Thoughts on Being a Teacher

If test scores are the measure of a teacher’s quality, then I am a great failure. The students that I have taught in the past 15 years did not score well on ACT’s or ISAT’s. They probably left high school to get married or go to work in some menial job. A few will go to a community college to become trained in a trade of some sort. I feel I had as much a positive impact on these “kids” as I did with the super brains that I taught my first 15 years. The early years I guided young people to aspire to be doctors, lawyers and business owners. In my latter years, I helped young people become patients, clients and employees. I hope that I steered each group to discover something of themselves and be tolerant of the something in others. I hope that I offered an example of being a learner for life. What you do is not so important as how you do i

This is what makes a good teacher. Test scores are diagnostic tools to help teachers and administrators design ways of improving a child’s education. Every child is an individual. To apply test scores as a blanket to cover all students is ludicrous. Children not only learn differently but at different rates. This is not an earth-shattering concept. Parents take their babies to the doctor. The baby is weighed and measured. Some babies are shorter than others. As the doctors tell these parents, it is okay some babies are shorter than others. They may catch up later, they may not. Test scores are a measure too. Some kids may catch up later, some may not. That’s life. It does not mean you are deficient or abnormal. You are a part of the range. If the doctor notices no improvement over time, diagnostic tests might be in order. How does education handle this?

Education designs school improvement programs. Politicians, local school boards and administrators incorporate these into the schools. It often takes years for new programs to installed in school systems. Change in education has been traditional slow. As frustrating as this can be, it often proves a good filtering system. Beneficial alterations survive the quick fix excitement. Consider the following partial list of programs:

• Behavior objectives
• Programed learning
• Learning packets
• Self paced learning
• Barrier-less schools
• Big schools
• Little schools
• Little schools in big schools
• School Improvement plans (SIP’s)
• Outcome-based learning
• Standards
• Integrated learning
• Hands-on
• Constructivism
• Piaget
• NCLB

Education is always searching for improvements and new approaches. This is a good thing. Education has never been stagnant. It is dynamic and evolving. Good teachers are able to adapt to these demands. Good teachers will always create a classroom filled with opportunities to learn. Good teachers recognize that students have different learning styles. Like these learning styles, teachers have a variety of teaching styles. There is nothing wrong with this. The driving question in education is what makes a certain teacher so great? Its his or her style. It’s the climate they establish within their classroom. Teachers are not robots. They relate to their students and motivate them. They offer a path with a light to seek. The means of achieving that end might be wildly different for each student but the good teacher is able to encourage and lead his or her students.

I come from Chicago area. Like so many large cities and small, the news media feeds us a daily diet of death, beatings and violence. I see innocent children shot or beaten and I feel pain. I see the violent beating of a high school student with a crowd watching and wonder why. I read of a young girl raped with a crowd of voyeurs cheering the events. Someone points to the schools as a the source of the problem or the means of the solution. Schools have always been the natural place to solve society’s problems. Nuclear bomb drills, immunization requirements, school breakfasts, free lunches, buses to integrate, driver education, good health, test scores: These all had a basis in a need to try to improve a social issue. In most cases, the programs were underfunded or vaguely designed. Measuring the impact of these programs are unclear. There are still sick children who are hungry. There are still segregated neighborhoods and poverty. There are bad drivers and obese youngsters. We still do these in hopes that they will have some impact. We will create other programs in the future to solve other issues. There is nothing wrong with attempting to improve life. The press, politicians and public need to realize that schools are doing the best that they can.

I am retired now and I miss the interaction in the classroom. I miss the challenge. I miss the banter of learning. I have been fortunate to have touched so many lives. I have roller-coasted from one end of the bell to the other. It has been a great trip. What I have discovered over all those years is that its not the test scores or the honors or trophies or ribbons: it’s the light in a child’s face when they finally get it. It’s the smile a kids shares with his classmate. It’s the voice of a student who once stood silent. It is great to have been a teacher!

April

 

Do not follow where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

This Month’s look for New Beginnings and lots of laughs (it is good for your health!)

