Thompson,+Jared

=**ASSIGNMENT #1**=

**BIO**
My name is Jared Thompson and I just started my 6th year teaching. I grew up in Central Iowa and then stayed there to attend Iowa State University and get my Bachelors degree in Mathematics and my Teacher Certification. I spent three years teaching in Bahrain and then I went to Maracaibo, Venezuela where I spent the last two years. I am now in San Salvador, El Salvador at Escuela Americana with my fiancee Elise. Over the past six years I have had the pleasure of teaching everything from Algebra 1 to IB Higher Level Math (I even got a drama class in there) and I have taught 6th grade through 12th grade. I love trekking, performing, playing games with friends and, of course, traveling. I love going on hikes and I just did Ciudad Perdida in Colombia. It was an amazing experience. I have been in many plays and it has been my privilege to direct a few at my last two schools. This year I am helping to create the school's first speech club. I love helping out with any arts program because I think that they are an integral part of a great education.



Conflict resolution and peaceable schools
A course in conflict resolution and peaceable schools should lay out techniques and strategies that schools, teachers, and staff can take to become better at managing conflict. What causes conflict and how and teachers build a classroom culture that allows peaceful conflict resolution to happen? This course should be about helping teachers explore ideas that lead to peaceable schools. Helping students become more reflective and understanding, especially in today's world. Giving teachers the skills to work in diverse classrooms that have cultures that view conflict management in different ways and finding common ground among those students when conflict arises.

1. Conflict resolution tools for use in the classroom 2. What is a peaceable school and how do we work towards making a school peaceable? 3. Cultivating a school culture of peaceful conflict resolution 4. Peaceable schools and how they effect bullying 5. What is a peaceable school?

=ASSIGNMENT #2=

After watching American History X with my fiancee and our too friends that teach at the middle school we were able to have a very in-depth discussion on nature versus nurture as well as the role of mentors. It was a good film to watch and reflect on teaching and I was happy to watch it with three other teachers. The power adults have on the minds of children and teens around them is powerful and shown time and time again in the film. When a teacher says something in the classroom it has a great effect on the students in the room. This is not always seen right away or even in the immediate future but everything a young mind hears changes and molds it.

First we talked about nature versus nurture. One thing that came up was how no one is born hating. Racism and hatred towards others is a learned behavior. The movie shows this with the flashbacks to childhood. They are on the beach as a family, happy and innocent. I think that this was the directors way of showing us how everyone is born to this. As the movie continues you keep getting bits and pieces of how the characters evolved to where they are today. The father being killed, the gangs in their neighborhood, meeting Cameron. All these events shaped Derek and Danny's view of the world. It made them angry because everything seemed unfair and unjust. Watching their journey and knowing what I do about the adolescent brain and development it is not surprising that they went down this path. Especially with a mentor such as Cameron. He was able to funnel their rage and push them in a violent direction. They did not begin their lives hating but from their circumstance and influences they were led down a dark path.

If you look at the mentors Derek and Danny had it is not surprising the direction their lives took. Cameron was manipulative and was able to bend the white youth in the neighborhood to his will. The most revealing scene of the movie however was the discussion at dinner between Derek and his father. His father, although not as radical or manipulative as Cameron, talks of other races as parasitic and unwanted. He puts forward that the new laws that help others get jobs is anti-white and unfair. He puts it forth in such a way that his sons are convinced. On the other hand the boys also have Dr. Sweeney. A highly educated man who cares about his community. The boys respect how real he is and that he does not talk down to them. He opens there eyes to other ways of thinking without telling them outright what to think. He lets them reflect and reason in their own time while guiding them with ideas of peace and change. I think that Dr. Sweeney is someone we all want to be for those troubled kids in our classrooms.

The last thing we talked about was the role in the school to Derek and Danny. It was a place for new ideas. Derek was excited about Dr. Sweeney's course and Danny respected him as well. It was positive for both of them in this way. Both were expanding their minds and were very bright. We never see Derek at school but for Danny it is also a very divided place. A place that reinforces his idea of "us versus them." This is shown in both bathroom scenes. Although they are clearly trying hard the school has a rift between students.

We must be very careful what we say and do in front of our students. We mold them with every word and some are more susceptible than others. We must spread messages of tolerance, and peace, of knowledge and understanding. The children will be shaping the future of this world but we are shaping the children. It falls to us to make sure they have been shown meaningful ways to interact with each other and positive ways to effect the world around them.

