Research

Throughout my readings and experiences in my classes at Saint Mary's, I was continuously reminded of the importance of a teacher's role in the life of a student. With this profession came enormous pressure to teach the standards of the state while also being aware of each students individual need. Due to my reading of bell hooks and Paulo Freire, my critical awareness of the current education system increased and I realized the expectations of teachers within the education system did not align with the support given by the system to fulfill this goal. In my research, I investigated this disconnect by asking the question, "How do teachers work to empower the whole student while meeting the state standards?" In my analysis, I found there to be three key components that influence an educator's ability to practice humanizing education: Location, Duration, and Cooperation. Although my findings did not completely satisfy my hunger for a connection between teacher and system, it gave me a visual on how my future teaching placement will have an impact on my teaching instruction as well as offering me methods to work within and around possible factors that could pop up based upon my teaching placement.