--Original published at Matt's College Blog

While I can’t speak on whether the Mozart effect has any real impact on the intelligence of infants, I do think that the Governer, Zell Miller, tried to do the right thing. He believed there was a cheap, easy way to improve the future lives of thousands of people, something we look for every day, and he executed on his idea. I do not, however, think his decision was a good one. The decision to spend over $100,000 in taxpayers money based on a belief in some shaky theory which needs more thorough testing, is not one which should be taken lightly. The better option would have been to fund a major study into the Mozart effect to see if there was any real, measurable influence on the intelligence of children who had listened to Mozart as an infant as opposed to those who did not. This would have enabled the state to both save money and make an informed decision about the proposed budget.

Another option, rather than funding the study, could have been to allocate those funds to schools directly, providing new materials and other things students, especially those of low income families, needed to grow and learn. Instead of spending $105K on Mozart CD’s and cassettes, spend those funds on textbooks, meal programs, playgrounds, transportation, and classroom supplies. The funds could have been allocated to teacher’s paychecks, or to hiring new teachers with more experience to add to the classrooms. Funding the arts programs, music classes, etc. If he though listening to Mozart would make kids smarter, he could have funded schools to teach people to play Mozart!

--Original published at Emily Garvin's Psych Blog

Many people consider intelligence to be largely determined by genetics, but there is substantial evidence that the environment and social processes play a large role as well. Since schools are a place where children try to determine how smart they really are, it is important for educators to understand the impacts of their subtle or not-so-subtle interactions with students. In your blog post, reflect on your interactions with educators throughout your school career, and discuss what changes to the school system could improve students’ performance in the classroom.

Throughout my life I always enjoyed going to school. I loved to learn and never wanted to miss a day of school because if I did I would definitely feel like I would be behind and more importantly miss out on activities of that day. I think my teachers in elementary school are the reason that I loved going to school so much. As an elementary schooler I did all my work and for the most part enjoyed doing it! All of my teachers were so nice and encouraging, I even still keep in touch with some of them to this day. As I transitioned to middle school the work become harder and the teachers became stricter, but it was not anything I couldn’t handle. High school was an exciting time, we got to pick our own classes and teachers. I had multiple teachers in high school who I can say had a lasting impact on my life, but like everywhere there were some teachers that made me dread coming to school. Throughout the years some of my peers have learned to resent school due to the work and the faculty interactions they have had. I however, try to look at school in a positive light. Although learning is difficult there is always a way to make it interesting and after all the hard work I put in now will pay off in my future endeavors. Not only have I learned course content throughout my academic life, my teachers have instilled a relentless work ethic, advanced social skills, and creative problem solving strategies in me that will ultimately be helpful in every aspect of my future.

The school system does not view students as individuals. Each student is essentially just a number attached to test scores on a piece of paper. The school system should consider implementing curriculum that focuses on expressing individuality of a person. This could be through fun activities that are accompanied with relevant academic content. Implementing different teaching methods so children can explore new methods of learning. In addition to revamping the curriculum schools should try to decrease the amount of standardized tests. Tests are good to track the progress of a student, but they cause an excessive amount of stress and ultimately take up valuable time in the school year. The time that is taking up by tests could be time that students are learning. Making school an enjoyable environment for students will improve their outlook on school and working hard will not be such a daunting task.

--Original published at Collin's Blog

My interactions in high school with my teachers was a much more informal than they are at Elizabethtown College. Most of my teachers were very laid back and would not care if you called them by their first name as long as you were polite during class and did your work regularly on time. At times they were a little too loose with their tolerance, some students would take advantage of their freedoms and make it difficult for high school teachers to consistently keep a laid back classroom when they had to scold or argue with other students who did not want to be there. Most of my high school educators had to deal with students like this and their subtlety as teachers gave students the wrong impressions of how their classroom was meant to be run. Here at Elizabethtown, just about every interaction with professors has been formal and understandably so since much of our work here is important to our futures. I think this has lead to much more polite classroom environments and helped a lot of students stay serious about their academics and future goals. The public high school systems should implement a more serious environment and be a little less subtle in their interactions with students if they want their class to be more involved in the learning process and thus take the classes seriously.

