Excitement abounds. Tomorrow is our last day of professional development before the inevitable beginning of it all. This year holds so much promise... a lot to build on and look forward to. Check it:
Paul has opened a ninth-grade academy for students seeking to enroll for one last year to ease their transition to high school. Our focus is two-fold: providing a curriculum that heavily emphasizes the growing importance of technology and global awareness/responsibility. As an educator, I don't know that I could ask for much more in terms of the scope/focus that we're working with. It's not to say that we won't teach traditional standards/subjects by any means. Yet and still, our focus will always be grounded in purposeful learning that demands a constant evaluation of the demands and offerings of the world that we live in.
Naturally, I'm planning to come correct in my approach to instruction--being that it is my second year and all. Still much to learn, but I've got enough under my belt that I can't wait to put in to practice and use to the benefit of my students and their achievement. Definitely using the technology aspect of the curriculum to my advantage. Got separate twitter, facebook, and blog accounts set up for classroom use. Check me @MrDeShields, jdeshields@paulcharter.org (facebook), www.mrdeshields.blogspot.com (blog). I'm really excited about getting my kids on the blog and on twitter. Trying to do some revolutionary stuff on the blog-- so keep your eyes/ears open.
Stay tuned for the Service Learning movement too-- man... too much to be excited about already. Now I just need to see my kids.....
Peace.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Friday, April 17, 2009
Preach!
Two of my favorites sound off on the importance of teacher evaluations:
http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/washington/news.aspx?id=126167
The one and only Todd Johnson is in the District covering Education as a part of his grad program at Northwestern. He was able to catch up with one of the best professors I've ever had the pleasure of learning under, Ms. Carmen Rioux-Bailey.... check her video if you get a chance, and be sure to follow the man, the myth, the legend as he writes about the state of education in DC for the next few months!
http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/washington/news.aspx?id=126167
The one and only Todd Johnson is in the District covering Education as a part of his grad program at Northwestern. He was able to catch up with one of the best professors I've ever had the pleasure of learning under, Ms. Carmen Rioux-Bailey.... check her video if you get a chance, and be sure to follow the man, the myth, the legend as he writes about the state of education in DC for the next few months!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Killing Creativity
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY
An interesting, and amusing discussion on the problem of the lack of creativity in schools. KRob, as I call him, always has something worth reading/listening to.
One of the more salient points that he makes throughout his lecture is that as educators, we're killing creativity in schools and in classrooms. The "system" is set up to reduce the importance of creativity in evaluating our children. An interesting tidbit that supports this claim is the fact that Howard County schools (Maryland) removed originality and initiative in 1999 from their grading system claiming that there was no way to measure how creative a student had been in the process of actually completing the work that had been assigned. How can we encourage creativity if we're not willing to find ways to reward it? Try to teach a dog to be obedient without any praise, rewards, or acknowledgement-- it's almost impossible... and that's just the half of it. From there, you hope that the dog can apply the principle of obedience to things like responding to various commands, resisting the temptation to urinate on the carpet (something Skippy is failing to do in his old age), and sitting/staying when the situation requires it. The same goes for creativity. We don't encourage creativity enough to expect it in our classrooms. And hear me out, I'm not just talking about telling your kids to be creative on a project or to give creative responses to a question asked. In that sense, we've simplified creativity to an adjective-- something that you produce is/was creative.... failing to acknowledge the fact that the approach, the process, and yes, ultimately, the end result was creative.
Creativity has to be an ongoing process--especially in schools. Too often, I hear, "You can't teach creativity--either you have it or you don't". I tend to disagree with this premise holding the belief that our minds have to be sustained and nurtured in creativity. Children, and especially young children are some of the most creative individuals out. The artwork that children produce is expressive and somehow always seems to come with an explanation of sorts. I agree with KRob's belief that school's indirectly discourage creativity. One of the more unfortunate realities of the education system is that we've stopped seeking the truth and have started to look for the right answer. Truth be told, if we took the time to ask the whys and hows of everything we study, we'd spawn an intellectual thirst that could not be quenched. Debates on the logistics of the "right answer" would lead us to understand that sometimes the "right answer" isn't synonymous with truth. Too often, we give the, "That's just the way it is"-- and unfortunately... the response is discouraging our kids from finding out more... from wanting to know more.
What better place to encourage creativity than in a place that's supposed to support intellectual curiousity and individual student acheivement?
An interesting, and amusing discussion on the problem of the lack of creativity in schools. KRob, as I call him, always has something worth reading/listening to.
One of the more salient points that he makes throughout his lecture is that as educators, we're killing creativity in schools and in classrooms. The "system" is set up to reduce the importance of creativity in evaluating our children. An interesting tidbit that supports this claim is the fact that Howard County schools (Maryland) removed originality and initiative in 1999 from their grading system claiming that there was no way to measure how creative a student had been in the process of actually completing the work that had been assigned. How can we encourage creativity if we're not willing to find ways to reward it? Try to teach a dog to be obedient without any praise, rewards, or acknowledgement-- it's almost impossible... and that's just the half of it. From there, you hope that the dog can apply the principle of obedience to things like responding to various commands, resisting the temptation to urinate on the carpet (something Skippy is failing to do in his old age), and sitting/staying when the situation requires it. The same goes for creativity. We don't encourage creativity enough to expect it in our classrooms. And hear me out, I'm not just talking about telling your kids to be creative on a project or to give creative responses to a question asked. In that sense, we've simplified creativity to an adjective-- something that you produce is/was creative.... failing to acknowledge the fact that the approach, the process, and yes, ultimately, the end result was creative.
Creativity has to be an ongoing process--especially in schools. Too often, I hear, "You can't teach creativity--either you have it or you don't". I tend to disagree with this premise holding the belief that our minds have to be sustained and nurtured in creativity. Children, and especially young children are some of the most creative individuals out. The artwork that children produce is expressive and somehow always seems to come with an explanation of sorts. I agree with KRob's belief that school's indirectly discourage creativity. One of the more unfortunate realities of the education system is that we've stopped seeking the truth and have started to look for the right answer. Truth be told, if we took the time to ask the whys and hows of everything we study, we'd spawn an intellectual thirst that could not be quenched. Debates on the logistics of the "right answer" would lead us to understand that sometimes the "right answer" isn't synonymous with truth. Too often, we give the, "That's just the way it is"-- and unfortunately... the response is discouraging our kids from finding out more... from wanting to know more.
What better place to encourage creativity than in a place that's supposed to support intellectual curiousity and individual student acheivement?
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Guess who's bizzack
http://education.yahoo.net/degrees/articles/featured_five_hot_futrue_careers.html
Apparently I have one of the top 5 hot future careers... who would've thought? It says something about how people are beginning to recognize the value of not only education, but of educating and providing services for those who are most in need. It would be real nice to see a salary increase for those in the education sector-- I know I've had this conversation with most of the people that read this blog, so don't take it as me going back on what I originally said-- let me clarify. I'd hate to see teaching all of a sudden carry the luxury of having a 6-figure income. I think we've all encountered those people who go in to practicing law or medicine or whatever other sector because of the financial security that comes along with it. I'm not knocking the desire to be financially stable, it's something that we all want and are concerned about, but there's a difference between stability and wealth. With that said-- for those who do their job because they love it and are compensated generously... that's the best of both worlds. I'm leery of those individuals who are motivated more by their salary than they are by the purpose and potential impact of their work. I want to work with individuals who are working to improve the lives and situations of those they are serving. There are certainly some that are working to get that paycheck-- the ones who watch the seconds, minutes, and hours tick off the clock and avoid interaction with children as much as possible (bizzarre, I know). If teaching became a 6-figure profession as some have "promised" (Ms. Rhee and http://www.tepcharter.org/), there will certainly be those who are qualified (TEP charter deems qualified as being in the 90th percentile on both the GRE and GMAT--WHOA!) but in it for the wrong reasons. Then again, there are many teachers in it for the wrong reasons now! Anyway, I digress, only to say that I think a reasonable increase in pay for educators might bring about some more respect for the profession. It shouldn't take money to change people's perception of what one does, but that's how a capitalist society operates.
My apologies for the rant-- it's probably because my wallet is empty, HA!
I've been wanting to update for quite some time. My conundrum was founded on wanting to write about something positive, but always having something on the forefront of my mind that might be perceived as being negative. I remember reading through TFA blogs before joining the corps last year and thinking, "Yo, these people hate their jobs", or "I must have just signed up to work in the psych ward of a hospital or something". It's too easy to write about the little things that get on your nerves and stay on your nerves for what should be a few minutes but somehow turn in to a few days/weeks/months. To convey that on my blog wouldn't be reflective of my experience, and of the success of my students.
While I avoided the urge to post about things like dealing with adults (or children trapped in adult's bodies), losing a semi-final basketball game, and grad school, I could not resist the urge to write about standardized testing and how it has become the bane of my existence. For those of you who don't know what the testing game is all about, there is one test that determines whether a school has made adequate yearly progress or not (AYP). I'm sure there are a number of other categories that might have some influence on your AYP report card, but the test seems to stick out as the one factor that can make or break a school. The test is given for English and Math, and students are labeled as being below basic, basic, proficient, or advanced depending on their performance. To date, we've taken four practice tests, the last of which was completed today. From here, we will take the real thing in April.
Our goal: to be 100% proficient as a school. Our mandate (to meet AYP): 60% proficiency or something along those lines. I currently have 5 students that are proficient. The rest are either basic or below basic. On the first pre-test, 70% of my students were below basic, having only answered two or three questions correctly. On the third pre-test, not only had the majority of students moved out of the below basic range, but they had also moved much closer to a level of proficiency. Now, I'm excited because kids are improving at a rate of 3 points per test. Most of my kids started around the 6-7 point range. They will need at least 21 points to be proficient. I try to take the time out to recognize my kids for their tremendous growth as much as I can. I feel like they're insulted by the label of "basic"-- and rightfully so. Basic doesn't encompass how much they know, or how much knowledge they've gained over the course of the year. Basic doesn't acknowledge their motivation, or their desire to succeed. Basic really doesn't tell me a whole lot about where my kids are at. So my question is, what does basic tell you? For the big-wigs who are determining whether we, as a school, have made AYP: what does BASIC tell you? And what do below basic, proficiency, and advanced tell you? I'm really curious to know how we've come to the point where one 90 minute test can measure a school's adequate progress.
