Educated to Death

0167: A little on assessment and projects— example included

#education #teaching #k12chat

People have different philosophies of assessment and grading. Personally, I’m not a fan of formal measures. I can assess informally and constantly and have a better understanding of what my learners know, have learned, or can do. And, the product they create is further evidence of their work. The product is a must because, I believe, there should be a clear end to work— a start and stop. Deadlines are important. I’ve used such measures and guidelines as a music and math teacher. Obviously, it’s easier to do things this way in an arts class. But, it wasn’t too terribly different in the maths. Projects and problems can and should be designed to teach and assess multiple skills rather than just focusing on single skills alone. Make the skills transferable and useful rather than isolating them. We don’t exactly have time to teach in isolation with curriculum loads and the shadow of the ever approaching test.

For example, each year my algebra classes would work to solve the problem of building a house or building of some sort. Each student was given a budget and an idea of what the “owners” might want for their structure. Students had to create a blueprint and see to it the structure could be built, tiled, floored, doors, windows, etc. added, painted, roofed, and so forth all within their budget. Everything had to be tested for structural integrity and plausibility. Students used, created, explored, researched formulas and ways of testing structures. On a side note, these students were generally 2-3 years behind in math and literacy. We consulted each other, researched, found professionals in the field of construction and contracting (I’m not, parents, custodians, the principal, kids, etc. helped).

The above example was used to teach, learn, and explore skills concurrently. I had too much to teach before the test and not enough time. It was motivating, product driven, and had an end. There were deadlines. It involved money, communication, budgeting, research, collaboration, workforce development, and many others. This would function, I suppose, as a thematic unit. This and like projects are a lot of bang for the buck. They’re fun, they’re effective, they produce transferable skills and teach the curriculum. They take some time to develop, but not too much. Try it, steal, share it. What have you done to get more done than you had time for?

One more thing, not that I really care, but I did, their test scores went up.

Read anything you can find on PBLs, projects, problematization, cooperative learning, etc.

0166: A Quick and Dirty Guide to Your First Year of #Teaching (Outside of School)

#education #firstyear #support

This post was inspired by a friend who is graduating and will start his first year teaching next year. These are some the things I didn’t learn until I started teaching. They have little to do with time in the classroom. It has everything to do with the side effects of your time in the classroom. Contrary to popular belief, you’re still a human outside of the classroom. Your identity as a teacher needs a break so the old you doesn’t disappear. I hope this helps. (Note: This is free advice. Free. It’s based on my experience. Use what’s good. Discard the rest)

1. You’re not as rich as you think

You’ll get your first paycheck. It’ll seem huge. If you’re anything like I was you will have been a few months without real pay. Maybe you’ve been living off of financial aid for a few years or a minimum wage job. And then you ran out of aid about a month before your first paycheck. So it’s ramen for one more month, and then you’ll be getting paid for real. The first check finally comes. It’s a sum of something over $1000, maybe more if your in the right state. It’s money, and you’re coming off a terrible bout with post-collegiate situational poverty. You’re hungry for something sexy (nice food). You’re stressed (we’ll talk more later about this). You have bills.

I was advised by a veteran teacher to have my first paycheck given to me in singles. All one dollar bills. From that huge stack I was to count out all my bills first: a stack for rent, a stack for electric, a stack for forthcoming student loans, etc. I was also advised to always take 10% off the top for myself. For a little fun. By doing this I would be able to see exactly how much I would need each month. I could budget this way. And, I would have rewarded myself.

Did I heed this wise advice? Of course not. I paid my bills up front. And even treated myself— up front. That was a little over two-thirds of my money. Less than one-third for the rest of the month seemed doable, except I forgot about a bill. So I ended up in the red. I was behind when paycheck no. 2 finally arrived. Things got a little better. I was learning. I got a car. With low payments. Learned to budget that in. Things went ok for a few months.

And then…

Student loans. I had managed to forget that I would have to start paying on my student loans about 6 months after I graduated. Into the red again. I had to make a new budget and catch up.