= ASSIGNMENT # 3 =

In my classroom you will see students of different race, religion, and background in groups of four learning together. They will respectably discuss the topic at hand and work together to solve different problems. You may have come in during one of my tangents. I often discuss current events if I think they are important. I have answered many questions about American politics and social issues that they are curious about. You will see a discussion of understanding, not judgement. Honest answers to honest questions.

You will not see bullying left unchecked. When something does happen that is not an acceptable way to treat others you will see discussion not immediate punishment. You will see questions asked not expletives shouted. Students need to reflect about their behaviors and asked why they did it and how it made them and others feel. You will see me leading by example and sharing stories of great mathematicians doing great things in the name of science. Using their talents for the betterment of humanity.

You will also see us take breaks from the curriculum to discuss world events and how they affect us. The students will answer questions like, "What are you worried/stressed about?" or "What makes you upset?" so that we can discuss the emotions we all share and how we can embrace them and also deal with them. I believe in order to have peace in a community you need members to undersatnd how to be at peace with one's self.

= ASSIGNMENT # 4 = 1. Why do you think the rate of homicide violence has gone down in the last 800 years? I think that resources have become more abundant and so people are less desperate to survive. This leads to less violence and crime. 2. Did you over or underestimate violence in the United States? I overestimated but not by much. I had it increase to about 9 million in 1990 and then decrease down to 6 million in 2010. 3. What did your 4 subject colleagues think about violence in general? Every single person answered false to the first question. I think most people figured that even with a growth in population that violence had decreased. Also most people answered true to the second question. Most graphs were slight increases over time or an increase to the 90's and then a decrease to the present. 4. Why? I think the big reveal of why all of us overestimated is that crimes reported and arrests are higher so violent crime like this is more visable than ever before. However, that actual amount has gone down significantly. 5. What did you think about this lesson. I think that using statistics like this really helps show what is really happening and why peoples perception is what it is.
 * Quiz-**

I have never understood why torture like this is used. My main argument was covered by Hitchens when he talked about not having the right guy. If we are torturing someone they will tell us anything to make us stop. If they do not know the answer they will make something up. How does this help anything? How does this help us resolve conflicts? Then we have three options; Hold this person forever costing us money and resources. Kill them which is morally reprehensible and should not be considered. The last option is to let them go and they will continue being our enemy if they already were or they will become our enemy if they were not to begin with. None of these options seem like a great choice to me.
 * Water Boarding-**

This assignment on violence and torture have shown me that while violent acts and aggression are decreasing they are still happening. Right before I started writing this I read an article about a shooting in my home town of Ames, Iowa. I cannot think of the last time a big shooting happened in Ames and it is distressing to read about. However I have to remind myself that violent crime is at a historic low and that this is just one isolated instance. I had not thought about torture or "enhanced interrogation" techniques for a while. It brought back a lot of frustration and anger that we allowed these practices to happen. I really hope we learn from our mistakes but I am very scared of the choices being made in our country at the moment.
 * Reflection-**

= ASSIGNMENT # 4 Extra Credit =

I had never heard of the "fighting back" strategy. I feel like there are many downsides to this way of thinking when it comes to school shootings however I will try to stay objective on this issue. I even found a school in my home state of Iowa following this strategy.

The pros of this strategy is giving kids a feeling of safety by putting the "control" into their hands. When the kids feel they have a weapon, in this case literally cans, paper balls and book bags, they feel like they have an amount of control is a scary uncontrollable situation. This, in theory, will make the evacuation of the school more calm and manageable. The students will feel like they have a responsibility to fight back and having an object to fixate on will help them control their emotions. Having a feeling of control in an otherwise uncontrollable situation will help the students avoid panic which would make an intruder situation far worse. Having a plan like this in place will also, once again in theory here because I have not seen any research done on this, will help the students feel more secure and calm in school. Knowing they have a "defense" ready will let them concentrate on their studies and let them feel at peace.

The cons of this strategy and giving students a false sense of security. I am not saying that students should feel scared all the time but when I watched these videos many ways of this back firing came to mind. First, I am worried that giving the students something to defend themselves with will inspire superhero syndrome. I would not want a student with a can of peas to assume he can stop an intruder with a gun. A school implementing this would have to be very careful with their students so as protect against ideas such as these. My second qualm with this approach is we are meeting violence with violence. I do not think that the overall message here is appropriate to teach students. We are teaching the students involved that the best way to stop school shootings to fighting. There have been many people that have talked a shooter down so that they did not end up hurting anyone. Also people that commit school shootings have other issues going on that cannot be dealt with physically. Caring and understanding are needed here much more than force.

