The World Needs a Hero. We need a Hero.

englund advice Englund Headshot Trixx draculaThis week in my English class discussion we were continuing illiteracy and the struggles of many students in the public school systems that are merely “placed” on a certain track because no one believes they can do anything on any of the other tracks set forth. Which is very wrong to think….give someone a chance, all they need is someone to believe in them and they can do anything.  The source we utilized as our major support and a book that I believe is really inspiring is Mike Roses’ “Live on the Boundary”. This is a book that includes personal observation of numerous students whom have struggled with school or whom were lost in the cracks within the school system, and there fore never fully received the education they truly needed. In one chapter specifically, Rose describes a student whose test scores were mixed up with another person and he was immediately placed in remedial classes where no one learned anything or even cared to teach the students for that matter. So in turn the students did not care about their education themselves. This is what happened to Rose. He used to love Chemistry, experiments, astronomy and learning as a child when his parents, whom were illiterate, purchased him a telescope and a little chemistry set. They wanted him to be better than they were and have a better life, like all parents want for their children, but the school system actually failed in this case. There are numerous flaws within this system and a major one revolves around judging and assessing a students level, placement, and current learning level and ability. The school assumed through these wrong scores that he could never learn, so they never wanted to try, and were more then willing to virtually “throw him away” along with all the other struggling students in the remedial track. Some students just simply don’t care about school, I get that, but he did and no one believed him. So he joined in the crowd and became unprepared in learning skills when the mistake was finally discovered and he was immediately catapulted into the college prep track. He was ready to fall into the cracks again until a hero found him.

His Literature professor saw how hard he tried and still struggled and was willing to work with him after class to learn to read, write, and comprehend at the levels he needed to to get into college. He even helped him get into college (on probation) despite his entrance scores being way low. During this entrance probation this teacher stayed in touch the whole way to make sure he didn’t struggle any longer. This teacher knew Rose’s potential, potential that every student has, Rose just needed that hero to guide him. Rose ended up graduating from Loyola University after this chapter ended, and to think no one believed he could make it simply from some standardized test scores. Teacher’s are amazing and can teach students so much, but cannot do that if they are burdened to simply teach a test to make sure students get good grades so they can pass it and the school can beat other schools out for funding. With that inspiring teacher, Rose was able to get the education he needed and wanted, he was given a chance.

I think Heroes in our lives help us not only with learning but in life in general. Without my awesome teachers, professors, principals, and role model’s constant support, I would not be where I am today. With life’s constant obstacles people often count people out, these inspiring heroes don’t do that. They push you to be better, pick you up off the ground, and become your mountains to help you reach the stars. I have so many heroes in my life that had battled for me in my corner when everyone was ready to count me out, and I owe them everything. Robert Englund even sent me some words of advice after hearing of my recent struggles, even simple gestures from the heroes in your life can mean the world, especially to a student. Everyone could use a hero, it can mean all the difference sometimes.

Above are my newest art pieces in charcoal and watercolor and Mr. Englund’s advice to me that kept me going. Let me know what you think!

 

4 thoughts on “The World Needs a Hero. We need a Hero.

  1. Lillian says:

    Over winter break, I went back to my middle school and visited some of my past teachers. I still remember talking to my 6th grade math teacher and how he was telling me that the math system at the school is unsuitable for many of the kids because the paths are too clear-cut. It was either you were an accelerated math student or not. My teacher was arguing that there were kids that fell between these two standards and it would be hard to motivate those kids and please the accelerated math kids when they were all in once class. The problem that you bring up in this post is extremely important for those who work in the field of acadmeica these days. I really hope schools will begin to realize what they are doing is actually discouraging students to learn.

  2. Nicole Luchansky says:

    First of all, once again, your art work amazes me! If the pieces you have created are not in an art show already, they should be.:) I really enjoyed reading your post this week. Statistics show that only 5% of students nationwide are truly in need of remedial support, but in reality, the number goes way beyond 5%. Why? According to one article, “Remedial reading and special education could easily be called growth industries in the United States. We are experiencing record Title I expenditures, burgeoning Reading Recovery programs,1 statewide initiatives to improve reading achievement (Manzo, 1998), widespread accountability testing to raise reading achievement (Editorial Projects in Education, 2000, pp. 72–73), and mushrooming special education programs (Finn, Rotherham, & Hokanson, 2001).” As we continue to allow testing standards to measure student ability, a plethora of students continue to fall through the cracks. This has severe implications. Just to name a few, higher rates in juvenile detention facilities and prisons, an increased amount of funding needing to go to remedial colleges, and millions of dollars in lost earnings in adulthood due to illiteracy. There are social and economics costs and I think that the only way to curb the deficit is to develop a new method of testing student ability, as well as improving teacher identification of student ability. Furthermore, many teachers tend to become flustered with their students, and resort to complaining about having to work with children all day. If more teachers were to take the approach of the “heroes” in your life, the academic realm would certainly be a better place. Sometimes, it is just a matter of reevaluating why you became a teacher, and working toward that goal yet again.

  3. Lisa Keim says:

    It is so important that teachers are willing to have faith in students and work with them, no matter what the student’s abilities are. I can’t believe that a student was put in remedial classes just because his test score got mixed up with someone else’s! In a situation like that, I would think someone would recognize that he didn’t need to be in those classes, but like you said, the teachers in that class didn’t care enough to pay attention. And then, when the mistake was discovered, he was suddenly launched into a bunch of new classes that he wasn’t at all prepared for! It’s a really good thing his Lit teacher believed in him enough to help him. Students need more teachers like that.

    This was a really interesting and thought-provoking post. Awesome job!

  4. Helena Marie says:

    One year on a standardized test, I accidentally forgot to fill in one bubble, which when I filled in the rest of my test all of the answers were off by one choice. If I was placed into a program due to that test score, I would lose my passion because I would not be getting the education I actually need. I think it is very important to have someone in a student’s life that keeps him or her on track and ensures that the student not only follows their dreams but gains a necessary education to make those dreams come true.

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