I highly recommend playing the role of a student at Carondelet. Matter of fact, I’d like to do it again with yet another student to get even more perspective. Here are my takeaways:

• Stress (or lack thereof): Ellen had an easy schedule that particular day, so I was fooled into believing that school is an easy, enjoyable gig. We had two subs, including one study hall. We ended the day with yoga, where I was able shake off the cobwebs and work on my downward dog and corpse pose. Ellen and other students said they liked to end the day with a relaxing class such as yoga. I was also talking to Annie Raines who was in that class, who was off to then do her cross country and jump in to her 5-AP-homework-evening.
• Sitting: During 1st period French, I regressed back to my own teenager days — remembering how difficult it is to focus in class when I’m not doing the work. Perhaps students are desensitized to this way of learning and have gotten use to it as a way of life. I did notice throughout the day that there was a variety of activities; lecture, group work, quiz, class discussion. Group work was practiced in almost every class.
• Why students learn: While we were waiting for Science to begin, I was reflecting on Amanda Jain’s wall graphic showing why math has real-world relevance. I asked a group of four girls in the science class the question: Why does our educational system require students to learn math? The intent of my question was not to challenge the nobility and importance learning math, but to see if students understand the relevancy of what they are learning in school. I was hoping they would say things like: to teach us how to reason, think, learn process, learn logic or how to solve problems, etc. The girls had no idea why they were studying math since they had no interest in pursuing any math-related career. They contrasted this with the relevancy of English classes where they have the opportunity to create and share their own ideas about humanistic topics. To be even-handed about this, students should understand the relevance of all the subjects learned in school…my opinion.
• Boys: Also in French class, I heard that Ellen and her two study partners had a clarification question but were too unwilling to raise their hand and ask. I decided myself to be bold, and tell the teacher the girls had a question. The girls then had no problem asking the question. I also noticed that the boys and girls all segregated themselves into gender-specific groups with the exception of one girl. Later in the week, I asked Anne Bossert about this phenomenon and she said the boys did have a quieting influence on the girls in this class. I find that true in most of my classes as well. Are the presence of the boys a negative influence on the girls? If so, how can our female students learn to be more self expressive when boys are present? How can we as teachers enable them to tap into their own self confidence, boys or no boys?