Month: June 2020

Teaching methods usually fit on a spectrum, with the ends being letting the students do whatever they want or the micromanagement of every move. These two polar opposites are presented in “Miss Awful” by Author Cavanaugh through the characters of Miss Wilson and Miss Orville. They resemble the ends of the spectrum along wither their advantages and flaws. By the ends of the story, it is clear how both can be applied.

Miss Wilson is a teacher that is very popular with the students. When a boy in her class decided to lie down and rest in the middle of class, she suggested that “‘we’d all have a rest, it was perfectly normal in the middle of the day'”. Obviously, her style of teaching makes sure that the students have fun and it relieves the stress of education. However giving students, especially little kids, this much freedom is deleterious to their education. Small children simply cannot be trusted to be self driven. Additionally, no matter how nice the teacher is to the students, they will eventually take advantage of her.

So let’s consider the other option. When Miss Wilson left for Omaha, Miss Orville became the substitute. On her first day, she yelled at the kids to march in a military like fashion. If a student had bad handwriting, she would scream at them. Even if someone is slouching they will get scolded. This teaching style on the surface has many drawbacks. First, not every single aspect should be corrected. Also, the students should be allowed room to grow and learn some responsibilities.

Which form of education is better? Well looking back, it was previously stated that Wilson and Orville’s teaching methods are ends to a spectrum. Like most things in the world, taking the middle road is usually a path that takes the good from both sides. Teachers should allow students to be independent and responsible, but help them in the right direction. However, this idea should be modified based on different age groups. For example, younger students should be managed more, as they lack self control and their education should be more focused on learning, rather than results. For older people like college students, they have been through twelve years of schooling and definitely know how to take control of their own progress. Also, what is more important at their age is to get their projects completed and in on time. In conclusion, what is most succesful is a mix of the two teaching styles, which encourage students to learn and also get things done.

When Miss Orville arrived to St. Geoff’s as a substitute teacher for Roger’s class, she made lot of changes that required the students obedience. She was a harsh and strict teacher, that’s why Roger called her ”Miss Awful”. However on Miss Orville’s last day before she leaves Roger’s class, Roger found out that Miss Orville’s point of being harsh and strict was that she wanted to teach them how to be good humans in society, which will help to reduce violence. Roger learned that we shouldn’t judge people before we get to know them.

Roger, the main character of the story, had the best teacher before, Miss Wilson. She used to play with the students during classes and even let the students take some rest. When she gave homework, Roger didn’t even care about it. Once she left for a week to Omaha, the students got a new substitute. She was old, the meanest, and the strictest teacher ever. She came to the classroom with her beloved plant and a lot of work. She was Miss. Orville which students referred to as Miss Awful or the witch. The first day, Miss Orville took Roger’s toys (that he brought to play with his friends,) ripped the papers of students who didn’t do the homework correctly, marched them in and out from the schools, and complained about the students to their parents. “You know, of course, that Roger is a prodigy,…A prodigy of misspelling.” Then she asked Roger to spell flower and castle but he couldn’t. After this embarrassment of Mrs.Clark in between other parents, she and Mr. Clark were surprised to see how Roger took his education seriously and was afraid of her. Another day when parents came to pick up their children Nancy Reeves, Roger’s friend’s Bruce Reeves mother remembered that she knew Miss Orville and said that she was evicted from her apartment and was left homeless with her plants.

Since the students hated her they thought of many horrible ways of getting rid of her like beating her up. One of Roger’s classmate came up with the idea to rip the leaves of her plant. Miss Awful started her last day with what is going on in the world. “If I have been severe with you this past week, it was for your benefit. The world needs good citizens.” Then after when she saw the plant all bare she said “You see…. Violence and destruction… Whoever is responsible, I beg of you only to be sorry.” After the class ended there was no forming lines and some students were silent, or in regret while others were happy. She gave Roger his toys. He now understood how much it meant to be educated and to show how she helped him he spelled the two words she gave him before beautifully and left the room.

