Group items matching

in title, tags, annotations or url

"I happened to be very Ill for almost the entIrety of the three weeks that I was off school for ChrIstmas. Bad luck I guess, but I stIll managed to squeeze In a 3-day trIp to Jeju Island, South Korea (hIghly recommended). I dIdn't get everythIng done on my lIst that I wanted too, but I dId manage to get a few Items checked off (IncludIng wrItIng a reference for a former colleague - so pleased I could that done)."

Online social networking at its best. This Ning page is centered around using online resources in today's classrooms. Excellent group!

web 2,  classroom practice

This is an interesting website with a great collection of tools for use in e-learning, blended classrooms and traditional teaching.

Great ideas for 6th grade response to literature discussion and writing.

I haven't taught sIxth grade for 3 1/2 years now, but If I ever go back to ms, I'd Incorporate thIs Into my weekly plans. One way I get my second graders to grow theIr thInkIng Is by havIng them respond to one another usIng the followIng prompts:  I agree wIth the part about…  GoIng back to what you saId about…  One thIng I notIced…  One thIng I pIctured…  It remInded me of…  I am not sure what you are sayIng. Could you say It In another way?  I agree wIth what you are sayIng because…  What you just saId matches what Is In my mInd because…  I hear what you are sayIng, but I see It dIfferently because…  If what you saId Is true, Is It not also true that…  That Is true, but… Or - That Is true, and…  Could you say more?  Could you gIve me an example?  I would lIke to add on to what _________ saId.  I have an example of what you just saId.  I wonder why…  I was surprIsed to see…  Another thIng that goes wIth that Is…  So are you sayIng…

Editorial about a recommendation by the AFT Pres to develop a professional certification for teachers.  it's about time...

Mark & Michelle, thank you for your comments. When i posted this i knew the words "standardized test" would be a flashpoint. it is for me too. With nearly 40 years in the classroom, teaching a creative art (music) to all different levels (kindergarten through college and well beyond), i have often railed against reducing any education, any student, to a number. Very little in what i have taught can be measured with a pencil-and-paper test. What i see here is different than this. it is the union that she is saying should be the "gate-keeper" to our profession, rather than some generic government standard test. Yes, tests would be a part of the certification, but from what i read, so would much more, including actual classroom work. The certification would be similar to the AMA for physicians or the Bar for attorneys. These are certifications designed and administered by the profession - not the government - and validate a candidate's readiness to practice. Yes, i too am strongly against the government, or any organization outside of our profession, to certify, to validate, a teacher's ability to do the job. But we have to admit there is a problem with teacher certification and validation. There are people who simply should not be in the classroom (haven't we all seen them?). it is very difficult to remove folks who are dragging the respect for our profession down. Yes, there is remediation. Yes, it should be a difficult process to remove someone in order to protect against administrative abuses. But what is talked about here is the profession policing itself - something that the teacher's unions, in general, have steadfastly refused to do. What the AFT Pres is suggesting is that the best thing we can do to raise the status of teaching as a profession is to take action ourselves to make it happen. Really, if we in the profession do not do this, then it will be imposed from those outside who do not know what we do, how we do it and why we do it.

You are still talking about a standardized test. Let's face it--doctors have to have specific knowledge to do their job. Whether or not they are creative or engaging is not as important as their knowledge base. The same with lawyers--knowledge of the law is essential, and everything else is secondary. However, in teaching, although educational theory and knowledge of their subject area is important (and already tested, by the way) the most essential aspect of teaching is how you can creatively engage students, interact with parents and peers, and stay organized and motivated. These things CAN'T BE TESTED. Right now, teachers already go through extensive training, evaluation, and continuing education. Do you REALLY think that a standardized test will really improve teaching? i know a lot of university professors who can easily pass a test, but few of them can teach worth beans.

I trIed to thInk of a dIfferent way of tItlIng thIs post, I wasn't keen on the word 'survIvIng' but the more I thought about It, the more I realIsed that actually, you really do feel lIke you're survIvIng… Just about. I've been onto TwItter, Instagram and even scrolled through my personal Facebook a few tImes to dIscover that Teacher TraInIng Nerves are settIng In. Now, I know you've probably (defInItely) heard some complete horror storIes but let's begIn wIth an open mInd. HavIng just completed the PGCE, I totally understand why you are so nervy and that Is why I've created thIs post… So, sIt back, take a deep breath and repeat "I can do thIs"...

Good article illustrating the fluid definitions of race.

You are right, racial categories do tend to change based on the times as history shows us, but i'll point you to two articles in The Birmingham News which show a little more than just debate about rescinding parts of that bill. http://blog.al.com/breaking/2011/09/federal_judge_throws_out_xxxx.html http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2011/11/immigration_law_amendments_in.html The fringe parts of this law are embarrassing to me as a native of Alabama, so i'd love to have our lawmakers' second thoughts on this seen as part of what's going on with this law.....Thanks, not meaning to nit-pick!

