Michael Ducie

EDUG 781
Dr. Wolpert
9 September 2013
Discipline Reflections
1.
Growing up on Long Island, I would consider myself to have had a privileged childhood.
My family was never rich but I always had everything I needed and plenty more. I was spoiled
by my grandparents who were both educators on the verge of retirement, my grandpa then a
principal. My mom was a social worker and my dad worked for the state. Most of my earliest
childhood memories are in my grandparents house where I became obsessed with learning.
Being teachers, my grandparents made every activity I did have cognitive value. I can remember
playing computer games like Math Football. My grandpa loved playing cards with me but we
never could play childish games like Go Fish, I was playing Rummy and Five Card Draw since I
can remember. Grandma was all about the books. Pastina and a book could describe my lunch on
any given day. Even my earliest Mets memories are of my grandma leaving the room in the ninth
inning because she could not handle watching John Franco try and close games. I am sure I was
no angel but the only time I remember being disciplined in my early childhood was a tongue
lashing my grandpa gave me for not wanting to go see family.
Once I got into my elementary school years, I was spending a lot more time at home and
the way my parents disciplined me was in stark contrast of my grandparents. I always did well on
placement and standardized tests, so my mom always had very high expectations. I almost never
missed school and if I did miss school, it was because I was sick, and sick children do not go
outside or play video games. She thought of everything. Weekly groundings were the standard
for any bad grade, which was anything less than an eighty. A phone call home in third grade only
caused me to lose television for one night but the tongue lashing was enough to ensure there was
never another one. When I was young, I thought my mother was strict because I always had to
finish my homework before I could go outside and everyone else did their homework with their
parents after dinner. I had to do my homework with no help and sometimes I had to help my
sister with her homework. My sister is older but she has Down Syndrome and I had a lot more
patience helping her than my parents. Once I finished homework I would race outside to get in as
many sports with my friends as possible before it was time for dinner. There was no going out
after dinner and there were few times I was in bed later than 9:30.
Everything changed in fifth grade when my parents got divorced. I developed resentment
towards my parents and became increasingly deviant. My dad was always more lenient and so it

became harder for my mom to enforce her rules. I was also faced with a lot more responsibility.
My mom was working until 5:30 most days so I was in charge of most family chores and helping
my sister. I was never allowed to go out anymore because my dad was not home. I started having
behavior problems at school, most likely caused by the stress at home. My grades slipped
slightly but my test scores remained high.
The way I grew up will certainly affect my discipline style as a teacher. I loved the way
my grandparents served as mentors to me growing up. I enjoyed football so they found a football
game that would teach me math. If I did something wrong, they showed me a better way to do
it. I always felt comfortable asking them questions when I was confused. I think that it the most
important thing I can bring to a classroom, a positive attitude about learning. A child who can
learn in a risk free environment will learn best. As a teacher, it is my job to integrate my lessons
with the students interests. Having worked in a camp for developmentally challenged children
for the past five years, and having grown up in the 1990s, I have observed that a good video
game can hold even the worst childs attention. Video games are just fancy puzzles designed
specifically to keep the child wanting to play. I am a video game designer, my lesson plans are
the games, and if I do my job right I will never need to worry about discipline.
2.
My favorite teacher was my first grade teacher, Ms. Dowd. She was a very warm teacher
that was way ahead of her time. Our class always sat in tables and did the majority of our work
in teams that would change monthly. The only time we moved to rows was for tests and quizzes.
I can still remember a lot of the kids from my class and a few of them I am friends with to this
day. Once again, I believe it was her style and the way she made everyone in the class feel
comfortable that made Ms. Dowd such a great teacher. You could tell she enjoyed what she did
and not surprisingly, more than 15 years later she is still a first grade teacher in the same school.
Ms. Dowd is an example of why I cannot wait to be a teacher. I think having new and different
challenges everyday is much better than a desk job.
3.
One thing I really dislike seeing in classrooms that is becoming more prevalent since
NCLB and now Common Core, is universal standards on children. I do not think you need to be
a teacher, or have more than half a brain, to realize that every child has strengths and
weaknesses. EVERY PERSON has strengths and weaknesses. There is too much pressure on
students to be adequate at everything and not enough emphasis on developing students
strengths. The performance of a student or a teacher should be based on the progression of the
individual student and not on the comparison of all students.
I do like that there is more of an emphasis on integrating subject and applying course
material to real world situations. I think it goes a long way when children see how new

information can be used in their life. Integrating subjects is a great way to give students added
practice in a subject.
4.
Having reflected on my own experiences, I can already picture my future classroom. I
will establish very basic classroom rules, but discipline will not be issue because the class will
hold each other accountable and my students will enjoy learning with their peers. My future
classroom will be a risk-free comfortable learning environment. It will be student-centered and I
will serve as a mentor and facilitator. I will not feel the need to pressure my students because
they put pressure on themselves, they have pressure from the tests, and stress at home. I will hold
one universal expectation for all of my students that they do the best they can. Students will be
evaluated on an individual basis and not in comparison with other students.