In a Ted Talk by Jacqueline Woodson in April 2019, she tells the importance of reading slowly and cherishing a book. She reminds us to remember the weeks, years, or even decades an author spends on a book, and how people should respect the author by cherishing their book. Furthermore, there are also academic benefits to reading a book slowly. Last year, I learned the importance of slow reading. 

Last year, in my English class, we were given the book Whirligig by Paul Fleischman to read together as a class. Before we began reading, I decided to first read the book by myself to first get to know what the book was about and what to expect in class. The first time I read the book, I finished in about an hour, and I decided that I did not like the book. Frankly, I did not like the book since I did not understand the general plot of the story and many details surrounding the plot. Many important parts of the story did not connect together and I did not understand why we would be reading that book together as a class. 

In class, as we took our time reading and processed every word and detail, my understanding of the book entirely changed. I realized that I only found the book uninteresting and boring because I read too quickly and did not understand all of the plot and details. Furthermore, after rereading the story with my class and taking our time to analyze the story, I saw the true beauty of the story containing various symbols and details. From this experience, I learned to truly cherish books by reading them slowly not only to respect the author, but also for the personal benefit of understanding a book. 

Now, when I read a book, I try to take it more slowly by reminding myself of my experience with Whirligig. When I do not understand a detail or feel a bit confused, I simply reread a section, and most of the time, the logic becomes clear. I know that I have learned many things connecting to Jacqueline Woodson’s Ted Talk through my own experiences, and I hope that others can also learn the same lesson one way or another. 

What’s your favorite color? Oh it’s blue! Are those peppers spicy? Nah, those aren’t spicy at all. These are all examples of personal judgment, or the amount of favor given to a specific subject. The short story Miss Awful by Arthur Cavanaugh is about a strict substitute teacher who is teaching a group of children. The group of children think the teacher is extremely evil and cruel, but in reality, the teacher is just trying to instruct them on how to be civilized. The only reason the students judged the substitute with such hate is because their original teacher is extremely nice. In many informative pieces and reality, it is obvious people judge with comparison.

The original teacher of this story is called Mrs. Wilson. Mrs. Wilson was extremely nice to the point which her students took advantage of her. Many of her students did not even complete their homework because they knew they would not be disciplined. When the substitute teacher, Ms. Orville came along, every single student thought the teacher was mean. This is because the students are accustomed to experiencing niceness, and they are comparing their two teachers. If Ms. Orville was the first teacher they ever had, they would see Ms. Orville as the middle ground. In this case, the students would think every teacher is relatively nice. In a video showcasing Elon Musk explaining tips for success, one of his reasons was to create products much better than one’s competitors. Suppose company A is an old company which everyone goes to and trusts. Then one day, company B opens up, and presents astronomically better products. To begin, most of the people would see company A as the middle ground because it is the place they always go to. Once they start buying products from company B, company A will be pushed down into the bad category, and company B will become the new middle ground. Creating a much better product is crucial in order to put weight on competitors and bring oneself into the spotlight. Not only is this concept presented in writing and videos, it is also shown all throughout real life.

Getting sick is something everyone hates. Imagine a sickness scale from 0 to 10. The larger the number, the more severe the sickness. In many of the common diseases, the severeness increases very quickly, then slowly recovers. The sick individual will keep feeling more and more sick until one has reached the peak. When their sickness progresses from 0 to 1, they say their condition is terrible, and same for when it progresses from 5 to 6. Once their condition has reached the peak and is starting to recover, they still start to say that they are feeling good. Once one considers both cases it is easy to realize that a person at sickness 6 might “feel better” than the same person at sickness 2. This occurs because the increase from 1 to 2 feels terrible, however, the decreases from 7 to 6 feels wonderful. At the San Francisco Exploratorium, there is a station that explains how people perceive temperature with comparisons. The station had three pipes with distinct temperatures. One was cold, one was at room temperature, and one was hot. When somebody places their hands on the cold pipe then moves to the RM (room temperature pipe), or when someone changes pipes from RM to hot, one feels that the RM and hot pipe, respectively, are the same temperature. Additionally, when someone transitions from the hot pipe to the RM, or from the RM to the cold pipe, one feels that the RM and the cold pipe, respectively, have the same temperatures. Additionally, Andrew Wang TM said that people judge water temperature by the temperature of the air. This is because it the water is colder than the air, one will think the water is cold, and if the water is warmer than the air, one will think the water is warmer. This can cause someone to believe a body of water at a higher temperature is colder than that of a colder temperature just by changing the temperature of the air. Also a common feeling that time is flying faster and faster each year is because of this concept. A year passing for a baby will feel much longer than a year passing for the baby’s grandmother, but in reality, they both experienced the same amount of time. These are just a few of the many ways this concept is presented in real life.