How could I have done better?
The first paycheck is small. There are lots of bills and things to factor in your budget: rent, utilities, car payment, student loans payment, transportation, food, entertainment, and so forth. You SHOULD make a budget. Money is difficult to play by ear. Especially when you’re stressed. Money that can buy things that relieve stress can and will become just another stressor if you’re not careful. Which brings us to no. 2: stress.

2. You’ll be stressed. Really stressed.

Your first year as a teacher is stressful. You’ve heard it a thousand times. You’re trying to get your footing in the classroom. How to get your students (of any age) to do what you say. How to help people learn (it’s a miraculous combination of a many things— you’ll see). How to stay organized, grade papers, get lesson plans done, call parents, blah, blah, blah. All first teachers try to survive. My first year was at a particularly violent school that functioned like a prison where the inmates and the guards were at war. There were rival gangs in the school. Police. Guns. Violence. Drugs. Etc. So, on top of the basic stressors I was working to build trusting relationships with my students who weren’t eager to trust a teacher. A kid brought a sawed off shotgun in during my first week. I got to deal with that. Fights. But, we got there eventually. And I had a great and peaceful time after some hiccups and hair loss. Again, I hope your first experience is a little different.

But, all that is just in the classroom. It’s a different world outside. It’s not wise to get married your first year. I didn’t, but I know why I was told that. I had a significant other when I started teaching. We’re married now years later, and I think that’s a miracle. I’m surprised we didn’t split. I could hardly hold myself together when I got home. I was seeing things up close that I really didn’t want to see. The violence. The pain. The struggles. The broken educational system for the kids I was teaching. I was no stranger to these scenes, but it was new to me as a teacher. It was intense. I came home tired and angry quite often. We fought at home. Rather, I would pop off. After the gun incident my lovely other asked me not to go back. We needed money and I was determined. Stresses in the classroom were deeply affect my life and relationships outside of it. I was taking work home. I was fueling bad habits to deal with stress too. Be careful with drinking, over eating, or anything else that can be harmful that might help you cope with stress.

What could I have done differently? What did I do?
I’ll answer the second question first. I kept a journal through my first year. It was my saving grace. It was good reflection, but even more it was my vent for some of the terrors and a place for me to share the joys. I wrote my successes, failures, and flub ups. It was tremendously helpful. Blogging would have been helpful. I also had a few veteran teachers there who would drop by and check on me occasionally. That helped some.

I should have been more adamant about building relationships with other teachers there. I could have done more on that front I think. Although, teachers don’t always take kindly to new fish. Moving along. I should have maintained a better routine. I should have stuck with a better, more regular exercise schedule. It helps with the stress. I learned to leave work at home. It was always there when I got back.

3. If you dress up as a character, say, a frog, change before going to the bank. You’re an adult.

This applies in multiple arenas. If you teach kindergarten, for instance, don’t forget to talk to adults like adults. In general don’t forget to have conversations with adults. Keep friends. Make friends who aren’t teachers. Make friends who are. Just don’t limit yourself to the teaching world. Be well rounded.

4. Your significant other and/or friends want to hear about more than teaching.

Be mindful of how much you dwell on your job. You are a teacher, yes, but you’re you first. Do what you can to be balanced.

5. Exercise, Try to Eat Right, if you drink be careful with it

All important things. It’s tough to stay healthy when your so busy and stressed. You can develop terrible habits, put on weight, lose control.

6. Find a Mentor

Find someone to guide and support you. Someone who understands what’s you’re dealing with. It’s tough. Don’t suffer alone.

Additionally, maintain/develop a strong support system. It’s tough to go it alone.

Let me know if there’s anything else I can share. Find me on twitter @educatedtodeath
And, excuse any grammatical wildness, if you please. It is a Quick and Dirty Guide.

positivelypersistentteach asked: Teacher Dare Day Question (in case you don't know what this is, we do a dare day every so often to get to know other tumblrs better): What grade levels and subjects have you taught? Is teaching the only profession you have held?

