Thoughts about this article:
http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/07/before-reading-or-watching-videos-students-should-first-experiment/
General conclusion: it is more effective for students to experiment BEFORE learning about something through text or video than doing the same lessons in the opposite sequence (text or video first, then experimentation).
My thoughts:
I
think this is true for a lot of science. When I was a kid (100+ years
ago), kids had lots of active experience with science - collecting
rocks, growing vegetables, building dams in the creek, using a
teeter-totter. When they came to school, the science lesson used
practical experience to build the theory on. Nowadays, kids have lots
of virtual and digital experience, but much less hands-on experience -
many have never hammered nails or fixed a bicycle or made cakes from scratch. So the theoretical
lessons often aren't rooted in personal knowledge.
In school, many teachers have found that
manipulatives are difficult to manage with large classes, so those lessons
have disappeared - at least it appears so to me. I am a sub and I
often find unopened manipulatives and shrink-wrapped science kits in teachers' classrooms at the end of
the school year.
Many years ago, I was tasked to teach gifted classes, with no specific curriculum and few materials. I did have a hot plate and some beakers, though, so I decided to teach a Kitchen Physics-like set of lessons - with sugar cubes, food dye, water, and the beakers and hot plate (and a thermometer). The kids were skeptical at first. They wanted me to tell them what to do. So, I started with a simple experiment on how long it would take the sugar cube to dissolve in the water. And I asked them what else they needed to know. I helped them frame a group experiment in a scientific way. Hypothesis, test, explain, discuss what is still unclear. The first few times through the cycle, they didn't even know how to ask questions, but soon they caught on and were completely surprised at how interesting the simple system could be.
Kids enjoy the hands-on lessons, but I fully agree with teachers that they are harder to manage with ever increasing class sizes and substantially less time that can be devoted to science.
Wednesday, August 07, 2013
Thursday, August 01, 2013
A Thought Experiment - the Able Teaching the Less Able
Imagine for a moment, you are required by your boss to attend a workshop for training purposes. Unfortunately, the workshop topic is something you already know a lot about, maybe even more than the person teaching the workshop. The instructor breaks the whole group into smaller groups to work on part of the topic. No one in your group understands the topic very well, so you spend a lot of time showing them how to do it. Some of them get it, but it takes so long to explain it to a few of them that you get a bit frustrated. You could be spending your time actually doing your work, rather than wasting it this way. In fact, you are a bit resentful that the instructor is getting paid a lot to teach this workshop and you have to pretend to be patient with it for the whole DAY. What a waste!
Now, imagine that you had to do this EVERY DAY, probably for the next dozen years. And add to that that you are a person who thrives on challenge, a person who craves complexity, depth, exploration.
And now imagine how a gifted child feels when s/he is asked to help the slower kids in the class. Occasionally, it can be fun. Sometimes, it helps you understand the topic better. But as a daily routine it is excruciatingly painful.
Now, imagine that you had to do this EVERY DAY, probably for the next dozen years. And add to that that you are a person who thrives on challenge, a person who craves complexity, depth, exploration.
And now imagine how a gifted child feels when s/he is asked to help the slower kids in the class. Occasionally, it can be fun. Sometimes, it helps you understand the topic better. But as a daily routine it is excruciatingly painful.
Monday, July 29, 2013
The Demise of the Teeter-Totter - and Its Implications for Algebra
Years
ago, I was teaching in an elementary school computer lab. There was a
software program I was using, where the students were supposed to
balance bags of gold. On one side of the balance was a bag, for
example, weighing 7 pounds, and they had to balance it with a
combination of two or three other bags, e.g., 2 and 5, 3 and 4, or 1, 2,
and 4. I was AMAZED and discouraged that so many of the students found
this difficult. You see, years before that, teeter totters had been
removed from many public playgrounds, because of insurance mandates. Many kids just
didn't and don't know how balances work. This has big implications for
mathematics and equation solving.
A few years later, I was substitute teaching in a 5th grade and the lesson was on balancing equations. Again, I observed that the students simply didn't understand how balances worked. They could not predict what would happen if something heavy was added to one side of an equation that was balanced. No wonder so many of them are lost in beginning algebra.
I am not sure we can bring back teeter-totters, but we can certainly bring back playing with balances in the younger grades. Get the equipment out and let kids play with it.
A few years later, I was substitute teaching in a 5th grade and the lesson was on balancing equations. Again, I observed that the students simply didn't understand how balances worked. They could not predict what would happen if something heavy was added to one side of an equation that was balanced. No wonder so many of them are lost in beginning algebra.
I am not sure we can bring back teeter-totters, but we can certainly bring back playing with balances in the younger grades. Get the equipment out and let kids play with it.
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Temperature in Celsius
I have long thought that the United States should go metric, because it is a much more sensible system of measurement. The metric system for lengths seems simple and easily understood. A meter is quite tangible and centimeters also look familiar and comfortable. I can even get used to grams and kilograms. Grams are a bit too light to make complete sense, and the prefix kilo- makes it seem much heavier than it really is, but I can get used to that, too. Liquid volumes have become more familiar, now that beverages often come in liter bottles. I have had a harder time, though, with temperature. So, I decided to make up a rhyme for myself to help me remember the approximate meanings of the different temperatures. I wanted something relatively simple - possibly something I could use with kids. Here is a poster with my first attempt.
Friday, June 28, 2013
Book-Related Posts Moved to Book Blog
I think I have all of my book-related posts moved to the other blog. They
are probably somewhat out of chronological order, but I am not going to
worry about that. I will get them deleted out of this blog soon.
Three blogs: book blog; education, social issues, serious stuff; less
serious and more personal stuff. There is some less serious stuff in
this blog, especially older stuff, but I am not going to move it, since no one cares,
except me, anyway.
First in Line
I might as well say it: I hate getting kids lined up to go somewhere like art or PE or lunch. It takes way too much time and it seems demeaning to me. Do adults line up to go somewhere? Do we insist that they walk single file without talking? Do the adults in the hall avoid talking when they pass rooms with their doors open? No, no, and definitely not. Yes, I understand that we want to avoid clogging up the halls, when many classes are moving around, and lines do help. But I really don't like them.
And furthermore, I especially don't like the fact that kids actually fight over who gets to be first in line and who gets to be in front of whom. "She cut in line", "You can't save places in line!", "No frontsies", etc. Why is it that kids, almost universally want to be first in line? or ahead in line? I can understand why adults want to be first to get on the airplane - so that they get prime luggage storage space and so that they don't have to force their way past cramped seating crowded with people. But what is it that kids are fighting for? Being first in line conveys no extra privilege. It doesn't raise them in the esteem of their teachers or their peers.
To be fair, not all of the kids want to be ahead in a line. There are those who prefer the end of the line, especially if the teacher walks at the front. They can get away with more at the end of the line. And there are a few, usually the more passive kids with fewer friends, who don't seem to care (but, even so I wonder if that is just a front).
So the question remains, what is it about those stupid lines that is of such social/psychological significance? Over and over again.
And furthermore, I especially don't like the fact that kids actually fight over who gets to be first in line and who gets to be in front of whom. "She cut in line", "You can't save places in line!", "No frontsies", etc. Why is it that kids, almost universally want to be first in line? or ahead in line? I can understand why adults want to be first to get on the airplane - so that they get prime luggage storage space and so that they don't have to force their way past cramped seating crowded with people. But what is it that kids are fighting for? Being first in line conveys no extra privilege. It doesn't raise them in the esteem of their teachers or their peers.
To be fair, not all of the kids want to be ahead in a line. There are those who prefer the end of the line, especially if the teacher walks at the front. They can get away with more at the end of the line. And there are a few, usually the more passive kids with fewer friends, who don't seem to care (but, even so I wonder if that is just a front).
So the question remains, what is it about those stupid lines that is of such social/psychological significance? Over and over again.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Mansplaining to a Sub
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=mansplaining
The tendency of some men to mistakenly believe that they automatically know more about any given topic than does a woman and who, consequently, proceed to explain to her- correctly or not- things that she already knows.
Woman A: When he started mansplaining to me what it really meant to be a woman in the 21st century, I got up and left.
In a recent discussion on Facebook, there were a lot of comments about mansplaining - where men would explain something technical to a woman who was an expert in the area, even in spite of knowing that she was an expert. I mentioned that this seems to me to be a more specific example of what I might call "downsplaining" - explaining to someone who may or may not be an expert in the area something that the explainer feels he or she should also be an expert in, just to demonstrate his or her expertise. This post is a musing on that idea and is still a "thought in progress".
Some examples: when I am subbing, I often get called for jobs for either a half day or for days where the teacher is in the building, but is working on something else, usually joint planning with other staff members. In this case, the teacher is often there to go over the day with me and to make sure I understand the plans. In these cases, I am often subjected to "downsplaining", explaining in great detail even minor points about the lesson plans. One time, a teacher took 5 minutes to tell me how to give a spelling test. Another time, a teacher took 10 minutes to tell me how to teach an Everyday Math lesson. I told her that I had been trained specifically in Everyday Math, but she continued to explain the entire lesson anyway.