In conclusion, the way us humans judge certain occurrences is all by comparison. This concept is presented almost everywhere, from writing to videos to movies to real life. Judgment by comparison can also be deceiving in many ways. Albert Einstein is the creator of the Theory of Relativity, and says that, “Everything is relative.” When one looks closer at the Theory of Relativity, one realizes that it simply means that people judge with comparison.

No one thinks about something the exact same way. For example, you might think that your teacher is really nice while another student may think that the teacher is strict. In Miss Awful by Arthur Cavanaugh, a 3rd-grade class had a substitute teacher. At the beginning of the story, we see from the perspective of the students, thinking that the teacher, Ms. Orville(Awful), is really mean to them while we see more from her point of view towards the end of the story. The main theme of this story is to not judge a book by its cover, or that you should understand other’s perspectives before making assumptions.

When the main character, Roger, first saw the teacher, she was described as “tall and straight as a ruler … [her] rimless spectacles glinted on her bony nose. Her hair was gray, like a witch’s, skewered in a bun, and there was no question that she had witch’s eyes.” (Cavanaugh) Even before they properly met her, the students thought of her very negatively. This is an example of where you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. However, she began to be extremely strict to the students unlike their normal teacher, and even insulted them on their homework. By just reading the first part, we assume that Ms. Orville really is a bad person and mean to the students.

However, we find out from one of the parents that Ms. Orville was kicked out of the place she lived in and was basically forced to be homeless. From this, it shows that her real personality isn’t that awful. It also shows that she is being strict with the students because she wants to improve their behavior and stop them from being as violent.

Understanding what others are thinking before taking action is something that can prevent conflicts from happening. Your perspective doesn’t always include all the details. If the students knew Ms. Orville’s background, they would acknowledge that she isn’t actually a mean person and this would’ve stopped them wanting to take revenge, in this case, killing her plant that she cared about.

Miss Awful shows its reader not judge a book by its cover, and that understanding the other side’s perspective is very important. Next time you are about to interfere with a situation, be sure to recognize what others feel first.

Today we talked about two different teaching ways that showed in the short story. Coincidentally, I was educated in both ways.

I was studying in China until I came to America for high school. Honestly, most teachers in China, they prefer Miss Orville’s way. Because there are a lot of students in China, teachers can not care about each student at the same time. And the competition between students for places at good schools is fierce, which makes them stressed. Only their teachers are strict to them and give them punishments when they make mistakes, they can get good grades and go to their dream college. When I came to America to study, I find teachers here are much more different from teachers in China. They don’t have much homework and will not give much stress to students. They care more about the class and how to make students enjoy and understand the lesson. They will have quizzes so that we can review what we learned recently, rather than review a lot of stuff to prepare for many big exams.

Both ways have thier own advantages. The strict way can help students improve much more quickly and get better grades. It also can help students develop habits and become much more independent. However, the other way gives more space to students so that they can enjoy studying and be more creating. And also students will not have much pressure.

I’d have to say, I prefer the second way, that’s one reason why I came here to study. But sometimes I miss that time I studied in China. The strict way make me become a self- disciplined person and gives me opportunity to creat my better future. Well, whether nice teachers or strict teachers, they are always good for me.

