Author: Sweat to Inspire

Educator and Parent

Teachers need to be accountable, but to whom?

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On Thursday night, after working all day and attending a union round table discussion about education, I met up with an old college friend at the bar to catch up. He is a vice-president of a small financial services company, lives in an affluent community, and enjoys the finer things in life. After getting past the normal pleasantries and catching up with news about each others families, he asked me Why I was on his “side” off town. As I attempted to explain about the “education reform” movement in the state of Michigan and how it is affecting teachers, he asked “Shouldn’t it be about what parents and students want?”

This question rings true: Shouldn’t education reform be about what the community wants? Not what legislators desire. I agreed with him, since I have never had a parent complain about my instruction and the district where I work typically has strong parental support for what the schools are doing. Parents are always thanking the teachers for the job that they are doing working with their children. “I won’t want you job!’ and “You are a saint!” are comments often overheard at conference time.

“So why are we reforming schools?” Was the question he asked. I answer that it seems to be about accountability and money. Being from a sales background he agrees with these motives. Teachers should be accountable for sure but to what? Now teachers are accountable to their district, community and ultimately to their students. Reformers desire teachers to be accountable to a standardized test. Which is right?

From a business perspective the test is easier to measure and attach funding. Tests are part of a business model. Test producers also sell books, software and “canned programs” to schools. They can make it advantageous to schools to buy their products or use their online programs. In turn these companies can make millions off of educating our youth. Do these results show we have made a true difference using their measures? That can be debated. Many would argue the same or similar results would prevail if we stuck with what we have now.

Teachers should be accountable to their students. Students’ individual needs have to be addressed and accounted for on a daily basis. NO standardized test can measure all the “teaching” that goes on in the classroom. Communities and locally elected school boards have to monitor and decide if schools and teachers are doing what is necessary. Each community will be different, just like each child is different in the classroom. Society cannot us predetermined benchmarked norms to decided if a school is effective. That would be similar to measuring a parents effectiveness based on how the child meets development standards.

Society needs to stand up to the corporate take over of our education system. School boards are elected for a reason: to hire leaders that will create schools that meets the communities needs. We cannot let a publishing company mandate what every school district needs. It is funny that GOP leaders don’t want this to happen in health care (Obamacare) but support it with education!

Where have you gone Heathcliff Huxtable?

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As I scan the sit-com options for today’s youth, a show with positive educational role models is lacking. Think back through my TV viewing life, the last “popular” show that really showed positive educational values has “The Cosby Show”. The show featured two educated parents struggling to raise their 5 children. Many of the episodes focused on family values and education. Sadly, “The Cosby Show” has been in re-runs since the spring of 1992. Where are our youth to find positive role models in today’s media?

For starters, many have pointed out that today, many kids don’t watch traditional “network” television. If they do, shows like Two and Half-Men, Big-Bang Theory and Modern Family dominate the sit-com genre. Values and education are a bit lacking in all of them. Dramas seem to be more about crime and punishment these days that education. Even the reality shows are devoid of values in fact the often offer quick fixes to life’s problems than promoting a hard-working lifestyle.

Many boys today look to sports for role models. 20 years ago players seemed to be loyal to teams and worked hard to succeed. Now we have superstars who want to team up so they can get an easy run to the finals instead of being loyal to their fans. Or we have a league commissioner who feels that teams need to put on a great show instead of valuing the health of their players. Sports seem to focus on the money that players and owners make instead of how to be good citizens. Sure, our athletes do have foundations and do work to improve society but it is not the focus of sports coverage.

Today’s youths seem to consume most of their media on-demand. You-tube is very popular as well as Netflix. Who is guiding them to shows that will have positive impact? No one, most children watch TV by themselves and seek entertainment that excites them. Educationally valuable shows and clips are all over You-tube and Netflix but so are clips and show that model poor behavior. The bad seems to have more draw to our youth when they are left to their own choices and not exposed to educational programing.

I personally find it ironic that almost all programing for our preschool children has positive educational value. Check out shows like, Barney, Clifford, Curious George or WonderPets. But once our children become school aged, their options dwindle down to shows with zero value for education or character development.

Has the loss of Heathcliff Huxtable affected our youth? Well, I would say our youth need to see good models and champions of strong values, education and hard work. “The Cosby Show” provided those models that seem to be missing in today’s society. I hope media programmers find the errors in their ways and provide us with another strong role model soon. Our youth really need more than politicians words saying “family values and education are what we stand for!” When we are absent of a true highly visible role model in American Society today.

Unmotivated Really?

