Polarizing Debates in English Class

One of the best parts of teaching English are the discussions and debates in class about the literature.  My Juniors classes had some energetic, lively, and loud debates about some issues that arise in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.  In Education circles, this strategy is called Polarizing Debates, where the topic chosen has no right or wrong answer and can put just as many people on one side of the issue as the other.  The goal when debating is to state why you chose the side you chose, but also to try to get those on the opposing side to switch over to yours through your compelling argument. 

We debated issues such as the responsibility of parents, the root of evil and whether or not people are born evil or benevolent, and who is the bigger monster in the novel:  Victor Frankenstein or his creation.  Students would walk into class and the first thing they would say is, “Are we debating today?”

 Now as I move to Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations with those same Juniors and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby with my Sophomores, I look forward to more and more debating.  I hope to debate issues such as their own expectations and aspirations in life and whether or not money is required for happiness.  I teach at a school where expectations are, in fact, high.  So, it is definitely an interesting discussion to see how my students will respond to where Pip and Gatsby went wrong in trying to achieve wealth.  I have a feeling there are going to be some very spirited discussions.  I can’t wait! 

Selling the Romantics



If any non-English teachers has ever wondered what it is like to teach Romantic Poetry…I can tell you that it is very similar to being a Used Car Salesman.  I mean, why bother with something old, unstylish, and outdated when you can get the newer, sleeker, cooler model?   The one with all the snazzy buttons and things that light up….when, for pretty much 100 years, all you really need are the basics:  wheels, engine, windows, etc.  Here is where we need all the old-timers to help me spread the “they sure don’t make ‘em like they used to” sentiment. 

It really is the same with Romantic Poetry.  Keats, Wordsworth, Shelley, Emerson, Thoreau and many others were just trying to say what these following memes are trying to say now:

 

 

To them, nature was something we were sometimes “out of tune” with and that we had “given away our hearts” for the acquisition of things.   Today’s generation with their faces in their phones need to be reminded of Thoreau’s famous lines “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” 

Here is an article that proves what these Romantics were saying all along about nature being a teacher and a healer:

Doctors Explain Why Going On A Hike Changes Your Brain. How It Works Is Fascinating
http://www.wimp.com/what-hiking-does-to-the-brain-is-pretty-amazing/?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=story/

 The bottom line is that the used car can get you to the same place as the newer one can.  Truth is, sometimes I want the new car, too.  There are some fantastic modern poets out there.  That’s the awesome things about both poetry and cars, they can both get you from point A to point B, older versions and the newer ones.  The new versions are great, but sometimes it’s best to stick with the classics. 

If only…

This week, I am reflecting on some of the things I wish could come true as we head into the 4^th marking period (yup, that means the countdown to summer vacation has officially begun).  4^th marking period means, 3 down, just 1 more to go.  We all see the light at the end of the tunnel.  But, we still have ¼ of the curriculum still to cover.  That being said, here is my

If only…

o   my students would see me and treat me exactly like they treat their coaches when it come to their writing  (*remember, I teach at an all-boys school) and I am wholeheartedly trying to “improve their game.”

o   the parents of my students would be okay with their students learning from their mistakes more and not trying to swoop in and explain to me why they made the mistake or that it was my fault that they made the mistake…can we just be cooler that making a mistake and learning from it is a critical part of education?  

o   my seniors would realize that I 100% get their Senior-itis, and even had it more that they did when I was their age…however, we still have 3 weeks left and I am not going to spend those three weeks having us all look at each other or not doing anything.  We can take it down a notch and they can enjoy their final weeks as high school students, but we are still going to do some work.

o   those same Seniors would understand that their Senior-itis is contagious!  And if we all caught it, well…