Teacher Trash Talk

Spring Break has either just finished or will begin soon. Spring has stirred some restlessness in pupils. As the sun warms the day and the buds appear on many shrubs, thoughts of summer and the break from the classroom routine settles into both to pupils and teachers alike. Many schools administer some type of standardized testing or state testing during April. As much as many pupils seem to slough off the idea of testing, the stress of doing well or not doing poorly is a big factor.

Testing is worth a few words. Brighter pupils strive to do well. These highly motivated individuals stress themselves in their drive to do well. It is what makes them better students rather than just pupils. On the other hand, pupils who struggle with academics often cringe at the thought of testing of any kind. Older pupils see standardized tests as just another means of confirming their view of themselves- “I am dumb!”

The teacher needs to develop strategies to help their students and pupils cope with standardized testing. In far too many schools, specific time is expected to be spend teaching pupils to “take the test.” Administrators, politicians and anyone directly not involved with your pupils will push you to stress the importance of this testing to the school’s image, the state’s requirements, the value of real estate and the evaluation of the teacher. Oh Yes! Pupils will get something out it!

Opps! Sorry! I don’t want to get on my soapbox. It is pretty clear where I stand on standardized testing that is used for non-diagnostic purposes.

It’s spring! The flowers are pushing through the soil and the buds on the trees are bursting open. It is a time to feel good! Smile and be happy.

Among a wealth of great events for April are:

The 4th is School Librarian Day. Thank a librarian. Go to the library. Pupils should have a library card.
The 7th is No Homework Day. (See my upcoming post on Homework!)

Magnificent Social Studies Adventures
Presidential Birthdays:
<> Thomas Jefferson (April 13)
<> James Buchanan (April 23)
<> Ulysses S Grant (April 27)
<> James Monroe (April 28)

Great Science Investigations
<> Famous Apollo 13 mission occurred in 1970
<> Great tale of space exploration
<> Humans travel to Mars
<> Walk on Moon
<> Laws of motion
<> Gravity

<> Plant studies
<> Seed germination
<> Planting the home garden
<><> ® Could your school provide a small patch for a garden?

Monthly Math
<> Apollo 13 provides ample opportunity to discuss
<> Angles and prediction
<> Trigonometry
<> Effects of forces

Language Arts
<> April 23 William Shakespeare was born in1564.
<> He died on the same day, 52 years later, in 1616
<> Historical Fiction
<> Writing poems

Fine Arts
<> Still life
<> flowers

Physical Education
<> Get outside!!
<> Baseball rules

 

Explore the Web:

http://www.openeducation.net/
Great sight for articles about teaching. Not a resource.
http://scout.wisc.edu/About/subscribe.php
The Scout Report (Publication of the Internet Scout Project)
Sponsored by University of Wisconsin
Great site. Subscribe to weekly email. Lists of fantastic sites of interest.

March

Quote of Month:
Richard M. Nixon: “Always remember others may hate you but those who hate you don’t win unless you hate them. And then you destroy yourself.”
This Month’s Theme: Spring and Diversity
Teacher Trash Talk:

Spring is always a great time. Fresh air and warm days! The sun is noticeably warmer. The spirit seems to be lifted. The gloom of January and February get blown away by the winds of March. The winds are the result of increased heating over cooler surfaces. “You gotta take the batter with the gooder!” Spring is in March or Awaits very soon in April. Many teachers look to travel during spring break! It is a great time!

The good side always has to have a tails side. With the first warm breezes of Spring comes the dreams of vacation, summer, warm days, picnics, and all those other things that usually offsets the hard work of school work. It’s “spring fever.” Teachers and students suffer.

It’s a good time to remember the basic rule of good teaching: Relevancy! Incorporate the conditions to your favor. Outdoor activities, such as collecting weather data, preparing a garden patch or even helping pick up the school campus area, are good reasons to take the pupils outside. Use what you do outside to incorporate what you do inside. Use weather data to make weather predictions. Create maps of garden patches or even the school campus. Organize into groups to do projects. Competition can have negative results but friendly competition is a good learning experience. Life is completive.
This Month’s Events

1-Congress authorized the creation of Yellow stone National Park, 1872

3-Star Spangled Banner adopted as National Anthem of the United States, 1931

5-The Boston Massacre took place, 1770

7-Alexander Graham Bell received a patent for his telephone, 1876

11-Alexander Graham Bell’s first telephone call, 1876

14-Physicist Albert Einstein was born in Ulf, Germany, 1879

15-Julius Caesar was assassinated by a group of nobles that included Brutus and Cassis, 44 B.C.

