Growing Up

In the Richard Rodriguez article assigned this week we were exposed to a different style of writing.  Instead of an essay format we were given an in depth view of Rodriguez’s life and childhood.  I preferred this piece to the others as I found the autobiographical style more personal and interesting to read.  I could also relate to this piece for the fact that my mother is Spanish, from Peru, and although my feelings were never as intense as Rodriguez’s, I too understand where he is coming from when it comes to things such as a word pronounced incorrectly and how something so small can really irritate you.  My mother however has made a wonderful life for herself and is very successful much like Rodriguez himself,  driven and intelligent.  Rodriguez faced much aversion, not only did he feel his parents were inadequate when it came to understanding his desire to learn and read and excel, but his peers he also felt did not want him to succeed.  As a result he felt alienated both at home and in the classroom leaving him sad and frustrated.  What Rodriguez lacked in self-confidence he gained by mimicking his teachers.  This is a good example of the banking concept of education, he was very much an empty vessel waiting and eager to be filled with knowledge as a student.  Although this way of learning is looked down upon in some eyes, clearly it can be successful for Rodriguez is an example of how learning from others can cause you to develop intelligently.  Rodriguez says himself that he doesn’t think imitation will always work in becoming successful but it was one of his keys to success.  After effectively completing college and spending time abroad Rodriguez felt he had completed himself academically but somehow something was still missing.  With this realization he came to the conclusion that his family was not something he should run from or be ashamed of.  He regained the appreciation of family and this for him was the most important thing he had learned.  The Rodriguez article was one that hit close to home for me and I enjoyed very much.  Rodriguez demonstrates how anyone with drive and a desire to succeed, can.  

Picking Apart Education

The readings from this week played very nicely off of each other.  It was interesting to see how they both made similar points while at the same time in some ways had very different ideas, almost contrasting each other completely.  “The Banking Concept” by Paulo Freire introduced an interesting way of looking at and criticizing education today.  I found it interesting and partially agreed with his argument that classroom learning has become very monotonous in some places of learning and less interactive.  It is true that often time’s classes are taught where students are looked at as empty vessels where it is the teacher’s job to fill their minds with facts.  The argument he makes, saying that when this is taking place students are not truly learning but just remembering is a valid one in my mind.  There are many instances where students can score well on a test because they have memorized the material, but do they actually understand it?  It is a difficult question to answer.  Giroux’s reading, “Higher Education Under Siege”, overlaps with Freire’s ideas in this light.  He argues that the only purpose teachers have these days is to get kids into a small percentage of the job market.  Teachers are now only creating students for the corporate world.  The problem is that there is only space for so many people to operate at the high level jobs that they are being prepared for leaving public service jobs unfulfilled.  The fact of the matter is that only 30% of jobs require a college degree, leaving many students over qualified and out of work.  Giroux uses the term public intellectual, defined often as a college professor of some sort well educated in a certain topic that gives speeches and presentations.  He makes the argument that not all teachers must fit this mold and that there is a need for a different kind of educator.  Giroux believes that our countries practice of democracy is one that needs to be changed.  Instead of resting solely on a few people when it comes to decision-making, the population as a whole needs to have more say and be more involved.  The articles that we read for class this week bring up interesting points, although I do not completely agree with them both all the way, they make valid points and interesting suggestions as to how we could change our education system.

Weekly Blog #1

The two readings assigned for this week, while a little difficult to understand if not fully engaged, were both very in depth and interesting pieces that played off of each other nicely.  The general question arising from these works and trying to be answered all somehow fell around defining certain aspects of literature, English, and English theory.  We come to learn that there is much more to the practice of studying English than simply reading the words on the page before you.  Over time English as a study has developed and blossomed into a whole array of different studies if you will.  We learn in the first reading, “The Study of English” by Terry Engelton, that literature has evolved in so many ways through the years.  Not only has literature made its way through all classes and types of people it has created a way of life much more rich than the dull structured English that was only available in the beginning.  Another point that is brought up in this article is the idea of ideology.  Ideology as I have come to understand it when pertaining to the study of English and literature is how one understands the study of English and the philosophy you have come to possess which helps you mold your opinions around.  It is your general knowledge about an idea and is often a shared or common understanding with other people or groups.  Ideology is interesting to study because you can see where all of these ideas and understandings came from.  Each writer, each reader, giving and taking a bit of the next persons thoughts and creating their own set of ideas.  These assumptions circulate within our culture through more literature and discourse and this is how new ideologies are formed; it is a never-ending trade circle.  The second article focuses primarily on the idea of theory.  This is a common word we hear in our everyday life but when it pertains to the study of literature it has a much more in depth and vast meaning.  Yes, theory can simply mean a speculation but within the study of English most theories must have a certain complexity to them to be truly significant.  People argue that Literature has taken on too much theory that deals with non-literary matters but the truth of the matter is, this is why English has become such a rich area of study.  Careful analyzing and in depth discourse revolves around literature theory these days.  All in all theory is difficult to describe because it is such a large body of thinking.  The limits of literary theory are ever expanding but it seems that a fairly simple definition is about as close as we will come to truly defining theory.  All in all, the article describes theory as works whose effects expand beyond their original field.  Theory introduces us to all different kinds of thinking and all different kinds of genres.  It is a complex topic, but without it the study of literature would be non-existent.