What is context mapping?

In a nutshell context mapping is a very simple concept. It is throwing all of your ideas on a piece of paper and organizing them to show their intertwined relationships. Its very similar to the Ven diagrams that we used to do as kids, or that some may still do now. This is useful because it gets all of the ideas out in a pretty picture for everyone to see but after that I think it's not that useful. Everyone knows the concept of six degrees of separation. Everything in the world is connected by six steps or less. I feel as though this assignment showcases that greatly. My concept map would include.

Family Zach: Mom, Dad, Grandma, Brother

RIC RA Zach: Staff, Residents

RIC Student Zach: Staff, Students

RIC Frisbee Zach: Team, Spectators, Other Teams

Social Media Zach: High School Friends, Acquaintances, RIC Friends, Staff

Soccer Zach: Indoor Teammate's, Spectators

Boyfriend Zach: Girlfriend

Professional Zach: Employers, Staff, Employees, Customers



These are many of the different identities of myself. Im sure there are dozens more that don't initially come to mind but Im sure other people see. Im glad to know that I have different identities but ultimately I am me and that is the bottom line.

Nakkula Chapter 2
I did not enjoy this reading I thought it was very dense and I just couldn't grab hold of it. the one part I did enjoy was the example of how an adolescent who grows up in a household where they love the red sox and despise the Yankees may never consciously choose to like the red sox because they are already conditioned too. Obviously that can be said for anything but I thought this was funny because in my household growing up my mom liked the Yankees and my dad liked the red sox. I was never a big fan of baseball but when myself and my brother were younger we picked sides and ever since I have liked the Yankees and he the red sox. I don't know why I chose them, I guess my mom just brainwashed me that way.

Nakkula Response

           I would like to begin by mentioning that I had never thought of rebellious kids in such a way. To suggest that they are only being rebellious a way to adapt and better understand their surrounding is actually amazing to think about. if you had asked me years ago when I began my undergraduate degree in education I would have said that Nakkula was wrong. But after my brief amount of time in the classroom setting I have noticed that not only are the kids who act up doing it because of this reason but that many of the kids who act up actually are on the higher level of learning than those who don't. I see many kids act up for many reasons but it all makes sense after reading Nakkula's paper.

           When you think of educators and their effect on children many don't see the little things that educators do to help mold the children in their entirety. When kids ask questions about life and are searching for an answer most people think that it has little effect on the child but that is false. Kids hold you to every word and when they are seeking those answers they aren't seeking them just because, but they are seeking them in order to help mold their lifestyle. This also makes a lot of sense.
              The biggest thing that I took away from this reading is that educators aren't just teaching subject but they are also teaching life lesson that will stick with these children forever. Every childs mind is like a sponge trying to absorb not only knowledge about the classroom but also about how to adapt and survive during the day to day. This is a collaborative process between the child and the teachers and everybody else in that childs life.

                I also took away that every child is different and each child must be taught in a way that is conducive to their full potential. I know that I like to have some familiarity before I stretch te boundaries of what I can learn but I also know for some people that they like to jump right in and try something new.

Response to the Egg Drop

Today we did in egg drop in class with specific educational undertones. Although  The event wasn't about saving the egg as much as it was about access versus ability. From this class discussion I think everyone can safely say that I feel as though ability out ways access. I have done this activity in the past an have had different results every time. I have been successful with less and I have failed with more. Its all about creativity and how you use the materials. As I said in class its about the experience you get by either succeeding or failing. You will learn either what you did right or learn from your mistakes. I am a firm believer in if you set your mind to something then you can complete it. What I learned from our discussion is that access over ability is opinion based. Its kind of like the chicken and the egg, you can argue one way or the other. Everything comes down to structural problems especially if you argue for access. In schools if children don't have access to the right materials and stuff like that then it is the fault of the school system and that kind of stuff has to change. Yes it wasn't fair that we had more materials then the other groups but in a school setting all the kids would have the same materials. They would be on an even playing field and they couldn't argue if one group did better then the other. Same could be said for people with all the materials in the world. If the groups have equal materials then they would be responsible for whatever product they come up with. I have to say that ability will always outway access because you can always do what ever you put you mind too.