Poetry Exercise: March Violets

This song is about an individual who is battling a duel identity. The individual is fighting stereotypes from belonging to one specific culture, while also being affiliated with another. The lyrics "Can you tell them apart" are repeated numerous times, and signifies that from the outside physical perspective there is only one individual, while on the inside it is turmoil. There are two different sets of values represented in this song, from "firing a gun" to "watering the vine," it shows a softness and harshness to the individual simultaneously. The word "half" is also repeated towards the end of the song and it just adds to the theme of dividedness. Nothing fits in this poem and everything is presented in opposites and there is absolutely no togetherness or solidarity. This dual identity issue can stand for just one individual, while at the same time representing an entire community, because the word "they" is used. However, the "they" can represent the conflicting aspects of that one individual because he does not feel as one.

*After the music and speaking with my fellow classmates*

The music did not suprise me at all because it was slow, depressing, and the lyrics themselves appeared to be divided from each other by significant pauses. The words felt like daggers and the feeling of turmoil and war were present. My other classmates brought to light that this poem could literally be about war, which I had not seen before. Their interpretation makes sense and also fits the music, and it once again proves that there are many sides to a single poem.

The Beginning

Hello, my name is Alina and I have wanted to be a teacher since the age of six. Having one semester of student teaching under my belt really made me realize that teaching English in a secondary school classroom is my life’s passion. Being a teacher in today’s world is a lot different than our predecessors, and technology plays a huge role in the classroom.

Technology keeps expanding and our future students are exposed to it daily. Having a computer and being able to access the internet have become almost necessities in every classroom. Technology opens the door to unlimited amounts of information, which is beneficial to the student and classroom curriculum. I believe that technology should be incorporated into an English classroom, but it is still important that students do not lose their penmanship. Students still need to have the skills to do research in a library and the experience of reading a hard-cover book can never be replaced. Technology is a good addition to the classroom curriculum, but it should be used in moderation.

I have witnessed teachers use PowerPoint presentations very effectively in the classroom, but I have also seen the shortcomings of using this wonderful program. I had a teacher who only lectured from PowerPoint slides and the entire class was meant for us to speedily copy all the information provided in small print. The teacher did not add any other information, just read of the slides, and half the class was asleep most of the time. There was no teacher-student interaction and the room was dimmed the entire time in order for the projection of the slides to show. PowerPoint is a great technological advancement, but it needs to be used properly otherwise it can disasterous.