Group Discussion 11/21 on Scenes from Chalk-Rose,Black,Friere and Gatto

Gatto says in his article “Boredom is the common condition of schoolteachers, and anyone who has spent time in a teachers' lounge can vouch for the low energy, the whining, the dispirited attitudes, to be found there.” This reminds us of the scene in Chalk where Mr. Lowrey is passed out in one of the back offices out of tiredness and probably boredom due to his lack of patience with what he perceived to be disrespectful students. Mr. Lowrey was later discouraged from teaching and thought about quitting at the end of the movie because of the environment in the school, having learned everything on his own, and thinking it was too stressful.

Friere said in his writing  “His task is to "fill" the students with the contents of his narration -- contents which are detached from reality, disconnected from the totality that engendered them and could give them significance.” In the first few minutes of chalk, Mr. Lowrey “deposits” mass amounts of data into his students “depositees” on the first day. He says that all students MUST have paper, he then shows a list on the chalk board with words and sentences telling the students they must be able to recite the meanings precisely.

Lewis Black shows the video of students trying to get into charter schools by luck of the draw lottery systems  in order to have a chance at a good future. This reminds us of the scene in chalk where Mr. Stroope talks to 2 of his students, one about not using big words that confuse the rest of the class, and the other about her knowing more than him about history and basically encourages them to be average.

Mike Rose says in his article “To assure that teacher professional development gets increased and thoughtful support.” In chalk, there are a couple scenes that remind us of this statement. One is where Mr. Lowrey is frustrated by his out of control class and goes to the library to check out a book on class management. Another is at the end of the movie where Mr. Lowrey talks about having learned to teach without any guidance. Not all teachers will develop good habits on their own and may develop bad habits or want to give up as Mr. Lowrey implied towards the end of the movie.