The mentor article that I chose for my Unit one revision is entitled, “What Role Do Teachers Play in Education?” by Cathy N. Davidson. There are several reasons why I chose this particular article to be my mentor. One of these reasons is that the topic of this article correlates to one of the points that I, as well as Gatto makes in both of our pieces. In Gatto’s article, he makes a point that the teachers at public schools are more bored than the students themselves. He also goes on that teachers play a role in conditioning young minds into “mindless zombies”. But, on the other hand, in my essay I firmly disagree with Gatto’s statement about teachers, as well as how the public school system affects our brain. I go on to talk about how my AP English teacher was the exact opposite of the teacher that Gatto seems to portray in his article. Another reason why I chose this article is because it goes into a more ‘modern’ outlook on public education. This article is talking about how “an unlikely coalition of corporate philanthropists, educational technology entrepreneurs and public education bureaucrats has spearheaded a brand of school reform characterized by the overvaluing of technology and standardized testing and a devaluing of teachers and communities.” I think the introduction into the “Education Wars” opens up the opportunity to talk about a number of topics in my revision paper.
