Of all the articles I have read for this class so far, this one is by far the most interesting one yet. A topic I have never heard discussed, the idea of over obedience is very new to me but definitely something I can understand. This article really made me think.
It made me think firstly of myselft. Learning about Hitler and the mass murdering of the Jewish I always thought that if it came down to it, I could never sit back and watch that happen. I remember thinking the same thing when learning about slavery. I remember thinking that I would've been one of those houses with my porch light on for the underground railroad. Hearing about the studies done at Yale though, for the first time I really wondered if I would stand up to authority if I felt it was wrong in any way. Would I really be strong enough to say 'no' to orders in which I felt unsure about? Although I would still like to think that if the time ever comes, I will stand up to what I personally believe in, this article definitely made me think twice.
This article also made me think about my future job as a teacher and ways in which I can encourage disobedience without...well...without making it impossible to teach other things. The word obedience itself I find is one that I tend to shy away from. Of course as teachers and as parents, we want our students and children to listen to us and to follow the rules. But we also want to instill in them the ability to think for themselves, to maybe not always listen to authority without examining their actions and the result of their actions. Where is the line though? Kids, well people in general, should challenge the world they are in...but only to a certain extent. I mean, if everybody stood up for what they personally thought was right, what would this world be like? Would we have no rules, no order, no safety?
Although I don't exactly know how I feel about everything in this article, I really feel like it brings up valid points. Although we want to be able to have a certain amount of control over our students, I guess we should also leave some room for disobedience. We should leave a little room for difference in opinion, for drive and vision and not always encourage sameness.
This teaching thing is getting more and more complex everyday...

This article was definately interesting. I know in my classroom I give positive points for individuals showing respect towards their classmates, being responsible, being polite etc. I try not to point out the "bad" behaviour, rather the good. I try to encourage students to argue a point they want to make, argue a grade, make suggestions towards how things could be better in the classroom. Or even suggestions on how I could teach a lesson better. It is a constant battle to get the students to actually think for themselves, but I encourage it as much as possible. Sometimes I will hold debates over current issues, and I see the conformity all the time.
There are several students who are definately "individuals" in how they dress, their work, and their behaviour. I really enjoy talking to these individuals and hearing their opinions. Some teachers can not stand how these students look or act. These students are being, as McCarthy states in her last paragraph, "harmlessly deviant" with wonderful ideas and beliefs and I encourage it.
Milgram's studies in this article were very interesting. Also, that there was no gender difference. If I were to guess, I would definately lean towards women administering less shock as well as exhibiting more internal conflict, but his studies suggest just the opposite. This was an interesting study and I agree with Heather; a subject that I have never heard discussed.