Chapter 4

When I think about community I am reminded of a quote by John Muir.

"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe."

Palmer does a good job of detailing the disconnect between academic superiority and the learner. I believe this disconnect can be corrected with collaboration. By collaborating you will not only enhance student learning, you will also enhance your own knowledge base. Eastern University of Michigan reports, “Collaboration ensures a more effective use of individual talents. Modern research is increasingly complex and demands an ever-widening range of skills. Often, no single individual possesses all the knowledge, skills, and techniques required. In principle, an individual might be able to learn or acquire all the techniques needed to solve a particular problem, but this can be very time consuming. If two or more researchers collaborate, there is a greater probability that among them they will possess the necessary range of skills.” Education of students requires teachers to develop curriculum, administer curriculum, grade papers, and discipline students. No teacher is expected to rewrite textbooks on top of all the other responsibilities they have. Collaboration with others will ease that responsibility. Some may say collaboration is another task added to a teacher’s overburdened work schedule. Stuart Smith writes, when teachers “share teaching practices or critique one another’s teaching, they are engaging in activities to improve their work.” A sense of comradery begins to form between the teachers. By implementing environmental education in courses other than science teachers will build connections with their faculty, strengthen their teaching methods, and obtain appreciate from their students. Collaboration is the beginning of community in the field of education.

Thoughts on Programming:

Palmer also writes about the importance of honesty. "We practice honesty not only because we owe it to one another but because to lie about what we have seen would be to betray the truth of great things." I think Farmcraft is making me stupid. I can't focus on Natural History or my project with the same enthusiasm I had earlier in the year. For a moment I actually contemplated skipping the Natural History exam because I just didn't care. I would have never said that a month ago. Some may say this is due to timing. I've been told there is a natural process of highs and lows in grad school. I fully knew this before entering the program. I've experienced many highs and lows in my life, just none like this. The routine of making magic muffins and apple cider is making me crazy, apathetic, and dry. Don't get me wrong. I believe the staff at Merry Lea has done an amazing job creating programs that inspire children of all ages. I'm not saying the material is mundane, but rather, it's the repetition of the material. We've been doing this for almost 7 weeks now with 3 to go. The thought of returning to Farmcraft in the spring is killing me. Once again, I am not criticizing the program. I'm happy that we have had the chance to learn the program, but I'm not sure why we are still doing it. Some might say the reason for doing the program for an extended time is to teach us the ability to make things exciting even when it seems boring. I can accept that statement if programming was our job. Trust me, teaching Biology 1 for 16 years can be a bore, but there is an investment when I teach Biology. I want my students to excel and develop an enthusiasm for the subject. There is no investment in the students we teach during programming. The other motivating factor in teaching Biology is the fact that I'm getting paid. I want the school corporation to know they invested wisely when they hired me. We are paying for an education through Goshen College, but right now it seems like we are cheap labor. In addition, we were promised more time to work on our projects during programming, but I've had less time (pretty much none) to do research now than I did when we were taking classes. When I should be working on my project, I'm putting away the tractor and cleaning up the bathrooms. I want future grad school students to experience programming. It's an important part of environmental education, but in the future there needs to be less programming or a better rationale for it.

I think that what worries me most is that Farmcraft is forcing me to lose my self.