Where to Find Answers (the 2 articles assignment)

I think CSI is a very popular show because they find answers in the least likely places, and they do it by using their intellects and acute attention to detail as weapons against evil. Perhaps it's human nature to try and understand why people do horrid things, because in that understanding lies the answers to combat the problem.

The world seems to have been plagued by a rash of Columbine-like atrocities as of late, and people desperately want to know why. I am not unlike those people, and as a future educator, it is of the utmost importance that I seek to understand if there is anything that I can do to help prevent something like this in my future school.

The article "Finland's Gun Culture Facing New Questions" by Craig Whitlock takes poor aim at the real cause. First, let me say that I don't own a single gun, and I have never belonged to the NRA, but I don't think that a nation's access to guns is causing the problem. The problem itself lies within damaged mind of the perpetrator of the crime. I believe if Finland had been free of all handguns, this individual would have found other means. If you disagree--look at what happened in Rwanda. There weren't enough guns to facilitate their perceived need for genocide, so they used machetes to hack their victims to death. If there weren't enough machetes available--they would've used their demented minds to think of unique ways to achieve their dark goals.

Near the end of the article, the pro-gun target shooters pointed the finger at spending too much time in front of computer and engaging in antisocial behavior. Their aim might be better than that of the author of the article. Computers are tools as well (although usually less deadly). Sure, if an already damaged individual spends time desensitizing himself/herself to violence by spending too much time playing graphically violent video games, that could cause problems--but I think it's more the last part of their accusation that comes closest to the bullseye. The boy's parents and teachers (while not to blame for the boy's sick deeds) were the best weapons society had to derail his ultimate goal.

Teachers have their hands full, but if they can keep their eyes open and show kindness to a child that is seemingly an outcast by the rest of the class, or prevent that child from being bullied--maybe that would have helped.

Parents, I feel, need to pay attention to what their child's moods are like and what they are doing on-line. I think there is a stigma surrounding the use of psychologists/psychiatrists, but they need to be willing to seek the advice of professionals when it comes to the enigmatic human mind.

Regardless of the reason, something clearly needs to be done to address this world-wide problem.

--The second article-------------------------------------

I'm always seeking ways to make my future classroom work more smoothly, so when I spotted the "'Doing What Works' Site Launched to Help Educators", I wanted to read it. As I read, however, I couldn't help a bit of skepticism rising in my mind.

As I read, the somewhat vague text, I was reminded of my job at DHL. Occasionally, they have "engineers" (Not those who've gone to school for engineering, but numbers cruncher business school grads) come to view the sort (where packages are sorted and loaded onto the trucks that deliver them). These so called engineers then tell the drivers all that they are doing wrong. But they do this--having never run a route themselves.

As I read the article, I wondered if the authors of the site were going to be educators who actually spent time doing the actual teaching. You see--the article mentions that these strategies have been found via the "department's research arm," and that makes me wary.

If this site is pieced together by the same bureaucrats that pieced together NCLB, I can't help but compare it to my DHL experiences. I would feel much more sanguine if I knew the authors of the site were people like my professors at NKU. Folks like Drs Besnoy, Clarke, Cook, and Faulkner have spent actual time in the classroom and have tried strategies to see if they actually do work.

I intend to investigate and explore the site, despite my immediate reservations. If there are good strategies there, I want to use them in my future classroom. Education--to me--is about community. If one teacher discovers a revolutionary idea that works--he or she should not feel offended that someone else used it--but rather they should feel honored that their ideas might reach beyond their own students.


NOTE: Before I submitted the blog, I went to the site described and found it well-designed and user friendly. It has interactive videos to help the user understand how the site works. I have bookmarked it on my desktop.