff -- what the text calls the custodial function -- is pretty efficient. But that's hardly the only way to do it.
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