Ally's Blog: Currins 545

Civil Rights Act of 1964 More than ever it is imperative that we discuss the topic of racism in our classrooms with our students. Mostly when racism is discussed it is brought up as a thing of the past, however, this is not the case. It will be the purpose of this lesson to introduce racism of the past in conjunction with racism happening today. My main source will be a novel by Katherine Stockett called The Help.  Because The Help is a popular novel I hope it will capture the interest of students, I also plan on showing the movie as a visual. In order to continue the conversation after reading the novel and watching the movie, sources such as a short article about Trayvon Martin will be introduced and it will be paired with a news clip detailing the events of his murder. To tie it all together I will introduce the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and also have students explore the Black Lives Matter webpage in order to reveal how rights for racial equality are still being fou...

As an English Ed major, I have always struggled with deciding whether literature (as much as it is enjoyable) is necessary. Perhaps most English majors don't doubt its relevance at all, however, I do and it's because I want to believe that reading is more than just something that makes a person well rounded and "cultured". I feel that often times literature is seen as "fluff", and I can't help agree that some of it is . At one point in my college career, I almost switched to being a history major, I had an excellent professor who really made the past come to life, and allowed me to see how it has impacted the present. I feel that some literature is capable of doing the same job that my professor did. I believe that there is literature that teaches real life in a way that makes it relevant to our present lives, and this certainty is what kept me on the track I am now--I'm want to find the best of both worlds and teach literature that has more meaning...

Hi, my name is Ally McMillan. I am a Secondary English Education Major and I am in my fourth year of college. With that being said, I suppose my professional goals are fairly obvious--I want to be an English teacher! I've never had any other real desire to be anything else, and I couldn't be more excited that I'm only 3 semesters away from getting started. I chose English because it's a subject where life lessons can be taught. The subject opens up a lot of doors to talk about just about anything, and the materials selected to teach students can really send them in certain directions to think about important topics. Literature is like travel for the mind, and it's up to teachers to make sure that young people are informed, and well traveled so that they can become knowledgeable and compassionate adults. http://www.brighthubeducation.com/teaching-methods-tips/100744-the-importance-of-teaching-literature/