The fact is, this happens over and over again and it puzzled me why they should feel the need to do this. I am older, I am a certified teacher (as are all subs in this district), and I feel as though I do not present myself as lacking confidence or needing assurance. So I looked for other explanations and it seems that mansplaining, if generalized, fills the bill.
Many teachers feel, rightly, that their classrooms are their area of expertise. When a sub comes in to take over, there are several things that they are thinking of. One of them is whether the sub can handle the class. When the teacher thinks of handling the class, though, they are thinking of things that cause them the biggest challenges. Sometimes these things are new curricula, sometimes planning lessons for areas that are not their strengths, sometimes they are dealing with challenging kids. They feel that they need to explain over and over again the things that are their own challenges with the class(es). Even when I assure them that I have a good background in science, they feel the need to explain the science lesson (that is mostly just reading), because THEY are a bit unsure about science.
But dealing with lesson plans is seldom the biggest worry for me as a sub. I have subbed and taught for many years. Giving a spelling test, trust me, is not a difficult proposition, even if the teacher happens to use a different format than standard.
Oftentimes they are correct about dealing with challenging kids, and I appreciate the hints they give me there. But, interestingly the things they emphasize are often the things I least need help on. What I would like to know is who can I call if I need help. How do I get that person to come to the classroom if I need him/her?
And, since the teacher him/herself does not worry about special classes (the kids just go when they are supposed to), s/he doesn't list all of the special classes, their times and their durations, and the students who go to them. If "Joey" just walks out of the room at 10:25, it is no big deal to her, but it is a worry for the sub.
So, I think, actually, mansplaining is a subset of downsplaining, where the person doing the 'splaining assumes that he or she knows more about the subject at hand and needs to explain it in excruciating detail, both to show that he or she is an expert, but also to assert dominance. The interesting thing to me is that they things they choose to 'splain are often precisely the things that they are a bit shaky on. Things about which they are confident frequently don't get explained.
And, as an aside, I tried to start a discussion about this topic on the Substitute Teacher Network on LinkedIn, but the owner of the group said that it was "too political" and refused to post it. I feel censored and may have to quit the group. He has censored a post of mine before and I agreed to withdraw that one, but now I am feeling that maybe that group isn't right for me. Too bad, it was giving me some good information.
The tendency of some men to mistakenly believe that they automatically know more about any given topic than does a woman and who, consequently, proceed to explain to her- correctly or not- things that she already knows.
Woman A: When he started mansplaining to me what it really meant to be a woman in the 21st century, I got up and left.
In a recent discussion on Facebook, there were a lot of comments about mansplaining - where men would explain something technical to a woman who was an expert in the area, even in spite of knowing that she was an expert. I mentioned that this seems to me to be a more specific example of what I might call "downsplaining" - explaining to someone who may or may not be an expert in the area something that the explainer feels he or she should also be an expert in, just to demonstrate his or her expertise. This post is a musing on that idea and is still a "thought in progress".
Some examples: when I am subbing, I often get called for jobs for either a half day or for days where the teacher is in the building, but is working on something else, usually joint planning with other staff members. In this case, the teacher is often there to go over the day with me and to make sure I understand the plans. In these cases, I am often subjected to "downsplaining", explaining in great detail even minor points about the lesson plans. One time, a teacher took 5 minutes to tell me how to give a spelling test. Another time, a teacher took 10 minutes to tell me how to teach an Everyday Math lesson. I told her that I had been trained specifically in Everyday Math, but she continued to explain the entire lesson anyway.
The fact is, this happens over and over again and it puzzled me why they should feel the need to do this. I am older, I am a certified teacher (as are all subs in this district), and I feel as though I do not present myself as lacking confidence or needing assurance. So I looked for other explanations and it seems that mansplaining, if generalized, fills the bill.
Many teachers feel, rightly, that their classrooms are their area of expertise. When a sub comes in to take over, there are several things that they are thinking of. One of them is whether the sub can handle the class. When the teacher thinks of handling the class, though, they are thinking of things that cause them the biggest challenges. Sometimes these things are new curricula, sometimes planning lessons for areas that are not their strengths, sometimes they are dealing with challenging kids. They feel that they need to explain over and over again the things that are their own challenges with the class(es). Even when I assure them that I have a good background in science, they feel the need to explain the science lesson (that is mostly just reading), because THEY are a bit unsure about science.
But dealing with lesson plans is seldom the biggest worry for me as a sub. I have subbed and taught for many years. Giving a spelling test, trust me, is not a difficult proposition, even if the teacher happens to use a different format than standard.
Oftentimes they are correct about dealing with challenging kids, and I appreciate the hints they give me there. But, interestingly the things they emphasize are often the things I least need help on. What I would like to know is who can I call if I need help. How do I get that person to come to the classroom if I need him/her?
And, since the teacher him/herself does not worry about special classes (the kids just go when they are supposed to), s/he doesn't list all of the special classes, their times and their durations, and the students who go to them. If "Joey" just walks out of the room at 10:25, it is no big deal to her, but it is a worry for the sub.
So, I think, actually, mansplaining is a subset of downsplaining, where the person doing the 'splaining assumes that he or she knows more about the subject at hand and needs to explain it in excruciating detail, both to show that he or she is an expert, but also to assert dominance. The interesting thing to me is that they things they choose to 'splain are often precisely the things that they are a bit shaky on. Things about which they are confident frequently don't get explained.
And, as an aside, I tried to start a discussion about this topic on the Substitute Teacher Network on LinkedIn, but the owner of the group said that it was "too political" and refused to post it. I feel censored and may have to quit the group. He has censored a post of mine before and I agreed to withdraw that one, but now I am feeling that maybe that group isn't right for me. Too bad, it was giving me some good information.
Monday, June 24, 2013
Book Reviews Moving to Other Blog
I am in the process of moving my book reviews to one of my other blogs. That means they will be out of chronological order, but I guess that isn't that important. This blog will continue to be mostly about education, especially gifted education, and other social issues that interest me. Book reviews will be in the second blog and personal and unrelated stuff will be in the third (Wordpress) blog.
I am also gradually adding labels (tags) to the posts. I am not sure how they help, but maybe I will find that they do.
I changed the title of this post to include "Moving" instead of "Moved", as it is taking me longer than I foresaw.
I am also gradually adding labels (tags) to the posts. I am not sure how they help, but maybe I will find that they do.
I changed the title of this post to include "Moving" instead of "Moved", as it is taking me longer than I foresaw.
Wednesday, June 05, 2013
There is reading and then there is READING.
This is a reflection on the following post:
www.creativitypost.com/education/save_the_readers
There is something I observed recently while subbing. Frequently, teachers will have time in their lesson plans for kids to do silent reading, often called Read to Self, SSR, or some similar acronym. There seem to be two types of readers: the kind who are deeply immersed in books that have mostly text and few illustrations and the kind who are reading either non-fiction, graphic novels, or books with a lot of pictures and very little text. Looking more closely, especially with the non-fiction books, the students who choose to read those are actually doing very little reading. They will look at the pictures and glance at the captions, but they rarely actually read the text. There has been a big push lately to include more non-fiction reading, especially in an attempt to lure boys to do more reading. But from what I can see, this may be backfiring, as readers of non-fiction aren't actually reading much. They ARE getting a lot of information from pictures, but that is a different skill.
www.creativitypost.com/education/save_the_readers
There is something I observed recently while subbing. Frequently, teachers will have time in their lesson plans for kids to do silent reading, often called Read to Self, SSR, or some similar acronym. There seem to be two types of readers: the kind who are deeply immersed in books that have mostly text and few illustrations and the kind who are reading either non-fiction, graphic novels, or books with a lot of pictures and very little text. Looking more closely, especially with the non-fiction books, the students who choose to read those are actually doing very little reading. They will look at the pictures and glance at the captions, but they rarely actually read the text. There has been a big push lately to include more non-fiction reading, especially in an attempt to lure boys to do more reading. But from what I can see, this may be backfiring, as readers of non-fiction aren't actually reading much. They ARE getting a lot of information from pictures, but that is a different skill.
Saturday, May 18, 2013
End of School Year for Me
To finish off my part in the school year yesterday, I had a combination 5/6 classroom. It was the second day I was there. Most of the day was entirely typical: he stole my pencil, she kicked my chair, I don't have a book to read, my computer doesn't get X, etc. But, for math, which I enjoy, I knew many of the students were finished with the assignments they had been given for the two days. So, I posed three additional challenges: 1) the 9 dots in a square problem (connect the dots with exactly 4 straight continuous lines, 2) show me a piece of paper with only one side, and 3) calculate the numbers 1 through 20, using exactly 4 4's and any operations you know (these kids knew +-*/^!and √).
Most of the kids did not take part in the challenges - either because they still had work to do on their assignment or because they could pretend that they were working on their assignment and just socialize. As long as they were pretending well, I didn't bother them. But there were 3 boys who were fascinated by the challenges and 3 more who were very drawn to them, but a little wary about actually trying them. I had a great time with the three and enjoyed the others. At first, they were very frustrated that I refused to give them hints on how to solve the challenges. One solved the 9 dot problem fairly quickly. I couldn't tell if he had seen it before or just solved it easily. The other two really struggled, but eventually got it. There were several creative and pun-like answers to the paper with one side problem, but eventually two of them got it. Those two also went on to try the 1 through 20 calculations and made significant progress.
