William+Stiles

Stiles, William

10/10/15

EDC Chapter 4

In this chapter of __Foundations of American Education__, we read about how philosophy ties into the shaping of modern education in order to form a more perfect system. “Philosophy provides a way to examine and interoperate the world” (pg 76). We learned about the branches of philosophy such as the metaphysics, epistemology, axiology, and so on. After learning what philosophy is and how to think like a philosopher. We additionally learned about how it applies to schooling, and teaching. We learned how philosophers use abstraction, imagination and generalization, to solve the root of a set of problems rather then just fixing what appears to be the issue on the surface. Lastly the book went on to teach about how the ways of Idealism can be implemented in education to reform assignments and curriculum to help cultivate more learning success.

William stiles

Education

10/02/15

Chapter Reflection

In the short amount of time humans have been on this earth. learning has been a dividing factor between human society and the savage world. What started as survival of the fittest style learning has slowly evolved into a structured educational system. it all started in 476 CE when educated stemmed from the teachings of Plato, Socrates, Quintillion, and Aristotle. I find it interesting that there has been a boom in the pursuit of knowledge. More people have been seeking higher education and attending college. This not only encourages a smarter, better educated, society, but also a better economy. A higher demand for education means a higher demand for teachers and facilities. More jobs are generated by the increased volume of people wanting to learn. I found the two chapters we read fascinating because it really lays out how far we have come, and how far we still have to come in order to form a more perfect education system. While there is still racial and class segregation rampant in schools, there is still hope for change. More and more people are showing and interest and concern in changing the way things are and making education fair.

__ William Stiles __ __ 11/22/2015 __ __ Education __

**__ Expertise Statement __** For at least two years now I have been participating in a sport know as “Slacklining”. Slacklining is a sport that requires two sturdy anchor points and a Slack Line. I normally tie my Slackline up to two strong trees. Once the slackline is set up you can hop on a walk along like a tight rope, however it is a little different. A Slackline is like a tight rope but instead of being tight it has Slack. This takes a lot more balance and co-ordination to stand on; the line bounces and sways from side to side while you walk on it. Some say it is similar to trying to walk on a line while being drunk. It took me about a week to learn how to cross a Slackline very slowly and with great struggle. It all started when I met my good friend John. I was walking across the quad after classes and noticed John, who I did not know at the time, sitting in a hammock hung next to a Slackline. I asked him if I could give it a try. John said, “Yeah just make sure to take off your shoes and keep your feet pointed forward.” I took his advice. I walked up to the line put one foot on it and then tried to stand as best as I could. It must have taken me at least four tries just to stand up on the line for a few seconds. I was so proud just to be able to stand and wobble on the line for that small amount of time. John, happy to have company, began to give me more and more pointers. We spent the better part of three hours just trying to get me to the point where I could walk a few steps across the line. Seeing as the summer was coming to an end, John and I wanted to make the best of it by slacklining as much as we could through the week. We Slacked after classes almost every day for a week until I got to the point where I could walk across the entire line without falling. I went home and bought my own Slackline off the Internet and began Slacklining on my own whenever I got the chance. I started to learn tricks like bouncing and strange ways to get on and off the line. I even had a line that could stretch total of 98 feet and could walk the whole length. Over the years I have slowed down and become a more casual Slackliner, but I still greatly enjoy teaching other people to Slack as well. I have even considered starting a Slacklining club at URI to teach more people how.

__ William Stiles __

__ 11/25/2015 __

__ Education __

**__ Education Comparison __**

My experience in middle school was fairly stimulating. I remember the size of the school amazed me when I first started attending. It seemed like every day I walked down the halls and found a new corridor I had never been down. Unlike the schools Kozol speaks about in his book I never felt like it was too crowded in my middle school. The lunch lines were short, and passing periods seemed to work smoothly. I generally felt like my schooling experience was of a higher caliber when.

Each day I would walk to the end of my street to be picked up by my bus driver and driven to school, unlike the schools in SI. I would attend school on a full stomach from a good breakfast and lunch, unlike the students in SI. I had all the school supplies and teacher help that I could possibly need, all provided for me, unlike the students in SI. While reflecting on my middle school experience I realized how lucky I was not to be attending one of the schools from SI.

The children in St Louis had no transportation to school; No food to eat, no school supplies, and often they had lead poisoning and learning disabilities due to the environment they grew up in. The Savage Inequalities that gap my learning experience for the children born in St Louis seem almost endless. It’s hard to believe how people can even keep going in such a hopeless place. I hope that someday things will be different and we can find a way to fix the segregated school system.