15-President Andrew Jackson was born, 1767

16-President James Madison was born, 1751

17-So Trick’s Day

18-President Grover Cleveland was born, 1837

27-First long distance telephone call made from Boston to New York, 1884

29-President John Tyler was born, 1790
Magnificent Social Studies Adventures

§ Reports on Presidents

§ Effects of The Telephone on Society

§ The Boston Massacre

§ The Star Span gel Banner

§ Julius Caesar

§ Conservation of natural resources (Yellow stone was established in 1872)

§ Society is a diverse mixture of cultures and peoples. (Everyone is Irish on So Pat’s Day)!
Great Science Investigations

§ Spring = Vernal Equinox

§ The “Tin Can” Telephone

§ E=mace

§ New ton’s Law of Motion

§ Weather projects are good (Wind measurement)
Monthly Math
§ Solving Equations

§ Einstein who corrected New ton’s work was born in 1879 and Newton died this month 1n 1727
Language Arts
§ “My Fair Lady” opened on stage in 1956 based on George Barnard Shaw’s Pygmalion

§ Elizabeth Barrett Browning was born in 1806

§ Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter published in 1850
Fine Arts

§ Broadway musicals My Fair Lady and Oklahoma opened

§ Johanna Sebastian Bach born in 1685

§ Art Project: Create own Monster (King Kong opened in 1933)

§ Create a kite to fly
Do you know… That each of us has an ancestry that becomes closer to each other as we trace our heritage back? It is amazing to discover who are related to as the doors of genetic roots are explored. (Make up a family tree that relates to people that you admire In history.)
Questions That hunt Answers: Who are You? Who am I? (Communication is a key to social relations. Part of a curriculum must address the social skills. Tolerance and acceptance comes with understanding which depends upon communication. Use the two questions of the month to have students randomly talk (diad) and interview each other. As pupils age, it is more difficult to talk about yourself. Begin with an activity that make them create an ancestry. I am… Ford, Dodge, Toyota, etc.. Or I am an tiger, snail, jellyfish.. It’s spring so make it fun)!

Explore the Web:
For K-8 check out:

http://www.funbrain.com/

February

Quote of Month:

“… we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.” President Barrack Obama, First Inaugural Address.

This Month’s Theme:

In this year of new hope, the election of a new President zooms to the forefront. Valentines and President’s Day are the two major holidays of the month. This is also Black History Month. What a great opportunity to bring the relevancy into the classroom. It is a newly elected President taking office. He is an African American with roots that extend to Africa and Ireland or England. Every four years (two years if you count the Congress) an American revolution happens. Without the shedding of blood, a new regime takes over control of our government. American can show their satisfaction at the ballot box. This year American has chosen an African American to lead our ship. This Month’s Theme calls for New Beginnings and Fresh Starts.

Teacher Trash Talk:

I hate February. It is the shortest month but it seems to go on forever. The road ahead seems so long. Spring break is still away off and Summer vacation is not even a glimmer on the horizon. In the Northern states, it cold and snowy. There’s the dreaded Valentine’s party! Candy and cake and kids making a mess. Kids are tired and they don’t want to do anything but grumble and complain. Forget homework. The days seem dark and gloomy. The kids are getting on the teacher’s nerves and on each other’s nerves. All I want to do is scream!

It just seems that bad! Think positive. Spring is almost here! This is a good month to move your teaching plan along. There few interruptions from the return in January until the spring break in March or April. This provides the opportunity to do long term learning projects. Its a great time to try out some integrated lessons if you have not tried any. The flow of lesson development is great during these few months. After the days begin to warm, the learning curve will begin to dip.

It is a good time for teachers to plan Spring adventures or Summer plans. It is important to avoid burnout at this point. Do some fun activities in school to help keep everyone focused and relaxed.