I feel that teaching students to meet force with force is not the best method. I do appreciate that it is a last resort and I can respect the administrators effort to come up with more ways to deter these awful atrocities.

= ASSIGNMENT # 5 =

Earlier this year one of my students lost all control of reason as their emotions took over. This is something that can happen easily with teenagers as they are dealing with many changes and many stresses. Stack that on top hormones and you have to assume a student's amygdala will be hijacked from time to time. Let's call the student Joe for this example. Joe had been disruptive during class and had been having difficulties focusing. This was not uncommon but the severity was. He kept trying to talk to friends across the room and many students were getting visibly annoyed that I had to keep stopping to address the issue. We got through it and the students started working on some examples.

The student had not been completing their homework and his grade was much lower than what his achievement level was. I had been having conferences with students about their performance and we had been setting goals. I had talked to him about this before and had told Joe that if the lack of effort continued that I would have to email home. Well I ended up emailing home around lunch time. Many students were in my class after school when Joe came back. His mom had emailed him what I had sent and he was really mad. His level of anger and frustration were beyond what they should have been. I was mostly complementary in the email but Joe was still livid. He first claimed I only sent an email because he was goofing around and accused me of "not being able to take a joke." Then he told me that I was a liar and proceeded to get angrier. I told Joe that I was sorry he felt that way and that I was only following through with a consequence I had warned him with two weeks ago. I told him that we could talk about it tomorrow because I had students waiting to get help before a big test. He was clearly not thinking before he spoke and I knew that this conversation was not going to be productive.

Joe left and one of my students said, "I would never talk to a teacher that way." I did not think Joe would either. I suspected something was up. The next day I had Joe first period. He came in and was very good in class. Afterwards he came up and apologized. Joe told me that he had just been in a fight with a friend when his mom emailed him and that he had not meant what he said. I told him I figured something was up and that I did not hold it against him.

VIDEO SHOWING

I decided to show this video to my Algebra 1 class. This is a class that is full of students that choose not to care about school. They rarely study and have most of them failed at least one class last semester. I would say that at least 70% of them are capable of much higher level thinking then they show. It is just that their attitude towards school does not allow them to succeed. The class is normally hard to keep focused so I have to switch what we are doing every 10-15 minutes. I was not sure if they would be able to handle a video like this but I was pleasantly surprised.

I loved watching them in the beginning. When she talked about noticing how you are sitting you could see people sit up and assess themselves. You could see the wheels turning and the attention being focused in. When she got to the science explanation I stopped to recap but most of them followed what had been said. I looked around the room when I hit play and a few had taken on power poses. They were trying them out, taking them for a spin so to speak. Many others were still crumpled in on themselves. I watched a girl poin at herself when they talked about the way quiet students raise their hands.

When the video finished I talked about my own experience of "fake it 'til you become it." I used to hate PE class until I decided it would be more fun/ funny to me if I pretended that I LOVED PE. I acted like every game and activity was a blast and of the utmost importance. I thought I was hilarious (as many high school boys do) but then I realized I actually started enjoying myself. PE became a class I looked forward to because I changed my mindset.

Then the bell rang and we were not able to discuss more. I left them with the idea to try these tips before their next speech or presentation and to let me know if they notice any differences.

= ASSIGNMENT # 6 = A-

Define:
Conflict- An incompatibility or interference that causes one or a group to struggle against another. Conflict Resolution- A way to resolve a conflict peacefully. To agree on a solution to a conflict.

In assignment 5 I talked about a student "Joe." Joe's hijacked brain manifested in many ways. The first being his filter dropped away. He said things that he regretted later and he was just saying things to make me as upset as he was. The second was his lack of eye contact and his shortness of breath. Finally the last thing I noticed was his illogical arguments. Everything he said could be counted so easily.
 * Analyze one conflict that you have observed or participated in in terms of a "Hijacked Brain". This would be a conflict that started and escalated because of an emotional engagement.**

**Describe what happened in the conflict above or the one you observed. Who was involved in the conflict, and how the emotional engagement of the Amygdala were all working to hinder the conflict?**
In the court room the defendant already seemed off-kilter. He seemed to expect that he would get what he wanted and that his lies would not be questioned. When they were his emotions exploded and in the end he threatened a judge's life. Not a great move. The judge could not keep his cool either and said some pretty unprofessional things. When you let your Amygdala take control you lash out and try to hurt people because you are hurt. You try and make them as emotional as you are. If this happens, if both parties lose control, then there is no way for a conflict to be resolved to the benefit of either party.