Teachers have one of the most influential jobs on kids and teens. The way the teacher elaborates on his or her lessons could impact the way kids learn and take on education. Let’s take Roger, having a more relaxed and lenient teacher was not the best option for Roger personally. As we see in the story, Roger was terrible in spelling and not the best at learning educationally. When asked to spell flower and castle, he struggled tremendously. This was mainly because he never took the time to improve in spelling, he barely did homework, and mostly focused on having fun.
So, when Miss Orville arrives, her aura brings hate from most of the class, including Roger, because they were so used to being independent that the strictness and expectations were too much for them. Throughout the week, Roger has worked the hardest during this duration than any other week. On the last day, when the class pulls a triggering prank on Miss Orville, Roger has not only learned that he should not judge someone based on the way they act before getting to know them, but he also learned how education is so important. From then on, Roger probably gained an important factor of life, which is pushing yourself to learn instead of focusing on having fun. Roger develops this way of thinking not because he pushed himself, but because Miss Orville pushed him to the next level.
Roger’s development throughout this story illustrates such a good reason on why and how teachers play such an important role. By the way they teach, some push us to be better and some teach us to be independent. However, the main point I am trying to come across is that no matter who the teacher is and how they teach us, we should take each of teaching as an advantage and make the most out of it whether the class is more relaxed or more stressed, we should build upon that class to do better.

When it comes to learning, there are several different types of teachers. Broken down into two main categories, there are strict teachers and there are lenient teachers. Personally, I have more strict teachers, and they have really helped me improve. In the short story “Miss Awful,” by Arthur Cavanaugh, we focus on a young boy, Roger Clark. He is initially introduced as a care-free boy who simply wants to spend his time at the park as opposed to doing homework. Later on in the story, we can see a complete personality change. This is because of his strict substitute teacher, Ms. Orville. So, we ask the question, do the advantages of strict or lenient teachers outweigh the disadvantages?

An advantage of a strict teacher is that they can help instill a sense of discipline that would improve motivation, independence, and respectfulness. Going back to the story, we see that in the beginning, Roger is a carefree, young boy who had neglected to do his spelling homework. After Ms. Orville brought a strict environment to the classroom with her constant rules of discipline and scolding, we see the class develop as a whole. Roger, specifically, was a whole new boy at the end of the story. He had built discipline: “Who’s got time for sodas? I have homework to do.” Also, he could finally spell after working very hard. “Flower. F-L-O-W-E-R. Castle. C-A-S-T-L-E.”

The disadvantage of a strict teacher is that it makes students want to rebel. We see a clear example in the book: “That dopey old plant she’s always fussing over,” piped Midge Fuller. “We could rip off all the dopey leaves. That’d show her.” The students were plotting to take revenge on Ms. Orville because she had been so strict on them. Roger was also planning to do such but had a change of heart. The students not only threatened to do other things, such as throw rocks at Ms. Orville, but they actually followed through with their plan. After recess, Ms. Orville noticed the torn leaves and became very sad. She said “Whoever is responsible, I beg of you only to be sorry.”

An advantage of being a lenient teacher is that all the students are content with the learning. When Ms. Orville wasn’t in the picture yet, Roger was recounting a story from class about how Ms. Wilson had laid down on the floor with all the students. “Well, I like Ms. Wilson, she’s fun. Last week, for instance, when Tommy Miller got tired of staying in his seat and lay down on the floor…Know what Ms. Wilson did? She lay down on the floor, too.” Roger said to his family. It is clear that Roger and the rest of his class liked Ms. Wilson and had no complaints about having her as a teacher.

A disadvantage when it comes to having a lenient teacher is that students would not learn as much. In the beginning of the story, we are told that Roger has difficulties with spelling. “True, Roger’s scholastic progress wasn’t notable–his spelling, for example, remained atrocious.” Even though Roger was struggling with spelling, he insisted on going to the park and procrastinating on his homework. The next day, Ms. Orville discovered Roger’s backpack to be full of toys and she confiscated them. At the end of the week, she returned the toys only to be met with Roger spelling out words. Roger learned more in one week with the strict Ms. Orville than he has in however long with Ms. Wilson.