My conclusion: testing is an easy solution. It's convenient. A test is measurable, and it accounts for "how well a school is doing in terms of educating its students". What it certainly doesn't do, however, is account for those priceless moments where a student is truly learning something. The most valuable moments, in which light bulbs shine brightest and teachers communicate the most complex ideas in ways that students can understand and master. These moments happen daily... I've seen them. Let's start focusing on the moments that matter. There's only so much that a student can show in 90 minutes on paper. Come and see what's going on-- check out some of the good things that are happening. Don't let a test tell you about our school, our kids, our teachers-- come see them for yourselves. Do it early and do it often-- then, you can be the judge of whether or not we're making adequate progress.
Apparently I have one of the top 5 hot future careers... who would've thought? It says something about how people are beginning to recognize the value of not only education, but of educating and providing services for those who are most in need. It would be real nice to see a salary increase for those in the education sector-- I know I've had this conversation with most of the people that read this blog, so don't take it as me going back on what I originally said-- let me clarify. I'd hate to see teaching all of a sudden carry the luxury of having a 6-figure income. I think we've all encountered those people who go in to practicing law or medicine or whatever other sector because of the financial security that comes along with it. I'm not knocking the desire to be financially stable, it's something that we all want and are concerned about, but there's a difference between stability and wealth. With that said-- for those who do their job because they love it and are compensated generously... that's the best of both worlds. I'm leery of those individuals who are motivated more by their salary than they are by the purpose and potential impact of their work. I want to work with individuals who are working to improve the lives and situations of those they are serving. There are certainly some that are working to get that paycheck-- the ones who watch the seconds, minutes, and hours tick off the clock and avoid interaction with children as much as possible (bizzarre, I know). If teaching became a 6-figure profession as some have "promised" (Ms. Rhee and http://www.tepcharter.org/), there will certainly be those who are qualified (TEP charter deems qualified as being in the 90th percentile on both the GRE and GMAT--WHOA!) but in it for the wrong reasons. Then again, there are many teachers in it for the wrong reasons now! Anyway, I digress, only to say that I think a reasonable increase in pay for educators might bring about some more respect for the profession. It shouldn't take money to change people's perception of what one does, but that's how a capitalist society operates.
My apologies for the rant-- it's probably because my wallet is empty, HA!
I've been wanting to update for quite some time. My conundrum was founded on wanting to write about something positive, but always having something on the forefront of my mind that might be perceived as being negative. I remember reading through TFA blogs before joining the corps last year and thinking, "Yo, these people hate their jobs", or "I must have just signed up to work in the psych ward of a hospital or something". It's too easy to write about the little things that get on your nerves and stay on your nerves for what should be a few minutes but somehow turn in to a few days/weeks/months. To convey that on my blog wouldn't be reflective of my experience, and of the success of my students.
While I avoided the urge to post about things like dealing with adults (or children trapped in adult's bodies), losing a semi-final basketball game, and grad school, I could not resist the urge to write about standardized testing and how it has become the bane of my existence. For those of you who don't know what the testing game is all about, there is one test that determines whether a school has made adequate yearly progress or not (AYP). I'm sure there are a number of other categories that might have some influence on your AYP report card, but the test seems to stick out as the one factor that can make or break a school. The test is given for English and Math, and students are labeled as being below basic, basic, proficient, or advanced depending on their performance. To date, we've taken four practice tests, the last of which was completed today. From here, we will take the real thing in April.
Our goal: to be 100% proficient as a school. Our mandate (to meet AYP): 60% proficiency or something along those lines. I currently have 5 students that are proficient. The rest are either basic or below basic. On the first pre-test, 70% of my students were below basic, having only answered two or three questions correctly. On the third pre-test, not only had the majority of students moved out of the below basic range, but they had also moved much closer to a level of proficiency. Now, I'm excited because kids are improving at a rate of 3 points per test. Most of my kids started around the 6-7 point range. They will need at least 21 points to be proficient. I try to take the time out to recognize my kids for their tremendous growth as much as I can. I feel like they're insulted by the label of "basic"-- and rightfully so. Basic doesn't encompass how much they know, or how much knowledge they've gained over the course of the year. Basic doesn't acknowledge their motivation, or their desire to succeed. Basic really doesn't tell me a whole lot about where my kids are at. So my question is, what does basic tell you? For the big-wigs who are determining whether we, as a school, have made AYP: what does BASIC tell you? And what do below basic, proficiency, and advanced tell you? I'm really curious to know how we've come to the point where one 90 minute test can measure a school's adequate progress.
My conclusion: testing is an easy solution. It's convenient. A test is measurable, and it accounts for "how well a school is doing in terms of educating its students". What it certainly doesn't do, however, is account for those priceless moments where a student is truly learning something. The most valuable moments, in which light bulbs shine brightest and teachers communicate the most complex ideas in ways that students can understand and master. These moments happen daily... I've seen them. Let's start focusing on the moments that matter. There's only so much that a student can show in 90 minutes on paper. Come and see what's going on-- check out some of the good things that are happening. Don't let a test tell you about our school, our kids, our teachers-- come see them for yourselves. Do it early and do it often-- then, you can be the judge of whether or not we're making adequate progress.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Look Harder.
Simplicity kills me sometimes.
While the inauguration festivities have come and gone-- the division created by the election has not. I cannot stress how disappointed I am in people's simplicity. "My president is black... his house is white"... or how bout the text I received on inauguration day, "You know why it's so cold today? Because they said it'd be a cold day in hell before a black man was president"... sentiments like these are killing me. I, along with many other Americans (black, white, latino, asian), have celebrated the fact that our country has come far enough to elect a man who is different from the previous 43-- someone who is bi-racial, someone who is African-American. This is a big deal-- I see the pride in people's faces... my Dad smiles from ear to ear everytime he mentions something about President Obama. The man represents so much to so many people.
I take no issue with an appreciation of history being made--with the acknowledgment that a beautiful change has come. My issue is with the divisiveness that the election of President Obama has already created--the same divisiveness that I wrote about around election time. We have got to stop celebrating President Obama for just being a black man. When I hear President Obama speak-- one thing is clear. He is not satisfied with just being black-- his blackness is not what defines him. He strives to be a good husband, a loving father, a man of the people, and an agent of change. I think one of the tragedies of Obama's campaign is that he felt the need to identify himself as being a black man. Clearly he's bi-racial. He noted on a few occasions that he sees himself as everyone will always see him... as a black man. Our own perceptions have contributed to a man's understanding or lack of understanding of himself. That speaks to our inability (as a nation) to give up the small stuff. We're still seeing a black president before we see a loving and talented leader who is capable of bringing unity and change to our nation. I'm sure that some will criticize me for not "understanding" what this means for "us" and that I'm failing to see the historical and cultural importance of such an event-- please understand that this time... we're really at the mountaintop. The only difference is that we're on the mountaintop with fellow brothers and sisters--black, white, asian, latino, gay, straight, old, young, wealthy and poor.
My apologies for the rant.....
BIG NEWS... I applied for this community grant through the Brown Rudnick public interest group before our winter break. The other day I received word that they would be giving my class 1,650$ for a reading intervention program and some ALPHA smarts! God is good--all the time. It is truly amazing to have someone put faith in you. I love how I can apply for a grant via a brief application online and a group of people can deem my cause to be worthy of their financial backing (and a significant backing at that). That's beautiful to me. I have faith in our humanity because of examples like these.
The girls lost a tough game last night. We fought back and forth all game before losing to Friendship Jr. Academy by 2. Man, it's hard to motivate the girls sometimes. For the first three and a half quarters, it seemed like they were content to just be losing by 5-10 points. It wasn't until they pulled within two that they seemed to be invested in the rest of the game! We're still trying to find ways to keep the motivation consistent, and I think that will come with some more success. Regardless, we're 6-2 with two big games coming up. Your support would be greatly appreciated!
A question to consider-- how are our children? Are they fed, do they have shelter? Do we provide them with enough affection? Are we telling our children that we love them enough? Are we telling them that we love them at all?
Sometimes I wonder whether or not we're aware of our responsibility in dealing with children. We'd like to assume the best-- to assume that they're being loved at home, that someone is there to listen to their problems, that they're not exposed to violence, hatred, or abuse. We assume that our children have been given the tools to survive and live in a world that most of us are struggling in. Do we take the necessary precautions to ensure that our children are getting what they might not be getting otherwise? Are we taking care of our children as if they were our own? Sometimes it just kills me to think about how we bring the defenseless in to this world without providing them with the necessary defenses they need. I suppose the thought ultimately came after holding my four month-old cousin. Everyone was telling her how cute she was (very true), and giving her lots of love and attention. Kind words poured ouf of their mouths and smiles were abundant. I just wondered what her life would be like if she never received any of that. Then I thought about some of our kids.... and realized that was their reality.
While the inauguration festivities have come and gone-- the division created by the election has not. I cannot stress how disappointed I am in people's simplicity. "My president is black... his house is white"... or how bout the text I received on inauguration day, "You know why it's so cold today? Because they said it'd be a cold day in hell before a black man was president"... sentiments like these are killing me. I, along with many other Americans (black, white, latino, asian), have celebrated the fact that our country has come far enough to elect a man who is different from the previous 43-- someone who is bi-racial, someone who is African-American. This is a big deal-- I see the pride in people's faces... my Dad smiles from ear to ear everytime he mentions something about President Obama. The man represents so much to so many people.
I take no issue with an appreciation of history being made--with the acknowledgment that a beautiful change has come. My issue is with the divisiveness that the election of President Obama has already created--the same divisiveness that I wrote about around election time. We have got to stop celebrating President Obama for just being a black man. When I hear President Obama speak-- one thing is clear. He is not satisfied with just being black-- his blackness is not what defines him. He strives to be a good husband, a loving father, a man of the people, and an agent of change. I think one of the tragedies of Obama's campaign is that he felt the need to identify himself as being a black man. Clearly he's bi-racial. He noted on a few occasions that he sees himself as everyone will always see him... as a black man. Our own perceptions have contributed to a man's understanding or lack of understanding of himself. That speaks to our inability (as a nation) to give up the small stuff. We're still seeing a black president before we see a loving and talented leader who is capable of bringing unity and change to our nation. I'm sure that some will criticize me for not "understanding" what this means for "us" and that I'm failing to see the historical and cultural importance of such an event-- please understand that this time... we're really at the mountaintop. The only difference is that we're on the mountaintop with fellow brothers and sisters--black, white, asian, latino, gay, straight, old, young, wealthy and poor.