My fun was seeing them so motivated and eager. One of the peripheral boys also wanted to see the solution to the paper problem, which I showed him at the end of class.
Great fun and the reason why I sometimes really like this age student. And it makes up for the horrid day I had on Tuesday with unruly and disrespectful 3rd graders.
Most of the kids did not take part in the challenges - either because they still had work to do on their assignment or because they could pretend that they were working on their assignment and just socialize. As long as they were pretending well, I didn't bother them. But there were 3 boys who were fascinated by the challenges and 3 more who were very drawn to them, but a little wary about actually trying them. I had a great time with the three and enjoyed the others. At first, they were very frustrated that I refused to give them hints on how to solve the challenges. One solved the 9 dot problem fairly quickly. I couldn't tell if he had seen it before or just solved it easily. The other two really struggled, but eventually got it. There were several creative and pun-like answers to the paper with one side problem, but eventually two of them got it. Those two also went on to try the 1 through 20 calculations and made significant progress.
My fun was seeing them so motivated and eager. One of the peripheral boys also wanted to see the solution to the paper problem, which I showed him at the end of class.
Great fun and the reason why I sometimes really like this age student. And it makes up for the horrid day I had on Tuesday with unruly and disrespectful 3rd graders.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
New (Old) Direction for Education
My grandmother was a teacher; my mother, who is now 98 years old was a teacher; I am a teacher. In all these years of teaching, what have we seen? Wave after wave of "educational reform". The old was thrown out and the new brought in. But is it better ... or just different?
The best wave I have seen was the federal push to develop outstanding curricula - BSCS Blue, Green, Yellow; Man a Course of Study; The Voyage of the Mimi, etc. I was in one of the classes that got to take BSCS Blue, when it was pretty new. I also was a student when the New Math was the rage. There is some marvelous curriculum out there. As a sub, I have seen bits and pieces of some wonderful lessons - simulations of Columbus' voyages to the Americas, re-enactments of the American Revolutionary debates, with both sides represented. But, far too often, these marvelous lessons are relegated to the back burners, because of the amount of curriculum that the teachers MUST cover. What counts is the students' scores on the standardized tests. Where are the wonderful lesson plans for diverse abilities?
Some people have mentioned that they have just about given up on schools, because it is so hard to agree on what SHOULD be done and not just what should NOT be done. Fewer standardized tests, yes. But, what instead?
I have been thinking about what I saw working at a Montessori school. I sub mainly for 3rd grades through 6th grades and the Montessori school set up was such that the kids worked in 3 week time blocks with assignments in each subject area (some of which incorporated multiple areas). The students planned their days and worked on lessons with teacher-prepared materials. Occasionally, there was some whole group discussion, but most of the time, the kids worked individually, in pairs, or occasionally in groups of 3 or 4 on their own goals. The one exception was math, which was taught in groups of 7 or 8 students, with outliers taught individually by tutors. The teacher met with individual students, taught mini-lessons to small groups of students, or led discussions.
The biggest criticism I had of the arrangement (and I subbed there quite a bit) was that some of the materials could have been differentiated much more. The middle level of materials was great, but the materials for higher and lower ability students weren't as good. With the possibilities of computers allowing for wider ranges of materials to be available, I can actually see this model working. There were two rooms with a wide doorway between them, so kids could actually go back and forth between the rooms, especially for math. It was peaceful and work oriented. The kids really seemed to take responsibility for themselves and the one boy who didn't was guided into trying to make better choices.
There are quite a few lessons where working with someone makes the lesson much better. Students in this Montessori classroom were frequently given introductory lessons about some topic, then given assignments that explored the topic in greater depth, with the unit culminating in presentations of products or large group discussions/debates. Student groupings were varied and flexible.
Interestingly, for me at least, was that there weren't any "specials" teachers. There was an adult (teacher?) supervising the gym at set times, but students showed up in the gym any time during the time blocks, when they needed a break. Each student was required to do some physical exercise several times a week, but it could take a wide variety of forms. Art projects were supervised by the classroom teachers as part of the regular work. I am not sure about music.
This arrangement might actually be an ideal one for me. I like the ability to work with the kids all day, without the interruptions of switching classes. I like knowing what individual students are doing in all of the areas of study. I like the ability to integrate all of the arts into the curriculum. I like many of the Montessori materials. And I like the effects of the structure on the students. They seemed responsible for their own behavior and learning. They were considerate, even to subs.
But that is the only Montessori school I have worked in, so I don't know if it was unique, or if many of them are like that. It would be interesting to find out - one of the advantages of substitute teaching. If a job like that comes up, I will take it.
The best wave I have seen was the federal push to develop outstanding curricula - BSCS Blue, Green, Yellow; Man a Course of Study; The Voyage of the Mimi, etc. I was in one of the classes that got to take BSCS Blue, when it was pretty new. I also was a student when the New Math was the rage. There is some marvelous curriculum out there. As a sub, I have seen bits and pieces of some wonderful lessons - simulations of Columbus' voyages to the Americas, re-enactments of the American Revolutionary debates, with both sides represented. But, far too often, these marvelous lessons are relegated to the back burners, because of the amount of curriculum that the teachers MUST cover. What counts is the students' scores on the standardized tests. Where are the wonderful lesson plans for diverse abilities?
Some people have mentioned that they have just about given up on schools, because it is so hard to agree on what SHOULD be done and not just what should NOT be done. Fewer standardized tests, yes. But, what instead?
I have been thinking about what I saw working at a Montessori school. I sub mainly for 3rd grades through 6th grades and the Montessori school set up was such that the kids worked in 3 week time blocks with assignments in each subject area (some of which incorporated multiple areas). The students planned their days and worked on lessons with teacher-prepared materials. Occasionally, there was some whole group discussion, but most of the time, the kids worked individually, in pairs, or occasionally in groups of 3 or 4 on their own goals. The one exception was math, which was taught in groups of 7 or 8 students, with outliers taught individually by tutors. The teacher met with individual students, taught mini-lessons to small groups of students, or led discussions.
The biggest criticism I had of the arrangement (and I subbed there quite a bit) was that some of the materials could have been differentiated much more. The middle level of materials was great, but the materials for higher and lower ability students weren't as good. With the possibilities of computers allowing for wider ranges of materials to be available, I can actually see this model working. There were two rooms with a wide doorway between them, so kids could actually go back and forth between the rooms, especially for math. It was peaceful and work oriented. The kids really seemed to take responsibility for themselves and the one boy who didn't was guided into trying to make better choices.
There are quite a few lessons where working with someone makes the lesson much better. Students in this Montessori classroom were frequently given introductory lessons about some topic, then given assignments that explored the topic in greater depth, with the unit culminating in presentations of products or large group discussions/debates. Student groupings were varied and flexible.
Interestingly, for me at least, was that there weren't any "specials" teachers. There was an adult (teacher?) supervising the gym at set times, but students showed up in the gym any time during the time blocks, when they needed a break. Each student was required to do some physical exercise several times a week, but it could take a wide variety of forms. Art projects were supervised by the classroom teachers as part of the regular work. I am not sure about music.
This arrangement might actually be an ideal one for me. I like the ability to work with the kids all day, without the interruptions of switching classes. I like knowing what individual students are doing in all of the areas of study. I like the ability to integrate all of the arts into the curriculum. I like many of the Montessori materials. And I like the effects of the structure on the students. They seemed responsible for their own behavior and learning. They were considerate, even to subs.
But that is the only Montessori school I have worked in, so I don't know if it was unique, or if many of them are like that. It would be interesting to find out - one of the advantages of substitute teaching. If a job like that comes up, I will take it.
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Reciting the Pledge Every Day
This is a duplicate from one of my other blogs, but I think it is relevant here, too, so I am reposting.
As a substitute teacher, I get to visit many different classrooms in many different schools. In many of these schools the students are given the “opportunity” to say the Pledge of Allegiance every day, usually at a designated time announced over the intercom. This gives me the chance to observe what children of many ages do when reciting the Pledge. Most stand; most put their hand over their heart – until you get to middle school and then the hand starts to sink lower and lower, until, in high school, it is much closer to the top of their chair. Most say the Pledge. Some just mumble in the correct rhythm.
I think reciting the pledge every day actually leads to complete disregard of its meaning. I am pretty sure that most of the younger students have NO IDEA what they are saying or why. And the older ones, who should have a clue, just mumble so that they appear to be patriotic, but they are really not thinking about it at all.
Yes, they do learn the words. But I much prefer mindfulness in this regard. If you are going to say the Pledge, you need to say it in circumstances where you are actually thinking about what you are saying. It is much like the idea of praying for me. If it isn’t done mindfully, it isn’t worth the time spent.
