Teacher Case Study: Sylvia Ashton-Warner and Paulo Freire

Next class we will study and talk about two famous educators. Please read what is wrtiten below then choose ONE of the questions and answer in the coments.

Sylvia Ashton-Warner was an unconventional teacher in New Zealand. She became well-known for her innovative teaching methods. Two movies were made about her life. Watch the preview for the film Sylvia.

Paulo Freire was a revolutionary educator from Brazil. He thought it was important that the teacher and students be equal in the classroom. He said, "Through dialogue, the teacher-of-the-students and the students-of-the-teacher cease to exist and a new term emerges: teacher-student with students-teachers."

Answer ONE of these questions in the comments.

1. What would you like to know about these educators?

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2. What other famous teachers do you know of?

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3. What did you think of the movie preview?

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4. What do you think Freire means by his quote?

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Reports for June 1st

First, choose one topic that is related to something we have studied or talked about in class. For example: a famous educator, information about a foreign country's education system or a contemporary educational issue. Please tell me your idea in the comments.


Second, do some research this week and bring the information to our next class. We will organize the information and determine how much more research you need to do. If you'd like to do a class survey, I will give you time in class.


The written report will be 1-2 pages (don't forget to include references). Your discussion will be 2-3 minutes of you explaining your topic, then 2-3 minutes of discussion. It is a good idea to have some questions prepared for your group to help get the discussion started.


Email me if you have questions or need some help!

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Issues in Education

Next week we are going to talk about 3 issues in American education: desegregation, text revision and uniforms in public schools. After that we will watch a BBC news report about the issue of testing in British schools.

Please think about an issue in Japan or another country and tell me a little about it in the comments. Please be prepared to explain the issue in class to your group.

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