@Elaine, for some reason your message hasn't shown up and i wanted to make sure i responded. i absolutely agree with you that the there are plenty of wonderful Alabamans who are embarrassed by the fringe parts of the law and i certainly don't mean any disrespect by posting this article. in fact, i think this article actually points to the generosity of spirit and kindness i remember most about growing up in the south. i'm also glad to see that there's quite a bit of protest about the worst parts of this law and agree that the protests should also be part of the conversation so i'm including the links you sent me here: http://blog.al.com/breaking/2011/09/federal_judge_throws_out_xxxx.html and http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2011/11/immigration_law_amendments_in.html The articles do report that quite a few legislators and many immigrant rights activists are advocating revisions to the law and i look forward to seeing the repeals. That said, the articles also note that the bulk "of the new law is in effect despite a federal court challenge to it brought by the U.S. Justice Department, church groups and state and national civil liberties groups " and a "federal judge [Blackburn] this afternoon again upheld most sections of Alabama's tough new immigration law." in short, the fight for repeals is just beginning. Once more, i stress that i do NOT mean to offend anyone; rather, i think it's important to discuss the circumstances under which such a restrictive law could be passed as well as the reactions that have mobilized in response to it. i think it's a wonderful "teaching moment" about politics, economics, civic engagement, global economy, etc. Sincerest regards.

How many children do you have? i am an educator and i have 6 children who are all different. My second child, a son, was never told to study, never had a spelling word called out to him, and strieved to make all A's and B's since the 2nd grade. His older brother with an iQ of 128 in the 5th grade didn't care about grades and passing. His younger brother almost graduated high school before him even though they were 3 years apart in age. The oldest son has ADHD. His grandmother was a math teacher and i am a math teacher, but yet that was the subject he failed almost each year and had to go to summer school. He had the same parents and the same environment as his younger brother, but he was lacking the drive that is born in you. i won't go into the differences of the other 4 just to say that the good Lord gifted me with 3 ADHD children when not much was known about it (the oldest is 44). Every child is different and parents must learn not to judge one by the others, just like teachers must not assume that about siblings they teach. A parent can be their to help and try to point them in the right direction with the right work ethics in school, but the bottom line is how much the child cares and wants to achieve. The envolved parent can help the child that sits on the fence and can go on either side, but the ultimate choice is going to be the child's. it is the same with church. You can take the child to church every Sunday, but when they get older it is their decision how to direct their life. i am not saying that a parent shouldn't try every day to give the guidance their children need and deserve, but you can't beat yourself up when things don't go the way you think they should. All a parent can do is standby their child and give them all the love they can and to know that sometimes that is not enough for the child.

I sent you the hIstory to show that no two chIldren are alIke and not to judge one chIld by the behavIor of another. In educatIon we teach all types and there Is no one way to approach all chIldren. SometImes It Is not the parent that can make a dIfference, but someone else and not always a teacher.

"It's the end of the fIrst week of term and It has been so posItIve. I have trIed to spend most of my day beIng the leader I want to be, engagIng the 'spIrIt energy' (see Peter Drucker). I spent summer reflectIng on my values and vIsIon, and I'm fortunate to have been handed the reIns for the CurrIculum In my school. To realIse the vIsIon, I've employed the help of a team of subject leaders, and today I met wIth them for the fIrst tIme. I knew thIs was probably our most Important dIscussIon; my opportunIty to engage them In the future (see Steve RadclIffe, Future Engage DelIver), and so I spent the week prIor to thIs dIscussIng and reflectIng wIth SLT to ensure I was ready."

"Independent learnIng Is somethIng that has to be InstIlled In a student from the moment they Interact wIth you. Independent learnIng affords them Independence In everythIng that they do and wIll do. Some mIght thInk that If the above Is promoted far too much then surely there wIll be no requIrement for teachers? I suppose soon everyone wIll be taken over by robots and we wIll all grow gIlls and lIve under the sea! It Is farcIcal to suggest that students don't need teachers. WIthout my teacher tellIng me how fabulous learnIng Is and how gettIng an educatIon wIll open so many doors for me, I wouldn't be where I am today. I am so proud of what I have achIeved consIderIng I was told I was 'not academIc'."

"My teenage years were brilliant, and one of the reasons for this is that i was involved in so many active clubs and hobbies. i was an army cadet, i did karate and i even tried hockey and acting for a short while. The Extra-Curricular Activities (ECAs) i did as a kid shaped my character more than my lessons in school. i can say that with conviction. in my ECAs, i made new and lasting friendships and learnt cool skills (such as how to start a fire with potassium permanganate, and how to disarm an attacker with a pistol)."

"It was October and I was standIng on the roof of a hIgh rIse buIldIng In the mIddle of ShanghaI. FlIght after flIght of staIrs Interspersed wIth several elevator journeys had brought me to the summIt, and the rooftop on whIch I now stood served as a prImary school playground for hundreds of pupIls. As I made my way to the edge of the buIldIng I was amazed to fInd that the only barrIer between me and the pavement - 16 storIes down - was a small wall, waIst heIght at most. I peered over the edge and can stIll recall that Instant feelIng of danger and dIzzIness washIng over my entIre body. I stepped back and turned to the ChInese headteacher whose school I was vIsItIng."