I stand, but I don’t say the Pledge. I don’t say it, in order to respect those people whose beliefs don’t allow them to say it. I don’t say it, because my mind is actually elsewhere, making sure the students are being respectful. I don’t say it, because I don’t accept the inclusion of the “Under God” clause.
On the other hand, I love singing the national anthem. Part of that is because I like to sing, but part of it is because I do so rarely enough that I can really think about what it means.
As a substitute teacher, I get to visit many different classrooms in many different schools. In many of these schools the students are given the “opportunity” to say the Pledge of Allegiance every day, usually at a designated time announced over the intercom. This gives me the chance to observe what children of many ages do when reciting the Pledge. Most stand; most put their hand over their heart – until you get to middle school and then the hand starts to sink lower and lower, until, in high school, it is much closer to the top of their chair. Most say the Pledge. Some just mumble in the correct rhythm.
I think reciting the pledge every day actually leads to complete disregard of its meaning. I am pretty sure that most of the younger students have NO IDEA what they are saying or why. And the older ones, who should have a clue, just mumble so that they appear to be patriotic, but they are really not thinking about it at all.
Yes, they do learn the words. But I much prefer mindfulness in this regard. If you are going to say the Pledge, you need to say it in circumstances where you are actually thinking about what you are saying. It is much like the idea of praying for me. If it isn’t done mindfully, it isn’t worth the time spent.
I stand, but I don’t say the Pledge. I don’t say it, in order to respect those people whose beliefs don’t allow them to say it. I don’t say it, because my mind is actually elsewhere, making sure the students are being respectful. I don’t say it, because I don’t accept the inclusion of the “Under God” clause.
On the other hand, I love singing the national anthem. Part of that is because I like to sing, but part of it is because I do so rarely enough that I can really think about what it means.
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Why Do Some Capture Us?
As a substitute teacher, I see WAY too many kids in a week to remember them all. In fact, if I am in a particular class for only a day or a half day, I often have trouble REALLY noticing quite a few of the students. This is especially true of the quiet ones, the ones who seem to become part of their chairs.
One of my ongoing questions of myself is why do I notice some students and remember them and why do others completely fade from my mind? If I come back to that same classroom weeks or months later, which kids will I remember and which ones will I have no idea about who they are or what they are like?
As one might suspect, the naughty ones are memorable. And the class clowns. The kids with special needs that make themselves known to the sub. Those are easy reasons to remember particular students and they are all reasons why I remember some students. But that isn't the entire cast of the ones I remember. I am thinking back over the class I had just yesterday and trying to think of which kids I still can bring up faces or names for. Interestingly, many of the kids do not fit any of those categories.
Kids who speak to me personally are more memorable - even if it was just to ask to go to the nurse. Kids who help me with some piece of equipment or some unique classroom procedure are also memorable. Kids who display some part of their character are also memorable. Sometimes even the especially quiet students are memorable.
But, there is one category of kid that I remember especially well. It is the kids who ask memorable questions. And, yes, for me, the obviously gifted kids. Weeks ago, I wrote about one young man I interacted with and felt especially drawn to. During the literacy block, when the rest of the class was busy, this young man had told me all about a book he was working on - about American heroes. For some reason, he and I really connected. I was sorry when the day ended that I probably would not teach him again. He is in a grade that I normally do not sub for, but I like his school, so I had taken the job for that class.
I was wrong that I would not teach him again. I was in the grade one higher than his at that school a couple of days ago and he came into the math class that I was teaching. This confirmed my assessment of his probable giftedness - kids are rarely accelerated into a math class higher than their own grade, unless they REALLY need it. And, wonder of wonders, he was also delighted to see me - in a very quiet way. He is not a loud, assertive kid. But he did come up during a transition time and ask me if I remembered him. I did. Again, that mysterious and wonderful connection. But too short.
If I could teach kids like him every day, I would do it for free. They are that intriguing to me.
One of my ongoing questions of myself is why do I notice some students and remember them and why do others completely fade from my mind? If I come back to that same classroom weeks or months later, which kids will I remember and which ones will I have no idea about who they are or what they are like?
As one might suspect, the naughty ones are memorable. And the class clowns. The kids with special needs that make themselves known to the sub. Those are easy reasons to remember particular students and they are all reasons why I remember some students. But that isn't the entire cast of the ones I remember. I am thinking back over the class I had just yesterday and trying to think of which kids I still can bring up faces or names for. Interestingly, many of the kids do not fit any of those categories.
Kids who speak to me personally are more memorable - even if it was just to ask to go to the nurse. Kids who help me with some piece of equipment or some unique classroom procedure are also memorable. Kids who display some part of their character are also memorable. Sometimes even the especially quiet students are memorable.
But, there is one category of kid that I remember especially well. It is the kids who ask memorable questions. And, yes, for me, the obviously gifted kids. Weeks ago, I wrote about one young man I interacted with and felt especially drawn to. During the literacy block, when the rest of the class was busy, this young man had told me all about a book he was working on - about American heroes. For some reason, he and I really connected. I was sorry when the day ended that I probably would not teach him again. He is in a grade that I normally do not sub for, but I like his school, so I had taken the job for that class.
I was wrong that I would not teach him again. I was in the grade one higher than his at that school a couple of days ago and he came into the math class that I was teaching. This confirmed my assessment of his probable giftedness - kids are rarely accelerated into a math class higher than their own grade, unless they REALLY need it. And, wonder of wonders, he was also delighted to see me - in a very quiet way. He is not a loud, assertive kid. But he did come up during a transition time and ask me if I remembered him. I did. Again, that mysterious and wonderful connection. But too short.
If I could teach kids like him every day, I would do it for free. They are that intriguing to me.
Sunday, April 07, 2013
Half Day Subbing Jobs
It seems to me that half day subbing jobs getting to be more and more common. My guess is that school districts are specifically scheduling their training sessions so that the regular teachers need to only take a half day to get their training. That cuts down significantly on sub costs. But it also means that subs are getting even less overall pay than the miniscule amount they were already earning.
Sub pay where I work is around $95 per day. $95/day X 180 days = $17,100. Subs don't generally work 180 days, so that amount is really a maximum. If half of the jobs are changed to half day jobs, that cuts the potential pay for subs to $12,825. Theoretically, one-half day plus one-half day would equal a full day, but in practice this is very difficult. School schedules differ and there is time needed to drive from one location to another. It is rare to find two jobs for one day, unless it is for a teacher who normally works for two different schools anyway.
I don't blame schools for doing this, but it does make it harder to feel good about subbing. And it is already a difficult choice.
Sub pay where I work is around $95 per day. $95/day X 180 days = $17,100. Subs don't generally work 180 days, so that amount is really a maximum. If half of the jobs are changed to half day jobs, that cuts the potential pay for subs to $12,825. Theoretically, one-half day plus one-half day would equal a full day, but in practice this is very difficult. School schedules differ and there is time needed to drive from one location to another. It is rare to find two jobs for one day, unless it is for a teacher who normally works for two different schools anyway.
I don't blame schools for doing this, but it does make it harder to feel good about subbing. And it is already a difficult choice.
Formatting
I am not sure why, but Blogger seems to have little formatting glitches that I can't seem to get rid of without more effort than I am willing to spent on such trivia. There are odd spaces here and there, indenting, when I didn't indent in the original. It is almost annoying enough to switch my major blog to WordPress. Any ideas why?
Ideal Class Size - Opinions
On Linked In, in the Elementary Education group, there has been an ongoing discussion of what the ideal class size would be. This question hasn't addressed, for the most part, funding or teacher quality, but simply the straightforward question, about IDEAL class size. Interestingly, the answer seems to hover around 12 students. As most people know, this number is between one-third and one-half of the currently common classroom sizes, which range from 20 to 36 students.
My own comment was, "The best classes I have taught have had from 4 to 12 students. What fun they are! You can actually talk with the kids and enjoy the teachable moments. You can treat each child as an individual and not just as members of a huge group."
The key for me is the teachable moment. In a class of 24 or more, there is little opportunity to take advantage of the teachable moment. Teachable moments are directly applicable to individual children. Sometimes these teachable moments extend to quite a few individual children at a time, but the real focus is on getting individual children excited about their learning. Children are quite different in what really excites them. Novelty, of course, will excite many of them at a time, but true interest in something usually is much more specific. With classes of 20 or more, this becomes a time and classroom management issue, especially when there are specific curricular goals to cover - and there almost always are specific learning goals mandated for the day.
Intuitively, I think most classroom teachers know that small group instruction is better than large group. That is why most classrooms I have subbed in have small reading groups for reading instruction. Very rarely, is reading taught as whole group instruction. A bit less frequently, but still often, math is also grouped. And sometimes spelling lists are individualized or grouped. But rarely does grouping extend to any other subject areas. This is especially noticeable for science and social studies. The most content-oriented (as opposed to skill-oriented) subjects are the least likely to be taught in small groups.