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It is that time of year again, when teachers have flyers in their mailboxes for in-service training. PD specialists are promoting their latest and greatest ideas. “Classroom Management that works!” “Writing across the curriculum!” and “Motivating the Unmotivated!” The flyers seem to arrive the same time every year, just as teacher burn-out sets in just before the holiday breaks. The flyers are tempting to teachers that are stressed about classroom performance or meeting their evaluation goals. The titles seem so tempting and the time could not be better.

BUT are there unmotivated students in anyones classroom? All of the students in my classroom are motivated. The least of my concern is motivation. Some students are motivated by the curriculum. They are in class to learn.  Seeing value in gaining knowledge. They try their best to learn despite their ability to learn. These student get frustrated when they don’t understand ideas. Hands get raised, questions asked.   Learners show up early or stay after class. Learners have recognized motivations.

In my class I also have “pleasers”. The students who want to please their parents. Motivated by the praise and love of their parents. (or sometimes bribes). “Pleasers” work but not for love of learning. Mainly concerned with grades they often are focused on a specific grade achievement. Not often concerned about trying to do their best but just to achieve the required grade.

Then there is the group often labeled unmotivated, the “socials”. Students who treat school like the mall. Teachers are the shop owners who herd them around like cattle. Motivated by their friends. Wanting to make impressions and establish a reputation. School work is not a priority, often not a thought. “Socials” often are the most motivated students in the room. Passing notes, sneaking around to talk. Acting the role of student when teacher is watching while sneaking in the quick text to the friend in the next room.

Of course there are more types and combinations of motivation. Motivation is natural in all of us. What teachers need to figure out is how to focus motivation in all students towards the learning targets. This is the PD teachers need.

The first step is understanding the students motivations. Then we can focus it towards learning.

8 things I am thankful for as a Michigan Educator!

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Due to the holiday and my desire to focus on the positive, here is a quick list of 8 things I am thankful for as a Michigan Educator.

1. School starts after Labor Day – love the late start and that our students get to fully enjoy all that summer has to offer them.

2. The Formative Assessment for Michigan Educators project (or FAME)- Best thing coming out of MDE. Best teacher lead PD I have ever been involved in.

3. Edcamps- Michigan is a leading state in the Edcamp movement. We have at least 4 great Camps up and running. Detroit got it started: now we have OU, Bluewater and GR. I am sure I am missing some that are popping up in other areas. (Edcamp TC or UP are sure to come soon.)

4. A supportive administration- All of education is being “reformed”, I am glad I work with administrators that listen to teachers’ concerns and attempt to be proactive.

5. Superintendents who are starting to get IT – Finally I am seeing educational leaders in our state stand up to the bullying tactics of Lansing and the Oxford Foundation Report.

6. PLC Process- our district is in the second year of becoming a Professional Learn Community. Awesome way to learn and grow.

7. Being a member of a UNION– Yes, I value my union membership. Gives me the freedom to teach and know that I am protected, and know the processes that have to be followed.

8. My PLN- I am SO thankful the connections I have made through Twitter. Many of them are here in the state. Part of the #michEd community. They help me learn, grown, reflect, and evaluate what I am doing. Special thanks to Engaging Educators for pushing me and showing me the way.

What is the best learning environment?

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Our traditional classrooms with desks in rows, with hard seats, is that a good learning environment? Probably not! Most classrooms are small, with hard floors, white walls, and 30-plus student desks. The desk traditionally are in rows facing forward, recent trends have teachers moving them around more but with limits due to class size. My current classroom is pretty big. I have large science lab tables that seat 2 student per table. I have them arranged in groups of 3, with two tables facing each other and one table at the end facing the front of the room. This seating arrangement creates seating for 36 students in my room. Luckily my largest class is 34. Recently, a few students complained because they were having problems focusing on learning. We talked about where they wanted to sit. In the end they concluded that there was not an ideal space in the room for them.

I got to thinking, where would I want to sit? Where would I learn best?  For me, I learn best alone in a quiet warm room while sitting or laying on a soft chair/sofa. Putting a sofa in a science room doesn’t work on so many levels and my room is usually far from quiet. So how do schools create idea learning environments that meet the needs of the students? What does this environment look like?

I remember at the end of a college course years ago, I was asked to create a plan for my ideal classroom. It should be large, with flexible seating. Carpeted area for students to sit on the floor. Book cases full of leveled reading materials. Muted colors on walls. A space that makes whole group instruction work, as well as areas to divide up the class for group and individual instruction. Nooks available for students who need a quiet out of the way space. Comfortable seating.

Many of these items are missing in my room, and many other teachers rooms. Schools just can’t afford the space or materials to create the “ideal” space. Our student are learning to deal with the less than ideal learning conditions. I am okay with it. Making do with what you have is valuable learning for students too. Teachers, administrators, society  need to keep in mind that the learning conditions might have impact on students performance. As a society we need to attempt to create the best learning environments in our schools.