Synthesis Paper

MATC Synthesis Paper

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts Degree in Curriculum and Teaching Department of Education, Michigan State University

As stated in my opening letter, this program has challenged, encouraged, and inspired me. Though I had been passionate about teaching, issues in education, and my content area, the MATC program gave me the space to translate meaningful learning into practical change. Prior to my coming to MSU, my said passion was merely manifested in fruitless and often frustrating conversations, whereby I felt and saw needs but had little wherewithal to incite change.  Throughout my time in the MATC program, I have become more incite-ful. This has included, but is by no means limited to, acting upon: my awareness of historical and contextual influences in the field of education and beyond, my sensitivity towards minority populations and the ways in which I perceive and respond within distinct learning communities, my interactions with colleagues, and by my understanding a variety of pedagogical approaches and research-based practices.

From the onset of the program, I began to realize that meaningful tracks had been lain before me. The history of education in our country, accompanied by the extensive corpus of present day educational research, led me to realize that the my pondering and prior frustrations may not have straightforward answers, but they most certainly sing in chorus with those who have gone before me and with those who are devoted to problem solving in the here and now. In my TE 818 course, I began to explore our educational roots (see Artifact #5). And, by the close of the program, such knowledge was readily accessible and solidified--where in TE 823, for example, I came to read School and Society not simply as a piece telling of the history of education but rather as a lens with which I could construct a more sustainable and experiential learning environment at present in my school. 

The program instilled within me a sensitivity towards minority populations. This, however, was not left latent as my thinking, writing, and emoting became increasingly charged by further realizations of inequitable systems, policies, and societal and individual actions. I have come to see the need for learning communities which not only “tolerate” but encourage, embrace minority populations and perspectives (See Artifact # 6). Failure to do so results in the maintenance of dominant groups and cultures as well as problems in practice--effects of which are threatening to both the unintentional or intentional oppressive majority or the oppressed minority. 

Furthermore, I have come to realize my role as a male of white-privilege and as a teacher of English which necessitates authentic and honest navigation of my school and life contexts. This was most cemented in my critical literacy course which prompted me to consider more carefully “what” and “how” characters, groups of people, authors, and even teachers are presented or are presenting within a given context while simultaneously considering “why” it is that this particular individual or group of individuals is being presented in such a way (See Artifact #7).  

Throughout my time in the program, I have been blessed to be a member of professional communities which directly spoke wisdom and encouragement into my life in a time where I deeply needed it. In Indonesia, I could not have functioned or learned so much so quickly without the sincere efforts of my Indonesian colleagues. Bumbling around with a small cadre of ex-pat teachers gave me a nest of shared experiences; however, the flight of my experience came because my Indonesian colleagues gave me time and space to learn from them. My teaching partner, a fellow teacher of language and literature--though of one completely unlike the one which I know and teach, insisted I understand her, her language, and the place in which she and I lived as a point of her personal pride and as a commitment to see me grow and develop as a young teacher. 

Within this community, I was able to engage in a cross cultural action research project, which looked at the grammars of my bilingual students comparatively (See Artifact #2). Throughout the project, I learned from my colleagues and existing research but was also able share my findings with the school for a meaningful understanding of our unique learning community. I was also able to process and overcome some of my cultural frustrations with intentional instructional changes and with the implementation of a particular questioning method. This then gave wind to another action research project where I was able to challenge the dominant school culture of rote learning by creating and measuring an environment more conducive to critical thought (See Artifact #1). I then shared my results with my colleagues in a school-wide meeting.

I was additionally pressed, through my work in TE 872, to engage with the school community in which I teach now. As a new teacher, my reflections in the course and the colleagues with whom I studied urged me put down my guard and seek professional relationships in a territory completely unfamiliar to me--an all-girls boarding school. I have since established meaningful relationships, particularly with colleagues with a great deal more teaching experience than me. And, now I have mentors and support unlike any I have ever known in my professional career.

My MATC experience has also refined my thinking and eventually my teaching by exposing me to a plethora of pedagogies. I was able to sharpen my convictions as a teacher of language and grammar in TE 891. And, I was able to implement best practices and enact a particular theoretical approach of comparative grammar instruction in an action research project (See Artifact #2). Furthermore, I was able to consider multiple theories of writing, contributing and a communicating as a writer in my own right in TE 848 (See Artifacts #3 and #4). In addition to theoretical reference points from Toulmin to Hillocks, I genuinely began to see myself as a writer and even a serious thinker for the first time in my life. As such, I was motivated well beyond any sort of marks or feedback Dr. Juzwik could have given me. I, still to this day, do my best to get in “Morning Pages.” And, I don’t even care if the adage, “teachers of writing must also be writers” is true because ultimately I want to be a writer not because it makes me a better teacher but rather because it makes me a better, more reflective person--though I am convicted that engaging in the writing process is an experience teachers must share with their students if not only for empathetic purposes. And, finally, I came to realize through acquired experience with critical pedagogy that our students face real issues whether person-to-person or institutionally, and that the way in which they approach their learning can enact meaningful change (See Artifact #7.) 

Ultimately, I hope my ties to MSU and life hereafter this program continue to challenge, encourage, and inspire. I want nothing more than to go from here and strengthen that which I have gained from the last two years. I want to be gripped by the realities of the field of education and the political and socioeconomic systems in which I work. I am bent on seeking justice and perpetual waves of positive change. And, wherever I may go, I long to move beyond any sort of reservations and seek out meaningful professional community; I wish to do so with eyes and ears ready and willing to see and hear of ways--new and old--in which I can become a better teacher.