This Month’s Events:

• Valentines Day (February 14)
• Lincoln’s Birthday (February 12
• Washington’s Birthday (February 22)
• President’s day is the third Monday of the Month (usually a school Holiday)
• Mardi Gras (varies – February or March)
• February 4, 1902 Charles Lindbergh
• February 6, 1895 George Herman “Babe” Ruth
• February 7, 1812- Charles Dickens
• February 9, 1773- William Henry Harrison, 9th U.S. President (1841)
• February 11, 1847- Thomas Alva Edison, inventor of the light bulb
• February 12, 1809 – Abraham “Abe” Lincoln, 16th U.S. President (1861-1865)
• February 22, 1732 – George Washington, 1st U.S. President (1789-1797)

Subject Matter Topics

Magnificent Social Studies Adventures

Four Presidents were born

>William Henry Harrison
>Abraham “Abe” Lincoln (Bicentennial)
>George Washington
>Ronald Reagan

Queen Elizabeth II succeeded her Father George VI in 1952
First Public School in America opens
>Boston Latin School (1635)

Great Science Investigations
Great Astronomers
>Galileo Galilei
>Nicolaus Copernicus
§ First Woman Doctor to open practice in US
>Elizabeth Blackwell
§ Biology
>Charles Darwin

Language Arts
§ James Joyce
§ Charles Dickens
§ Sinclair Lewis
§ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Fine Arts
§ Two great painters were born this month:
>Grant Wood
>Norman Rockwell

Explore the Web:

Mathwire.com Great place for Elementary Math Activities

January

Quote of Month:
Thomas A. Edison who happened to have obtained patent for electric light bulb on January 20, 1880:
“If we all did the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.”

Teacher Trash Talk:

After the long winter break, it is necessary to reestablish the routines. It is amazing how quickly pupils lose memory. This also affords the teacher who has had some control issues to get a new beginning. It usually does not take long before every one is back to the routine, Now begins the long haul to the next break. January to February to March to April. Some school districts have established set times for the Spring break while other schools hold to the Easter schedule. For the Northern tier of schools, cold and snowy days are not uncommon.

As much as it is important to clean the cobwebs from the brain, it is also a time to consider resolutions for up coming year. These should be considered in at least three levels: family, personal and work. Stop smoking, lose weight, spend more time with family, go out to dinner once a week- these are personal and family resolutions. BUT this blog is about teaching and that is work related. It is a good time to reflect on the past and how to build into the future. The past cannot be changed but the future is open for change. Experienced teachers reflect on some new approaches or a new textbook or a new course or a new committee. Beginning teachers will most probably spend time hoping for a fresh beginning. If the past was a nightmare or not living up to the expectations desired, here is the opportunity for a new start. Routine-Routine-Routine!! That is the name of a good teaching situation. Kids from K to 12 need routine. They need to know what to expect and what, when, where and how to succeed in this classroom. Communication is a skill that needs development. It is important not to spend too much time on school work. It is very important to enjoy a vacation.

This Month’s Highlight Events

• 1st
  Paul Revere was born in Boston, 1735
  Flag maker Betsy Ross was born in Philadelphia, 1752
  Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, 1863
• 7th
  The first presidential election was held, 1789
  President Millard Fillmore was born, 1800
• 10th
  President Richard M. Nixon was born, 1913
• 14th
  Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris formally, 1784
• 15th
  Martin Luther King, Jr., was born 1929 (19th this year)
• 26th
  Chinese/Lunar New Year (Year 4707 Cow)
• 29th
  President William McKinley born, 1843
• 30th
  President Franklin D. Roosevelt born, 1882

This month is:

Hot Tea Month
National Oatmeal Month
National Soup Month
National Blood Donor Month
(2nd Week) Letter Writing Week

Ideas for Subject Areas

Magnificent Social Studies Adventures

• January 20 Inauguration day
• Presidential Births:
  -January 7- Millard Fillmore
  -January 10- Richard Nixon
  -January 29- William McKinley
  -January 30- Franklin D. Roosevelt
• Major American Historical Events
  -Births of Paul Revere and Betsy Ross
  -First Presidential election
  -Treaty of Paris ending the American revolution ratified
  -Martin Luther King born January 15, celebrated on 19th this year
• Chinese or Lunar New Year on January 26
  -Year 4707, Year of the Cow

Great Science Investigations

=January is the middle of Winter in the Northern Hemisphere and the middle of Summer in the Southern Hemisphere
-Winter/Summer solstice, affects of tilt of Earth and Sun’s rays
=Winter meteorological measurements provide great interest in measuring temperature, air pressure, precipitation (type and amount), cloud types. Using this, predict the next day’s weather. Maintain a weather log and collect data.

