Michelle Obama, Mom-in-Chief

            There’s a new Mom-in-Chief in the White House. We have not seen this role truly filled since now Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton, was First Lady. In what ways is Michelle Obama a prominent figure for mothers across the nation? Why is Mrs. Obama placing so much emphasis on being a mother?

            First of all, she has two young daughters. Malia and Sasha are 10 years- and 7 years- old respectively. The age of her daughters has everything to do with Mrs. Obama’s focus on motherhood in the White House. She wants her daughters to remain humble amidst the chaos still resonating from the election win and the first few months in the White House itself. The girls make their own beds, clean their rooms, and perform other chores that may be considered typical among households across the United States. Both Obamas, mom and dad, go to their daugheters’ parent-teacher conferences and while it may not be so easy for President Obama to attend all games, Michelle is sure to be at all of Malia’s soccer games. Michelle Obama has even discussed baking with her daughters, although most meals are left up to the White House chefs. Regardless of who makes the meals, Obama wants her family to remain as “normal” as the Barack Obama’s Presidency allows, which is a large undertaking. So just how does she relate to mothers across the country?

            Ideas about Michelle Obama as an ideal mother differ across the nation. Perhaps more importantly, these ideas come from various degrees of working mothers. There are some who believe that Michelle Obama should not take the back seat because Barack is President. She has a list of credentials and accomplishments that suggest she could and possibly should be doing more. These working women say that Obama should not hold back on her career because of her children. Arguably, Michelle Obama has an even greater opportunity to take both roles; that as a mother and as a career women.

Mrs. Obama has a tremendous opportunity as the First Lady to continue to be a role model and mother to her daughters as well as taking charge of issues important to the American people. One such issue that Obama has taken to heart is the family. She has invited military moms, single moms and working moms to the White House to talk about problems they face in hopes of understanding what is important to different groups of family and what they would like to see change in the new administration. It is also an opportunity for others to see just what the Obamas are about.

Michelle Obama is focusing on motherhood because it is important to her. She was, after all, a mother before she became First Lady. Her spotlight on being a mom helps demonstrate that women can work, lead success lives and still be a part of their childrens’ lives. It is true that she is not faced with many of the challenges facing families in the United States, but, as mentioned earlier, she has made an attempt to try and understand what the families are dealing with.

The Obamas have only been in the White House for two short months, but the buzz surrounding them has yet to subside. So, while the nation faces certain economic insecurity, is a Mom-in-Chief more important than a First Lady? Perhaps the focus on families is even more important during these times. Relationships may be more strained due to the fears of layoffs and paying for college. Many moms are seeking compensation for caring for children as the price of childcare rises and funds allotted cannot match up. This truly cannot all just be about monetary compensation.

Yet, maybe we are all missing something. Although it is not always practical (or possible)…what happened to the extended family? Michelle Obama’s mother has joined the family in the White House to look after the girls with Michelle as well as when she has to be away. Is it uncommon now for a grandmother or grandfather to look after a grandchild? What else can be done to ease the pressures put on these working, single, and military moms? As of now, I do not think there is a true answer to that question and we may not even get a clue as to what Mrs. Obama thinks about this issue in the next few months. Most unfortunately, there are more pressing concerns occupying America’s mindset. Still, those same concerns are putting pressures on families and sooner or later, families will, once again, come to the forefront of debate when the economy becomes more stable.

Verbal Response

Digital Storytelling

This first one, the voice thread was perhaps the easiest to tell a story about because I was able to verbally say what I wanted to. I enjoyed showing the pictures and the features that allowed me to interact with the actual picture (the drawing tool). In a classroom, or outside of the classroom, this is helpful so I can illustrate what I'm specifically referring to and it would also allow students to add their own comments and thoughts to what was shown and what I said.



This form of story telling was technically easy because I just had to import pictures and pick some music. I'm not sure if it necessarily gets the story that I want across to others. Like we discussed in class, I think this way is very visually appealing and will be a good way to introduce a new unit, but I would not use this to convey every day material. I would not let my students really use this either because they have no role in its true creation.



I really enjoyed this form of story telling. To me it's like PowerPoint, but there are stickers and perhaps more artistic elements than your basic PowerPoint slide show. Although I did not include descriptions, this form of story telling allows pictures, videos, music and text so one could get various different media incorporated into this project. I did not really get to explore the program too much, but did enjoy working on the few slides that I did.

Growing Up Online

I read several of my classmates blogs including Emmanuel (http://emmanuelsciblog.blogspot.com/), Dustin (http://unoriginaloriginality-uiuc.blogspot.com/), and Kate (http://krutten2.wordpress.com/) and it seems like they have different ideas.

They all believe that technology is important in the classroom, but that it also presents problems. These problems are not limited to the educational environment either. Both Kate and Dustin touch on the issue involving Spark Notes and the laziness of students today, stating that students must do what they are asked to do. They should read the materials rather than rely on information that others provide them. In this way, the students can form their own opinions and the like. I agree with both of them. Spark Notes really does ruin literature. We may not always know what an author means, so for someone to interpret an author's words FOR you, takes some of the joy out of reading. Sure not everything a student reads will be easy to understand, but that does not mean that the teacher will not help the student out. The problem I have with the internet (as Dustin also mentions) is the fact that it allows people to take shortcuts. Not only are we not reading novels for school, but we write differently. We are not using formal language. Schools need to find a way to get students interested in reading, no matter what.

