Showing posts with label art of teaching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art of teaching. Show all posts
Thursday, June 21, 2001
Tuesday, June 12, 2001
You Might Be In Education If...
(I don't remember writing this so I must have seen it on an education listserv. Sorry I can't give credit.)
You might be in education if...
a. You believe the staff room should be equipped with a Valium salt lick.
b. You find humor in other people's stupidity.
c. You want to slap the next person who says, "Must be nice to work from 8 to 3 and have your summers free!"
d. You believe chocolate is a food group.
e. You can tell it's a full moon without ever looking outside.
f. You believe "shallow gene pool" should have its own box on the report card.
g. You believe that unspeakable evil will befall you if anyone says, "Boy, the kids sure are mellow today."
h. When out in public you feel the urge to talk to strange children and correct their behavior.
i. You have no time for a life from August to June.
j. Marking all A's on report cards would make your life SO much simpler.
k. When you mention "vegetables" you're not talking about a food group.
l. You think people should be required to get a government permit before being allowed to reproduce.
m. You wonder how some parents ever MANAGED to reproduce.
n. You laugh uncontrollably when people refer to the staff room as the "lounge."
o. You believe in aerial spraying of Prozac.
p. You encourage an obnoxious parent to check into charter schools or home schooling.
q. You believe no one should be permitted to reproduce without having taught in an elementary setting for at least 5 years.
r. You've ever had your profession slammed by someone who would never DREAM of doing your job.
s. You can't have children because there's no name you could give a child that wouldn't bring on high blood pressure the moment you heard it uttered.
t. You think caffeine should be available to staff in IV form.
u. You know you're in for a MAJOR project when a parent says, "I have a great idea I'd like to discuss. I think it would be such fun!"
v. You smile weakly, but want to choke a person when he/she says, "Oh, you must have such FUN every day. It must be like playtime for you."
w. Your personal life comes to a screeching halt at report card time.
x. Meeting a child's parents instantly answers the question, "Why is this kid like this?"
Tuesday, June 5, 2001
The Obvious
I was telling Lisa to start her work and she questioned me with, "Why should I do it?"
My response? No long intellectual answer about the joys of learning and succeeding. No long diatribe about her responsibility as a student. No deep answer about growing. At this point it was useless.
My answer was, "Because I'm your teacher and I told you to do it."
Sometimes the simple answers are the best.
My response? No long intellectual answer about the joys of learning and succeeding. No long diatribe about her responsibility as a student. No deep answer about growing. At this point it was useless.
My answer was, "Because I'm your teacher and I told you to do it."
Sometimes the simple answers are the best.
Sunday, June 3, 2001
Encouraging Students to Be Mischievous
Jonathan, a student in my above average class, takes everything very seriously. He tries to be perfect. He rarely smiles and always has a worried look on his face. MiJun also is very serious and focused,
Last week I assigned a project where students were allowed to work in pairs. I heard Jonathan ask MiJun if she would like to work with him. I knew I could depend on them to do a good job.
As I walked around the room checking on student progress, my attention was drawn to Jonathan's laughter. Not only was he laughing but it was escalating uncontrollably. And MiJun was smiling in spite of her obvious attempts not to do so. I was not worried about these two becoming unruly, but I was very curious about the cause of the laughter. When asked, Jonathan explained that something MiJun wrote was very funny. Students, at the end of their "book," had to write a brief bio of themselves for the book jacket. Apparently MiJun had written something humorous. She didn't want to show it to me and seemed embarrassed and I didn't insist. A few minutes later, Jonathan brought it over to me to share. He was still laughing. I read it and laughed also. MiJun showed a good sense of humor.
I wound up telling both of them that I was very pleased that they had done something "sort of mischievous." I told them that they are both such serious students that I sometimes worry about their ability to have fun. I also told MiJun that I thought she was good for Jonathan because he doesn't smile enough and that it made me very happy to see them both smiling.
So...a glimpse at an infrequent teaching experience.
Last week I assigned a project where students were allowed to work in pairs. I heard Jonathan ask MiJun if she would like to work with him. I knew I could depend on them to do a good job.
As I walked around the room checking on student progress, my attention was drawn to Jonathan's laughter. Not only was he laughing but it was escalating uncontrollably. And MiJun was smiling in spite of her obvious attempts not to do so. I was not worried about these two becoming unruly, but I was very curious about the cause of the laughter. When asked, Jonathan explained that something MiJun wrote was very funny. Students, at the end of their "book," had to write a brief bio of themselves for the book jacket. Apparently MiJun had written something humorous. She didn't want to show it to me and seemed embarrassed and I didn't insist. A few minutes later, Jonathan brought it over to me to share. He was still laughing. I read it and laughed also. MiJun showed a good sense of humor.
I wound up telling both of them that I was very pleased that they had done something "sort of mischievous." I told them that they are both such serious students that I sometimes worry about their ability to have fun. I also told MiJun that I thought she was good for Jonathan because he doesn't smile enough and that it made me very happy to see them both smiling.