My apologies for the rant.....
BIG NEWS... I applied for this community grant through the Brown Rudnick public interest group before our winter break. The other day I received word that they would be giving my class 1,650$ for a reading intervention program and some ALPHA smarts! God is good--all the time. It is truly amazing to have someone put faith in you. I love how I can apply for a grant via a brief application online and a group of people can deem my cause to be worthy of their financial backing (and a significant backing at that). That's beautiful to me. I have faith in our humanity because of examples like these.
The girls lost a tough game last night. We fought back and forth all game before losing to Friendship Jr. Academy by 2. Man, it's hard to motivate the girls sometimes. For the first three and a half quarters, it seemed like they were content to just be losing by 5-10 points. It wasn't until they pulled within two that they seemed to be invested in the rest of the game! We're still trying to find ways to keep the motivation consistent, and I think that will come with some more success. Regardless, we're 6-2 with two big games coming up. Your support would be greatly appreciated!
A question to consider-- how are our children? Are they fed, do they have shelter? Do we provide them with enough affection? Are we telling our children that we love them enough? Are we telling them that we love them at all?
Sometimes I wonder whether or not we're aware of our responsibility in dealing with children. We'd like to assume the best-- to assume that they're being loved at home, that someone is there to listen to their problems, that they're not exposed to violence, hatred, or abuse. We assume that our children have been given the tools to survive and live in a world that most of us are struggling in. Do we take the necessary precautions to ensure that our children are getting what they might not be getting otherwise? Are we taking care of our children as if they were our own? Sometimes it just kills me to think about how we bring the defenseless in to this world without providing them with the necessary defenses they need. I suppose the thought ultimately came after holding my four month-old cousin. Everyone was telling her how cute she was (very true), and giving her lots of love and attention. Kind words poured ouf of their mouths and smiles were abundant. I just wondered what her life would be like if she never received any of that. Then I thought about some of our kids.... and realized that was their reality.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Halfway Crooks
So we've reached the halfway point of the school year. December came with the quickness... but things slowed down like crazy post-Thanksgiving. It was like someone told the kids that they didn't have to do work after Thanksgiving. "Yo Mr. DeShields, we ain' supposed to have work... what's this mess? Mr. DeShields... I got a headache (day after day after day)... We supposed to be drawing pictures of snowmen and watching movies and all that"--
Psssshhhh... needless to say, the last 2 weeks before vacation were an adventure. Kids and teachers alike were strugglin. Plenty of highlights though, as always:
-Our holiday program was off the hook. Paul really puts on some nice programs... and the arts department is really committed to what they do. Shout out to Ms. Floyd, Mr. Wegman, Ms. Johnson, and Mr. Saltman for all their hard work.
-The girls won a game 31-0. Unfortunately we played a team of 5th and 6th graders. Frustration abounds with our schedule. The game before, we showed up at a gym 45 minutes away to find out that the team we were playing didn't even have a middle school girl's team. We decided to scrimmage the team's high school squad..... man, that was painful to watch. Our girls did their best, but they were just completely undersized.
-3 IEP meetings in 3 days... all lasting 3 hours each. The IEP marathon was wild... and the meetings were even crazier. Wish I could share the highlights of the meetings, but just know that they were out of control.
Now that we're on break though, I've been thinking about some things for the second half of the year. Leslie and I attended a development session on co-teaching. It was really helpful to learn about some practices and strategies that would work best for us in our inclusion classroom. It'll be cool to be able to implement some of them after the break-
Some thoughts/plans:
-Differentiation has to get better. I've got to be able to address similar needs in different ways. It means more planning, but it also means your class can move forward together (less re-teaching/foundational lessons in the long run).
-Organization is serious. I used to be able to get by with minimal organizational skills, and by passing things off as "looking neat" in college... but for real, you've got to be on point in the classroom. While I haven't lost any papers or tests, I've certainly come close. Word to Target right about now, I need some desktop filing trays.
-More to come as my mind slowly recovers from being in break mode......
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Break is legit so far... and there's still more break to be had....
Here's what I've done:
NAP
Read- I'm reading Ben Carson's new book about taking risks, and a book by the former CEO of HR Block (he gave up his position to become a high school math teacher in kansas city--interesting so far, but I keep sensing his ego more and more).
Watch movies (I'm up to 12)
-Slumdog millionaire is the best movie I've seen in a minute... freida pinto is ill-na-na too... and I shall marry her.
-I waited forever to see Che: The Argentine (or Che Part One)-- it was well done, but was entirely about the Cuban Revolution-- it was interesting to see the dynamic between Guevara and Fidel....Guevara basically did everything Fidel told him to. I read a review that said the movie cast Guevara as being both controversial and as a revolutionary... I'd have to disagree and say it cast him as being a positive influential figure-- most of his controversies stem from post-Cuban Revolution...specifically dealing with him torturing bolivians.... so it'll be interesting to see if they address it at all in part 2?!
something stuck with me from the movie though-- Guevara was big on educating his soldiers and making sure that they were literate-- "One who cannot read or write is easily deceived".... so true.
Spending time:
the best part of being home is spending a good deal of time with family and friends. my parents both work longgggg hours, so i've really enjoyed the past two days with them.
on Christmas, my grandparents, my uncle, and my cousin came over. we had a meal, I passed out, and we all had a great time. it's just really nice to get up and spend uninterrupted time with loved ones.
Psssshhhh... needless to say, the last 2 weeks before vacation were an adventure. Kids and teachers alike were strugglin. Plenty of highlights though, as always:
-Our holiday program was off the hook. Paul really puts on some nice programs... and the arts department is really committed to what they do. Shout out to Ms. Floyd, Mr. Wegman, Ms. Johnson, and Mr. Saltman for all their hard work.
-The girls won a game 31-0. Unfortunately we played a team of 5th and 6th graders. Frustration abounds with our schedule. The game before, we showed up at a gym 45 minutes away to find out that the team we were playing didn't even have a middle school girl's team. We decided to scrimmage the team's high school squad..... man, that was painful to watch. Our girls did their best, but they were just completely undersized.
-3 IEP meetings in 3 days... all lasting 3 hours each. The IEP marathon was wild... and the meetings were even crazier. Wish I could share the highlights of the meetings, but just know that they were out of control.
Now that we're on break though, I've been thinking about some things for the second half of the year. Leslie and I attended a development session on co-teaching. It was really helpful to learn about some practices and strategies that would work best for us in our inclusion classroom. It'll be cool to be able to implement some of them after the break-
Some thoughts/plans:
-Differentiation has to get better. I've got to be able to address similar needs in different ways. It means more planning, but it also means your class can move forward together (less re-teaching/foundational lessons in the long run).
-Organization is serious. I used to be able to get by with minimal organizational skills, and by passing things off as "looking neat" in college... but for real, you've got to be on point in the classroom. While I haven't lost any papers or tests, I've certainly come close. Word to Target right about now, I need some desktop filing trays.
-More to come as my mind slowly recovers from being in break mode......
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Break is legit so far... and there's still more break to be had....
Here's what I've done:
NAP
Read- I'm reading Ben Carson's new book about taking risks, and a book by the former CEO of HR Block (he gave up his position to become a high school math teacher in kansas city--interesting so far, but I keep sensing his ego more and more).
Watch movies (I'm up to 12)
-Slumdog millionaire is the best movie I've seen in a minute... freida pinto is ill-na-na too... and I shall marry her.
-I waited forever to see Che: The Argentine (or Che Part One)-- it was well done, but was entirely about the Cuban Revolution-- it was interesting to see the dynamic between Guevara and Fidel....Guevara basically did everything Fidel told him to. I read a review that said the movie cast Guevara as being both controversial and as a revolutionary... I'd have to disagree and say it cast him as being a positive influential figure-- most of his controversies stem from post-Cuban Revolution...specifically dealing with him torturing bolivians.... so it'll be interesting to see if they address it at all in part 2?!
something stuck with me from the movie though-- Guevara was big on educating his soldiers and making sure that they were literate-- "One who cannot read or write is easily deceived".... so true.
Spending time:
the best part of being home is spending a good deal of time with family and friends. my parents both work longgggg hours, so i've really enjoyed the past two days with them.
on Christmas, my grandparents, my uncle, and my cousin came over. we had a meal, I passed out, and we all had a great time. it's just really nice to get up and spend uninterrupted time with loved ones.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Different strokes for different folks...
So...I've been trying to work on differentiation more and more in my classroom in an effort to address some individual needs, and to allow my kids to work in groups more--we're getting there... but still, another attempt:
Slept on like a red eye.....
Again, my apologies for not updating for a hot minute. November-December have just been nonstop.
A few things:
The girls are 3-0! After losing all three of our tournament games, I wondered if the girls would be ready to start league play. After winning 37-2 and 30-2, it's clear that they were determined to turn things around. Our third win came from a forfeit-- and now we face our toughest test yet.... Friendship Woodridge on Monday. I don't know why they're coming to our house with that "friendship" nonsense... but seriously-- Kelanji (one of our girls) was telling me that Woodridge likes to press the heck out of the teams they play. We have our work cut out for us.... but it'll be a good test for us regardless of the result.
I've been really impressed by how motivated the girls have been to get better. Everyone got to play in our last game, and some of the girls realized how much work they need to do in order to be a regular contributor. It's good to see that they're not complacent with where they're at... and they're inspired by each other's skills....
Friday, we took the teams to the Wizards/Lakers game. It was a lot of fun to get to spend time with the kids outside of school...especially at a Wizards game. We had a really good time... and Kobe played like garbage, so all was well with the world that night. (well.... almost.)
Parents need to stop schemin'. DC Special Education is in shambles (at least in DCPS and most charter schools)-- because parents are just steady suing the school system for what we might call educational malpractice. Basically... parents look for "inadequacies" in the way a school provides its special education services, and take the school to court to try to get compensatory services for their child (which usually means upwards of 40,000$ a year to send their child to a boarding school). While I'm sure some children are the victims of a poor education, and one that does not meet their IEP needs, there have definitely been quite a few parents who have exploited the system. As a result, Special Education is costing DCPS mad money each year.... and each year our programs lose more and more money and other resources. Needless to say, we've been experiencing some of this lately-- and it's discouraging to see parents take away from the system that's supposed to be helping their child.....
