Language Investigation 3

My entire elementary and secondary education experience was spent in either private Christian or charter schools, which I believe gave me a very different experience than those students who grew up in the public school system. Most of the reading and writing I did in elementary, which was at Heritage Christian School here in town, was focalized in the Bible. I remember I had a verse, or number of verses, to memorize from kindergarten up until 6th grade, the year I moved from private Christian education to Liberty Commons School (a charter junior high in town). I enjoyed my time at Heritage, but I did encounter the occassional lunatic teacher, who in a young kids mind was completely unreasonable. I'm sure these teachers really weren't as bad as I remember though. The writing I was required to do at Heritage was next to none in elementary, mostly consisting of spelling tests and basic grammar worksheets. It wasn't until I came to Liberty that my writing skills began to be challenged. I remember in my German class at Liberty having to write a 5-7page report on a German monarch during the conquest years of the country. I also remember having to write a 5 paragraph essay for every text we read in my literature course. My finals always consisted of essays and big papers. Mind you, this was 7th and 8th grade, and it seemed like this Core-Knowledge curriculum-based charter school was in the business of challenging their students academically. The reading we did varied from Gilgamesh, the Declaration of Independence, and The Diary of Anne Frank. Liberty was a challenge for me, but helped prepare me for college-level writing probably in more ways than my high school did.

Going into my 9th grade year, my family and I moved to Littelton, CO and I attended a small Christian school called Front Range Christian. My mom, who was a music teacher, had gotten a job here, and I had a bunch of family connections to the school (my aunt was a teacher and my uncle the president). I loved my time at Front Range, but not because of the teaching or schooling. In fact, most of my motivation for becoming a teacher was to work in a Christian school like Front Range someday and actually do an effective job of teaching, unlike what I commonly came in contact with at Front Range. The reading we did in high school included the Bible, The Scarlet Letter, the Crucible (which came under hot protestation from parents claiming the piece supported/encouraged witchcraft!!!), Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and Shakespeare. The problem wasn't the reading itself, but how it was instructed. Most of the time, the teacher would simply have us read the text, then we'd talk about it, memorize some facts about the author, and take a test or write an essay. There was not much application or crossover to the realworld us kids lived in. It made it very hrd to become interested in the subjects. The writing the students were given was, in my mind, far behind what I saw at Liberty. At my junior high, we were writing 5-7 page papers, but my 9th grade year my class was just learning how to write 5 paragraph essays. By my senior year, the longest paper I had written was a 3 page essay on Lord Byron. Only one teacher really took time oout of her schedule to encourage me to practice writing and gave me personal critique of my writing in her class. As far as rules and regulations go, every paper had to be proper grammar and spelling, even a simple handwritten journal. It was fairly strict as to that college-level writing was constently required of all stuff handed in as well. How these experiences at Front Range effected my college writing... I definitely learned what my own voice was because despite the strictness of proper grammar/spelling, there was no regulations on a particular voice the paper must be in. All the teachers encouraged students to find their own ways to write within the Standard system, which out of all the faults of Front Range, this part they got right. In many ways, Front Range encouraged me to teach myself how to learn, but in writing my high school helped me get very comfortable in my writing.

Warm up 9/17

4. What larger generalizations/questions do these patterns raise? Make a list of 2-3 of these generalizations/questions. Beside each item, also note the writerly moves Rose took to arrive at these generalizations and/or to prompt these questions in you as a reader. List page numbers of passages you want to refer to when you share your findings with the rest of the class.

One quote that really stood out to me in chapter 5 was at the beginning when Rose is speaking with a younger male student. Rose questions him about his schooling and the boy responds with this statement: "I used to be in the dumb math group, but then, um, my teacher found out it was too easy for me. So now I'm in with the smart kids."--page 91. One generalization that I found in these chapters is that placement testing doesn't work all the time, like in the case with this boy. The thing that gets under my skin isn't so much the placement testing that is still taking place in schools today, but the segregation that ultimately comes with these kinds of tests. Just like the boy Rose talked with, who's to say that this boy isn't capable of being in the so-called 'smart kids' class, or even have the capacity to take an AP or Honors course? Because of testing, some kids never even get the opportunity to take upper-division courses, which I think is ridiculous. Shouldn't ever student have the opportunity to take advanced courses, or to take whatever course they want to take, within the guidelines of required courses to graduate?

Another piece to these chapters that I found Rose making a point with is the relationships between teachers and parents, and how important those relationships are for the developing student. On page 132, Rose writes, "Whether or not we had any small and indirect influence on these lives, I'll never know. But I can't help but wonder what desires for education blossomed as the parents of those children came to feel part of the schools." The home life of students, and getting parents excited and on board with their child's learning is a vital role teachers must engage in.