--Original published at Miguel's College Blog

For this First Impression post, I went with option 1, reflecting on my experience with other educators throughout my school career and discussing what changes in the school system could be done to improve students’ performance in the classroom. Throughout my school career, I have had my share of good and bad teachers. The teachers that had the greatest impact on my education were those that actually interacted with me like a human being and did not just retain a rigid teacher persona. The teachers that actually allowed their students to see a bit of personality from them, I felt, were teachers that actually cared about their students and did care about how they performed in class because a better relationship was created. The teachers that felt like they were dead in the inside and simply taught the day’s material and never interacted with their students were not only boring to be in class with, but also left a negative or indifferent impact on the subject.

I had an AP World History teacher in high school that was particularly terrible at teaching material, however was personable in a cynical, deprecating way. He would change his teaching style every couple of weeks and make probably unethical comments to his misbehaving students. Somehow, the material he taught was remembered by most of his students – even the ones that chose not to pay attention. Even through that, he still cared about his students and encouraged his students to go further in life. He was a memorable teacher and the material he taught stuck because he interacted with his students and showed us that he was still a human being.

I think that the school system should be changed to be less teaching to the test and more about understanding why the material is relevant and how it can be related to other subjects. The system right now is so rigid especially in the public school system that I was in. Only coming to college was I even allowed to express creative thought and encouraged to have effective discussion on different topics in class. The teaching system is so cut and dry sometimes that it turns so many students off from learning so easily. Another thing that the school system needs to change is how they interact with students. Teachers should be able to improve on their curriculum to better suit their students and be able to create a personable relationship with their students. A teacher that cares about their students could be the difference to whether or not a student decides to care about their education.

--Original published at Caleb C's College Blog

Option 2:

My opinion regarding Governor Zell Miller’s proposal of spending over 100,000 tax payer dollars to distribute cassettes to families across Georgia in 1998 on the belief that listening to Mozart can increase intelligence is one I do not agree on. I believe that there could be potential proof that correlates increased intelligence to increased time in listening to classical music, though I do not belief in spending large amounts of tax payer money to go to a belief that not everyone has to abide by. I’m not saying that every person would be required to listen to the music, though I believe it should be the individual citizen’s choice to go out and get their own music to listen to if they wish. I simply believe this is just a waste of money and that it’s up to the people whether or not they believe listening to Mozart increases intelligence and shouldn’t be influenced by government decisions, even if the Mozart Effect is proven to be real. If Governor Zell Miller really did believe in the Mozart Effect, I think he should just simply tell the people to look into it and make their own decisions on it, rather than spending the people’s money to send cassettes to every residential home with a newborn hoping that people listen to it.

--Original published at Melissa's Blog

Educators play a significant role in students’ academic achievements and success. I have personal experience with teachers who were extremely helpful, caring, and supportive, and those who were the total opposite, judgmental and looked down on their students. The encouraging teachers helped me overcome the academic challenges I was facing. Without their help I would have struggled in their courses and would have had low self-esteem because my academic performance is one of my main priorities. If these teachers didn’t help me, I would have been unhappy with my grades and wouldn’t be where I am today. I am grateful for the teachers who were always supportive and eager to assist me. My high school teachers helped me improve and maintain stellar grades, which helped me get into Elizabethtown College. So far at Elizabethtown College all my professors have been willing to help me. They are reliable because they reply to my emails and are always available during office hours. The professors at Elizabethtown College get to know their students and want them to succeed.

On the other hand, in high school I had a few teachers who made their students aware that they were inferior to them. For example, my AP Language teacher put our essays on her public “wall of shame” if they did not meet her standards. One of my essays was publicly shammed and I was so embarrassed and discouraged. I tried going to her for help, but she made me feel worse about myself and my academic performance. As a result, I lacked confidence in her class and was always anxious that my future essays would be ridiculed. I think educators who show they care and push their students to do their best deserve credit. My accepting and encouraging teachers and professors have made me a better student.

One change to guarantee struggling students get help is mandating meetings with their teachers, like the advising meetings here at Elizabethtown College. Students should be required to meet with their educators, so they know someone cares about their academic performance and achievements. This would also give shy students a chance to talk about any academic challenges they are having but are too nervous to seek help on their own.