I was able to start working on remedial reading skills with a few of my students last week. I must confess that I have no clue how to teach reading, and I'm pretty intimidated by the thought of it. Regardless, we've started on phonics and blending.... and my students will be excellent readers by the end of the year. One of the girls I'm working with already blends... and she does it quite well. She usually does it silently... and then is just afraid to try to pronounce the word. When you sit and listen to her blend, its clear that she's right 95% of the time... but it's hard to get a child not to be afraid of mispronunciation. It seems silly, but I remember how afraid I used to be to make a mistake when I was reading in front of the class... makes you wonder how much confidence plays a role in reluctant readers-- I was excited that the one girl in particular that I was working with on Thursday was ALREADY making progress.... things were really looking up.
Anyway, I was able to grip some resources from one of our more veteran reading teachers. She's the G.O.A.T. and is always so eager to offer her services-- we talked for a bit about how the girl I was working with was struggling with her reading and writing-- She had worked with her last year.... and gave me a look like.... don't be disappointed when I tell you this..... Well... she basically told me that the girl has serious recall problems. One day she'll know her long and short a sounds like it's her job.... the next, she'll forget we even talked about them. Talk about a buzzkill! I walked out of her classroom with more resolve than ever... it was a blessing in disguise I suppose as I need to remain motivated with the goal of having each one of our students be strong readers by the end of the year.
And shout out to Ms. Floyd and Mr. Wegman who were more than accommodating when I asked if I could grab students out of their classes. Ms. Floyd had the quote of the week, "She can't read my music if she can't read!".... YUP!
I'm excited for Christmas. It was really nice to be at home at Thanksgiving and to spend time with family and friends. I really enjoy being at home... don't get me wrong... DC is cool, and I've definitely enjoyed my time here. My calling is in Camden or Philly though... I know that's where God wants me to be. I'm glad I have my kids here and a great supportive staff who have become friends at Paul.... they carry me through. There's not much left for me in DC otherwise... so it's nice to have that support system in place at school. I won't say that I regret my decision to stay in DC-- it's all part of God's plan for me to be here... but I am anxious and excited to get back home at some point.
With that said....
Accept the master plan with joy in your heart-- stop trying to control a destiny that is not yours to control. Stop dreaming, and start living.
EP
A few things:
The girls are 3-0! After losing all three of our tournament games, I wondered if the girls would be ready to start league play. After winning 37-2 and 30-2, it's clear that they were determined to turn things around. Our third win came from a forfeit-- and now we face our toughest test yet.... Friendship Woodridge on Monday. I don't know why they're coming to our house with that "friendship" nonsense... but seriously-- Kelanji (one of our girls) was telling me that Woodridge likes to press the heck out of the teams they play. We have our work cut out for us.... but it'll be a good test for us regardless of the result.
I've been really impressed by how motivated the girls have been to get better. Everyone got to play in our last game, and some of the girls realized how much work they need to do in order to be a regular contributor. It's good to see that they're not complacent with where they're at... and they're inspired by each other's skills....
Friday, we took the teams to the Wizards/Lakers game. It was a lot of fun to get to spend time with the kids outside of school...especially at a Wizards game. We had a really good time... and Kobe played like garbage, so all was well with the world that night. (well.... almost.)
Parents need to stop schemin'. DC Special Education is in shambles (at least in DCPS and most charter schools)-- because parents are just steady suing the school system for what we might call educational malpractice. Basically... parents look for "inadequacies" in the way a school provides its special education services, and take the school to court to try to get compensatory services for their child (which usually means upwards of 40,000$ a year to send their child to a boarding school). While I'm sure some children are the victims of a poor education, and one that does not meet their IEP needs, there have definitely been quite a few parents who have exploited the system. As a result, Special Education is costing DCPS mad money each year.... and each year our programs lose more and more money and other resources. Needless to say, we've been experiencing some of this lately-- and it's discouraging to see parents take away from the system that's supposed to be helping their child.....
I was able to start working on remedial reading skills with a few of my students last week. I must confess that I have no clue how to teach reading, and I'm pretty intimidated by the thought of it. Regardless, we've started on phonics and blending.... and my students will be excellent readers by the end of the year. One of the girls I'm working with already blends... and she does it quite well. She usually does it silently... and then is just afraid to try to pronounce the word. When you sit and listen to her blend, its clear that she's right 95% of the time... but it's hard to get a child not to be afraid of mispronunciation. It seems silly, but I remember how afraid I used to be to make a mistake when I was reading in front of the class... makes you wonder how much confidence plays a role in reluctant readers-- I was excited that the one girl in particular that I was working with on Thursday was ALREADY making progress.... things were really looking up.
Anyway, I was able to grip some resources from one of our more veteran reading teachers. She's the G.O.A.T. and is always so eager to offer her services-- we talked for a bit about how the girl I was working with was struggling with her reading and writing-- She had worked with her last year.... and gave me a look like.... don't be disappointed when I tell you this..... Well... she basically told me that the girl has serious recall problems. One day she'll know her long and short a sounds like it's her job.... the next, she'll forget we even talked about them. Talk about a buzzkill! I walked out of her classroom with more resolve than ever... it was a blessing in disguise I suppose as I need to remain motivated with the goal of having each one of our students be strong readers by the end of the year.
And shout out to Ms. Floyd and Mr. Wegman who were more than accommodating when I asked if I could grab students out of their classes. Ms. Floyd had the quote of the week, "She can't read my music if she can't read!".... YUP!
I'm excited for Christmas. It was really nice to be at home at Thanksgiving and to spend time with family and friends. I really enjoy being at home... don't get me wrong... DC is cool, and I've definitely enjoyed my time here. My calling is in Camden or Philly though... I know that's where God wants me to be. I'm glad I have my kids here and a great supportive staff who have become friends at Paul.... they carry me through. There's not much left for me in DC otherwise... so it's nice to have that support system in place at school. I won't say that I regret my decision to stay in DC-- it's all part of God's plan for me to be here... but I am anxious and excited to get back home at some point.
With that said....
Accept the master plan with joy in your heart-- stop trying to control a destiny that is not yours to control. Stop dreaming, and start living.
EP
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
STAY TUNED....
For an update--haven't had a moment to write, but will def. catch yall up soon.
peacepeace
-edPrince
peacepeace
-edPrince
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
"Your streets are upside down...I'm here to represent"
It's been a quick minute since I've been able to update... but a lot has been occupying my time!
First things first... i'm extremely proud of my girl's for their performance over the weekend. For those of you who don't know, I'm the assistant girl's basketball coach for the 6-8th grade. This past weekend, we had a 3-game tournament in Bowie, M.D. To be quite honest, our first game on Friday night was a disaster. The girls came out flat, goofing around on the court, and they appeared to just be disinterested in the game. We lost by 23. Saturday night, we played another tough team. The girls came our firing .... they were playing with intensity... getting open looks, passing the ball well... and finally... yes finally, they were rebounding the ball. It came down to the last few seconds... and unfortunately, we lost by 2 points. The girls were visibly crushed. The team as a whole really came together that night... no one complained about playing time, the girls on the bench cheered their teammates on... it was just a great feeling to be apart of. I really felt like a proud parent. On Sunday... we had to play a morning game. Everyone was exhausted... and it showed in the way we played. The girls started slowly... again... but they were able to pull the game within 1 with a minute and some change to play. The game ended once again with us falling just a bit short... and we lost by 1. It was a hard 0-3 weekend for the girls to swallow.. but I was proud of the progress they had made in such short time. We still have a lot of work to do, but the girls have seen how well they can play when they're motivated. At times, they play some lockdown defense... and if we can learn to score on a consistent basis.... we're going to be on par with the bulls of the EARLY 90s. Ok... maybe not just yet... but you know what I mean.
Big ups to http://teachersol.blogspot.com/ I've been hitting this DC special education blog up a lot for new ideas, inspirations, and up-to-date news on special education mandates and the like.
I checked out Michelle Rhee's five year plan (draft) for student achievement today. ( http://www.k12.dc.us/chancellor/documents/DCPS_Five-Year-Plan_Draft_Oct_29_2008.pdf) It was certainly well-detailed and left out most of the more controversial issues going on (potentially creating a state of emergency in DCPS and turning schools into charter schools). It's nice to see that Ms. Rhee is not completely wrapped up with the teacher contract/union stuff... as there are changes to be made elsewhere... and we need a plan to do it.
As a Special Educator, you know my main concern was how we plan to address Special Education in the District over the next five years. Rhee outlined her 6 goals/needs for change as being Compelling schools, Great people, Alligned Curriculum, Data-Driven Decisions, Effective Central Office, and an Engaged Community. I decided to search the document specifically for her plan regarding special education, and found the following:
A general blurb about compelling schools: We will do this (create compelling schools) by enhancing the quality of our school portfolio, ensuring accountability for school performance, making schools safer and more modern, and expanding our ability to meet the needs of students with special needs.
First things first... i'm extremely proud of my girl's for their performance over the weekend. For those of you who don't know, I'm the assistant girl's basketball coach for the 6-8th grade. This past weekend, we had a 3-game tournament in Bowie, M.D. To be quite honest, our first game on Friday night was a disaster. The girls came out flat, goofing around on the court, and they appeared to just be disinterested in the game. We lost by 23. Saturday night, we played another tough team. The girls came our firing .... they were playing with intensity... getting open looks, passing the ball well... and finally... yes finally, they were rebounding the ball. It came down to the last few seconds... and unfortunately, we lost by 2 points. The girls were visibly crushed. The team as a whole really came together that night... no one complained about playing time, the girls on the bench cheered their teammates on... it was just a great feeling to be apart of. I really felt like a proud parent. On Sunday... we had to play a morning game. Everyone was exhausted... and it showed in the way we played. The girls started slowly... again... but they were able to pull the game within 1 with a minute and some change to play. The game ended once again with us falling just a bit short... and we lost by 1. It was a hard 0-3 weekend for the girls to swallow.. but I was proud of the progress they had made in such short time. We still have a lot of work to do, but the girls have seen how well they can play when they're motivated. At times, they play some lockdown defense... and if we can learn to score on a consistent basis.... we're going to be on par with the bulls of the EARLY 90s. Ok... maybe not just yet... but you know what I mean.