What is so great about 12 students? 12 is enough to provide a lot of variety. 4 probably isn't - variety in terms of viewpoint, gender, personality, background, etc. 12 is a good number to provide interaction. It is also a good number for dividing into even smaller groups, pairs, triads, quartets, and hexads. 12 means that talking is manageable. 12 children talking all at once isn't an aural assault. A class of 24 or 36 is. A class of 12 means that the teacher can talk to each child in a reasonable time, close to when they need it. In a class of 12, you are dealing with individuals as often as you are dealing with a group. There is time for the teacher to ask questions that will excite specific students, but not, perhaps, the whole group. The teacher can ask a student about a project and go in depth, where this isn't possible with large groups. The whole quality of the classroom changes.
I think groups up to 20 can operate like this, but with groups larger than this, the instruction seems to change. What do you think?
My own comment was, "The best classes I have taught have had from 4 to 12 students. What fun they are! You can actually talk with the kids and enjoy the teachable moments. You can treat each child as an individual and not just as members of a huge group."
The key for me is the teachable moment. In a class of 24 or more, there is little opportunity to take advantage of the teachable moment. Teachable moments are directly applicable to individual children. Sometimes these teachable moments extend to quite a few individual children at a time, but the real focus is on getting individual children excited about their learning. Children are quite different in what really excites them. Novelty, of course, will excite many of them at a time, but true interest in something usually is much more specific. With classes of 20 or more, this becomes a time and classroom management issue, especially when there are specific curricular goals to cover - and there almost always are specific learning goals mandated for the day.
Intuitively, I think most classroom teachers know that small group instruction is better than large group. That is why most classrooms I have subbed in have small reading groups for reading instruction. Very rarely, is reading taught as whole group instruction. A bit less frequently, but still often, math is also grouped. And sometimes spelling lists are individualized or grouped. But rarely does grouping extend to any other subject areas. This is especially noticeable for science and social studies. The most content-oriented (as opposed to skill-oriented) subjects are the least likely to be taught in small groups.
What is so great about 12 students? 12 is enough to provide a lot of variety. 4 probably isn't - variety in terms of viewpoint, gender, personality, background, etc. 12 is a good number to provide interaction. It is also a good number for dividing into even smaller groups, pairs, triads, quartets, and hexads. 12 means that talking is manageable. 12 children talking all at once isn't an aural assault. A class of 24 or 36 is. A class of 12 means that the teacher can talk to each child in a reasonable time, close to when they need it. In a class of 12, you are dealing with individuals as often as you are dealing with a group. There is time for the teacher to ask questions that will excite specific students, but not, perhaps, the whole group. The teacher can ask a student about a project and go in depth, where this isn't possible with large groups. The whole quality of the classroom changes.
I think groups up to 20 can operate like this, but with groups larger than this, the instruction seems to change. What do you think?
Saturday, February 23, 2013
A Teacher Treated Me, the Sub, Well
So often, if I have a partial day subbing job and the teacher is there when I arrive, I will get an extensive treatise on how to use the teacher manual for Everyday Math or the teacher will read the directions on a worksheet to me, as if I have never seen a worksheet before. It is interesting to me that the teacher feels the need to explain the teaching part of the assignment, when what I really need is the management part of the assignment: where are the class lists, what is the restroom procedure, do I need to accompany the students to their lunch recess, which door do I go to to pick them up from lunch, which kids leave for special services and when, etc. If they stop to catch a breath or ask me if I understand what to do, I will often ask this kind of question and I get a surprised look, as if I am concerned about trivia and I should be much more concerned about content. I guess I am concerned about trivia and less concerned about content. The content comes easy to me, but the management issues differ greatly from room to room and school to school. And management issues are one of the things that kids find most unsettling, a la, "We don't do things that way."
I am seldom treated as a real person with interests and abilities. Oh, sure, most of the teachers are completely polite and grateful that I am there to take over for them, but I could just as easily be anyone - just as long as I take the class and make it through the rest of the day with their students.
So, it was really refreshing the other day when the teacher I was subbing for actually was friendly to ME. She talked to me as if I had interesting things to contribute to her class and she even built in a couple of times in the schedule where I could add my own background to what her students had been studying. Sure, she asked the usual questions about whether I understood the plans for the rest of the day, but it was obvious that she respected ME not just as a place holder, but as a person. It was very refreshing.
And, given her positive attitude, which the kids also heard her express, they also had a positive attitude toward me. It ended up being a very good day.
I am seldom treated as a real person with interests and abilities. Oh, sure, most of the teachers are completely polite and grateful that I am there to take over for them, but I could just as easily be anyone - just as long as I take the class and make it through the rest of the day with their students.
So, it was really refreshing the other day when the teacher I was subbing for actually was friendly to ME. She talked to me as if I had interesting things to contribute to her class and she even built in a couple of times in the schedule where I could add my own background to what her students had been studying. Sure, she asked the usual questions about whether I understood the plans for the rest of the day, but it was obvious that she respected ME not just as a place holder, but as a person. It was very refreshing.
And, given her positive attitude, which the kids also heard her express, they also had a positive attitude toward me. It ended up being a very good day.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
They Identify Themselves
I have just finished reading the NY Times article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/18/nyregion/new-york-city-schools-struggle-to-separate-the-gifted-from-the-just-well-prepared.html/
and I am thinking about a recent subbing experience. I was teaching 4th graders and had the students for 5 different small groups. There were anywhere from 4 to 6 kids in each group. Since I was a sub and not the regular teacher, the teacher had left the same assignment for each group. Most of the groups needed a similar amount of support - help with vocabulary, connection of pictures to text, connection of text to knowledge, etc. And all of the groups seemed to be quite interested in the topic - the volcanic origin of the Hawaiian Islands.
But, there was one group that stood out from all of the rest. They made connections to more other concepts, they had greater background knowledge, they asked more interesting questions. They were intrigued by the pronunciation of Hawaii words. And so on. One young gentleman in particular, the class clown and the one who would certainly be voted "Most Likely to Interrupt the Teacher's Lesson with Some Hilarious Non Sequitur", stood out. One young lady with sparkling eyes and insightful questions. And one I had deemed unlikely in the large group, but who came alive in the small group.
As someone who has nominated, tested, and taught (and raised) gifted children, I am thinking more and more that we could probably just bag the tests and do AnneMarie Roeper style interviews with groups of 4 or 5 students. The gifted kids would identify themselves. I love having test results - they are intriguing to me. But I am not sure they are necessary.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/18/nyregion/new-york-city-schools-struggle-to-separate-the-gifted-from-the-just-well-prepared.html/
and I am thinking about a recent subbing experience. I was teaching 4th graders and had the students for 5 different small groups. There were anywhere from 4 to 6 kids in each group. Since I was a sub and not the regular teacher, the teacher had left the same assignment for each group. Most of the groups needed a similar amount of support - help with vocabulary, connection of pictures to text, connection of text to knowledge, etc. And all of the groups seemed to be quite interested in the topic - the volcanic origin of the Hawaiian Islands.
But, there was one group that stood out from all of the rest. They made connections to more other concepts, they had greater background knowledge, they asked more interesting questions. They were intrigued by the pronunciation of Hawaii words. And so on. One young gentleman in particular, the class clown and the one who would certainly be voted "Most Likely to Interrupt the Teacher's Lesson with Some Hilarious Non Sequitur", stood out. One young lady with sparkling eyes and insightful questions. And one I had deemed unlikely in the large group, but who came alive in the small group.
As someone who has nominated, tested, and taught (and raised) gifted children, I am thinking more and more that we could probably just bag the tests and do AnneMarie Roeper style interviews with groups of 4 or 5 students. The gifted kids would identify themselves. I love having test results - they are intriguing to me. But I am not sure they are necessary.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Party Time
I would have skipped it if it had been a single job. I was subbing for a 4th grade the day before Valentine's Day. The class was only 20 kids, the teacher had made interesting plans, and the kids and I were having a good day. But then the secretary asked me if I would come back the next day, since the teacher's children were still sick and she needed a sub for the second day - Valentine's Day. That meant Valentine's Day parties and marginally controlled bedlam. But, I really hate to have kids have to have two (or more) different subs in a row, and we had had a good day, so I agreed.
Most of the day was fine. The kids were disappointed that their regular teacher wasn't there, but we had a good day anyway - for most of the day. And the kids would say for the entire day. They do love their parties.
The parents were in charge of the party - food and activities. There were two adjoining classrooms. In the other classroom, they were going to play bingo. In my classroom, they were going to dance. The parent in my room explained that she had carefully chosen the music, in order to eliminate language and references that were inappropriate for 4th graders. And most of it was. It was hilarious to watch the boys start the dancing. At that age, it is entirely group dancing, usually a circle of boys and a different cluster of girls. Soon enough, a large number of the kids were dancing - slightly more girls than boys.
Their favorite songs were obviously "I'm Sexy and I Know It" and "Call Me, Baby". I am glad that I had nothing to do with the music, since I would have been very embarrassed in front of the parents who were there, if they had thought I had chosen these songs. Virtually all of the kids knew all of the words to those two songs. It surprises me that the parents thought that they were OK for 4th graders. And the kids got to vote on which of them they would play again for the last dance ("I'm Sexy and I Know It" won).
Maybe I am getting old, but I remember when we wouldn't have even been allowed to play this song in high school and we certainly wouldn't even have considered the chest shimmy that the girls were doing.
