Tapia, 1

Herminia Tapia
Education 205
Dr. Peter McCarthy
10-07-14
Mayher and Me

In my experience, as I continue my road through the education system I begin to notice

that not all teacher have the same teaching style. A question that is constantly asked in society is
what makes a good/bad teacher and what makes the learning experience effective. Is it the
teacher who lectures for an hour and does not involve the students to put in information or is it
the teacher who teaching for half an hour and involves the student in hands on or team building
activities. Thanks to John S. Mayher and his book called Uncommon Sense, he brings out the
idea of uncommon sense teaching. The three points in which I will emphasize are; what my
reactions to Mayher's beliefs and convictions about uncommon sense teaching, how my views of
teaching and learning have been affected by Mayher's beliefs and, how Mayhers ideas might
apply to all areas of education.
As I read Mayher's book I realized that many of the teacher that I know do not follow his
uncommon sense teaching and really should. To have uncommon sense teaching simply means
that the teacher is thinking outside of the box. It could also mean that the teacher is being active
and motivating their students. Many of the things mentioned by Mayher I believe are really true
and should have to be taking into consideration by teachers around the world. For example, he
writes "we have resisted change by claiming that ''they won't let me do it"." (Mayher, 2). I agree
with this statement, I feel that many teachers would use that as an excuse not to break the
traditional way for teaching in classrooms. They want to go by the book and just lecture for the

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whole class instead of having the students to learn through individual exploration. When in
reality teachers have the ability to run their classroom in whatever way they wish. They are
allowed to change up the lesson plan in order to help the teachers understand. Not every student
is going to pick up the material as fast as you might want them to. I believe it is okay for the
teacher to switch thing up in the lesson plan as long as its for the better understanding of the
students. Mayher argues that theses systemic problems will never be changed unless we begin
to retake control of the schools we work in. (Mayher, 2) This means that we must take acting
and make sure teachers are interacting with the students on a regular basis. Teachers are the ones
who are in charge of providing an education for the students. Teachers must come up with
innovative ways to get the students involved and to get their point across. If students are actively
engaged in class discussions then the chances of them understanding the topic much higher than
if they do not appreciate. When I was in my high school I had great teacher- student relationships
and I believe that allowed me to do better in my classes. I feel that if students who almost never
talk to the teacher and they later have a question, I believe they will be shy and not ask the
teacher the question. Thats why whenever I had a question or was confused about a topic I
would feel comfortable enough to ask the teacher in class or then outside of class. I agree when
Dr. McCarthy reminds us that we must built community within the classroom. I feel that if a
teacher does not built a community within the classroom it will be harder for the teacher to
understand what is going on with their students.
My views of teaching and learning have been affected by beliefs. Mayher writes so that
day came,
I told my Frost stories to general approval, and then I dramatically read the
poem aloud. (...) There were awkward silence among a group that was

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normally eager and talkative. (...) but I finally understood that I, as a

product of the snow belt of central New England, had taken for granted -the experience of a silent snowfall in the woods -- was not shared by my
students. They were Californians! (Mayher,5).
What I learned from this experience is that if the student do not relate to the topic which the
teacher is lecturing on then there is a great change they will not care about the topic. If later in
my teaching career I see that my class is not involved with the lesson I will try to connect the
idea to something that I know the student can relate to. I also, that outside experience are just as
important therefore teachers should incorporate those thing into the lesson. Teachers can succeed
if the student can incorporate things that they learned inside a class to the outside world and vice
versa. I feel that it is okay for the teacher to go off track as long as it has to do with the lesson of
the day.
At my old high school my English teacher uses uncommon sense teaching. He had us
every day sit in a circle something that was not done in other classes. I found this useful because
that way everyone had a chance to see each other's faces and gave a chance for everyone to
participate in the lesson. Although, Mayher focus on English education his ideas may apply to all
areas of educations for example; Science, History and Math. To me personally I feel the student
learns best when they have hands on project and they can allow to put what they learn to use not
only in the classroom but everywhere else. Uncommon sense can be incorporated into all subject
by altering the lesson plans to make sure that all of the student are having a great understanding
of the material. A teacher can use unusual activities to get their point across and allow the
students to think critically and reflect on what they have learned.

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To conclude, if I decide to continue to become a teacher I will sure try to use Mayhers
idea of uncommon sense within my classroom. I will try to build a community and allow for my
students to have a part with the lesson. It will not only be me lecture but the class as a whole
would come together and work to constructed the lesson.