Big ups to http://teachersol.blogspot.com/ I've been hitting this DC special education blog up a lot for new ideas, inspirations, and up-to-date news on special education mandates and the like.
I checked out Michelle Rhee's five year plan (draft) for student achievement today. ( http://www.k12.dc.us/chancellor/documents/DCPS_Five-Year-Plan_Draft_Oct_29_2008.pdf) It was certainly well-detailed and left out most of the more controversial issues going on (potentially creating a state of emergency in DCPS and turning schools into charter schools). It's nice to see that Ms. Rhee is not completely wrapped up with the teacher contract/union stuff... as there are changes to be made elsewhere... and we need a plan to do it.
As a Special Educator, you know my main concern was how we plan to address Special Education in the District over the next five years. Rhee outlined her 6 goals/needs for change as being Compelling schools, Great people, Alligned Curriculum, Data-Driven Decisions, Effective Central Office, and an Engaged Community. I decided to search the document specifically for her plan regarding special education, and found the following:
A general blurb about compelling schools: We will do this (create compelling schools) by enhancing the quality of our school portfolio, ensuring accountability for school performance, making schools safer and more modern, and expanding our ability to meet the needs of students with special needs.
I feel like this is all too common in plans in proposals in education-- "We'll give more money and attention to special education... we'll make sure that the needs of our neediest children are met"... with no specific plan in place. How about running special education programs efficiently so that we don't get sued for millions of dollars for being out of compliance? Or maybe we can hire certified special ed. teachers and compensate them according to their work instead of just hiring people who didn't make the cut to teach special education. Maybe I'm just being ambitious here.
I'm excited to get home for Thanksgiving. It will be nice to spend some quality time with friends, family, the dog, and my bed. I also have big plans to begin a phonics-based reading program with some of my lower-level performers when I get back. I was able to sit down (with Jess, my PD) and identify some of the things that are holding certain groups of students from performing at their highest level. Big ups to her-- that was really helpful. I came to the conclusion that certain students lack the basic reading skills that they'll need in order to perform higher levels of blooms. I'm real excited to get that going-- It's painful to see some of my students not being able to read.... what's worse is that they're eager to read, but simply cannot decode anything higher than a three letter word. Sending them to high school without reading skills is not an option. Most literature suggests that students who can't read by the 10th grade are put in survival mode... all hope at reading is abandoned... and the goal becomes to get them to graduation. That's why middle school is so important... we're not only preparing our students for high school.. but preparing them not to be lost in the mix once they get there.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
"We talkin' bout PRACTICE.....PRACTICE"
For a short week (off on Tuesday for Veteran's Day), this has been a long week so far. I think I tend to get comfortable with these short weeks, and don't prepare myself adequately for the rigors of the week as a whole. My day starts at 7am when we get to school. Classes are over at 3:30. Basketball practice (more on that later) starts at 3:45 and ends at 6. 11 hour days are no joke! The first few months of school, I used to pass out on my desk 7th period (a planning period-- no class), because my body would just involuntarily shut down. I've since stopped napping in school, but have made an honest effort to get to bed by 8:30 every night. I haven't been to bed at 8:30 since elementary school-- this is wild! Lately, i've been sleeping pretty poorly too. I tend to wake up every two hours, and slowly drift back to sleep. Even though I budget for 9 hours each night, I usually get about 6 hours of solid sleep.
The past few days have been BUSY. Despite the nonstop action, I've been feeling better about the flow of the day/week. It's nice to start a new advisory with a plan in place, knowing all of my students, and being in control of most things in the classroom. I'm gradually beginning to be on top of things too....it's not enough to know students-- you have to know them in and out. As a special educator, and especially as a case manager.. it's not enough to know how a student is doing in my class... I have to know how he/she is doing in all of their classes. I have to know their situation at home, their background, their level of performance, their abilities, their weaknesses, their tendencies... I've come to know my students in ways that I would have never imagined (sometimes to my dismay). Some of our kids are going through, or have gone through a whole lot at such a young age. Your heart breaks for them, but it's also encouraging to see them seemingly carry on so well despite their circumstances. These are some of the most resilient people I've ever met. My relationship with my kids has afforded me the opportunity to have such meaningful interactions that I really value and enjoy. I find myself thinking about my kids all the time--I just thank God that I don't have to take care of them when they leave school! HA!
The new advisory has had its fair share of ups and downs. I've seen some motivation from some sutdents that I never saw in the first advisory. I'm also seeing certain students remaining in their old ways--failing to turn in assignments, not paying attention in class, and just having a lack of interest in general. Some of my kids become space cadets from the moment they sit in their seats.... no wonder NASA spends so much $$$$$-- I swear they're sponsoring my kids for their daily space missions..... Regardless of the downs, it's been a joy to witness the progress my kids are making. "High School Musical 3's Biggest Fan" has really turned things around. He went from not writing complete thoughts/sentences on assignments to writing full grammatically correct paragraphs with complete thoughts that show evidence of thorough analysis. Others have made tremendous social and emotional growth. It's been a real blessing to witness some guys mature.... it's a slow process... but I've been able to celebrate (with them) their small lessons learned as I see them happen.
The other joy in my life is girl's basketball. We have a squad of about 12-14 girls (6-8th grade) who are eager to learn the game and be part of the team. The problem is that we have 4-5 girls who have a lot of skill... they've been playing for a few years now. Aside from them, the rest of the team really needs to learn the basic foundations of the sport. Practice is wild.... some girls are going behind their back doing reverse layups, while others are double dribbling and shooting on the wrong basket. Obviously, we want everyone to get playing time and an equal exposure to the sport. We also want to be a competitive team.
We had our first scrimmage last night. What an adventure. We started slow... the other squad had this girl who was like 5'9... about my size, and quick as all. She would put the ball on the floor... gather, and be at the hoop for a layup. She must've scored like 15 quick points. Most of our inexperienced girls had NO clue what to do... and were very nervous! Some of them almost came to tears they were so nervous! It was a hot mess. We had some bright spots, and played really solid defense.... but we still have a lot of work to do. After losing 32-14, it was disappointing to see only 10 girls (out of 16) come to practice today. We're trying to create an atmosphere that allows for the girls to have fun and be a solid team at the same time. We have the talent-- we just don't have the commitment and the motivation just yet. For some girls, unfortunately, basketball might not be the best choice for them-- It's hard to have that conversation... seeing how much fun they have at practice and how hard they want to learn.... but how do you keep girls on the team who only show up to one practice per week? But coach... we talkin bout PRACTICE! I'm waiting for it... I really am.
Commit yourself. Be apart of something. It is only when you give of yourself that you can receive so much more. When you give, give your whole self. Anything less is just walking through the motions. Do not let others think that you are committed to something that your heart is not in. You never know who is depending on you, do not let them down. Make a statement about yourself with your dedication and integrity. Be someone and something to someone else. Be committed.
-ed.Prince
Check this out: I've been working on this project for quite some time since I saw it posted on the internet (http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~johnny/projects/wii/) awhile ago. You can make your own smartboard (2,500$ touch-screen whiteboard) with simply a nintendo wii remote (40$) an infra-red pen (10-30$), and of course a projector. If your school provides projectors, this could be an excellent tool for you in your classroom. I've had some success with my visual learners (almost everyone can benefit from a visual) already. In this video, I demonstrate a few applications that might be appropriate for your classroom.
The past few days have been BUSY. Despite the nonstop action, I've been feeling better about the flow of the day/week. It's nice to start a new advisory with a plan in place, knowing all of my students, and being in control of most things in the classroom. I'm gradually beginning to be on top of things too....it's not enough to know students-- you have to know them in and out. As a special educator, and especially as a case manager.. it's not enough to know how a student is doing in my class... I have to know how he/she is doing in all of their classes. I have to know their situation at home, their background, their level of performance, their abilities, their weaknesses, their tendencies... I've come to know my students in ways that I would have never imagined (sometimes to my dismay). Some of our kids are going through, or have gone through a whole lot at such a young age. Your heart breaks for them, but it's also encouraging to see them seemingly carry on so well despite their circumstances. These are some of the most resilient people I've ever met. My relationship with my kids has afforded me the opportunity to have such meaningful interactions that I really value and enjoy. I find myself thinking about my kids all the time--I just thank God that I don't have to take care of them when they leave school! HA!
The new advisory has had its fair share of ups and downs. I've seen some motivation from some sutdents that I never saw in the first advisory. I'm also seeing certain students remaining in their old ways--failing to turn in assignments, not paying attention in class, and just having a lack of interest in general. Some of my kids become space cadets from the moment they sit in their seats.... no wonder NASA spends so much $$$$$-- I swear they're sponsoring my kids for their daily space missions..... Regardless of the downs, it's been a joy to witness the progress my kids are making. "High School Musical 3's Biggest Fan" has really turned things around. He went from not writing complete thoughts/sentences on assignments to writing full grammatically correct paragraphs with complete thoughts that show evidence of thorough analysis. Others have made tremendous social and emotional growth. It's been a real blessing to witness some guys mature.... it's a slow process... but I've been able to celebrate (with them) their small lessons learned as I see them happen.
The other joy in my life is girl's basketball. We have a squad of about 12-14 girls (6-8th grade) who are eager to learn the game and be part of the team. The problem is that we have 4-5 girls who have a lot of skill... they've been playing for a few years now. Aside from them, the rest of the team really needs to learn the basic foundations of the sport. Practice is wild.... some girls are going behind their back doing reverse layups, while others are double dribbling and shooting on the wrong basket. Obviously, we want everyone to get playing time and an equal exposure to the sport. We also want to be a competitive team.
We had our first scrimmage last night. What an adventure. We started slow... the other squad had this girl who was like 5'9... about my size, and quick as all. She would put the ball on the floor... gather, and be at the hoop for a layup. She must've scored like 15 quick points. Most of our inexperienced girls had NO clue what to do... and were very nervous! Some of them almost came to tears they were so nervous! It was a hot mess. We had some bright spots, and played really solid defense.... but we still have a lot of work to do. After losing 32-14, it was disappointing to see only 10 girls (out of 16) come to practice today. We're trying to create an atmosphere that allows for the girls to have fun and be a solid team at the same time. We have the talent-- we just don't have the commitment and the motivation just yet. For some girls, unfortunately, basketball might not be the best choice for them-- It's hard to have that conversation... seeing how much fun they have at practice and how hard they want to learn.... but how do you keep girls on the team who only show up to one practice per week? But coach... we talkin bout PRACTICE! I'm waiting for it... I really am.