I know kids love parties and Valentine's Day, but I will avoid it if I can. Sigh.
Most of the day was fine. The kids were disappointed that their regular teacher wasn't there, but we had a good day anyway - for most of the day. And the kids would say for the entire day. They do love their parties.
The parents were in charge of the party - food and activities. There were two adjoining classrooms. In the other classroom, they were going to play bingo. In my classroom, they were going to dance. The parent in my room explained that she had carefully chosen the music, in order to eliminate language and references that were inappropriate for 4th graders. And most of it was. It was hilarious to watch the boys start the dancing. At that age, it is entirely group dancing, usually a circle of boys and a different cluster of girls. Soon enough, a large number of the kids were dancing - slightly more girls than boys.
Their favorite songs were obviously "I'm Sexy and I Know It" and "Call Me, Baby". I am glad that I had nothing to do with the music, since I would have been very embarrassed in front of the parents who were there, if they had thought I had chosen these songs. Virtually all of the kids knew all of the words to those two songs. It surprises me that the parents thought that they were OK for 4th graders. And the kids got to vote on which of them they would play again for the last dance ("I'm Sexy and I Know It" won).
Maybe I am getting old, but I remember when we wouldn't have even been allowed to play this song in high school and we certainly wouldn't even have considered the chest shimmy that the girls were doing.
I know kids love parties and Valentine's Day, but I will avoid it if I can. Sigh.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
The Importance of Grammar and Spelling
The subbing job I had today started with a daily language exercise, where the students were supposed to correct the spelling, grammar, and punctuation of passages with underlined mistakes. This they did fairly accurately and well. Then, later in the day, for social studies, they were presenting Prezi slide shows, with material taken directly from a textbook. The spelling, punctuation, and grammar of the Prezi presentations was appalling. Titles were randomly capitalized; "their" and "there" were incorrect; periods were absent from sentences; sentence and paragraph structure were incorrect, etc. Now, I know this was a fourth grade and their skills are still developing, but it seems to me that, before they were allowed to present their Prezi to the whole class, they should have had the teacher go through the presentations with them to check for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. This is WHY they study these topics: so they will learn to USE them in their own writing. Yes, I know there are exceptions and Prezi presentations can be very effective with no capital letters and purposely misspelled words. But you need to know the correct way, in order for the incorrect way to be effective. Otherwise, it just looks sloppy, unfinished, or unpolished. And yes, I also know that, for some students, just doing the presentation represents massive effort. But when the majority of the students aren't using proper writing conventions, it says to me that they aren't being told that they are important.
This is by far not the only time I have seen this phenomenon. Far too often, students spend significant amounts of time in language arts classes, studying grammar, spelling, punctuation, and usage, only to have those skills be completely ignored or discounted in all of their other classes. This makes correct spelling (and the others) seem important ONLY in spelling class. Everywhere else it is ignored. No wonder there is such a disconnect between the subject areas. Yes, ideas are important; yes, technological skills are important; but grammar, spelling, punctuation, and usage are also important. Or why else do we spend so much time teaching them?
This is by far not the only time I have seen this phenomenon. Far too often, students spend significant amounts of time in language arts classes, studying grammar, spelling, punctuation, and usage, only to have those skills be completely ignored or discounted in all of their other classes. This makes correct spelling (and the others) seem important ONLY in spelling class. Everywhere else it is ignored. No wonder there is such a disconnect between the subject areas. Yes, ideas are important; yes, technological skills are important; but grammar, spelling, punctuation, and usage are also important. Or why else do we spend so much time teaching them?
Saturday, February 09, 2013
Positive Behavior Reinforcers
When I sub, I often am encouraged to use each teacher's or school's particular set of positive behavior re-inforcers. One school will have tickets; another will have marbles; another will use adding letters to words to earn a particular reward. Some teachers will use all of those things and more.
The other day, I was introduced to yet another variety of re-inforcer: the ClassDoJo app. The teacher I was subbing for had this app on her iPad and on her computer (PC-compatible). I got to the classroom early (the previous day, I had had trouble finding a school that was unfamiliar to me, and I was afraid of it happening again - but, of course, when I leave EXTRA, EXTRA early, I have no trouble finding the school). So I got to observe her working with her students and using the ClassDoJo app. She had excellent control of the classroom and the students were working very productively. They were working on writing and she was teaching a lesson about writing conclusions. A lot of the classes I have been teaching lately have been working on persuasive writing, as it is part of the testing that is coming up soon in this state. The lesson was well thought out and she taught it well. The writing instruction follows the pretty much standard 5 paragraph essay: introduction (topic and opinion), three paragraphs, each supporting one of the major reasons, and conclusion. Even the conclusion has a standard format: repeat topic and opinion, restate the three major reasons, demand/urge the reader to action.
While the kids were working on their essays, she used the ClassDoJo app on her iPad to add points to children's records for how they were working. If they were following independent work expectations, she would tell them, "Good following independent work expectations, [Name]" as she awarded the point. There was also "Good participation", and several other categories. There were also negative categories, e.g., "Failure to Follow Instructions" and "Disruptive Behavior". It seemed to work really well for her.
She needed to take her iPad with her for the meeting she was going to, so she showed me how to use the application on the computer. It is relatively straightforward and easy to use. But since the computer was set up to use the Smart Board for everything, it was also completely visible to the students, as it was used. Evidently there is a contest for the students to have the highest points by the end of the day or week and they followed the standings throughout the day. As a sub, I found this rather distracting, but the students seemed used to it.
The cracks in the system began to appear after she left me alone with the students. I had little trouble using the system, but, as usual, the kids test the limits of the sub and using the system wasn't as efficient for me as it undoubtedly was for the regular teacher. I had two different groups of students (she taught writing to two different classes and science to both of them as well) and I didn't know the names of the students. The software doesn't use their pictures, just a name and an icon.
The students got work done and their behavior was acceptable, if not stellar. But I left the school at the end of the day feeling uncomfortable. And, on my long drive home, I was trying to figure out why I felt slightly down and depressed. And, it occurred to me: I felt like Pavlov's dogs: manipulated and conditioned, treated as an object, and not as a person. I don't know if the students felt like that. There was one student who said that this was the best school he had ever been in. But there were 3 or 4 students for whom the system seemed to represent a negative. I was only there a half day, so I don't know any more than that. But I do know the effect that it had on ME wasn't especially good. I felt that I hadn't had a chance to talk to kids, to interact with them on a personal level. The system seemed to be a barrier between us.
When it is used on the iPad and is more hidden, it can give excellent information to the teacher about which kids are exhibiting which behaviors. I am not sure how customizable it is, but it would be interesting to me to record things like higher level questioning, insightful answers, kindness to others, etc. But I am not comfortable with putting such a strong emphasis on the number of points each student has and passing out rewards for that. It feels a bit Big Brotherish to me.
Positive behavior re-inforcers seem to be very popular, but they make me uncomfortable. And yet, most teachers swear by them. I feel like we are manipulating students into behaviors that they should exhibit without the reward system. They should be exhibiting good behavior for its own sake and not for the reward. But, in some of the schools they seem to work.
I feel out of step. Once, again.
The other day, I was introduced to yet another variety of re-inforcer: the ClassDoJo app. The teacher I was subbing for had this app on her iPad and on her computer (PC-compatible). I got to the classroom early (the previous day, I had had trouble finding a school that was unfamiliar to me, and I was afraid of it happening again - but, of course, when I leave EXTRA, EXTRA early, I have no trouble finding the school). So I got to observe her working with her students and using the ClassDoJo app. She had excellent control of the classroom and the students were working very productively. They were working on writing and she was teaching a lesson about writing conclusions. A lot of the classes I have been teaching lately have been working on persuasive writing, as it is part of the testing that is coming up soon in this state. The lesson was well thought out and she taught it well. The writing instruction follows the pretty much standard 5 paragraph essay: introduction (topic and opinion), three paragraphs, each supporting one of the major reasons, and conclusion. Even the conclusion has a standard format: repeat topic and opinion, restate the three major reasons, demand/urge the reader to action.
While the kids were working on their essays, she used the ClassDoJo app on her iPad to add points to children's records for how they were working. If they were following independent work expectations, she would tell them, "Good following independent work expectations, [Name]" as she awarded the point. There was also "Good participation", and several other categories. There were also negative categories, e.g., "Failure to Follow Instructions" and "Disruptive Behavior". It seemed to work really well for her.
She needed to take her iPad with her for the meeting she was going to, so she showed me how to use the application on the computer. It is relatively straightforward and easy to use. But since the computer was set up to use the Smart Board for everything, it was also completely visible to the students, as it was used. Evidently there is a contest for the students to have the highest points by the end of the day or week and they followed the standings throughout the day. As a sub, I found this rather distracting, but the students seemed used to it.
The cracks in the system began to appear after she left me alone with the students. I had little trouble using the system, but, as usual, the kids test the limits of the sub and using the system wasn't as efficient for me as it undoubtedly was for the regular teacher. I had two different groups of students (she taught writing to two different classes and science to both of them as well) and I didn't know the names of the students. The software doesn't use their pictures, just a name and an icon.