=

 * Do the involvement of emotions and the Amygdala always hinder conflict resolution?** I think that they do but I can see others argue that it does not always happen. The culture I was raised in says that emotion has no place in a conflict or debate. The first person to show emotion has lost because they are not using logic and problem solving. However I could see some people say that being emotional and passionate is the only way to get a point across. I do not agree but I can see that point of view.======

B-**Swearing**

I do not swear in front of my students but I have known teachers that do. It is not my style and I would never change that. However, when reading that swearing increases camaraderie I see that with the teachers that I have known to swear in class. It is obvious that the students appreciate the "realness" of the teacher and that the students like being treated more "adult." I just find that swearing leads to increased emotions which lets our brains be hijacked easier.

I found a Forbes article that said 81% of employers find swearing to be unprofessional. This is why I do not swear in front of students. I try to teach them that there are circumstances when swearing is not in their best interest. When students swear I take them aside and talk to them about this. I tell them that outside of school I swear just as much as anyone but I ask them if they have ever heard me swear. They always say no and I continue with the point that swearing has a time and a place. A high school or later on a workplace in not usually one of them (there are of course exceptions to this). If a student is extremely angry and they swear I still have the conversation with them but I often times give the behavior a pass that one time. With all the hormones swirling about I think that it is unreasonable to expect teenagers to be in control of themselves one hundred percent of the time.

= ASSIGNMENT # 7 =

Last week I tried out "I messages" and I observed reactions to them. Here are the three messages as closely as I recall saying them. 1.When you do not do your homework it is very difficult to do well on tests and I am afraid that your grade will continue to decrease. 2.I am very proud of your effort lately. Look at your work and how much it has improved! 3.Thank you for participating more in class, you seem to enjoy being here more. It makes me happy to see you succeed.

My mother is a school psychologist and my father was a councilor for many years. They had taught me about "I messages" and that is how they talked to us growing up. I have not mastered them but I use them consistently when talking to students. I feel it brings the focus off of them and they become less defensive. It also helps show them how their actions or attitudes are directly impacting other people. When I used the statements above the students left the conversation in a better place then when they entered it. For my corrective message I find when you show worry they do respond well. In this case the student's parents are often gone on business and so I do not think this particular student often hears concern. This helps build a bond while also correcting a behavior instead of causing a fight. Highschool kids want to be liked. When I used the I messages for positive behavior it feels better for them because they are seeing that something they did is positively effecting another.

Corrective: Gigi when you enter my house when I am not around it makes me feel uncomfortable and disrespected. I know that you would never mean to make me feel this way but nevertheless it is how I feel. Positive: Gigi waiting at the door for us to answer has taken away the stress from our relationship. I feel so much happier and it makes me want to have you around even more.

= ASSIGNMENT # 8 =

Choice B- It is good to get a refresher on bullying. It happens all too often and many times it can go unchecked because the bullies know how to keep it hidden and the bullied can be too scared to come forward. I strive to keep my classroom a safe and comfortable place for all of my students and I have to check my anger when a student ruins that for another. I need to constantly remind myself, and it is good to read articles like these, that bullies are doing it for a reason. In the first article about cultivating a bully-free community the second point about talking compassionately really spoke to me. Helping both the bully and the bullied know that they are in a supportive environment is important to start a conversation that brings resolution to both parties. The quote in item five, "engage older students in creating a culture of accountability and citizenship" really speaks to what I try to do in my classroom. I truly believe that accountability is a part of becoming a solution and not another problem. I try to talk through conflicts with students and ask them what the consequences should be and help them build an appropriate consequence for the action. The second article/video started by showing the long term psychiatric effects of those bullied and those doing the bullying. It found that those that are bullied go through adulthood with increased anxiety and increased likelihood of having depression and anxiety issues. On the other hand those who bullied entered adulthood with very few indicators that it effected their mental health. This really drove home to me the long term consequences of bullying. Not doing our part to prevent bullying hurts our kids now but also hurts them in numerous ways as their brains develop. This has long standing consequences into their future and makes it that much more important that we give our kids the support and tools they need to deal with bullying. The last article is about adults bullying children. This can be even more harmful than peer-to-peer bullying and the child may feel more helpless. It lets the culture of bullying become a norm because the people in power are the ones that are presenting the bullying behavior. The article talks about the very real and awful predicament that parents are put in if their child is being bullied by a teacher or coach. If they report that adult may not be removed and that can make the whole experience worse as the bullying adult takes out this anger on the child. At the end of the article they list five myths about bullying that some people apparently believe. I am glad that I have never heard these before and I am glad that no one around me participates in these myths.