Both teaching styles have their benefits and disadvantages as we learn in the story “Miss Awful.” A class of students, including the main character, Roger, were originally rambunctious, carefree, and not disciplined due to their lenient teacher, Ms. Wilson. However, when an older, stricter teacher, Ms. Orville came to be their substitute, she had a major impact on the students. She had the biggest impact on Roger, a boy who in the beginning failed his spelling quiz and didn’t do his homework. By the end of the story, Roger flourished into a boy who did his homework persistently and was finally able to spell words. Though such is not always the case, in this instance, a strict teacher was a great benefit to Roger but his lenient teacher appeared to be a detriment to Roger’s education.

Roger, the main character of the story, had the best teacher before, Miss Wilson. She used to play with the students during classes and even let the students take some rest. When she gave homework Roger didn’t even care about it. Once she left for a week to Omaha, the students got a new substitute. She was old, the meanest, and the strictest teacher ever. She came to the classroom with her beloved plant one hand and a bunch of works on the other. She was Ms. Orville which students referred to as Miss Awful or the witch. The first day, Miss Orville took Roger’s toys ripped the papers of students who didn’t do the homework correctly, marched them in and out from the schools, and complained about the students to their parents. Miss “Awful” then accused Roger as a prodigy of misspelling Then she asked Roger to spell flower and castle but he couldn’t. After this embarrassment of Mrs.Clark in between other parents, she and Mr. Clark were surprised to see how Roger took his education seriously and was afraid of her. Another day when parents came to pick up their children Nancy Reeves, Roger’s friend’s Bruce Reeves mother remembered that she knew Miss Orville and said that she was evicted from her apartment and was left homeless with her plants.

Since the students hated her they thought of many horrible ways of getting rid of her like beating her up. One of Roger’s classmates came up with the idea to rip the leaves of her plant. Miss Awful started her last day with what is going on in the world. After she saw the plant all bare, she said to only say sorry and then to be forgiven. After the class ended there were no forming lines and some students were silent, or in regret, while others were happy. She gave Roger his toys, he understood how much it was to be educated, and to show how she helped him he spelled the two words she gave him before beautifully and left the room.

In the short story “Miss Awful,” the main character Roger starts off as a carefree child who tries to get out of doing work, and likes to play. His behavior is also supported by his teacher, who not only allowed this behavior but also joined in on these acts, such as lying on the floor. Eventually the teacher leaves for a while, and a substitute teacher replaces her. This teacher, named Miss Orville, is on the other side of the spectrum, as she is very strict, and does not tolerate any nonsense. All the children are not used to having this kind of teacher, and hate her. Over the course of a week, she talks to parents about how inadequate the children are, and ends up embarrassing both parents and children. Eventually, she leaves, and stresses how important education is. Throughout the the book, Roger goes through a change in character.

As we first see Roger, he talks playfully with his father, saying that he does not need to finish his homework and that he would rather got to the park. The next morning, instead of bringing pencils and school supplies to school, he instead fills his backpack with a water pistol, many baseball cards, and a variety of other toys. This shows that he does not take anything seriously, and that he is more into play than learning. When he gets to class, he is very surprised at the way Miss. Orville treats the class, and hates her. To make matters worse, he didn’t finish his homework, and also knocked over his backpack, which showed the teachers all the toys he brought. This causes the Roger to get in trouble. On the way home from school, he loudly complains about how Miss Orville confiscated his toys, and goes home straight away. He decides to get revenge by doing all his homework perfectly, thus giving the teacher nothing to discipline him with. Roger has not really started to develop yet, as he still does not like doing homework, but as time passes, he becomes more fixated on doing it perfectly, so that his original reason does not even matter to him anymore

As the week progresses, Roger learns that Miss Orville had to get evicted from her living space because the building was going to get torn down, which started to make him fell bad for her. On Friday, Miss Orville reveals that the old teacher would be returning on Friday, and when all the other students get back at her by killing her plant, she does not punish them and just stresses how important education is. Roger realizes at this moment that Miss Orville really cares about the children, and that her strict teaching methods were for his own benefit. At the end of the story, Roger is no longer playful, but rather more mature, and more aware of what being a good citizen is.