Blog Post 7 on Susan Ohanian Reading

 

I believe that...

"Those who hope to be effective teachers must recognize that teaching is a craft of careful artifice; the profession requires more than a spontaneous overflow of good intentions or the simple cataloguing and

distribution of information" (121).

 

 

     This quotation supports the main theme of Susan Ohanian's On Stir-and Serve Recipes for Teaching. Her essay asserts that there is no single "recipe" for running a classroom or for creating a good lesson plan. Ohanian believes that future teachers should not expect their education professors to provide them with fixed formulas and methods for teaching. My quotation provides an explanation for Ohanian's beliefs. One cannot expect a "stir and serve recipe" for teaching because education requires artifice, or creativity and strategy. A teacher must thoughtfully craft her lesson plans with many factors in mind. These factors include the traits and needs of her students, the material being taught, as well as the current time and atmosphere. Each lesson plan must be carefully crafted, like a piece of art, because these factors are ever-changing. Thus, lesson plans cannot be formed from stir and serve lesson plans or templates.

 

This quote also embodies the overarching theme of Paulo Freire's The Banking Concept of Education. Freire describes  the banking concept of education as the method where the teacher acts solely as a depositor placing information into her  passive students who she objectifies as depositories. Freire asserts that this form of education is ineffective and stifles creativity.  Similarly Ohanian states, "the profession requires more than... the simple cataloguing and distribution of information. The diction in Ohanian's quote, specifically the use of "cataloguing" and "distribution" resonates with Freire's text. The words "cataloguing" and "distribution" imply a  dry methodology that includes only organizing and dispensing information. As Ohonian and Freire both point out, teaching requires more than this stifling technique. Teaching requires artistry. The teacher must form her lesson plans to relate to her students and spark creative thought.

 

In addition to relating to these two texts, the quotation also has significance to me as an aspiring teacher. I, personally, tend to  feel more comfortable and confident when I am given a set procedure or specific instructions. Therefore, I could see myself struggling and desiring a ready-made lesson plan. I chose this quotation because I wanted to remember it. I don't want to fall into the trap of using teaching tips and lessons from magazines or other sources that wouldn't relate to my students. Even though I tend to like order and procedure, I also have a creative side. This quotation reminds me that I will need to use my creativity to make my lesson plans relate to and interest the students I'm teaching.