Monthly Math

=Great time to integrate math work with science. Use data collected to make graphs and illustrate purpose of graphing.
-Convert temperatures from Fahrenheit to Celsius.
-Use graphs constructed to make predictions. Predict weather for next month.
(Old Farmers Almanac- uses historical weather data to predict year’s weather. (show a copy and compare predictions with actual events.)

Language Arts

=The second week of January is National Letter Writing Week.
-Types of letters
-It is Blood Donor month- letter appealing for blood donations
=Great month to integrate with Social Study events
-Reports on presidents, Paul Revere, Treaty of Paris, Emancipation Proclamation, Martin Luther King

Fine Arts

=Winter scenes to draw, black and water
=Mozart’s 302nd birthday this month, a little classical music

Physical Education

=Indoor exercise
=Basketball

Do you know…

That this the time of year that outdoor gardeners plan out gardens, order seeds and plan a calendar of indoor plantings.
§ A long term activity is to begin growing plants this month in the classroom. Each pupil can plant their own seeds and care for their plants. As age increases, activities, such as measuring height, weight, leaf growth can be collected as data. Graphing and data interpretation can be learned.

Questions That hunt Answers:

• What plants would be best to grow in a classroom?
  § This reader loved marigolds! In all grades, it can be a “Mother’s Day’s” project begun early. Depending on the plant chosen:
  • How long does seed planting to seed germination?
  • How long from germination to flower development?
  • What conditions are needed to cause flowering, if any?

Explore the Web:

Resources for the Presidential Inauguration

• http://www.presidential-inauguration.com/
• http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/pihtml/ (lib of Congress)
• http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Election_2008.shtml (USA.GOV)

December: Expectation and Hope

“That which we persist in doing becomes easier – not that the nature of the task has changed, but our ability to do has increased.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

(In other words “Repetition is the mother of learning!” Or “If you don’t succeed the first time try. Try again.”)

This is probably the most difficult few weeks of the year for pupils and teachers. The excitement of the winter break begins to peak as the month moves on. Teachers and pupils are ready for a break! It’s a fgood time to get away from kids, teachers and the rigors of a schedule. Tempers tend to get short and in secondary school, fights are more common during this time of the year. Solid educational practices are ready needed at this time. The teacher who has “control” can ease up a little bit. But as the days near the break, the smile needs to go and the stern finger of rule must come out. This does not mean that teachers should revert to the days of September but rather the business face of the day before a holiday.

Testing have questionable results. Intelligent kids always do well because of their nature- highly motivated . The problem rests with the broader band of motivated, near motivated, unmotivated and anti-motivated. Each teacher needs to appraise their individual situation and decide the course of action. It is important to find activities that are meaningful and keeps the pupils busy.

FOR THE ROOKIE: This is the test time. Teachers set routines the first weeks of the school year. They reinforce the rules as the days pass. If routines are established, it is natural to ease up a bit. The month following the Thanksgiving break is the next big challenge. Kids get antsy, so do the teacher. Attention spans diminish and fuses tend to be shorter. The tendency is to “let up” as the days roll closer to the break. “Keep ‘em working!” the pro will tell you. Be careful of putting too much weight on the graded work. Be leery of parties. Get help from the veteran teachers. The holidays will provide the rest and regeneration needed to return. Don’t let up too soon.

And to all a Happy Holiday….

Month’s Events:

<> This is Human Rights Month A good chance to teach a little love and respect for self and others. Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of the bus (12/1).
<> This is also the Holiday Month: Thanksgiving leads into December which celebrates Christmas, Hanukah and Kwanzaa. It is a time of family and sharing and good feelings.