= ASSIGNMENT # 9 =

I agree with my profile for the most part. I ranked highest on "People Person" then tied right below that with "Learned Expert" and "Creative Problem Solver" and finally my lowest was "Practical Manager." I think I have always had difficulties with organization but I found coping mechanisms early on to compensate. I have always liked being creative and taking an assignment in a totally unexpected method (see my high school research papers on zombies and Sasquatch). When I am doing a task I do not quite enjoy that much I change it so that I do enjoy it. On the other hand I think I relate to the "learned expert" when it is something I am extremely passionate about. If I am doing research on net neutrality, mathematicians, or board games I'd be much more likely to delve in and not be as creative because I take the topics more "seriously."

I do think that no matter the task I am always a people person. I like people and I enjoy working alongside others. My fiancee is the same and she scored highest here as well. Unlike me however she tied with her top two scores and her other one was practical manager. She is an organizer and perfectionist. It is one of the reasons that she is such a great teacher. Her lessons are fine tuned, well thought out, and are overwhelmingly successful.

= ASSIGNMENT # 10 = American History X and October Sky appear to have very little in common on first watch however when you look at the journey's of Derrick and Homer you find a common thread. Nurture pushes both of these men to do things they would not want to do. It also pushes them to find in themselves a sense of power. The family, the school and the community are huge influences on both of these young men in both positive and negative ways. Derrick and Homer both get mixed messages from their families. Both mothers try their best to be loving caretakers. Both stood up to their husband's ideas when they were detrimental to their children and both fought tooth and nail to give their kids as good of a life as they could provide. Having this support was great for both characters and I think helped them both have the strength to make tough discussions later on in their stories. The differences appear in their fathers. They both have hard working blue-collar fathers who are respected in their field and the community. The difference are the way they approach their own prejudices. Everyone has prejudices but it is clear that Homer's father would not let his get in the way of helping another human. Homer's father is rigid and unyielding but would give the shirt off of his back to anyone that needed it. Derrick's father, because of his past experiences I am sure, clearly thinks in a way that he and people like him are superior and deserve better. Homer's father eventually comes around to Homer's way of thinking and supports him in the end. Derrick's father never had the chance to "come around" as he tragically died. However he left his children with some very hateful ideas that stayed with the two boys for a long time. School is very important in a child's development and it is an overall positive experience for both Derrick and Homer. Both boys are extremely interested in academics and find a release in their creativity in math and science (Homer) and history and English (Derrick). They both have the good fortune of having positive influences at their school but they come in different forms. Homer's teacher Miss Reilly is his champion. She inspires Homer and pushes him to do his best. She is his first supporter and her love and guidance help him achieve what he never dreamed of doing. Murray tried to talk reason into Derrick but he did not have what Derrick needed. It was also unfortunate that Derrick's own bigotry kept Murray's message from being heard. Derrick found his guidance from tough love. Dr. Sweeney, Derrick's principal, did not mince words and was tough on Derrick but saw in him a good person that had the potential to do great things. His continuing messages of understanding and his unwavering trust in Derrick helped him change his ways. I believe that Dr. Sweeney had almost the biggest positive impact on Derricks life second only to Lamont. Homer's principal was an antagonist for almost the entire movie. He did not trust Homer and thought that his endeavors would lead to no good. He got zero support from him. Thankfully he had Miss Reilly. The rest of the community that the boys grew up in also affected them and I think the differences here are the most polarizing. Homer had a pretty great community. After a little hesitation they were coming to see his rockets. Homer had multiple people at the mine helping him as well. This huge support and friendship from the community propelled Homer and his friends to greatness. Where Homer had someone in the community like Leon Bolden helping him and supporting him Derrick had Cameron. Cameron was great at tapping into the anger and fear of the young white men in his community and manipulating it into something he could control. He was constantly using the boys to push his own agenda and he never stopped to ask what was best for them. I think all three aspects, home, community, and school, played a huge part in shaping who Derrick and Homer were and who they would become. Both mothers gave them resilience and someone to lean on. I hope every student has the chance to meet their Miss Reilly or Dr. Sweeney. Most importantly the community outside of these has great control over who Derrick and Homer became. The type of friends and mentors someone makes greatly effects them. It is our jobs as teachers to make sure that we are a positive influence on every student we interact with. We cannot be a Miss Reilly to every student but we can show care and support to every student. We can teach them how to deal with their world, and their problems in positive ways. The way Homer and Derrick deal with their problems is vastly different and all you need to do to see why they act tehy way they do is to look at the community they grew up in.