Language Investigation 2

"I can't stand the power I scheme. It doesn't make any sense when the hogs in the middle are undersized, and your primary back can run a 4.4. What we need to do is utilize a West Coast scheme, not be afraid to play off the option, and with our quick guards log those DEs until they're flat on their backs." This little paragraph might be heard among coaches of football. I have played the sport since 6th grade and have coached for 3 years. Terminology within the sport is essential in communicating, but even that may not be enough. Depending on the offensive/defensive schemes, and the coaching staff, even terminology may vary. In one scheme, a backside guard pull may be called a 'log,' but in another it may be called a 'pull.' The runningbck position might be called anything from a halfback, slotback, Z-back, B-back, or powerback. The fullback may be called the 2-back, J-back, or may not even be in the scheme. The basic concepts behind each position and philosophy are the same, but the way coaches and players communicate about them will vary from team to team. That's why, say a player who has played in the NFL for 15 years may take some time to adapt to a new scheme. They may know football better than most, but the terminology is tough to adapt to. For a newcomer to the game, the language used can sometime seem like gibberish, but once acclamated to the way football works, the language can seem fairly simple. So, when a coach calls the play 'Power Right Blue 32 3-4-7 J-Curl,' you just might be able to decipher the play. The best way to start understanding football is to watch the game, and shockingly, listen to the announcers analyze the game and plays. After doing so, phrases like a naked bootleg may not sound so strange.

9/3/08 Warm-up

1. Many of the posts dealt directly with specific examples of language used within the household, words used, and phrases. There were quite a few that dealt with pet's names and special locations. The language seemed formal, but had a storytelling nature to it. I felt like I was reading a book, or short story.

2. Language is very inclusive, based on the posts. If you do not have prior knowledge or experience with the language used, you are at an extreme disadvantage in understanding what's going on, or subtle jokes that may be said. Also, almost in every post I read there was an understanding that some language used is only for family. There are certain ways of speaking, or words/phrases used, that one would only imagine using within the safety of family. It plays more into the idea of inclusion.

3. Based on Rose, I'd say that an insider is someone that has previous exposure or knowledge of a particular community's language. Rose describes his experience as a Voc Ed student, but then all of a sudden he's thrust into the advanced program. He seems to have the capacity to handle the change in workload, but must of the assumed expereince with the language used at that level he does not have. He specifically mentions math. Much of what was being taught was building on previous lessons, so Rose didn't have that language background and he began to fall behind.

My family is a wild and crazy bunch of Ukrainians, which we are very proud of. Words like 'dupa' hold a special place in my family history. When I was a young kid, my mother did not want my brother's and I saying the word 'butt,' so my father, being Ukrainian, told her that the word for butt in Ukrainian is 'dupa.' From then on, that was what my brothers and I called that particular body part, in all innocence. It wasn't until later my dad revealed to the family that 'dupa' actually is slang for ass is Ukrainian. I grew up in Fort Collins, and have lived in Colorado my whole life. Family, Christ, and church have always been a central part of my upbringing. Worship at Sunday morning service always consisted of my parents getting in front of our entire congregation and leading us in worship. Both my father and mother have never been of the shy type, and it has made me appreciate small things in my family like the constant "I love you's" even after a passionate, sometimes loud, argument. Openness, honesty, and above all respect have been a mainstay in my idea of family.





Games have also played an important role. Whenever I hear the word Monopoly, I can only think of all five of us desperately trying to beat my brother Jon, simply because he always kicked our... dupas. DotA, or 'dota', also is an activity that I'm not sure many families participate in quite like mine. My father is an IT Professional, and has been for 25 years, so every since networking became a possibility, my father has always had our house fully networked, sometimes with upwards of 6 computers linked via LAN in the house. Thus, we were able to enjoy rowdy games of Starcraft, Age of Empires, Warcraft, and the newly-found DotA. Most people like boardgames, which we do play, but videogames are our trend. Who else can say they have a mom who would stay up till 4am on a school night playing Pokemon Snap for the N64, or claimed she had dreams about strategizing how to defeat my younger brother in Age of Empires?

The last characteristic of my family that I love is our passion for food and enjoying food together around the dinner table. Meals and eating lots of food are sort of a tradition. Kugen, which is a Ukrainian sweet bread stuffed with fruits and cream cheese, is a staple. I can remember my mother cooking breads, pies, cookies, and pastries almost all the time. One thing my father always said to us boys growing up is that we will strive to always sit down and have breakfast and dinner together. That made such an impact in my life, now my wife and I have decided to strive for that same thing in our family. Time around our nasty table, littered with deep gouges from our goats breaking into the kitchen, or from burn marks where my mom forgot to place a hotpad under a pot straight off the stove, will always be fond memories for me.

The Kucharyson's are a unique breed. Sometimes we scare people with our lunacy, love for games, and typically loud nature, but ultimately we are about having a great time together and building those familial relationships. I love my family, and anybody that rags on them can... 'pluosalimon dupa!'