FREEDOM WRITERS

After watching the movie again, I realized that being a teacher is a tough yet
fulfilling job. Successful teaching must be a passion. However, if the teacher is passionate
enough, he/she can obtain the competencies in order to be not just effective as well as
efficient and to stand for what is right. Just like Mrs. Erin Gruwell, a teacher who changed
the lives of her students by making them realized their worth as an individual. That chaos
& suffering are not a hindrance for them to learn. She is a first timer teacher and she
never expected the type of class that she will be handling. She was assigned in a class
where the students are separated by their ethnicities. A class of “unteachable” students
as what other teachers called them. At first it was difficult for her to handle them because
they keep on fighting and quarreling. So as a teacher, she applied the strategy of
changing their seating arrangement from time to time. She knew that the
students hate her because for them they had nothing to learn from a white woman who
had never experienced discrimination and hatred which is part of each students’ everyday
lives. But despites of the difficulty in handling them, she never gave up. She even
provided each student a book, the “Anne Frank Diary” and gave them a journal which
she bought from her personal money. Her purpose is to have a place where they can
express and discuss their feelings, their fears and also their own thoughts. Upon knowing
their different stories, of how difficult their situations are. She now understands why they
have that kind of behavior. She makes time in knowing her students, their stories
and their culture. She applied the Culturally Responsive Classroom
Management. After that, she tried even harder to make her students believe in
themselves, that can reach their goals no matter what situation they will face throughout
their lives. She gave more time until she reached the point that her personal life/married
live came to the verge of breaking down. Her husband didn’t understand her and already
gave up on her. Even if she is hurting she did not show it to her students . She also
organized a field trip in Museum of Tolerance and after that a dinner with the
Holocaust survivors. I personally admired Mrs. Gruwells dedication and passion in
teaching. She didn’t give up despite the angry and disinterested attitudes of her students.
Despite how they hated her. She still pursued in motivating them to open their
hearts and minds for them to be able to learn and to live their lives believing
that they may be in different races and culture, but they can achieve their goals
and live to their dreams.

Prepared by:

ELAINE JOY C. VILAR

3rd Year Student Submitted to:

MS. JORJANE P. ALELUYA

Teacher