A particular idea of Philip Jackson's that caught my attention was the idea of the incarcerated child. Children spend the second most amount of time during the day in school in their young lives (right after sleeping), and it is the only lifestyle they know (at least until age 16 where hopefully, they will choose to stay in school). This lack-of-choice can make the child feel imprisoned, so to speak. Jackson had a big problem with the standardized, mechanical ways of schools these days which add to this feeling, and encourages future teachers to pay attention to detail in order to avoid a robotic, jail-esque classroom.

I agree that a mechanical classroom must be avoided however, I feel that a problem lies in the balance of keeping a class on task while letting them feel the freedom to explore their thoughts and ideas (to generalize my opinion). Teachers (nowadays) are expected to control their classroom while also not be drill sergeants. I think that one of the hardest things that we will have to do entering the work force will be to find our niches and balances concerning the structure and peaceful running of a classroom.

I agree completely with Mary. There are so many expectations for educators coming from every different angle (fellow teachers, adminstration, children, parents, school boards... the list goes on) Finding the common ground between freedom of individuals and classroom control is a very thin line and will take experience and help from others for us to find our stance.