Dates to know:

On the 5th……….. The 8th President, Martin Van Buren, born
On the 7th……….. “A day that will live in infamy”
On the 16th………. Let’s have a Tea Party in Boston
On the 28th………. The 28th President, Woodrow Wilson, born
On the 29th………. The 17th President, Andrew Johnson, born

Occurrence This Month:

<> The Christ child is born in the year 0
<> A Christmas Carol is printed in the year 1843
<> Chewing Gum patented in the year 1869
<> Sherlock Holmes appears in print for 1st Time in the year 1887
<> Wright Brothers first flight is in the year 1903
<> First heart transplant is in the year 1967

Ideas for Subject Areas

Magnificent Social Studies Adventures

History of the Christmas tree
Candles of Hanukah
Origins of Kwanzaa

Great Science Investigations

The winter solstice
Snow Flakes

Math Marvels

Counting flakes

Degrees in Geometry (related to winter solstice)

Land of Language

Writing Tales of Scrooge and Tiny Tim and Christmas or Hanukah or Kwanzaa
Reading Sherlock Mysteries
Group project: Write a serial (cartoon, series of short tales, etc)

After Arts

Make paper snow flakes
Snowmen
Winter scenes

Body Works

Floor hockey
Elements of Basketball
Snow safety

Do you know…

Otzi has no living relatives.
its summer in New Zealand!
Romans celebrated Saturnalia in mid to late December.
Silent Night was first song on Christmas Eve 1818.
Beethoven was born this month.

Questions That hunt Answers…

Who is Otzi?
What is Saturnalia?
Who is St. Nicholas?
Why is the poinsettia so closely associated with Christmas?

Explore the Web:

A Math site: http://www.mathwire.com/
Social Studies sites: http://www.santas.net/aroundtheworld.htm
http://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org/index.shtml
http://www.billybear4kids.com/holidays/hanukkah/hanukkah.htm

NOVEMBER

“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.”

 

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (32nd President of United States from 1933 to 1945).

November can be a challenge. The change in clocks in some parts of the country and the shortening of the daylight hours seem to add to the gloom of the month. November is the start of the sun-less days of approaching winter solstice. This is the fourth month of the school year. The kids, as well as the teachers, are looking for the Thanksgiving Day break. It is an escape from the routine of school, albeit a long weekend but it heralds the Christmas (opps, winter) break- a full two weeks of no kids- no teachers- and NO BELLS!. This is also the beginning of the holiday season. Emotions run high and low! Some kids have great expectations of the holidays and family relationships while others dread the holidays and family gatherings. It can be a very stressful period. A word to the wise: Be sure to pack your plans with lots of activities. The tendency for the inexperienced teacher is to let up a bit. More fights and conflicts seem to occur at this time and in the spring. Keep them busy!

The Chrysanthemum,also called mums, stands for optimism and cheerfulness. This month has World Kindness Day, where you can encourage your pupils to do a random act of kindness, and Family week (Thanksgiving Week). Family togetherness and acts of kindness are overt expressions of hope and love. Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and the shredding of the old (symbolic with leaf loss) and the advent of the new in spring offer the ideas of hope and optimism. (Sites to check out www.nationalfamilyweek.org and www.actsofkindness.org/people/days.asp)

A few tidbits of interest that you might find useful in the classroom (Bulletin Boards, fun things, ideas to build lessons upon, etc):

• The United States Weather Bureau was established and began recording weather events in 1870.
• King Tut’s tomb was opened in 1922.
• The Louvre opened in Paris in 1793.
• Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species” was published in 1859
• Mark Twain was born in 1835
• Five US Presidents were born:
  • James K. Polk
  • Warren G. Harding
  • James A Garfield
  • Franklin Pierce
  • Zachary Taylor

A few activities for you to adapt:

Social Studies

• Five US Presidents born
  • (another group project? Maybe this time: have each group thoroughly research their President. Then line groups in a row and ask questions common for each president, eg, birthday, year elected to office, most important piece of legislation passed, number of children, state lived in, etc. Make a fun activity but one that requires a team effort and work on topic.
  • One president died. John Fitzgerald Kennedy (35th President of the United States from 1960 to 1963) died at the hands of an assassin. The assassination of JFK brought the country to a standstill for several days.
  • How many presidents assassinated in office? Outside of office? How many died naturally? What Vice President replaced them? Did they get reelected?
• Veteran’s Day discussion or projects:
  • US Wars
  • Geography: War locations
  • Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
• Thanksgiving
  • European Settlers
  • Native Americans
    • “National American Indian Heritage Month, Signed into law in 1990 by President Bush has been a source of inspiration for many American Indians and non-Indians and a platform to celebrate the rich and diverse cultures of this great country.” Source: www.indians.org
• American Education Week (Observed the full week prior to Thanksgiving.) see www.nea.org/aew

Science

• Once again weather can bring sifts to cold and snow
• Explore the weather records
• Formation of snow flakes
• Diseases to study
  • Diabetes
  • Alzheimer’s
  • Epilepsy
  • Deciduous trees losing leaves, weather changes, bird migration, animal hibernation, etc

Math

• Weather statistics (compare to baseball and good for reinforcement)
• Measure the size of a snow flake (integrate with science)
• Device a means of collecting snow flakes and then measuring them
• Measurement of leaves from the same tree (integrate with science)
  • Explain the variation in size
  • Do other living things exhibit variation

Language Arts

• American Education Week
• Essays on School or teachers or best day
• An act of Random Kindness
• Do an act of kindness for someone and then write a report on the person’s reaction
  • Read and report on Native American nations that lived in area or that may have encountered the first Europeans

Fine Arts

• Pumpkins
• Cornucopia
• Turkeys

Physical Education

• National Disease Month
  • Diabetes Month
  • Epilepsy Month
  • Alzheimer’s Disease Month

 

Sites to explore on a snowy day:

http://www.teach-nology.com/monthly/nov/ [lesson plans, ideas and worksheets]

http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/ [You will need more than a single snow day]

Part 4: The Standardized Test

This is a normal standard bell curve. All the test grades are added together and the mean point is determined. The mean point is the top of the curve. This is the test taker who is tagged in the following ways: 50%, 50 percentile, 0 Z-score and 5 stanine. This test taker is average or meets the standard. The test taker is a number. The name happens to be associated with that number. Now that number has a bunch of numbers associated with it.

Standardized testing has become so attached to NCLB (No Child Left Behind) that the positive benefits are lost. Standardized testing got its big boost in the late 1950’s when the Soviets launched Sputnik into orbit around the earth. Four years later Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gargin became the first man into space. Panic spread through school systems! What’s wrong with our schools? Why weren’t the US first into space. The first phase of emphasis on science and math struck the education world. The arts and social studies were diminished in favor of more science and math. Testing was introduced into schools by The Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS), California Achievement Test (CAT), and American College Tests (ACT). There a mountain of other companies who prepare and publish these tests. Most colleges use the ACT or SAT as an entrance exam. The ACT is not an achievement test. It is a reading test that requires a broad base of general knowledge. Standardized testing is a great tool when it is used as it was designed to be used.

When I began teaching, the IOWA test were the regular used test by schools. It was administrated every other year. The results of the test were poured over by teachers to see if there was a trend in the results. The results of the ITBS showed a drop in math ability from third to fifth grade. It had not been like this before. What happen that caused this drop? Teachers had changed in the fifth grade. They certainly seemed qualified and their pupils did well on all other topics. We looked deeper into the results. Each specific topic that was tested was identified on the data sheets. When we looked, we noted that “long division” was where the problem laid. When we removed that section, the results were more to our liking. What happened? The fourth grade teachers pointed at the fifth grade teachers as the fifth pointed back at the fourth. “Long Division” was not being taught. The teachers thought the other group was doing that part of the math. The curriculum was the problem. It had been ignored completely. (A math teacher before his time no doubt). We were able to identify kids who seemed to working below what the tests seem to indicate or the other way as well. Standardized tests were necessary diagnostic tools.

