Hannah Park

Critical Pedagogy II
Dr. Frank Abrahams
2/29/15

Frank McCourts Teacher Man is touching, heart-felt, and inspirational. It teaches

how to find oneself through discovering teaching styles, learning comfort ability in a
classroom, and emerging ones own techniques. There are necessary steps to finding
gratification in becoming a teacher. For example, creating a secure and honest classroom
atmosphere while incorporating activities into lessons that students will enjoy is only a
portion of it. This can be achieved through time and experience, and it is essential that
one must find their own voice within themselves.
McCourt describes through his own experiences that not only did he find himself,
but he also discovered his own teaching styles and techniques while teaching in New
York. McCourt establishes the importance of critical pedagogy and how he discovered it
while teaching. He discusses the various challenges and obstacles a teacher encounters
while discovering their own voice in a classroom. McCourt also highlights that teachers
should expect the unexpected, whether it be a conflict with parents or students fighting.
He explains the idea that most students usually depend on teachers because students will
believe most likely anything a teacher says. Lev Vygotskys theory of social development
can be seen in many of McCourts principles and ideas.

Pursuing this concept further, the theoretical framework I will be examining is

Lev Vygotsky's Social Development theory. Vygotsky states, "Our social, historical, and
cultural contexts affect our thought, language, perception, problem solving, and
cognition", "Central to being human is manipulating signs and mediating meaning, which
is all determined by social relations", and "The interaction process between language and
thoughts affects both". (Wink, pp. 54) Vygotskys view of Social Development
concentrates on the learning behavior of children through engagement in social behavior
of children through engagement in social behavior, language, and culture. Cognitive
development is established through social interactions allowing students to internalize
and flourish with the information they are given.
In 1978, Vygotsky indicated, "Every function in the child's cultural development
appears twice: first, on the social level, and later, on the individual level; first, between
people (interpsychological) and then inside the child (intrapsychological). (Instructional
Design) Vygotsky accentuates the theory that different cultures shapes and affect
cognitive development. For instance, communication and lived experiences are basic
rudiments to learning because they determine the paths people will follow. Environmental
influences play a significant role in childrens lives because of the assumption that they
will mature based on their beliefs. A safe and caring environment is essential in a school
because it escalates the idea of children doing well in school. Lastly, the role of language
plays an important part because internalizing language allows for cognitive development.
All of these viewpoints are shown in McCourts Teacher Man.

McCourt displays how social, historical, and cultural contexts affect students
thought, language, perception, problem solving, and cognition by sharing personal stories
with the students. He shares his experiences of living in Ireland and living an American
life as an Irish man. Sharing cultural similarities with the students and allowing them to
bring their own culture into the classroom allows for a breakthrough in the classrooms.
McCourt explains by and appreciating the different cultures that are shared by students, it
will change and shape the way they learn and develop. One specific example of when
McCourt goes forward with this concept is when he tells his students to bring in food of
their culture, and allowing the class to make a cookbook of food from different places. He
incorporates a safe and fun environment, allowing the students to learn English through
culture, something they can connect and relate with. It allowed students to absorb the
information better, giving them a chance to reinforce it as well.
McCourts teachings are done through social interaction, communication, and
language. During McCourts first couple of years teaching, he gives the students busywork, making the students memorize vocabulary and grammar rules, although the
students did not understand the meaning of the work. Later, McCourt allows the students
to immerse themselves in the information by teaching the information in a way that
connects to the students, allowing his teaching to be double-sided, and not a one-way
street. A teacher cannot just drill all the information onto the students and expect them to
understand everything. Instead, a teacher must communicate with the students by
listening to what they have to say. An example of social interaction with the idea that
students will tend not to listen or respect a teacher they are not fond of. Students can
identify when a teacher does not genuinely care for them and is disinterested in their

students. McCourt discusses that throughout his teaching career, he tried hard to have his
students respect him. He constantly thought of different ways so that not only will a
student learn, but they will also enjoy what they are learning.
The collaboration between language and thoughts shows that language is the key
to connecting with students. McCourt shares repeatedly the importance of culture and
how essential it is for their students to comprehend that importance. By doing this, it
allows students to realize not only their background, but it allows reciprocation from the
students as well. He also shares constantly that communication is critical between a
teacher and a student. One student is bright and has potential but needs to move away to
live with her grandmother and loses her chance for an education. One student is taught to
stand up for himself and chose the college he wanted instead of following his fathers
wish. One student is a lost cause in the other teachers eyes and eventually joins the
army. McCourt understood that students always need someone to speak to. He
understands that students need someone to help them find their passion. The reason why
he connects with hundreds of students is because as a teacher, he was being himself.
Students need to be talked to in a language that they will comprehend and appreciate,
allowing them to adopt information.
More so, every student in the classroom is different and unique because of the
way they were raised. Although similar, no one will have the exact same experiences.
Certain people are a certain way because of the situations they have dealt with in their
personal lives. They are different because of their social interactions and their different
culture that have shaped who they are and what they believe. To help solve this, McCourt

believes it is by merely talking to his students. By talking to students, he believes it is a

way of connecting with them. He develops an understanding for why and how teenagers
behave the way they do.
In high school, there are various types of students and social life means
everything to them. For example, there are athletes, the day dreamers, the popular kids,
the kids involved in gangs, parents who are involved in gangs; there are students from
different backgrounds such as Asian, Cuban, Italian, Spanish; the list is endless. No
matter where a teacher is teaching, he or she should accommodate and consider that each
and every student comes from a different, environmental family. Being a teacher means
understanding teenager behavior. This means studying social surroundings in school
settings such as knowing how the students act before the bell rings, how students walk in
between classes, how students dress, and how and who they interact with, etc. Talking
and listening to others regulates the path we walk into.
In conclusion, Vygotskys theory of Social Development is portrayed in Frank
McCourts Teacher man. He believes teachers can make a difference in students lives as
long as a teacher supports their education and gives students the opportunity to be
educated and knowledgeable. A great teacher is a teacher who communicates, respects,
and cares for his or her students. Social interactions, language, and culture play crucial
roles in cognitive development in a classroom because the environment in which children
grow up will influence how and what they think about. Because McCourt was a teacher
from an Irish background, it shaped him differently than a student from a different family
origin. However, other cultures allow students to learn by discussion, voluntary attention,

logical memory, and dealing with concepts differently. By speaking and listening to
others, helps students find their passion and gives them the power to determine the path
that they are born to take.
I didnt call myself anything. I was more than a teacher. And less. In the high
school classroom you are a drill sergeant, a rabbi, a shoulder to cry on,
adisciplinarian, a singer, a low-level scholar, a clerk, a referee, a clown, a
counselor, a dress-code enforcer, a conductor, an apologist, a philosopher, a
collaborator, a tap dancer, a politician, a therapist, a fool, a traffic cop, a priest,
a mother-father-brother-sister-uncle-aunt, a bookkeeper, a critic, a psychologist,
the last straw. (McCourt, pp.19)

Works Cited

Instructional Design. Social Development Theory (Lev Vygotsky)

http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/social-development.html

McCourt, Frank. Teacher Man, Scribner. 1230 Avenue of the Americas New York,
NY 10020. Copyright 2005 by Green Peril Corp.

McLeod, S. A. (2007). Lev Vygotsky. Retrieved from

http://www.simplypsychology.org/vygotsky.html

Wink, Joan. Critical Pedagogy: Notes from the Real World/ Joan Wink 4 ed.
California State University, Stanislaus. Pearson Education, Inc. Copyright 2011, 2005,
2000, 1997
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