So...a glimpse at an infrequent teaching experience.
Wednesday, May 30, 2001
A Look at Math in Language Arts
Let's say I give a writing assignment to students, a major report or essay. Suppose I spent 15 minutes reading and assessing this student work. This is not unreasonable for an assignment a student worked a long time on. Let's say I have 150 students. Five classes a day, 30 students per class.
How long will it take me to grade this assignment?
Approximately 37 1/2 hours.
This time for grading cannot be found during the school day with meetings, phone calls, planning, etc. Any wonder why teachers don't give research assignments or in-depth writing?
My students asked me why I didn't just flip through the pages to make sure it was there and then grade on the fact that it exists. My answer was that I've never taken the easy route and that their hard work warranted more attention than that.
Teachers have been asking for smaller classes for a long time. Teachers want to do a quality job teaching. Why are we never given the conditions and tools we need to do the kind of job that needs to be done?
How long will it take me to grade this assignment?
Approximately 37 1/2 hours.
This time for grading cannot be found during the school day with meetings, phone calls, planning, etc. Any wonder why teachers don't give research assignments or in-depth writing?
My students asked me why I didn't just flip through the pages to make sure it was there and then grade on the fact that it exists. My answer was that I've never taken the easy route and that their hard work warranted more attention than that.
Teachers have been asking for smaller classes for a long time. Teachers want to do a quality job teaching. Why are we never given the conditions and tools we need to do the kind of job that needs to be done?
Sunday, May 20, 2001
Stop Blaming Teachers
Teachers are not to blame for students being promoted to the next grade unprepared. Most people are unaware that a student can fail 3 out of the 4 major subjects (language arts, math, science, social studies) and still pass to the next grade!
Yes, this is true! Here's the way it works:
If a student fails one subject, it is ignored and the student moves on to the next grade.
If s/he fails two subjects, one is ignored, one is made up in summer school, and the student passes to the next grade.
If three subjects are failed, one is ignored, two are made up in summer school, and the student passes to the next grade.
Note that summer school is only about 32 days. It is ludicrous to think that in 32 days, a child can make up 180 days during the regular school year.
Students know this system. Most who fail have chosen to fail by not putting in the effort during the year. It's sad that we have seen students this year with 13% averages. It is difficult to earn such a low average.
It's impossible for a middle school student who is trying to have an average this low. There are enough balances in classes, that teachers give struggling students alternative ways of showing their effort and improvement. If a student is a poor test taker, most teachers count other work enough that failing tests is not enough to cause a student to fail the subject.
I say it again. It is impossible to earn such a low average if a student is trying.
Now, back to the 3 out of 4 and you can still pass...(And I haven't even mentioned "social promotions" and special "deals" that are made with students.)
What are we teaching this generation?
1. No matter how little you do, no matter how little effort you put into your work, you can still move on.
2. Party and have a good time during the school year. You can always make it up in 1/4 of the time during summer mornings and still have the rest of the summer to enjoy.
Don't blame us teachers for not preparing students. Teachers are doing their jobs. We are trying to hold students responsible for their actions. The system is not backing us. The school system is not holding students accountable for their actions.
What the school system is doing is a crime. Students are receiving the wrong message about what it takes to succeed. No wonder businesses are griping about the lack of work ethic among their younger employees. This new generation of employees are merely showing what they have learned from school!
Thursday, May 17, 2001
It's a Shame
Today students are completing a reading/writing long-term assignment. The first two classes have been very good and I was able to have individual conferences with most students as I checked their progress. It feels good to do real teaching and feel that I'm making a difference. The problem is, there are too many students to be able to work one-on-one with each one during a class period. I want to give all students the time they deserve. It's a shame.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Period 7 has a few student "viruses" that spread "infection" among the entire class with students who have low resistance to disruptions. Some days I wind up spending all my time disciplining and not teaching this particular class. Although an average level class, they are not willing to try to tackle problems independently. In fact, they are unwilling to even pretend to work some days. The students who are out of control at home, continue their rudeness and disruptions at school. It's a shame that some students who might have done well in my first or second period class are learning much less as a result of placement in my seventh period class.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Period 7 has a few student "viruses" that spread "infection" among the entire class with students who have low resistance to disruptions. Some days I wind up spending all my time disciplining and not teaching this particular class. Although an average level class, they are not willing to try to tackle problems independently. In fact, they are unwilling to even pretend to work some days. The students who are out of control at home, continue their rudeness and disruptions at school. It's a shame that some students who might have done well in my first or second period class are learning much less as a result of placement in my seventh period class.
Tuesday, May 15, 2001
A Lesson in Empathy Today
Today students had a chance to role play as Timothy and Phillip.