As far as safety on the internet, Kate and Emmanuel had two different ideas. Kate believes that kids, for the most part, know how to keep themselves safe, whereas Emmanuel recognizes the job of society to somehow prevent harm that the internet can cause. In my opinion, many kids do recognize where danger is, but there are still those who see the internet as a way to reinvent themselves and so they may do riskier things. As the age of internet users goes down over the years, we may have newer problems to confront due to the mentality of the younger kids. I do think the internet is dangerous, but it will be impossible to control children and there is really no clear solution to the problem.

Paying Students to Stay in School...

This article may reward students for getting better grades, but it seems more about decreasing the dropout rate more than anything. I think students will work harder to get the money, especially if they do not have money in the first place, but it places a different value on Education. From the various pieces I read (and viewed) on the subject matter, many agree that this is a questionable move. One of the parts of the article from the Tribune that I found offensive was the remark about how students in the city should be exposed to the same incentives that middle-class families have. Personally I was never paid for getting good grades and neither were many of my friends. It seems kind of ridiculous to generalize that statement to include everyone.

Furthermore, I understand that the incentive is appealing to many students who do not have much money, but by giving the students cash (at least half) right away it's not teaching them to save. There are schools that are instituting similar monetary incentives, but the students will only get the money if they enroll in a college/university. I could agree with the program if it encouraged further education, but just making sure that students stick through high school is pointless. Putting money into a college fund is more beneficial because the student will be able to explore other possibilities not offered in high school and will ultimately have a better paying job once having been through college. However, if we give the students half the money upfront...WHAT are they spending that money on?

Regardless, as a future educator, I do not like the idea of paying students for grades. What is frightening is that many schools have implemented variations of the Chicago idea, but no one really knows what the long term effects on students are. Rather than really learning, the students will resort to simple memorization (as that seems that that is all that is required in schools these days thanks to scantron tests) and will therefore not benefit from the program. The schools are not focusing on improving their student's educational environment, but improving the grades of the school in GENERAL. They are working on improving the academic image of the school instead of working on the fundamental problems of these schools. Why don't we focus on getting newer and better materials for these classrooms? Can we reopen failed schools that closed and are now affecting the education of others because classrooms are too crowded?

I have included several articles and a video discussing the topic at hand for further information.

Earn an A? Here's $50.

Des Moines school will pay schools to learn

Debate About Paying Students for Grades Shows Our Desire for Children to Succeed

Classy, Tacky, or Stupid?: Paying students for grades

Is Paying Students for Good Grades a Good Idea?

Capital Gains Program Promises Cash For DC Students

Students and Technology (Response)

After reading several of my classmates responses (Pat, Chris, Dustin, and Dennis) it is clear that although technological use in the classroom is unavoidable, there is more to teaching than technology.

Pat ended his post with the statement, "Learning starts in a classroom on the first day with a blackboard, a teacher, and students...." He and the other bloggers were offended by their supposed inability to be a remarkable teacher without technology. I personally think the internet is an invaluable source as it allows for a greater access in information, but in some ways, it lets the students off easy. Why read a book when I can go to sparknotes.com and read the summary? Dennis was correct in saying that computers don't solve the problems that WE have created for yourselves and perpetuated. Computers make life easier, true, but where is the motivation to learn?

I agree with many of the thoughts of Group B. Technology should not be used to the extreme so that students forget the fundamentals of learning. As Dustin pointed out, we, as teachers, are there to teach content. We must build the foundation of ideas and learning so that students can adapt their understanding with information they discover in the future. If we are merely teaching our students to be the same and have the same skills, not only are we doing a disservice to the students themselves, but also to the community. As a future history teacher, I want the students to know the the importance of their past and why history is something they do NEED to know. Technology can help me show them how we are now able to describe ancient civilizations more readily through various online texts and images, but actual books are important. Technology has its limits and we cannot put all of our eggs into one basket, so to speak.

Killing Creativity?

Mr. Robinson is convinced that education, rather than promote ideas of individuality and interests, is breeding simple minded individuals. Educators are stuck in the rigid educational system that prioritizes subjects regardless of student strength and interests. To remedy this problem, Robinson recommends that educators and schools place less emphasis on what is "right." He correctly pinpoints the fear of students as failing. Students, instead of looking at problems differently, are so focused on getting the right answers that they are too afraid to take a risk. This, of course, does not just apply to classrooms, I think, but many other aspects of the student's life. Perhaps more importantly, is how these ideas translate into the future workplace.

Robinson says that one of the biggest challenges facing educators is teaching students for a future we are unsure of. There is no way to know what technologies are going to be relevant, but we must facilitate curiosity and innovation is students in order to prepare them for the future.

I think that Robinson's message is very important for future educators to take into consideration. We, too, are faced with a rigid curriculum that we must develop in our own ways to mean something to students. Technology helps us and our students access more information, but it also enables us to show students how technology can be used. As future History teachers, we have the ability to delve into students' creativity. History is based on interpretations of evidence, which allows for creativity and various viewpoints. Students must think critically, but history can be showcased in various forms. I know I will keep Robinson's views as I prepare to be a teacher.