Blogboard

Elementary school teacher Pigs describes a puzzling incident in which a 5th-grade girl, surrounded by a group of giggling peers, summoned her to the hallway to tell her some important news: “I got two hundreds on my spelling tests two weeks in a row, and I saved up to 20% on auto insurance by calling G----! Bye!"

The experience prompts Pigs to postulate that “Strange and inexplicable things happen to 5th-graders after Christmas break.”

But maybe it’s not just 5th graders. In his blog, Hobo Teacher recounts how, at recent faculty meeting at his school, “the superintendent started with telling us that he had some good news. He said that he just saved a bunch of money on his car insurance. … What's even worse is that he used the same joke the month before.”

Talk about the commercialization of schools. …

(The Pig's Tales; Hobo Teacher)

Posted by at 6:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Polski3 weighs in on her concerns over a plan to provide scholarship money to students at schools deemed "rigorous" by the Feds:

So, who is left behind in this latest meddling by the Feds in education? Any kid who doesn't plan to attend college. I seriously doubt that any kind of class involving shop, art, business office skills or learning any kind of "trade" skill will be deemed as "rigorous". So, only scholarship money to those who plan to go to a college or university for "academic" coursework. Fine, but someday, who will deal with your fancy car that needs repair, unclog the sewer line of your house, schedule you an appointment to see your doctor, properly bill your health insurance, do the carpentry work on your kitchen remodel or......????? THOSE are the kids the Feds will leave behind with this type of Federal involvement.

(From Polski3's View From Here.)

Posted by at 5:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Back from an extended blogging hiatus, Bronx high school teacher Mr. Babylon shares the experience of showing his inner-city students the classic film To Kill a Mockingbird.

I’ve mentioned before that I am not one to break down in tears at the workplace, or anywhere else for that matter. I have also mentioned that my one weakness in this department is books, and sporting events (especially if they trot out some badass old-timer for a rousing ovation,) and movies.

Well, it happened. I knew it was coming, the end of that damn trial scene, and I was holding it together pretty well. The verdict came down. The courtroom crowd gasped. The judge stormed out. Terrified, Tom Robinson, was led out the door. Everyone in the downstairs of the courtroom audience left. Slowly, oh so slowly, Atticus gathered up his things, said a word to the court reporter, and began to make his exit. Scout, Jem, Dill and all the black folks in the balcony were still there. They rose to their feet.

It started to get a little dusty down there in the basement of S---ty High, but still I was maintaining most of my composure.

The big one hit, “Stand up, Jean Louise, your father’s passing.”

Boom. What a line. What a scene. I swallowed big, and my vision was getting pretty cloudy, but still I maintained.

Then out of nowhere came a second bomb. Somewhere behind me a perfect little female voice called out in a hushed tone, “they showin’ they respect, right, Mista?”

That did it.

(From Mr. Babylon.)

Posted by at 6:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

As an (anonymous) Indiana superintendent points out on his (or her) blog, sometimes it pays to look beyond our borders to get a sense for what's wrong -- and what's right -- about American education. Try Singapore, where a recent Newsweek article points out a key contrast:

I talked to Tharman Shanmugaratnam to understand it better. He's the minister of Education of Singapore, the country that is No. 1 in the global science and math rankings for schoolchildren. I asked the minister how to explain the fact that even though Singapore's students do so brilliantly on these tests, when you look at these same students 10 or 20 years later, few of them are worldbeaters anymore. Singapore has few truly top-ranked scientists, entrepreneurs, inventors, business executives or academics. American kids, by contrast, test much worse in the fourth and eighth grades but seem to do better later in life and in the real world. Why? "We both have meritocracies," Shanmugaratnam said. "Yours is a talent meritocracy, ours is an exam meritocracy."

The superintendent points out that as we try to catch up with countries like Signapore, "we better not throw the baby out with the bath water ... The problem I see is that as teachers hunker down and overemphasize specific test results, the loss of creativity and curiosity is often an unintended consequence."

(From The Super's Blog.)

Posted by at 5:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

In discussing the limited certification options for nontraditional teachers in his state, substitute teacher Mr. Chips suggests one requirement that makes sense to him.

One thing I'd like to add to that is that I think substituting for one (1) year should also be mandatory for all new teachers regardless of age. No, this is not my way of getting back at everyone because of my sometimes great disgust with subbing. It's because I know of too many people who walked out of college and immediately got a full-time position without having to sub one single day while the rest of us have been toiling at it for a while. Substituting is like the hazing process before getting into the fraternity. It keeps you on your toes, it shows you that not all classes are peaches and cream, that not all kids are the same, but also teaches you to adapt. Going from school to school and at the different levels (elementary, middle and high) gives one a well-rounded peek at the whole of the district and not just one sector.

While Mr. Chips isn't likely to win any popularity contests among would-be teachers, the experience would certainly serve as a baptism by fire for many an unseasoned educator.

(From Get Lost, Mr. Chips).

Posted by at 6:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

After recounting an incident in which a student was almost mistakenly removed from his home by the local child services administration, writingsam, a young teacher in New York, reflects on how her idealism has been tempered by the reality of her students’ problems. Or perhaps the better word is toughened:

Over the Christmas break, my mother and I were laughing about how intent I was on saving the world during college. After the aforementioned vaguely described incident, one student verbalizing that he wanted to commit suicide, and another student crying that he was scared to go back to live in his old house, I would settle for being able to save one kid from falling through the cracks. I love my job, I love my students, but I am do not love the feelings of helplessness that can arise on days such as this when you have become a part of such a warped system.

Why, she wonders, isn’t there more public outrage at the circumstances of some students?

(From clean up on aisle life).

Posted by at 2:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

With a new year beginning, Newoldschoolteacher is preparing to student teach at another school, which prompted a meditation on why one way to fail students is to not give them Fs:

I mean, we all need a little love, right? Not me, I'm a heartless robot with a soul of steel. Which is one reason I don't have a problem failing students. If a student is so behind that he/she can't catch up during the year, it is in that student's best interest to repeat and acquire the necessary skills. Likewise, a student who never does his/her work should learn that the consequence to that is failure. In the workplace, not doing work gets you fired. Schools can be more humane. Not doing work means you have to do the work anyway. Failing a grade can turn someone's life around. Even if the student hates it (or you) at the time, it might be the best thing that ever happened to him/her.

(From Oh, snap!)

Posted by at 6:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Pigs shares what has to be the least morale-boosting activity ever: an activity booth where students pay money to kick soccer balls at teachers' faces.

Just how much disrespect do you have for your teachers when you allow a parent to construct a booth with teacher's pictures whose sole purpose is to be a target for a soccer ball kicked by children? Just what level of disrespect is that?

To be fair, Pigs says, school administrators changed the name of the activity booth from "Kick ThatTeacher" to "Pick That Teacher." Um... much better then. Never mind the fact that, as Pigs points out, "the kids were still kicking soccer balls at our faces. How this is a token of appreciation for their favorite teacher, I cannot tell you."

(From The Pig's Tales.)

Posted by at 5:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)