In The Cay, by Theodore Taylor, Phillip and Timothy are stranded on an island after their ship was torpedoed (WWII). Phillip was going home to Virginia from Curacao with his mother who thought things would be safer there. Timothy is a worker in the boat. After spending some time afloat on a raft, they land on a deserted island. Timothy, in his 70's, is a black man from St. Thomas. Phillip is an eleven-year-old white kid who has learned prejudice from his mother. He is dealing with his new blindness from an injury when the boat was torpedoed, his fear of being alone and his distrust of Timothy.
The scene the students played was when Timothy tried to teach Phillip how to weave mats. Phillip says he can't because of his blindness and Timothy insists that he does. He is trying to help Phillip become more independent and self-reliant. Phillip doesn't appreciate it.
After students had a chance to be Timothy as teacher and Phillip as learner with handicap, we discussed what they experienced and how they felt. I entroduced "empathy" to them and related it to the classroom also.
I know that no one learns empathy from one classroom lesson but I'm hoping that the experience may give them a new direction of thought sometimes.
In The Cay, by Theodore Taylor, Phillip and Timothy are stranded on an island after their ship was torpedoed (WWII). Phillip was going home to Virginia from Curacao with his mother who thought things would be safer there. Timothy is a worker in the boat. After spending some time afloat on a raft, they land on a deserted island. Timothy, in his 70's, is a black man from St. Thomas. Phillip is an eleven-year-old white kid who has learned prejudice from his mother. He is dealing with his new blindness from an injury when the boat was torpedoed, his fear of being alone and his distrust of Timothy.
The scene the students played was when Timothy tried to teach Phillip how to weave mats. Phillip says he can't because of his blindness and Timothy insists that he does. He is trying to help Phillip become more independent and self-reliant. Phillip doesn't appreciate it.
After students had a chance to be Timothy as teacher and Phillip as learner with handicap, we discussed what they experienced and how they felt. I entroduced "empathy" to them and related it to the classroom also.
I know that no one learns empathy from one classroom lesson but I'm hoping that the experience may give them a new direction of thought sometimes.
Too Little Too Late
Today I had a call from a parent of another failing student--failing all year. She was concerned about his last assignment and wondered whether (in the last couple of weeks!!) Tim had a chance of passing. Not to mention that he still does nothing in class. No further comment.Teach? I'd Love to!
Teach subject matter? I'd love to do that but there are so many other matters to deal with.
Seventh period today, several girls were a few seconds late to class. I didn't make an issue of it. The class was even more talkative than usual. I put Mike out in the hall because he was trying to be class clown again. Meanwhile, Katie and Krista, the few seconds late girls, began with, "I have to go to the bathroom." Since they had just come from the same hall and had five minutes to use the bathroom, I refused to let them go. Les, our permanent sub, then said that Mike was misbehaving during his time out in the hall. I told Mike to go to the office. Then Katie walked out saying she was going to the bathroom anyway. Now long after that, Krista walked out saying she was going to the bathroom. When they returned, I sent them to the office. I wrote referrals on all three of them. When I checked in the office, the two girls had never shown up in the office.
I told the class that tomorrow, I was not talking to them. They are to come in, sit down, be quiet and work.
Monday, May 14, 2001
School Testing
A posting from George Curtis from MDK-12@UMDD.UMD.EDU:
I have this old political cartoon on my wall from THE BAY TIMES newspaper on the Eastern Shore it shows a large pig on a scale. There is a picture of a farmer and a scientist standing next to the pig.
The farmer say, “Weighs the same as an hour ago...maybe if we feed him?”
The scientist says, “No...No...No...Just keep testing him until his weight increases.”
The bottom of the cartoon reads, “If agriculture were run like the Department of Education.”
A posting from Peter Donahoe which appeared 5/10/01 on MDK-12@UMDD.UMD.EDU:
It might interest you to know that Maryland’s eighth-graders, on average, appear to know a little less math and science than eighth-graders elsewhere in the United States and a lot less than children in many countries, including Hungary, Bulgaria, Australia and Slovenia. I’m not even mentioning places like Singapore, South Korea, Japan and Hong Kong, which lead the world in math and science?
A 5/10/01 posting on MDK-12@UMDD.UMD.EDU from Jim Morrow wrote:
I’m REALLY surprised... especially with all the testing that Maryland does..Maybe we should start giving the tests weekly.. I’m sure that if we give the tests often enough our results will improve..
This is the article from the Washington Post:
Maryland Math, Science Learning Dip, International Test Shows
By Karin Chenoweth
Thursday, May 10, 2001; Page HO21
It might interest you to know that Maryland's eighth-graders, on average, appear to know a little less math and science than eighth-graders elsewhere in the United States and a lot less than children in many countries, including Hungary, Bulgaria, Australia and Slovenia. I'm not even mentioning places like Singapore, South Korea, Japan and Hong Kong, which lead the world in math and science.
I know this because Maryland participated, as if it were a separate country, in an international test of eighth-gradestudents in 1999. So we now have important data to help us think about what children should know and how our schools are doing. The 1999 test was a repeat of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) administered four years earlier.
Because of TIMSS, we realize that American fourth-graders know, on average, as much math and science asmost in the world, while our eighth-graders are about in the middle of the pack and our 12th-graders can barely compete with students in the poorest and least developed countries.