Commit yourself. Be apart of something. It is only when you give of yourself that you can receive so much more. When you give, give your whole self. Anything less is just walking through the motions. Do not let others think that you are committed to something that your heart is not in. You never know who is depending on you, do not let them down. Make a statement about yourself with your dedication and integrity. Be someone and something to someone else. Be committed.
-ed.Prince
Check this out: I've been working on this project for quite some time since I saw it posted on the internet (http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~johnny/projects/wii/) awhile ago. You can make your own smartboard (2,500$ touch-screen whiteboard) with simply a nintendo wii remote (40$) an infra-red pen (10-30$), and of course a projector. If your school provides projectors, this could be an excellent tool for you in your classroom. I've had some success with my visual learners (almost everyone can benefit from a visual) already. In this video, I demonstrate a few applications that might be appropriate for your classroom.
Friday, November 7, 2008
"Parents just don't understand"
I'm finding that this is not the case with Paul parents. Paul parents understand.
Actually, the prevailing perception of parents in urban school districts is that they don't have an interest in their child's education. The reality of the situation is that parents want their children to succeeed (as if this wasn't common sense), and are kicking their behinds at home in order to make sure that they will. The disconnect lies in the fact that not all parents can be involved in their child's education in traditional ways. This is why most teachers will assume that a parent simply does not care about their child's performance.
Case in point-- today we had parent-teacher conferences. I've had 7 parents come to conferences in the course of 7 hours. I teach approximately 90 students. Does the turnout for parent-teacher conferences reflect the level of parental involvement? Absolutely not. I really don't know how we can expect a large turnout for conferences when they're scheduled from noon until 7 pm. This isn't to knock our scheduling at all. Imagine a parent can't get out of work early. It's Friday... you know everyone is trying to leave work by 5 (at the latest). DC traffic is already a pain, and parents have to race to school before 7oclock? I can't say that I'd be beat to do conferences either.
What's really caught me off guard is the fact that most parents came in with an agenda. Now, I was expecting to explain why I gave Sally Sue a C, or why Easy Eddie ended up failing for this advisory. Instead, I'd say that 5 of the 7 parents came in to explain their own faults. "I need to do better this advisory, I haven't been on my son/daughter as much as I need to". "I like to put all of the negative things on me... he doesn't live with me just yet, and until he does we might continue to experience some rough times". It was inspiring to see some parents take responsibility for their child's grades, but at the same times I was hoping they wouldn't be so hard on themselves. In most cases, I think their children could benefit from a little tough love here and there, but I really hope that the parents weren't making excuses for them. It seemed as though some of the parents were being carried by their children. "My son said", "My daughter wants to do this..." "I don't want them to think..."... which is fine, you'll have whatever dynamic you will with your son/daughter--but establish some sort of authority.....dag.
I genuinely enjoyed my first bout of parent-teacher conferences. It was great to rave to parents about their child-- I can't say that I did much ranting. The pride that each parent has in their child was evident-- and it was nice to see that in each smile and "Why thank you" that they gave when a complement was dropped.
Every parent is a teacher, and every teacher a parent. As parents, we are responsible for teaching our children how to grow in to young men and women, while also providing the most consistent and fiulfilling love and nourishment possible. As teachers, we are responsible for giving our students the skills and the knowledge necessary to succeed in life. It is only when we embrace both the role of the teacher and the parent that we can truly become a driving force in our children's lives.
ed Prince.
Actually, the prevailing perception of parents in urban school districts is that they don't have an interest in their child's education. The reality of the situation is that parents want their children to succeeed (as if this wasn't common sense), and are kicking their behinds at home in order to make sure that they will. The disconnect lies in the fact that not all parents can be involved in their child's education in traditional ways. This is why most teachers will assume that a parent simply does not care about their child's performance.
Case in point-- today we had parent-teacher conferences. I've had 7 parents come to conferences in the course of 7 hours. I teach approximately 90 students. Does the turnout for parent-teacher conferences reflect the level of parental involvement? Absolutely not. I really don't know how we can expect a large turnout for conferences when they're scheduled from noon until 7 pm. This isn't to knock our scheduling at all. Imagine a parent can't get out of work early. It's Friday... you know everyone is trying to leave work by 5 (at the latest). DC traffic is already a pain, and parents have to race to school before 7oclock? I can't say that I'd be beat to do conferences either.
What's really caught me off guard is the fact that most parents came in with an agenda. Now, I was expecting to explain why I gave Sally Sue a C, or why Easy Eddie ended up failing for this advisory. Instead, I'd say that 5 of the 7 parents came in to explain their own faults. "I need to do better this advisory, I haven't been on my son/daughter as much as I need to". "I like to put all of the negative things on me... he doesn't live with me just yet, and until he does we might continue to experience some rough times". It was inspiring to see some parents take responsibility for their child's grades, but at the same times I was hoping they wouldn't be so hard on themselves. In most cases, I think their children could benefit from a little tough love here and there, but I really hope that the parents weren't making excuses for them. It seemed as though some of the parents were being carried by their children. "My son said", "My daughter wants to do this..." "I don't want them to think..."... which is fine, you'll have whatever dynamic you will with your son/daughter--but establish some sort of authority.....dag.
I genuinely enjoyed my first bout of parent-teacher conferences. It was great to rave to parents about their child-- I can't say that I did much ranting. The pride that each parent has in their child was evident-- and it was nice to see that in each smile and "Why thank you" that they gave when a complement was dropped.
Every parent is a teacher, and every teacher a parent. As parents, we are responsible for teaching our children how to grow in to young men and women, while also providing the most consistent and fiulfilling love and nourishment possible. As teachers, we are responsible for giving our students the skills and the knowledge necessary to succeed in life. It is only when we embrace both the role of the teacher and the parent that we can truly become a driving force in our children's lives.
ed Prince.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
"I want to talk to you"
HOPE was back today... for the first time in quite some time, I saw hope in the eyes of my students. The energy in the hallways this morning was incredible--all of my students were rockin' Obama buttons, people shouting, "Yes We DID", banging on lockers, dancing around.... there was so much genuine energy that I had never seen before. Some of the "hardest" guys in eighth grade were practically in tears, with HUGE smiles.... coming up to me to say, "MR DESHIELDS, WE DID IT!"
The raw emotion that my students expressed this morning was a fitting reminder of the reason that I love working with children. I see the same type of excitement and joy in the kids that I work with at summer camp--an unexplainable feeling. My kids at camp are truly free from whatever burdens they're facing at home... it's a week (or more) of just fun and GOD... there's not much better than that. It was good seeing that outside of camp... I can't say that I've seen that too many times before.
Yesterday, I had my students write letters to the newly elected President Obama. I know it sounds corny, but I figured I had to capitalize on the events of the day. I chose to do the assignment with my seventh grade classes because I've found that most of my students have a real passion for writing. They always seem to write more than enough, whereas my eighth graders usually have trouble producing more than two sentences. I didn't know how the assignment would go over with my students (especially because they were required to complete an entire election packet for history the night before). To my surprise, they were more than eager to write. I guess their eagerness had something to do with the fact that I promised them
that President Obama would eventually read these letters. With full faith and trust in Mr. DeShields, they wrote with a passion and determination that I've never seen from them before. Now that they've given me these amazing letters, I feel like I have no choice but to hand deliver them. Here are some excerpts of what they wrote:
"Some issues with this country is violence/crime and the war in Iraq. I know that the crime rate has shot up since 2004. People have lost family members and I too have lost one. Really what I think you should do is make a gun license law. Nobody can have a gun unless with a license. The war in Iraq is even bigger because its taking away from our economy and our population. What I think i will do is for violence/crime, I will start a petition or improve my behavior. For the war in Iraq, I can try to get people to start petitions to stop the war, have a truce and let it be".--
Sincerely,
Tired of People Talking in Class
"There needs to be change in this country and as president you must do this to build the foundation of our country. Number one kids should be aloud to vote. Children were the adults that used their genius to build this country and adults are learning from us. Number two we must aid other countries because if we have another war many people will die. Number three bring our troops home. You have to bring our troops home because our troops are fighting a false war and are dieing under false accusation."
Sincerely,
JRose from Chi-town
"Some changes I think you could make is to take guns out of communities so it can be safe so kids can go outside without their parents worrying about them. One more change that I think you could make is that you should take drugs out of communities also. What I will do is I will be a good citizen and not do bad things"
Sincerely,
Sedated
"I'm happy that you are president. And the election was really good. That a lot of people had voted for you as president. I hear you can speak spanish. And me, my name is _________ and I attend Paul PCS. And I'm hispanic. And how's everything at the white house? And Everyone likes to vote for you. Congratulations, Mr. Obama and it's nice to write this letter to you"
Sincerely,
Bernie Williams
"What I like to say in this letter is that I want change with the economy crisis right now. I have friends who have parents that lost three jobs. But what I really want to say is congratulations on becoming the #1 african-american president. Although I am hispanic, I am really proud. I saw a song called we want change, I felt like crying, but I believe you'll help USA become one big nation"
Sincerely,
Where'sMs.Rivers?
"Dear President Obama,
I am a 13 year old boy. I'm so happy you won my headwriting (handwriting) isn't good. One day I thought my headwriting was never going to be good, but when I saw you on TV and won I been working on it. I hope you can come to my school and call me up (not on phone) and thank me for writing this to you. I don't like writing a lot to tell you the truth but now I do. And thank you for being our president"
Sinaicly (Sincerely),
MostI'veEverWritten
"I would like you to help the immigration. Many people are coming here for something and when they get caught that they are illegal, they have to leave their kids. I would also like you to change the economic. I would like you to lower the prices of homes, the gasoline, etc. Many people have to live on the streets because they can't afford an apartment. Many people can't pay their bills. I won't like to see people begging for food or money around the streets.
I would also like you to stop the war in Iraq. Many people are dying in the wars. Many people are leaving their family members. We want to stop that.
Please, President Obama, help the people who don't have health insurance. People are dying just because some hospitals don't accept people who are really sick and don't have health insurance. I know you can change things. You are going to be one of the best presidents in the United States, I et. I believe in you".