The students got work done and their behavior was acceptable, if not stellar. But I left the school at the end of the day feeling uncomfortable. And, on my long drive home, I was trying to figure out why I felt slightly down and depressed. And, it occurred to me: I felt like Pavlov's dogs: manipulated and conditioned, treated as an object, and not as a person. I don't know if the students felt like that. There was one student who said that this was the best school he had ever been in. But there were 3 or 4 students for whom the system seemed to represent a negative. I was only there a half day, so I don't know any more than that. But I do know the effect that it had on ME wasn't especially good. I felt that I hadn't had a chance to talk to kids, to interact with them on a personal level. The system seemed to be a barrier between us.
When it is used on the iPad and is more hidden, it can give excellent information to the teacher about which kids are exhibiting which behaviors. I am not sure how customizable it is, but it would be interesting to me to record things like higher level questioning, insightful answers, kindness to others, etc. But I am not comfortable with putting such a strong emphasis on the number of points each student has and passing out rewards for that. It feels a bit Big Brotherish to me.
Positive behavior re-inforcers seem to be very popular, but they make me uncomfortable. And yet, most teachers swear by them. I feel like we are manipulating students into behaviors that they should exhibit without the reward system. They should be exhibiting good behavior for its own sake and not for the reward. But, in some of the schools they seem to work.
I feel out of step. Once, again.
Saturday, February 02, 2013
Book about French Kids' Eating Habits
I have posted this on my book blog, but I am posting it here, too, because I think the review deals with some important education issues, too. This issues include teaching kids about nutrition and foods.
French Kids Eat Everything: How Our Family Moved to France, Cured Picky Eating, Banned Snacking, and Discovered 10 Simple Rules for Raising Happy, Healthy Eaters by Karen Le Billon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Although I do not have young children any more, I enjoyed reading this book. As a substitute teacher, I go to many different schools and I have previously taught regularly in quite a few more and I am not happy with the eating habits I see kids developing. It started with water. There was a big push to have kids drink more water and since the water from drinking fountains was often not very good, kids started bringing their own water bottles. Then kids would substitute juice for plain water, which soon was switched out for energy drinks. The morning milk and cookies snack, became the morning juice and crackers snack. Then came the decision that kids should determine when they were hungry and thirsty, so they should be allowed to eat whenever they felt they needed to. In some schools, VERY MANY of them, actually, this has become "kids can eat all day, whenever they want". This has led to an INCREDIBLE amount of food being thrown out - from their school lunches or from their packed lunches, usually food that is higher in nutrition than sweet drinks and chips of various sorts. Even at the high school and middle school level, in MANY schools, kids are eating virtually all day. I had one very chubby girl tell me that she "needed" to eat all day, or else she would suffer from faintness. She could have been telling the truth, I have no way of knowing, but it certainly wasn't doing her any good to be eating cookies all day.
So, it was very interesting to me to read about a different culture where this was not accepted. The only problem with this book for me personally is that I really do not like to cook. It made me wish very much that I did.
I must also admit to skimming a lot of the latter part of the book. Still, if either of my daughters ever decide to have children, I may seriously consider buying this for them. And should I ever have a say in the matter, I would also seriously advocate for changing the eating habits of children in American schools.
View all my reviews
French Kids Eat Everything: How Our Family Moved to France, Cured Picky Eating, Banned Snacking, and Discovered 10 Simple Rules for Raising Happy, Healthy Eaters by Karen Le BillonMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Although I do not have young children any more, I enjoyed reading this book. As a substitute teacher, I go to many different schools and I have previously taught regularly in quite a few more and I am not happy with the eating habits I see kids developing. It started with water. There was a big push to have kids drink more water and since the water from drinking fountains was often not very good, kids started bringing their own water bottles. Then kids would substitute juice for plain water, which soon was switched out for energy drinks. The morning milk and cookies snack, became the morning juice and crackers snack. Then came the decision that kids should determine when they were hungry and thirsty, so they should be allowed to eat whenever they felt they needed to. In some schools, VERY MANY of them, actually, this has become "kids can eat all day, whenever they want". This has led to an INCREDIBLE amount of food being thrown out - from their school lunches or from their packed lunches, usually food that is higher in nutrition than sweet drinks and chips of various sorts. Even at the high school and middle school level, in MANY schools, kids are eating virtually all day. I had one very chubby girl tell me that she "needed" to eat all day, or else she would suffer from faintness. She could have been telling the truth, I have no way of knowing, but it certainly wasn't doing her any good to be eating cookies all day.
So, it was very interesting to me to read about a different culture where this was not accepted. The only problem with this book for me personally is that I really do not like to cook. It made me wish very much that I did.
I must also admit to skimming a lot of the latter part of the book. Still, if either of my daughters ever decide to have children, I may seriously consider buying this for them. And should I ever have a say in the matter, I would also seriously advocate for changing the eating habits of children in American schools.
View all my reviews
Tugs at My Heart
I am not sure how to post this so that there is absolutely no chance that the person in question would find it and feel exposed.
I subbed for a class the other day that was working on persuasive writing. They were supposed to write a persuasive essay about something they would really like to have from their parents. As I was helping one student structure the essay, the only thing that s/he could think of that s/he wanted was for her family to spend more time together so that they would love each other more and not fight as much. I almost cried as I worked with him/her.
And, the question came to me, how could I help this child? I am a sub and I don't have any chance for long term input. I told the teacher next door about the essay. And I looked for a counselor (but didn't find one). I wrote a note to the regular teacher, but, due to many factors, she probably won't be able to follow up on it much.
So, there is this post. Please love your family.
I subbed for a class the other day that was working on persuasive writing. They were supposed to write a persuasive essay about something they would really like to have from their parents. As I was helping one student structure the essay, the only thing that s/he could think of that s/he wanted was for her family to spend more time together so that they would love each other more and not fight as much. I almost cried as I worked with him/her.
And, the question came to me, how could I help this child? I am a sub and I don't have any chance for long term input. I told the teacher next door about the essay. And I looked for a counselor (but didn't find one). I wrote a note to the regular teacher, but, due to many factors, she probably won't be able to follow up on it much.
So, there is this post. Please love your family.
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Politically Incorrect
I subbed in a school today that had a significant number of special needs students. These students came to the classroom I was in for math. There were 3 or 4 classes at the grade level I was teaching and this teacher had the lowest group of students. There were approximately 26 students in the class, 4 of whom were special needs students. An additional special needs student was absent. There were 4 aides. Three of the special needs students required one on one aides and the other two (normally including the absent student), evidently could be helped with just one aide. One of the special needs students could do part of the day's lesson, with help from the aide; the rest could not and were working on things that were unrelated (one was working on days of the week; one was counting dots on a die and trying to say the number; the third did nothing, as far as I could tell).
I have no objection to special needs students being in the room when aides are provided for those who need them, and most especially, I think they belong there if they can do all or part of the lesson with adaptations. But I am not sure why the students who were utterly unable to do the lesson - or anything even close - were there. The special needs students sit separately and don't/can't interact with the other students. Even that would be fine, except one of the students was evidently unhappy about something. He spent most of the class period moaning and groaning very loudly, and occasionally emitting a high pitched, drawn out whine. It was very disconcerting to me and it was extremely difficult for the other students to hear me talk above the nearly constant groaning and whining. I was supposed to lead the students through one worksheet/hands-on exercise and then teach them how to play a game.
I feel the other students were short-changed - at least today. Perhaps they could concentrate better than I could, because they were used to the constant noise. But it left me with nerves jangling and feeling that I couldn't adequately help the other students, when they couldn't hear me. 26 or so students in a classroom is a lot, anyway, and when they need more support than other students, the addition of the special needs students seemed a bit much. I feel that the class should somehow have been significantly smaller or the students who were unable to participate in the lesson and were making nearly constant noise should have been removed.
I guess I am completely politically incorrect. And the regular teacher must be a saint.
________________________________________
Additional thoughts, upon further reflection:
How do we determine what is fair in the classroom? Treatment of students can NEVER be equal, since each child is unique and has unique needs and experiences. Do we attempt to treat them all the same and say we were fair? What does the "least restrictive environment" mean in terms of children with severe disabilities? What does it mean in terms of the rest of the children in the classroom?
I have no objection to special needs students being in the room when aides are provided for those who need them, and most especially, I think they belong there if they can do all or part of the lesson with adaptations. But I am not sure why the students who were utterly unable to do the lesson - or anything even close - were there. The special needs students sit separately and don't/can't interact with the other students. Even that would be fine, except one of the students was evidently unhappy about something. He spent most of the class period moaning and groaning very loudly, and occasionally emitting a high pitched, drawn out whine. It was very disconcerting to me and it was extremely difficult for the other students to hear me talk above the nearly constant groaning and whining. I was supposed to lead the students through one worksheet/hands-on exercise and then teach them how to play a game.