The 1999 retest, known as TIMSS-R, was done partly to test the notion that some special characteristic of fourth-graders who took the test in 1995 would keep them at the top. No such luck. Kids who performed so well then were just average in 1999, seemingly on the same downward path as their older brothers and sisters.
This confirms much other data indicating that something begins to happen in our middle grades that retards the pace of learning for most kids. It isn't that they aren't learning math and science, but they tend not to learn as much as children elsewhere in the world, as evidenced by how the 38 participating countries did.
If Howard County had participated as a separate country, it probably would have performed better than the whole of Maryland. Part of the reason lies in demographics. In general, the wealthier the jurisdiction, the better its students did on TIMSS-R, and Howard is wealthier than most of Maryland.
All of the 13 states tested performed at about the national and international averages. But the wealthy school districts in those states performed much better and the poor ones much worse.
The biggest exception was probably the Michigan Invitational Group, a collection of diverse school districts that demographically match the rest of Michigan. Those districts have been working closely with the National Science Foundation to develop high-quality math and science programs, and they performed much better than Michigan as a whole.
This is an exciting finding because it demonstrates that attention to teacher training, a strong curriculum and high-quality materials can make a significant difference in student achievement. Howard can also look at neighboring Montgomery County for an idea of how it would have performed. Montgomery County was 10th in math in the world and 26th in science.
Like Howard, Montgomery has been pushing more students to take algebra in eighth grade. About 40 percent of eighth-graders in both counties take algebra, compared with about 33 percent statewide. So my guess is that Howard County, like Montgomery, would have been in the top 25 percent.
All of the participating states and districts deserve a lot of credit. It isn't every school superintendent who wants his or her district judged against world standards, and all who agreed to do so should be applauded for their intellectual courage. This is especially true for urban districts that participated.
It is tough, for example, to explain to parents in Dade County, Fla. (Miami), why their children scored way below national and international averages. But Dade, and Rochester, Chicago and Jersey City, which also participated, are determined to help their kids learn at high levels, and this is one way they're proving that.
The TIMSS-R provides a rich source of information about our expectations of children today. For example, American kids performed badly on a rather simple problem asking for the area of a shaded rectangle within a parallelogram. Only 34 percent of Maryland students and 45 percent of Montgomery students answered correctly.
In this country, we tend not to teach geometry until high school. In Singapore, where geometry is woven into the math curriculum more consistently, 83 percent of eighth-graders got the right answer.
There's a lot more information that can be mined from the TIMSS-R, because students, teachers and principals were also surveyed about interesting issues. For example, if anyone thinks that kids today don't realize that it's important to do well in school, forget it.
More than 95 percent of the 3,317 Maryland students surveyed said it's important to do well in math, science and language. But 98 percent also think that it's important to have fun and 84 percent to be good at sports. While students also overwhelmingly said their mothers thought it important that students do well, only 76 percent said their friends do.
This contrasts sharply, for example, with what students in Singapore believe about their friends. That might be one small factor in why Singapore's eighth-graders lead the world in math.
Here's another interesting fact: 40 percent of Maryland's math teachers report that they majored in mathematics and an additional 35 percent in math education, fairly comparable with the rest of the country.
But here's the kicker: 92 percent of Maryland's eighth-grade math teachers say they feel well prepared to teach eighth-grade math. This high level of confidence, and the lower level of training, contrasts sharply with that of the top performers in the world.
For example, in Singapore, only 66 percent of eighth-grade math teachers say they feel well prepared to teach eighth-grade math although a higher percentage of them were actually trained in the field. It appears that the more you know, the greater your appreciation of the complexities of the field -- and the less confident you may be that you are prepared to teach it.
By the way, if your kids complain they have more homework than others, they now have some evidence. According to surveys filled out by teachers, 73 percent of Maryland eighth-graders are assigned math homework three or more times a week. That compares with 63 percent of eighth-graders nationwide.
TIMSS-R provides a wealth of information, and I've only skimmed the surface. For more, go to www.timss.org, where half of the 300 test questions are posted. It's kind of fun to see how you and your kids stack up against Singaporean and Japanese students.
Homeroom, which appears every other week, is a forum for you. Send questions, opinions and issues that you would like to see discussed to Homeroom, The Washington Post, Howard Extra, 10490 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Suite 650, Columbia, Md. 21044. The fax number is 410-772-2330; the e-mail address is homeroom@washpost.com. To see previous columns, go to www.washingtonpost.com, click on the Education page and look for Homeroom under Education Columnists.
© 2001 The Washington Post Company
I have this old political cartoon on my wall from THE BAY TIMES newspaper on the Eastern Shore it shows a large pig on a scale. There is a picture of a farmer and a scientist standing next to the pig.
The farmer say, “Weighs the same as an hour ago...maybe if we feed him?”
The scientist says, “No...No...No...Just keep testing him until his weight increases.”