Sincerely,
WiseBeyondHerYears
Our children have voices. Maybe they're never heard because we don't ask them what they think. We have a tendency to downplay their authority on important issues because they're "too young" or "haven't experienced anything yet". The heartfelt responses that I received from my students was a strong reminder that this is their country too. We have to give our youth the ownership that they so desire. How can they call for change in the future if we didn't allow for them to call for it in the present?
To the children:
Speak loudly and speak often. Speak without hesitation. It is your duty to be heard, and to be heard well. Be a voice. Be a voice to someone who needs to hear it. Be a voice for those without.
Ed Prince.
The raw emotion that my students expressed this morning was a fitting reminder of the reason that I love working with children. I see the same type of excitement and joy in the kids that I work with at summer camp--an unexplainable feeling. My kids at camp are truly free from whatever burdens they're facing at home... it's a week (or more) of just fun and GOD... there's not much better than that. It was good seeing that outside of camp... I can't say that I've seen that too many times before.
Yesterday, I had my students write letters to the newly elected President Obama. I know it sounds corny, but I figured I had to capitalize on the events of the day. I chose to do the assignment with my seventh grade classes because I've found that most of my students have a real passion for writing. They always seem to write more than enough, whereas my eighth graders usually have trouble producing more than two sentences. I didn't know how the assignment would go over with my students (especially because they were required to complete an entire election packet for history the night before). To my surprise, they were more than eager to write. I guess their eagerness had something to do with the fact that I promised them
that President Obama would eventually read these letters. With full faith and trust in Mr. DeShields, they wrote with a passion and determination that I've never seen from them before. Now that they've given me these amazing letters, I feel like I have no choice but to hand deliver them. Here are some excerpts of what they wrote:
"Some issues with this country is violence/crime and the war in Iraq. I know that the crime rate has shot up since 2004. People have lost family members and I too have lost one. Really what I think you should do is make a gun license law. Nobody can have a gun unless with a license. The war in Iraq is even bigger because its taking away from our economy and our population. What I think i will do is for violence/crime, I will start a petition or improve my behavior. For the war in Iraq, I can try to get people to start petitions to stop the war, have a truce and let it be".--
Sincerely,
Tired of People Talking in Class
"There needs to be change in this country and as president you must do this to build the foundation of our country. Number one kids should be aloud to vote. Children were the adults that used their genius to build this country and adults are learning from us. Number two we must aid other countries because if we have another war many people will die. Number three bring our troops home. You have to bring our troops home because our troops are fighting a false war and are dieing under false accusation."
Sincerely,
JRose from Chi-town
"Some changes I think you could make is to take guns out of communities so it can be safe so kids can go outside without their parents worrying about them. One more change that I think you could make is that you should take drugs out of communities also. What I will do is I will be a good citizen and not do bad things"
Sincerely,
Sedated
"I'm happy that you are president. And the election was really good. That a lot of people had voted for you as president. I hear you can speak spanish. And me, my name is _________ and I attend Paul PCS. And I'm hispanic. And how's everything at the white house? And Everyone likes to vote for you. Congratulations, Mr. Obama and it's nice to write this letter to you"
Sincerely,
Bernie Williams
"What I like to say in this letter is that I want change with the economy crisis right now. I have friends who have parents that lost three jobs. But what I really want to say is congratulations on becoming the #1 african-american president. Although I am hispanic, I am really proud. I saw a song called we want change, I felt like crying, but I believe you'll help USA become one big nation"
Sincerely,
Where'sMs.Rivers?
"Dear President Obama,
I am a 13 year old boy. I'm so happy you won my headwriting (handwriting) isn't good. One day I thought my headwriting was never going to be good, but when I saw you on TV and won I been working on it. I hope you can come to my school and call me up (not on phone) and thank me for writing this to you. I don't like writing a lot to tell you the truth but now I do. And thank you for being our president"
Sinaicly (Sincerely),
MostI'veEverWritten
"I would like you to help the immigration. Many people are coming here for something and when they get caught that they are illegal, they have to leave their kids. I would also like you to change the economic. I would like you to lower the prices of homes, the gasoline, etc. Many people have to live on the streets because they can't afford an apartment. Many people can't pay their bills. I won't like to see people begging for food or money around the streets.
I would also like you to stop the war in Iraq. Many people are dying in the wars. Many people are leaving their family members. We want to stop that.
Please, President Obama, help the people who don't have health insurance. People are dying just because some hospitals don't accept people who are really sick and don't have health insurance. I know you can change things. You are going to be one of the best presidents in the United States, I et. I believe in you".
Sincerely,
WiseBeyondHerYears
Our children have voices. Maybe they're never heard because we don't ask them what they think. We have a tendency to downplay their authority on important issues because they're "too young" or "haven't experienced anything yet". The heartfelt responses that I received from my students was a strong reminder that this is their country too. We have to give our youth the ownership that they so desire. How can they call for change in the future if we didn't allow for them to call for it in the present?
To the children:
Speak loudly and speak often. Speak without hesitation. It is your duty to be heard, and to be heard well. Be a voice. Be a voice to someone who needs to hear it. Be a voice for those without.
Ed Prince.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
AMERICA....
"Wake up... this is not what you think it is"
Paul was buzzing with election fever today. Teachers were rockin' Obama tees, talking about lines at the polls, and looking for excuses to keep up with the news instead of teaching lessons. The kids were something else. At the mere mention of the fact that it was election day, students began to go craaaaazzzzy. "Mr. DeShields, Mr. DeShields... In our one class, we had this fake vote, and it was 22-1... only one fool voted for McCain". "Um.. Mr. DeShields, If THAT man wins, I'll be moving to Canada... so you won't see me"... "Oh, no worries, I'll be heading back to Africa for a little while".... "Oh that was second on my list, maybe I'll see you there".
It was interesting to see the students have so much excitement about the election. I wanted to see if I couldn't use it to my advantage, and for their Do Now I asked, "Regardless of who wins the election, what type of change do we NEED to see in this country. Give me the top 3-5 changes you'd like to see take place". "OH, Mr. DeShields, I could write you a whole list"--from the young man who never completes a Do Now... let alone any other classwork.
When I asked some of my kids to share their responses, I was impressed with what they had to say. "Three of the biggest changes that I want to see are to get the guns off of our streets--too many of the people in my neighborhood are dying because of violence, we need to give jobs to people who want to work and provide for their families, and it's time to bring some of our troops home". Or, how about the young woman who was asking for a change in the way we view immigrants. "We need to change how we treat immigrants. They can be just as proud of America and as hardworking as my parents are". Oh, and how about the young man who said, "Why is DC the worst school district in the US? It's not my fault I live here. I want to get the best education available".
These were 7th graders who were demonstrating a very real awareness of some of the change that is needed to restore hope in this country. I felt an urgency from my kids that I don't remember experiencing at their age. My kids are unsatisfied with the state of affairs... they understand what the status quo is, and they want to change it. I was truly blown away by their responses.
Despite an ability to elaborate on their desire for change, my students were still focused on race. Most of my kids expected all of the white teachers (along with white people everywhere) to vote for McCain. "Mr. Bordenkecher is cool peoples... he voted for Obama... he even got his Obama shirt on". "Mr. DeShields, how come you ain't vote for McCain"... "Cus his Dad is black and you know people vote like their fathers...". The kids had all types of theories about why certain white teachers were voting for Obama, but they "knew" that it wasn't the norm for white people to vote for him.
I left school disappointed that the election was mainly about race for my kids-- I mean, I knew it was about race for the majority of America... but dag, when they give me that glimmer of hope with their responses, I was hoping that it had become more than that for them. When I got on the bus to head home, a man boarded behind me. Immediately, he started talking to the bus driver about how he can't stand white people... how they're on the news talking about broken polls in Philly and in Ohio. "We've come so far, how are they going to keep him out of the White House now? I mean, you used to be sitting in the back of the bus.. now you're driving it".... my man was talking some hot nonsense. He looked at me, smiled, and said once again, "Not all white people are bad, just most of them are trying to keep Obama out... talking about broken polls here and there". The first time I chose to ignore him, not wanting to get involved with someone on a bus (see the disheartening event that took place on the Silver Spring bus), but when he continued to run his mouth... I had to tell him to put all that to rest. It was unfortunate, because it made me realize that these are the things that our children are hearing at home (on both sides of this racial divide). As a teacher, I've come to see how easily you can mold a child-- they're willing to listen to whatever you have to say... and most of the time, they'll believe you. Parents, however, have THE MOST profound impact on the way our children view the world. The only thing that you can do is to hope that each parent is helping their child to see the world in the RIGHT way.
Hope cannot be fleeting. Hope is something that is eternal. We hope for things that are not seen, that for which we know we're destined for... for which we know will bring us closer to what was intended for us. We hold on to that hope until our dreams and desires are realized... because if we do not hope, we say that we are contempt to remain where we stand.....
THE ed. Prince
Paul was buzzing with election fever today. Teachers were rockin' Obama tees, talking about lines at the polls, and looking for excuses to keep up with the news instead of teaching lessons. The kids were something else. At the mere mention of the fact that it was election day, students began to go craaaaazzzzy. "Mr. DeShields, Mr. DeShields... In our one class, we had this fake vote, and it was 22-1... only one fool voted for McCain". "Um.. Mr. DeShields, If THAT man wins, I'll be moving to Canada... so you won't see me"... "Oh, no worries, I'll be heading back to Africa for a little while".... "Oh that was second on my list, maybe I'll see you there".
It was interesting to see the students have so much excitement about the election. I wanted to see if I couldn't use it to my advantage, and for their Do Now I asked, "Regardless of who wins the election, what type of change do we NEED to see in this country. Give me the top 3-5 changes you'd like to see take place". "OH, Mr. DeShields, I could write you a whole list"--from the young man who never completes a Do Now... let alone any other classwork.
When I asked some of my kids to share their responses, I was impressed with what they had to say. "Three of the biggest changes that I want to see are to get the guns off of our streets--too many of the people in my neighborhood are dying because of violence, we need to give jobs to people who want to work and provide for their families, and it's time to bring some of our troops home". Or, how about the young woman who was asking for a change in the way we view immigrants. "We need to change how we treat immigrants. They can be just as proud of America and as hardworking as my parents are". Oh, and how about the young man who said, "Why is DC the worst school district in the US? It's not my fault I live here. I want to get the best education available".