Somewhere in our journey to improve learning we got lost. Standardized tests are now accountability tools. Pupils and schools must meet certain criteria to be considered passing. Failure to meet these standards can result in pupils not graduating or being promoted; schools can be closed and its staff fired. Instead of using standardized tests to improve the quality, we are using it to show how educators and pupils are not doing their tasks. There is something seriously wrong here.

A very brief word on how tests are standardized. When test results are returned, a statistical sample is chosen to establish a standard. The scores are arranged in a bell curve (see above). This becomes the standard that assigns pupils into stanines. That means that as pupils improve the bell curve slides to the right. Therefore, schools and pupils will always be looked at in a bad light. I taught many pupils who would do poorly on standardized tests but showed a genus in class. I would love to see how Einstein or Edison would do on the ACT. There is something seriously wrong here, too.

In Illinois, as is true in many other states, a state achievement test is administered. The ISAT (Illinois State Achievement Test) is given over a two day period which includes the ACT. Day one has all students taking the ACT and on day two the ISAT is administered. College bound pupils see the value of the ACT but do see the use of the ISAT. The ISAT measures the vast array of state standards and each year the emphasis shifts thus making it a guessing game on the part of educators. The ISAT are very specific test questions much that you might expect on a teachers test given at the end of a unit of study. These unit tests are bit size assessment of material studied. The ISAT is a gluttonous size that chokes the pupil. There is something seriously wrong here, too.

Having taught too long, I know that this will also pass by. Education is constantly reinventing the wheel. But I have noticed that each time the new wheel rolls around something worthwhile sticks around and, as a result, teaching or learning improves. It always amazes me that each generation I have taught manages to do so well and become good and successful people. There is something seriously right here.

Hello world!

The Teacher’s World          

“Today is the first day of class, children. You can stay in the seat you are sitting in until you talk to your neighbor. THEN I will move you. I am the master of this classroom: I’m the boss- the chief- the head honcho- the big cheese. That’s right I run the show! Hey you! The plaid shirt staring out the window! Are you listening?”

The disheveled boy twisted toward the front of the classroom with wide eyes. “Huh! What’d ya say?”

“See That’s what I mean! LISTEN! LISTEN TO EVERYTHING I HAVE TO SAY BECAUSE IT IS IMPORTANT! YOU HEAR ME!”

There was a pause as the teacher’s eyes searched the faces of the classroom. 

“Hand up. What do you want?”

“ Are we suppose to take notes?” The preppy dressed girl said with a smile.

“Not now..” The teacher whined. “I’ll tell you when.”

Sound at all familiar? I have been a teacher for too long. Too many years making the same opening remarks. I didn’t follow this teacher’s tack of being the boss. I did at one time. I was the tough guy. New teachers are warned. “Be sure to set the rules right from the beginning. Let those kids know who’s the boss or you’ll be in trouble.” Probably good advice for the neophyte teacher. The teacher must be in control of the classroom and learning is the business of a classroom. It can be a relaxed business atmosphere but the teacher must be in charge and there is the business of learning that needs to be addressed.

This blog is for parents, politicians, students and teachers. It is about teachers and learning. It is about the influences that affect education. It is about what should be and what shouldn’t be. It is about teachers, students, learning, standards, testing, politicians, schools, and everything else! Like any good teacher I don’t have the answers. I can only guide you on your journey to find the answers and become enlightened. Learning is an internal process. It is change in thinking, habits and attitudes. There must be questions in order to seek out answers. Learning occurs not with the answer but with the changes that occur as one seeks the answer. Teachers are great resourses. They are like encyclopedias, they have all the answers. If they yield the answer each time the pupil asks a question, what have has the pupil learned. This pupil learned that if you have a question go to the teacher to get the answer. If this is what we veiw learning as, then we have a serious problem.  

We will attempt to tackle some problems that confront education in this very complicated world. Everyone has an answer. As a student we don’t need to seek the answer, there already there. All we need do is to take one and we are done. That’s the easy path. However, as learned  individuals we are faced with all these solutions. It is necessary to examine the means and realable sources that were used to reach the answer.

Life is filled with choices. Good teaching leads to good learning which leads to better decision making which leads to better choices. Better choices lead to happier and healtier lifestyles. Isn’t that what is all about?