The bottom of the cartoon reads, “If agriculture were run like the Department of Education.”
A posting from Peter Donahoe which appeared 5/10/01 on MDK-12@UMDD.UMD.EDU:
It might interest you to know that Maryland’s eighth-graders, on average, appear to know a little less math and science than eighth-graders elsewhere in the United States and a lot less than children in many countries, including Hungary, Bulgaria, Australia and Slovenia. I’m not even mentioning places like Singapore, South Korea, Japan and Hong Kong, which lead the world in math and science?
A 5/10/01 posting on MDK-12@UMDD.UMD.EDU from Jim Morrow wrote:
I’m REALLY surprised... especially with all the testing that Maryland does..Maybe we should start giving the tests weekly.. I’m sure that if we give the tests often enough our results will improve..
This is the article from the Washington Post:
Maryland Math, Science Learning Dip, International Test Shows
By Karin Chenoweth
Thursday, May 10, 2001; Page HO21
It might interest you to know that Maryland's eighth-graders, on average, appear to know a little less math and science than eighth-graders elsewhere in the United States and a lot less than children in many countries, including Hungary, Bulgaria, Australia and Slovenia. I'm not even mentioning places like Singapore, South Korea, Japan and Hong Kong, which lead the world in math and science.
I know this because Maryland participated, as if it were a separate country, in an international test of eighth-gradestudents in 1999. So we now have important data to help us think about what children should know and how our schools are doing. The 1999 test was a repeat of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) administered four years earlier.
Because of TIMSS, we realize that American fourth-graders know, on average, as much math and science asmost in the world, while our eighth-graders are about in the middle of the pack and our 12th-graders can barely compete with students in the poorest and least developed countries.
The 1999 retest, known as TIMSS-R, was done partly to test the notion that some special characteristic of fourth-graders who took the test in 1995 would keep them at the top. No such luck. Kids who performed so well then were just average in 1999, seemingly on the same downward path as their older brothers and sisters.
This confirms much other data indicating that something begins to happen in our middle grades that retards the pace of learning for most kids. It isn't that they aren't learning math and science, but they tend not to learn as much as children elsewhere in the world, as evidenced by how the 38 participating countries did.
If Howard County had participated as a separate country, it probably would have performed better than the whole of Maryland. Part of the reason lies in demographics. In general, the wealthier the jurisdiction, the better its students did on TIMSS-R, and Howard is wealthier than most of Maryland.
All of the 13 states tested performed at about the national and international averages. But the wealthy school districts in those states performed much better and the poor ones much worse.
The biggest exception was probably the Michigan Invitational Group, a collection of diverse school districts that demographically match the rest of Michigan. Those districts have been working closely with the National Science Foundation to develop high-quality math and science programs, and they performed much better than Michigan as a whole.
This is an exciting finding because it demonstrates that attention to teacher training, a strong curriculum and high-quality materials can make a significant difference in student achievement. Howard can also look at neighboring Montgomery County for an idea of how it would have performed. Montgomery County was 10th in math in the world and 26th in science.
Like Howard, Montgomery has been pushing more students to take algebra in eighth grade. About 40 percent of eighth-graders in both counties take algebra, compared with about 33 percent statewide. So my guess is that Howard County, like Montgomery, would have been in the top 25 percent.
All of the participating states and districts deserve a lot of credit. It isn't every school superintendent who wants his or her district judged against world standards, and all who agreed to do so should be applauded for their intellectual courage. This is especially true for urban districts that participated.
It is tough, for example, to explain to parents in Dade County, Fla. (Miami), why their children scored way below national and international averages. But Dade, and Rochester, Chicago and Jersey City, which also participated, are determined to help their kids learn at high levels, and this is one way they're proving that.
The TIMSS-R provides a rich source of information about our expectations of children today. For example, American kids performed badly on a rather simple problem asking for the area of a shaded rectangle within a parallelogram. Only 34 percent of Maryland students and 45 percent of Montgomery students answered correctly.
In this country, we tend not to teach geometry until high school. In Singapore, where geometry is woven into the math curriculum more consistently, 83 percent of eighth-graders got the right answer.
There's a lot more information that can be mined from the TIMSS-R, because students, teachers and principals were also surveyed about interesting issues. For example, if anyone thinks that kids today don't realize that it's important to do well in school, forget it.
More than 95 percent of the 3,317 Maryland students surveyed said it's important to do well in math, science and language. But 98 percent also think that it's important to have fun and 84 percent to be good at sports. While students also overwhelmingly said their mothers thought it important that students do well, only 76 percent said their friends do.
This contrasts sharply, for example, with what students in Singapore believe about their friends. That might be one small factor in why Singapore's eighth-graders lead the world in math.
Here's another interesting fact: 40 percent of Maryland's math teachers report that they majored in mathematics and an additional 35 percent in math education, fairly comparable with the rest of the country.
But here's the kicker: 92 percent of Maryland's eighth-grade math teachers say they feel well prepared to teach eighth-grade math. This high level of confidence, and the lower level of training, contrasts sharply with that of the top performers in the world.
