Let me start off this ejournal entry with an admission. I’d have to say that, I found some of the information difficult to digest and quite overwhelming. There were times that I had to stop, reread and reassess my strategies on how I should understand the lessons. Then it dawned on me that some of what I have read are of similar plots to the movies that I have watched about elitist societies, poor communities and education.
In reference to the first module, what struck my interest the most was how elitist society can maneuver their way through schools like in the movie Mona Lisa Smile. The movie depicted that people with money, authority and influence can pretty much have their way of affecting how schools/ institutions believe that an educator may or may not be good enough for their children, as in the case of Katherine, the protagonist in the movie. She is a teacher who is not afraid to shake the norms that have been set by this traditional school and instead, challenge young, intelligent women to do more for themselves and not settle for just married life. This notion that women can offer more was, of course, frowned upon by parents who sat on the board of trustees. They believed that the challenge that Katherine posed for their children were simply ludicrous, and for that she was given restrictions. These restrictions did not dampen her spirit though, instead with enough courage to go against societies’ mores, her students finally saw the goodness of her intentions.
I may not have so many years of exposure in the academe but based on real- life stories that I was able to read in the net, I can say that, sadly, others have not learned anything from history since this practice is still prevalent. There still are individuals who are blinded by power and wealth, and instead of using both, for the improvement of the lives of young men and women, they use these resources to take control over them or to advance whatever agenda they have for themselves.
On the other hand, I got to identify the opposite side of the spectrum upon answering a question for the second module. And again, my understanding of that particular question led me to recall another movie. This time, however, it was a poor society that pitched in to make a difference in the lives of young men. These young men were seen as hopeless human beings at first, but because one man ( Ken Carter) started to care, the entire society learned that there was still a “fighting chance” for these young men. That belief blossomed into hope that despite their unfortunate circumstance, there is and will always be opportunities for change especially for those who’d work hard to make it happen.
These movies are both educational and inspirational. They mirror the truth about society– the good, the bad and the ugly. What I take from all these is the thought that despite how situations can be difficult for us sometimes, the belief that my principles about what I need to do for my students should never be compromised and that certain sacrifices for the welfare and well-being of my students will always be worth my time, effort and commitment.