High Stakes Community Schools

High Stakes was a simulation of a meeting to discuss at proposal for new curriculum and running of the High Stakes Community Schools differently. The class all played roles of groups of people that would both support and not support the proposal. I played the role of the college student (not too difficult to do). We talked about how we supported the proposal because we did not feel prepared for college and this new proposal approached holding back students that were not at grade level. However, we did not agree with the cutting of the arts in the schools. We felt that more art would have been beneficial to us because we were attending colleges that encouraged us to think out of the box and be creative and felt that art would help us learn to do that. This is what I was trying to express when I raised my hand to stick up for the art teachers. This was also the reason I did not really like the simulation. I don't like to argue, but though I did not like the simulation, I did learn that I need to stick up for my beliefs as a teacher. If I think that something needs to be changed or I disagree with something I need to say it. If I as a teacher, don't stick up for myself and my own personal beliefs, it in turn hurts others, like my students, who I am trying to help in the first place.