These were 7th graders who were demonstrating a very real awareness of some of the change that is needed to restore hope in this country. I felt an urgency from my kids that I don't remember experiencing at their age. My kids are unsatisfied with the state of affairs... they understand what the status quo is, and they want to change it. I was truly blown away by their responses.
Despite an ability to elaborate on their desire for change, my students were still focused on race. Most of my kids expected all of the white teachers (along with white people everywhere) to vote for McCain. "Mr. Bordenkecher is cool peoples... he voted for Obama... he even got his Obama shirt on". "Mr. DeShields, how come you ain't vote for McCain"... "Cus his Dad is black and you know people vote like their fathers...". The kids had all types of theories about why certain white teachers were voting for Obama, but they "knew" that it wasn't the norm for white people to vote for him.
I left school disappointed that the election was mainly about race for my kids-- I mean, I knew it was about race for the majority of America... but dag, when they give me that glimmer of hope with their responses, I was hoping that it had become more than that for them. When I got on the bus to head home, a man boarded behind me. Immediately, he started talking to the bus driver about how he can't stand white people... how they're on the news talking about broken polls in Philly and in Ohio. "We've come so far, how are they going to keep him out of the White House now? I mean, you used to be sitting in the back of the bus.. now you're driving it".... my man was talking some hot nonsense. He looked at me, smiled, and said once again, "Not all white people are bad, just most of them are trying to keep Obama out... talking about broken polls here and there". The first time I chose to ignore him, not wanting to get involved with someone on a bus (see the disheartening event that took place on the Silver Spring bus), but when he continued to run his mouth... I had to tell him to put all that to rest. It was unfortunate, because it made me realize that these are the things that our children are hearing at home (on both sides of this racial divide). As a teacher, I've come to see how easily you can mold a child-- they're willing to listen to whatever you have to say... and most of the time, they'll believe you. Parents, however, have THE MOST profound impact on the way our children view the world. The only thing that you can do is to hope that each parent is helping their child to see the world in the RIGHT way.
Hope cannot be fleeting. Hope is something that is eternal. We hope for things that are not seen, that for which we know we're destined for... for which we know will bring us closer to what was intended for us. We hold on to that hope until our dreams and desires are realized... because if we do not hope, we say that we are contempt to remain where we stand.....
THE ed. Prince
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Realize.
I've been trying to write this for days. Been reflecting on awareness a lot throughout the summer. This is supposed to be a movement, Teach For America and all. But on the real, how many people really know what they're teaching for? What kind of issues are we REALLY dealing with? Sure, our students will be behind. They probably won't be reading on their grade level, they'll most likely be reading several grade levels behind. Furthermore, their writing skills definitely won't be on point, and thankfully... they'll probably be close to their grade level in math (being universal and all). This will only change if our excellent, dedicated teachers know why these situations are the way that they are. Check check:
In 2006, Joseph Carruth, a principal in Camden, NJ was fired for fixing state tests and changing transcripts to allow students to graduate.
Larry Couch, a superintendent in Oklahoma, was indicted in April for embezzling 979,000$ from the district schools.
A NYC principal was fired after sprinkling chicken blood all over her school to try to get rid of the "negative energy" and subsequently to help bring about behavioral changes in her school...
Awareness involves knowing that not everyone is working in the best interest of your students. Common sense would tell you that you only become a teacher or an administrator if you care about kids and want to see them succeed. Unfortunately, common sense is hard to come by these days. Having this awareness simply raises the importance of our job as educators. Not only might you be the only one working in the best interest of your students, but you'll undoubtedly be working against a myriad of obstacles that your students are facing in an effort to get a quality education. Grown individuals who have already attained an education, and clearly understand the value of having an education will stand in the way of students receiving the same. This is why you have to be on your A game at all times. No one is going to pick up the slack for you. Leave nothing undone, don't assume that someone else will give your students the tools that they need. Hope for the best, but act as if you'll experience the worst.
I've been thinking about a theme for my class for the year. I came across this picture while browsin.....
First thoughts: That's deep... especially because the picture was taken right on Georgia Avenue (around the corner from my school). Whoever wrote this is dreaming about peace, a better life, so on and so forth, but not finding their dreams come true. Once I checked my thoughts: Nothing is happening, because all you're doing is dreaming. What are dreams without actions? We've been told all our lives that it's ok to dream-- and now people are warning us that are dreams might not come true? Why not? If you're going to dream and hope for something better, than you had better be prepared to make that happen. I want to blow this picture up and hang it in my classroom. Next to it, I want to have a poster board where students can post their dreams on sticky notes. From there, we're going to develop ways we can attain those dreams--step by step..whether they be small or large. They need to know what's good... this ain't disney... we're talking about making your dreams become a reality.
Final thoughts:
If your reality is ever insufficient for your desires, dream. Dream of going to far away places. Dream of doing the impossible. Dream of being someone other than who you are destined to be. Dream of a world where people demand more, and where truth and peace are not just our father's values. Dream. But when you awake, seek your dreams with the same passion and fervor that you did when you were asleep.
-The Education Prince.
In 2006, Joseph Carruth, a principal in Camden, NJ was fired for fixing state tests and changing transcripts to allow students to graduate.
Larry Couch, a superintendent in Oklahoma, was indicted in April for embezzling 979,000$ from the district schools.
A NYC principal was fired after sprinkling chicken blood all over her school to try to get rid of the "negative energy" and subsequently to help bring about behavioral changes in her school...
Awareness involves knowing that not everyone is working in the best interest of your students. Common sense would tell you that you only become a teacher or an administrator if you care about kids and want to see them succeed. Unfortunately, common sense is hard to come by these days. Having this awareness simply raises the importance of our job as educators. Not only might you be the only one working in the best interest of your students, but you'll undoubtedly be working against a myriad of obstacles that your students are facing in an effort to get a quality education. Grown individuals who have already attained an education, and clearly understand the value of having an education will stand in the way of students receiving the same. This is why you have to be on your A game at all times. No one is going to pick up the slack for you. Leave nothing undone, don't assume that someone else will give your students the tools that they need. Hope for the best, but act as if you'll experience the worst.
I've been thinking about a theme for my class for the year. I came across this picture while browsin.....
First thoughts: That's deep... especially because the picture was taken right on Georgia Avenue (around the corner from my school). Whoever wrote this is dreaming about peace, a better life, so on and so forth, but not finding their dreams come true. Once I checked my thoughts: Nothing is happening, because all you're doing is dreaming. What are dreams without actions? We've been told all our lives that it's ok to dream-- and now people are warning us that are dreams might not come true? Why not? If you're going to dream and hope for something better, than you had better be prepared to make that happen. I want to blow this picture up and hang it in my classroom. Next to it, I want to have a poster board where students can post their dreams on sticky notes. From there, we're going to develop ways we can attain those dreams--step by step..whether they be small or large. They need to know what's good... this ain't disney... we're talking about making your dreams become a reality.
Final thoughts:
If your reality is ever insufficient for your desires, dream. Dream of going to far away places. Dream of doing the impossible. Dream of being someone other than who you are destined to be. Dream of a world where people demand more, and where truth and peace are not just our father's values. Dream. But when you awake, seek your dreams with the same passion and fervor that you did when you were asleep.
-The Education Prince.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Beginnings.
6 weeks down... 104 to go (subject to change). institute/induction have come and gone. 6 weeks later, and i'm feeling the inevitable excitement of being a new teacher. it wasn't like I wasn't excited 6 weeks ago, but actually spending time in the classroom and being surrounded by fellow corps members puts it in perspective.
comedy:
grilled cheese 2x a day
riding the school bus
"excuse me, where are you idiots going?!"
"the jokers almost came to blows"
"Janus"
mad lesson planning
"We got a muslim in the house! Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoo"
writing lesson plans wrong on purpose
being in bed by 10pm
waking up at 5am
seeing students at Temple
clownin on philyssa with craig
Rad Rad
"You a lady, a ladiesssss man"
reflection:
Institute= tree killer. Mad paper used.
Murals outside/inside of Richard Wright was a good look-- created such a positive learning experience.
Collaboration is no joke. So much more gets done when you leave the nonsense at the door and work towards a common purpose with more heads. Unfortunately, it's easier said than done. Selfishness is not a good look when it comes to collabin'
Philadelphia is a beautiful place. While some neighborhoods might not be the most pleasing to the eyes, the beauty lies in the strength of the communities. I can't get over the importance of family in Philadelphia.
Complaining is a waste of time. Keep it movin' or be out. Too much time is wasted complaining without solutions to "problems".
Thinking of the influence you can have as a teacher on the rest of a child's life is a powerful thing. Shout to Ms. Scelfo for helping me realize that.
final thoughts:
Educate not for personal satisfaction, as you will never truly be satisfied if you seek it. Educate to win young minds, to inspire them to seek more, to inspire brilliance.
peace.
Ed Prince
comedy:
grilled cheese 2x a day
riding the school bus
"excuse me, where are you idiots going?!"
"the jokers almost came to blows"
"Janus"
mad lesson planning
"We got a muslim in the house! Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoo"
writing lesson plans wrong on purpose
being in bed by 10pm
waking up at 5am
seeing students at Temple
clownin on philyssa with craig
Rad Rad
"You a lady, a ladiesssss man"
reflection:
Institute= tree killer. Mad paper used.
Murals outside/inside of Richard Wright was a good look-- created such a positive learning experience.
Collaboration is no joke. So much more gets done when you leave the nonsense at the door and work towards a common purpose with more heads. Unfortunately, it's easier said than done. Selfishness is not a good look when it comes to collabin'
Philadelphia is a beautiful place. While some neighborhoods might not be the most pleasing to the eyes, the beauty lies in the strength of the communities. I can't get over the importance of family in Philadelphia.
Complaining is a waste of time. Keep it movin' or be out. Too much time is wasted complaining without solutions to "problems".
Thinking of the influence you can have as a teacher on the rest of a child's life is a powerful thing. Shout to Ms. Scelfo for helping me realize that.
final thoughts:
Educate not for personal satisfaction, as you will never truly be satisfied if you seek it. Educate to win young minds, to inspire them to seek more, to inspire brilliance.
peace.
Ed Prince
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