tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827968588643415787.post963541245828160912..comments2024-03-27T06:58:00.659-05:00Comments on Balancing Jane: Entitled Students, Grades, and Obedience: What is Education For? Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07801229525416203656noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827968588643415787.post-77599942059530876002014-05-22T03:19:05.194-05:002014-05-22T03:19:05.194-05:00Makes me think that you are a very good teacher, a...Makes me think that you are a very good teacher, and student too. Thank you for all your knowledge that you share with us. Hope to read more <a href="http://www.royal-essay.com" rel="nofollow">essay writing services</a> articles about your work as a teacher.Kristen Mendeznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827968588643415787.post-8393891303409086342013-07-08T16:35:16.169-05:002013-07-08T16:35:16.169-05:00Thank you so much! There's a test tomorrow, so...Thank you so much! There's a test tomorrow, so they might not all agree with you right now, but I do try my best to help them reach their goals.Michelle (Balancing Jane)http://www.balancingjane.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827968588643415787.post-775818634615994572013-07-08T16:06:09.095-05:002013-07-08T16:06:09.095-05:00Everything I read about your attitudes toward teac...Everything I read about your attitudes toward teaching (and the consideration you take towards it) makes me think your students are very lucky to have you.Barnacle Strumpetnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827968588643415787.post-47964506341973561392013-07-02T08:52:43.062-05:002013-07-02T08:52:43.062-05:00Thanks for this comment. I agree with a lot of wha...Thanks for this comment. I agree with a lot of what you're saying, and I'm especially interested in this:<br /><br />"However, it is just as important for them to discern the differences <br />between submitting to reasonable authority and to comply with reasonable<br /> rules and unreasonable authority or compliance."<br /><br />To me, difficulty in discerning between the two is connected to our overall treatment of conflict. We tend to dichotomize conflict into an antagonistic or collaborative endeavor without recognizing that there can be an agonistic tension between the individual and the community. It doesn't have to be total submission on one hand and out-and-out battle on the other. We can have civil disagreement and come out stronger for it. <br /><br />I think your generalization that "parents do not teach their children the difference because they balk at the idea that their children should be told what to do by anyone other than themselves" is a little too broad. Surely, there are some parents that feel that way, but I have had a lot of experience with parents who very much want to teach their children how to act civilly within the confines of societal standards, even when those standards don't match their own private ones completely. <br /><br />In that case, I don't think it's necessarily that these parents "believe they are always right," but it's that we culturally (often) haven't developed the skills necessary to argue without fighting, to have tension without antagonism.Michelle (Balancing Jane)http://www.balancingjane.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827968588643415787.post-428960095107897512013-07-01T22:34:08.878-05:002013-07-01T22:34:08.878-05:00Americans struggle with the notion of "obedie...Americans struggle with the notion of "obedience" because they view it as the equivalent of capitulation. In other cultures, it is seen as an act of reasonable compliance to the norms of society or submission to reasonable authority. No one would question whether or not a law which promotes order (like not yelling "fire" in a crowded theater when there is not fire) should be obeyed, but most Americans get all up in arms at the idea that their children should submit to reasonable authority, such as that of a teacher who is evaluating their work. <br /><br />It is important for children to learn to advocate for themselves as well as to question what they are told. However, it is just as important for them to discern the differences between submitting to reasonable authority and to comply with reasonable rules and unreasonable authority or compliance. The problem in the U.S. is that parents do not teach their children the difference because they balk at the idea that their children should be told what to do by anyone other than themselves. They believe their values should be applied outside of their homes and become belligerent and upset when others do not share those values.<br /><br />Entitlement is what occurs when people refuse to distinguish between reasonable and unreasonable compliance or submission. It's what happens when parents decide that they know what is right for their child, even when what they want for their kid comes at the expense of others. It's not simply a matter of obeying or not. It's far more nuanced than that. There's a time to argue, a time to back down and submit, and a time to keep your mouth shut because your perspective is different, but not superior than the other party's. Americans cannot accept the last one in the vast majority of cases as they believe they are always right, especially when it comes to their children.Orchid64noreply@blogger.com