Ch. 6-15

This next section of the book finishes her first semester as an official teacher, and covers her whole year with the freshman class. Gruwell’s first semester as a teacher begins by taking her students to see Schindlers list. A local paper ends up writing a story about the students journey to the movie theater in Long Beach. The story becomes controversial, and to make it worse, the reporter put Gruwell’s phone number at the bottom of the page. A few good things come of this; Gruwell’s confidant in college plans a field trip for her and her class to meet Thomas Keneally, the author of Schindlers list. The class meets with Mr. Keneally and attends the symposium he is featured in at the University of California at Irvine. Keneally was so impressed with the students stories that he tells his friend, Steven Spielberg, who is a famous director in Hollywood. The students once again get to go on one last field trip with Gruwell before they become seniors to meet Spielberg and visit Hollywood studios.
The next year Gruwell gets the incoming freshman class. This class is no different than her previous class was when she first got them. It is a divided classroom amongst diversity and gangs, and most of the students could care less about their education. With the help of some of her former students, who are now seniors, Gruwell is slowly catching the interest of a few students. She finds it more difficult, as she does not take this class on as many field trips, or buys them new books like she did her old class. She is now a full time teacher, and does not want to upset the administration in chance of losing her job. She feels that because of this, she struggles to make more of a connection with this group. By using outside resources, she becomes more of a guide, and finds people or other things that the students can make a connection with.
Once again I can not get over how much Erin continues to impress me with her ideas, beliefs, and her overall love for teaching her students. Her students have completely changed their attitudes towards school, and their lives; and it is all because of her caring attitude. I am also impressed with her new ideas that she is using with the freshman. Even though she does not have the same flexibility with field trips and new books as she did last year, she is slowly starting to get her students engaged. She is doing the same thing she did last year, by giving her students something they can compare their lives to. I really like how Erin is more of a guide to the students. She realizes that she can only do so much, so she finds books, or outside resources that can better benefit the students learning. She does not try to do or explain everything; she finds ways for her students to truly make a connection with the work.
For the first time in the book, I have to say that I was a little disappointed in Erin. I understand her wanting to move up with her junior class, but I thought she was a little to down about teaching the freshman. I thought she would be thrilled that she got to start all over again and try to achieve with this class what she did with her previous. I feel like the first class does not need her anymore, and that it would be unfair for all the other students in the school not to have an opportunity to be with her. She puts the students in the right direction, and so far, has changed all their attitudes from negativity to being positive. Her original class now realizes what they need to do, and have changed their thoughts about education. It is now time for her to start working with the freshman and prepare them for the rest of their high school career and the real world.