For example, in Singapore, only 66 percent of eighth-grade math teachers say they feel well prepared to teach eighth-grade math although a higher percentage of them were actually trained in the field. It appears that the more you know, the greater your appreciation of the complexities of the field -- and the less confident you may be that you are prepared to teach it.
By the way, if your kids complain they have more homework than others, they now have some evidence. According to surveys filled out by teachers, 73 percent of Maryland eighth-graders are assigned math homework three or more times a week. That compares with 63 percent of eighth-graders nationwide.
TIMSS-R provides a wealth of information, and I've only skimmed the surface. For more, go to www.timss.org, where half of the 300 test questions are posted. It's kind of fun to see how you and your kids stack up against Singaporean and Japanese students.
Homeroom, which appears every other week, is a forum for you. Send questions, opinions and issues that you would like to see discussed to Homeroom, The Washington Post, Howard Extra, 10490 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Suite 650, Columbia, Md. 21044. The fax number is 410-772-2330; the e-mail address is homeroom@washpost.com. To see previous columns, go to www.washingtonpost.com, click on the Education page and look for Homeroom under Education Columnists.
© 2001 The Washington Post Company
Wednesday, May 9, 2001
Too Little Too Late
There are 20 days left in the school year. In the past two days, we've seen parents of four children who are very concerned that their children are failing. It amazes me that none of these parents were heard from the entire school year, in spite of a number of E's on their children's report cards for the first three marking quarters. Not only are they showing concern too late, but they are blaming the teachers and school for not notifying them.
Where have these parents been?!!!!
Students take home one interim report and one report card each marking quarter. The parents were notified six times!!!!
When we reminded the parents of this, they retaliated by saying their children were not reliable in bringing things home and that it is the teachers' responsibility to make sure their irresponsible children do what they are supposed to do. They also are demanding that we call them every time their children don't turn in homework or misbehave. I'm sorry but with 140 students every day and more than a full day, there's no way we even have time to do this if we were so inclined.
The climate is such that everything is the responsibility of the teachers. If students don't learn, it's because the teacher is doing something wrong. If students misbehave, it's because the teacher is using the wrong techniques. Of course, we are very limited with what we can do. We can't touch them. Detention only Tuesdays or Wednesdays and then too many times parents hear one side of the story and tell their child that they don't have to serve detention for that nasty teacher.
Nothing is going to change in education until students are held accountable for their role in their own education.
I finally go behind him, catch him in the middle of the act and pull him and his desk back with a jerk. He is surprised and the class is awed at the strength of their language arts teacher. Mike is now threatening to sue me for whip lash.
Where have these parents been?!!!!
Students take home one interim report and one report card each marking quarter. The parents were notified six times!!!!
When we reminded the parents of this, they retaliated by saying their children were not reliable in bringing things home and that it is the teachers' responsibility to make sure their irresponsible children do what they are supposed to do. They also are demanding that we call them every time their children don't turn in homework or misbehave. I'm sorry but with 140 students every day and more than a full day, there's no way we even have time to do this if we were so inclined.
The climate is such that everything is the responsibility of the teachers. If students don't learn, it's because the teacher is doing something wrong. If students misbehave, it's because the teacher is using the wrong techniques. Of course, we are very limited with what we can do. We can't touch them. Detention only Tuesdays or Wednesdays and then too many times parents hear one side of the story and tell their child that they don't have to serve detention for that nasty teacher.
Nothing is going to change in education until students are held accountable for their role in their own education.
It Never Stops
7th period. Mike has been told 8 times to stop being rude and keep quiet. Now he's pushing desks in the row and bothering students in front of him. More reminders. It continues.I finally go behind him, catch him in the middle of the act and pull him and his desk back with a jerk. He is surprised and the class is awed at the strength of their language arts teacher. Mike is now threatening to sue me for whip lash.
Saturday, April 28, 2001
Smoky Mirrors
Posted 4/28/01 by Jim Morrow
University of Maryland Listserv
Does anyone else hope the smoke will clear and the mirrors will crack so people can see and recognize that teaching and learning is a cooperative enterprise; that giving students what they want is not necessarily what they need; that just berating teachers and their methods without addressing students and parents and their responsibilities in the cooperative process amounts to abuse?
Some thoughts of education today about why so many teachers are leaving the public schools....