I currently teach middle school choral music. I’ve managed to teach grades Pre-K thru 12. I once had 7-12 all in one math class. Quite wild. I’ve taught Algebra and other maths and music. I do PD in literacy and content literacy, and some behavior management support. I’ve worked as a dance instructor, dancer, musician, pretzel maker, process server, oh and ghost writer. I’ve always taught in some form though. Thanks for asking.

0165: 7th Grade Mistakes, Theft, and Tough Decisions

#education #SOSchat #learning

Caught one of my kids stealing from me today. He stole a pair of headphones. I let him get halfway down the sidewalk, then I called him back. I asked for his bag. He gave it to me. I asked if he needed to tell me anything. He dropped his head. We stepped back into the classroom and sat down. He told me he stole the headphones. I asked why? I told him I knew he wanted them, but “why” beyond that. He said his friend told him to get them for him. I asked who. He was reluctant, but slowly told. He told me he felt stupid and that he had never stolen before. I believe him, he’s not a good thief. He told me he didn’t want to go to jail. “I understand,” I told him, “I don’t want you to ever go to jail.” He told me his brothers were in jail. I took a moment to think. I told him if I let him get away with it he would do it again, and it would get easier. “Your going to tell some people what you did,” I said. He asked if he could stay after school and work it off. I said no. We walked to one of the buildings to find a colleague I trust. She was out at a meeting. We then walked to find our custodian. The kid was breathing hard and trembling. We found him. I asked if he had a minute. We sat down at a table. The kid told what he did. Mr. A listened carefully. The kid cried. Mr. A told him not to. Then he asked a series of questions and talked to him about jail. He offered the kid some advice, and talked to him about labels. He shared with him about friends, and trust. He told the kid I was in a tough position, and that he could go to jail. We went back to my class. My planning period was almost over.

We didn’t go to the office with it. He would have left in a police car. The label would have stuck. Hopefully, the experience and the shame will be enough to prevent it again. It may not. Jail is not the place for a seventh grader. It would or could be the start of a life of recidivism.

educationiconoclast asked: Your views on education are fascinating. It is almost as if you are an educator of subversion, which is undeniably unique. Your posts on management though leave me with a need for clarification, if you don't mind. Can you offer specifics of how you create a classroom that is able to function efficiently while remaining a place of freedom for students to be unbound by the chains of control? Do you feel that by creating procedures for your students to follow they will lose their autonomy?

I submitted an answer on your blog. Lemme know if you got it. And, I don’t feel their is any harm to creating procedures, as long as they’re limited. And are disposable after we’ve come to an agreement of classroom culture.

0164: Teaching Denotes a Power Relationship

“but foucault! power is a relationship, and “freedom” in a classroom… i’d suggest considering discipline&punish and history of sexuality”

— I’d like to amplify mellymouse’s comment and suggest you visit http://mellymouse.tumblr.com/

Teaching is a relationship and therefore holds numerous power dynamics. It is also a mandatory institution. That complicates the power dynamic. While teachers are responsible for many wonderful things we are also, consciously or not, an extension of the state, and an extension of the companies that create the tests that drive curriculum. That power lineage could be traced back further, I’ll leave that to one of you dubious researchers.

Does holding such a belief make one a bad or ineffective teacher? Certainly, from one vantage. To some, I am and possibly should be considered an enemy. I disagree with curriculum, the management practices that are used to enforce the teaching of said curriculum, and the measures used to enforce teacher allegiance…I mean compliance, both formal and informal. However, and there must be a however, I do believe that working as a disruptor and agitator is more beneficial. By disruptor, I mean doing anything to promote the curiosity of the learners in my care, the right to function cooperatively, rather than be managed; the right for teachers to function as autonomously as possible, provided that they are devoted to the learners in their care; the right for school administration and teachers to function democratically, serving the people of their communities, and the list could go on (and will).

To say that I am anti-management would fall short. I am anti-standardization, anti-massification, and against functioning as the arm of an entity that seeks profit over humanity.

And in case I wasn’t clear, I’m anti-capitalist.

Hopefully, I’ll find compatriots who are fighting the same battle. Together, we can resist the institutionalization and colonialization of minds and truly democratic entities.