I have noticed lately, in my 30 years of doing this wonderful thing I called teaching, what I call the “Lake Wobegon Effect.” That- all the children are now above average. When I was a child my father used to take me when we bought steamed crabs to Gordons of Orleans Street... Up on the wall were three crabs... the sign said “small—“medium”—“large”.., The other day I saw those same three crabs, -- listed now as.. “#1Large”, “Jumbo” and Texas Jumbo”
At my schoolð Our crabs now read..(oops I mean our courses of study) are scheduled to become..—instead of B course and A course .. we are now “TA DA”--- “College Preparatory and Advanced Studies (AP or IB”). We ve gone through calling it “Special” College Prepèthen that “EVERY” student at City was an HONORS student, rename after rename to make OUR students appear to be the best in Baltimore City.. Now we are no longer offering honors coursesðOur “Honors” courses are being disbanded since the EOC (BCPSS “End Of Course” exams) and HSA’s (High School Assessments) do not distinguish between honors and regularð So why should we? We will be offering Pre-AP and Pre-IB coursesðto 9th and 10th grades.. Could it just
be to force students to take AP or IB. and enlarge our new “ADVANCED STUDIES PROGRAM”?
Statistics and data are now manipulated to make the results say anything we want. For example... over the past 5 ç(FIVE) years we have had (whoa) 35 total students take the AP calculus exam (AB). In 96- 0/15 passed (3 or higher) or 0%..., 97 -1 out of 7 passed or 14 %, 98-1 out of 12 passed or 8%,---- BUT in 1999- 1/1 passed.. That’s 100%. A chart of this was created stating our 5 year trend was 100%. .... the people at the State and City must be impressed!. Our percentage passing went from 0% passing to 100% passing in just 5 years. We are a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence and a MD State School of Excellence.. Nancy came by personally to help raise the flag and join in the celebration.
But a recent Brookings Foundation Report suggests “that the 18çyr old program is too often an award for impressive paper work and fashionable teaching methods and too infrequently a measure of academic achievement” (çJay Matthews, Washington Post, Sept 6, 2000)
Of course OUR average SAT scores are in the 800’s.. We’re Blue Ribbon (with the flag to prove it.), but this allows the powers that be to claim the fame, and the Abell Foundation to give and additional $30,000 grant to PROMOTE our new excellent curriculum. (the AP-IB Advanced studies program), on top of who knows how many $100,000”s (seriously) to fund the “International Baccalaureate Program, for 50-60 kids out of close to 1300.
Isn’t education wonderful?
Our principal has never taught in a public high school. He has his doctorate, and is a lawyer. Most definitely, he, Ms. Grazmick and other powers that be need to go back (or for the first time) to the classroom and teach. NOT to the Montgomery Blairs, and the Centennials, but the everyday High Schools, Teach a full load for one full year, with Portfolios and MSPAP and all the other Bureaucratic @#$%. Only then will their suggestions have meaning or relevance. (Did you ever want to be the Principal at a school that was marked for “STATE TAKEOVER”? To ask our State superintendent to bring herself and her “staff” and demonstrate how it’s to be done..? Let them take over the school for a year, WITHOUT additional funding, outside intervention, privatization, additional staffing, etc, and implement THEIR policies of “how WE should do it”.
I doubt they would last for 3 months let alone a year, My students are wonderful kids.. but typical kids.. bright, lazy, energetic, happy, angry. good days-bad.. I love teaching them.. I feel bad, dirty about the immorality of inflating them to believe that mediocrity is excellence. I get angry that people who haven’t, don t or no longer teach, just change the names of courses to make them sound better, more advanced, more elite. Ashamed that it does such a disservice to them as future adults and will never address the roots of the problems they face, we face.. (but it does make the upper powers look good, feel better about who they are and justifies their job and salaries I guess)
But alas like you and others.. I am cast aside as a lowly veteran, who’s not up to date with the latest jargon and statistics data trends and practices of which none address the parent or student's accountability for their on actions or inactions.
As long as our “Lake Wobegon” society ans system wants no failures and all excellents.. and no one seems to remember or understand about the Bell Curve of normal distribution, theywill continue to just change the names, and manipulate statistics to prove that mediocre is excellent.
Hang in there sports-fans. We’ve done (DO) a good job, fought (FIGHT) the good fight, and have taught and provided students the skills and abilities to accomplish great things.. (even though we never bothered to count and manipulate the data, correlate and extrapolate future trends, shamelessly self-promote or rename ourselves to look better.
University of Maryland Listserv
Does anyone else hope the smoke will clear and the mirrors will crack so people can see and recognize that teaching and learning is a cooperative enterprise; that giving students what they want is not necessarily what they need; that just berating teachers and their methods without addressing students and parents and their responsibilities in the cooperative process amounts to abuse?
Some thoughts of education today about why so many teachers are leaving the public schools....
I have noticed lately, in my 30 years of doing this wonderful thing I called teaching, what I call the “Lake Wobegon Effect.” That- all the children are now above average. When I was a child my father used to take me when we bought steamed crabs to Gordons of Orleans Street... Up on the wall were three crabs... the sign said “small—“medium”—“large”.., The other day I saw those same three crabs, -- listed now as.. “#1Large”, “Jumbo” and Texas Jumbo”
At my schoolð Our crabs now read..(oops I mean our courses of study) are scheduled to become..—instead of B course and A course .. we are now “TA DA”--- “College Preparatory and Advanced Studies (AP or IB”). We ve gone through calling it “Special” College Prepèthen that “EVERY” student at City was an HONORS student, rename after rename to make OUR students appear to be the best in Baltimore City.. Now we are no longer offering honors coursesðOur “Honors” courses are being disbanded since the EOC (BCPSS “End Of Course” exams) and HSA’s (High School Assessments) do not distinguish between honors and regularð So why should we? We will be offering Pre-AP and Pre-IB coursesðto 9th and 10th grades.. Could it just
be to force students to take AP or IB. and enlarge our new “ADVANCED STUDIES PROGRAM”?
Statistics and data are now manipulated to make the results say anything we want. For example... over the past 5 ç(FIVE) years we have had (whoa) 35 total students take the AP calculus exam (AB). In 96- 0/15 passed (3 or higher) or 0%..., 97 -1 out of 7 passed or 14 %, 98-1 out of 12 passed or 8%,---- BUT in 1999- 1/1 passed.. That’s 100%. A chart of this was created stating our 5 year trend was 100%. .... the people at the State and City must be impressed!. Our percentage passing went from 0% passing to 100% passing in just 5 years. We are a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence and a MD State School of Excellence.. Nancy came by personally to help raise the flag and join in the celebration.
But a recent Brookings Foundation Report suggests “that the 18çyr old program is too often an award for impressive paper work and fashionable teaching methods and too infrequently a measure of academic achievement” (çJay Matthews, Washington Post, Sept 6, 2000)
Of course OUR average SAT scores are in the 800’s.. We’re Blue Ribbon (with the flag to prove it.), but this allows the powers that be to claim the fame, and the Abell Foundation to give and additional $30,000 grant to PROMOTE our new excellent curriculum. (the AP-IB Advanced studies program), on top of who knows how many $100,000”s (seriously) to fund the “International Baccalaureate Program, for 50-60 kids out of close to 1300.
Isn’t education wonderful?
Our principal has never taught in a public high school. He has his doctorate, and is a lawyer. Most definitely, he, Ms. Grazmick and other powers that be need to go back (or for the first time) to the classroom and teach. NOT to the Montgomery Blairs, and the Centennials, but the everyday High Schools, Teach a full load for one full year, with Portfolios and MSPAP and all the other Bureaucratic @#$%. Only then will their suggestions have meaning or relevance. (Did you ever want to be the Principal at a school that was marked for “STATE TAKEOVER”? To ask our State superintendent to bring herself and her “staff” and demonstrate how it’s to be done..? Let them take over the school for a year, WITHOUT additional funding, outside intervention, privatization, additional staffing, etc, and implement THEIR policies of “how WE should do it”.
I doubt they would last for 3 months let alone a year, My students are wonderful kids.. but typical kids.. bright, lazy, energetic, happy, angry. good days-bad.. I love teaching them.. I feel bad, dirty about the immorality of inflating them to believe that mediocrity is excellence. I get angry that people who haven’t, don t or no longer teach, just change the names of courses to make them sound better, more advanced, more elite. Ashamed that it does such a disservice to them as future adults and will never address the roots of the problems they face, we face.. (but it does make the upper powers look good, feel better about who they are and justifies their job and salaries I guess)
But alas like you and others.. I am cast aside as a lowly veteran, who’s not up to date with the latest jargon and statistics data trends and practices of which none address the parent or student's accountability for their on actions or inactions.
As long as our “Lake Wobegon” society ans system wants no failures and all excellents.. and no one seems to remember or understand about the Bell Curve of normal distribution, theywill continue to just change the names, and manipulate statistics to prove that mediocre is excellent.
Hang in there sports-fans. We’ve done (DO) a good job, fought (FIGHT) the good fight, and have taught and provided students the skills and abilities to accomplish great things.. (even though we never bothered to count and manipulate the data, correlate and extrapolate future trends, shamelessly self-promote or rename ourselves to look better.
Tuesday, April 17, 2001
Who?
Sick
I should have started this log at the beginning of the school year but who has time to record details and impressions with all the STUFF that is hurled your way beginning the first hour of returning to school. Since next year will be my last year teaching before another big life transition, maybe I will use this convenient blog to quickly add comments.Today I'm home sick. Actually I was sick almost the entire spring break. I feel cheated. Not only was I sick but I didn't feel much like getting caught up on grading and planning for school. On the home front, the environment is in chaos and I had hoped to make some sense out of my daily disorder. And for my grad class, I had hoped to get a lot done also. But, alas, it wasn't meant to be. So here I am, hacking (coughing) away and hurting in the chest.
I sent David in with updated seating charts and lesson plans. I hope everything eventually lands in the hands of the substitute, whoever it winds up being.
I was just reminded of an e-mail that I received from Katie's mother. I had worked with Katie for two years before the enrichment program was pulled from the schools. She told me she had been cleaning out some old e-mail files and discovered Katie had completed an on-line survey about who she wanted to be like when she grew up. This poem comes from that communication:
Who?
A simple survey
A cliche question
Who do you want to be like
when you grow up?"
My name goes in the answer space.
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