I feel the other students were short-changed - at least today. Perhaps they could concentrate better than I could, because they were used to the constant noise. But it left me with nerves jangling and feeling that I couldn't adequately help the other students, when they couldn't hear me. 26 or so students in a classroom is a lot, anyway, and when they need more support than other students, the addition of the special needs students seemed a bit much. I feel that the class should somehow have been significantly smaller or the students who were unable to participate in the lesson and were making nearly constant noise should have been removed.
I guess I am completely politically incorrect. And the regular teacher must be a saint.
________________________________________
Additional thoughts, upon further reflection:
How do we determine what is fair in the classroom? Treatment of students can NEVER be equal, since each child is unique and has unique needs and experiences. Do we attempt to treat them all the same and say we were fair? What does the "least restrictive environment" mean in terms of children with severe disabilities? What does it mean in terms of the rest of the children in the classroom?
Sunday, January 20, 2013
This post is a response to SH's post Black Paper
This post is a response to SH's post Black Paper, found at:
http://chockyschild.wordpress.com/2013/01/19/black-paper/
Key points:
1. I agree and I think we have lost sight of the fact that the word discipline means teaching - teaching the child the ways of society that make it function well. We can't just go around doing exactly what each of us would like to do, because it infringes on the rights of others.
2. Competition can increase both motivation and effort. Too much competition can be unhealthy, but so can too little.
3. Yes, we need quality teachers, but I think we also need a lot of them. Part of the reason teacher quality has declined is that other occupations have opened up immensely for talented women. Less competent teachers have had to fill the void. But schools, in the US and I suspect worldwide, have also tried to economize on teachers. They have purposely hired less competent, less experienced teachers, because these teachers cost less.
I am also disturbed at the increasing class sizes I see as a substitute teacher in the last year or two. Part of teaching is getting to know the students and developing solid relationships with them. This is more difficult as the class sizes get larger. To me, this is self-evident, but it is based on the following observation: when I sub for classes of 24 or fewer students, I can manage to learn the names of each of the students in the class. I even have time to learn a bit about most of them. As class sizes increase over 24 students, I find this increasingly not even worth attempting. And, learning a student's name is the first step to getting to know them.
I tend to see equipment in a moderate way. You can do a lot with simple equipment - probably much more than most people think. But some things are essential - stuff to write with and on; basic art supplies; things to read.
4. I think this is mostly semantics. Schooling IS social engineering.
5. Agreed. I think we fail in this respect to a large extent. I used to strongly support bilingual education, but lately I have seen results of it that I don't think benefit the bilingual students. I was subbing in a bilingual school where the students were to be taught in one language in the morning and in the other language in the afternoon. I am fluent in only one of the languages, but understand a fair amount of the other one. It seemed to me that the students who speak English at home benefited greatly from learning a second language at school. But the students who spoke Spanish at home were being cheated by this system. They only had to get through half of their school day in English. The rest of the time, at school and at home, they could speak Spanish. Consequently, their language skills, both reading and writing especially, were significantly below the level of the native English speakers. If they are to have the full range of options for high school and beyond, they need to be fluent in English as well as, in this case, Spanish. High school and college are almost universally taught in English in the US.
6. I am not an expert on reading. I expect this is true, but I have always HATED reading instruction, both as a student and as a teacher. Thus, my opinions on this are suspect.
7. This is one reason why I am a strong supporter of gifted education, especially in deprived areas. Gifted students with parents who have the economic means to support them have a reasonable chance of succeeding. Gifted students whose parents are struggling with basic necessities will have far fewer chances and need more support from the schools.
8. I have recently begun to wonder if we couldn't entirely restructure education into learning modules and allow students to progress through them at their own rates. There could be outside examinations for each module: Reading, Level A, Basic Phonics; Reading, Level A, Basic Text Comprehension, etc. One advantage of this is that now the students might perceive the teacher differently. Rather than being the obstacle to their advancement to the next level, the judge of their efforts, the punisher of wrong answers, the students might begin to see the teacher as the guide to passing the next task, the facilitator of learning that we all hope to be, but sometimes fear we are not. Unlike many teachers in the US, I actually LIKE standardized testing, but I think it is used incorrectly. It is not typically used to inform instruction, but rather to judge the student and the teacher. This is one reason why I like computerized adaptive testing. Students can progress through the test to the level of their abilities and the results are available immediately, so they can be used to inform instruction. "You have just passed Reading, Level G, Inferences from Pictures; you are ready for Reading, Level H, Inferences from Metaphors. "
9. Freedom of speech is vital, but is seldom practiced below university level.
10. Equality is impossible. Any parent of more than one child knows this. Any emergency room doctor knows this.
Thanks, SH, for food for thought.
http://chockyschild.wordpress.com/2013/01/19/black-paper/
Key points:
- Children are not naturally good. They need firm, tactful discipline from parents and teachers with clear standards. Too much freedom for children breeds selfishness, vandalism and personal unhappiness.
- If the non-competitive ethos of progressive education is allowed to dominate our schools, we shall produce a generation unable to maintain our standards of living when opposed by fierce rivalry from overseas competitors.
- It is the quality of teachers that matters, rather than their numbers or their equipment. We have sacrificed quality for numbers, and the result has been a lowering of standards. We need high-quality, higher-paid teachers in the classroom, not as counsellors or administrators.
- Schools are for schooling, not social engineering.
- The best way to help children in deprived areas is to teach them to be literate and numerate, and to develop all their potential abilities.
- Every normal child should be able to read by the age of seven. This can be achieved by the hard work of teachers who use a structured approach.
- Without selection the clever working-class child in a deprived area stands little chance of a real academic education.
- External examinations are essential for schools, colleges, polytechnics and universities. Without such checks, standards decline. Working-class children suffer when applying for jobs if they cannot bring forward proof of their worth achieved in authoritative examinations.
- Freedom of speech must be preserved in universities. Institutions which cannot maintain proper standards of open debate should be closed.
- You can have equality or equality of opportunity; you cannot have both. Equality will be the holding back (or the new deprivation) of the brighter children.
1. I agree and I think we have lost sight of the fact that the word discipline means teaching - teaching the child the ways of society that make it function well. We can't just go around doing exactly what each of us would like to do, because it infringes on the rights of others.
2. Competition can increase both motivation and effort. Too much competition can be unhealthy, but so can too little.
3. Yes, we need quality teachers, but I think we also need a lot of them. Part of the reason teacher quality has declined is that other occupations have opened up immensely for talented women. Less competent teachers have had to fill the void. But schools, in the US and I suspect worldwide, have also tried to economize on teachers. They have purposely hired less competent, less experienced teachers, because these teachers cost less.
I am also disturbed at the increasing class sizes I see as a substitute teacher in the last year or two. Part of teaching is getting to know the students and developing solid relationships with them. This is more difficult as the class sizes get larger. To me, this is self-evident, but it is based on the following observation: when I sub for classes of 24 or fewer students, I can manage to learn the names of each of the students in the class. I even have time to learn a bit about most of them. As class sizes increase over 24 students, I find this increasingly not even worth attempting. And, learning a student's name is the first step to getting to know them.
I tend to see equipment in a moderate way. You can do a lot with simple equipment - probably much more than most people think. But some things are essential - stuff to write with and on; basic art supplies; things to read.
4. I think this is mostly semantics. Schooling IS social engineering.
5. Agreed. I think we fail in this respect to a large extent. I used to strongly support bilingual education, but lately I have seen results of it that I don't think benefit the bilingual students. I was subbing in a bilingual school where the students were to be taught in one language in the morning and in the other language in the afternoon. I am fluent in only one of the languages, but understand a fair amount of the other one. It seemed to me that the students who speak English at home benefited greatly from learning a second language at school. But the students who spoke Spanish at home were being cheated by this system. They only had to get through half of their school day in English. The rest of the time, at school and at home, they could speak Spanish. Consequently, their language skills, both reading and writing especially, were significantly below the level of the native English speakers. If they are to have the full range of options for high school and beyond, they need to be fluent in English as well as, in this case, Spanish. High school and college are almost universally taught in English in the US.
6. I am not an expert on reading. I expect this is true, but I have always HATED reading instruction, both as a student and as a teacher. Thus, my opinions on this are suspect.
7. This is one reason why I am a strong supporter of gifted education, especially in deprived areas. Gifted students with parents who have the economic means to support them have a reasonable chance of succeeding. Gifted students whose parents are struggling with basic necessities will have far fewer chances and need more support from the schools.
8. I have recently begun to wonder if we couldn't entirely restructure education into learning modules and allow students to progress through them at their own rates. There could be outside examinations for each module: Reading, Level A, Basic Phonics; Reading, Level A, Basic Text Comprehension, etc. One advantage of this is that now the students might perceive the teacher differently. Rather than being the obstacle to their advancement to the next level, the judge of their efforts, the punisher of wrong answers, the students might begin to see the teacher as the guide to passing the next task, the facilitator of learning that we all hope to be, but sometimes fear we are not. Unlike many teachers in the US, I actually LIKE standardized testing, but I think it is used incorrectly. It is not typically used to inform instruction, but rather to judge the student and the teacher. This is one reason why I like computerized adaptive testing. Students can progress through the test to the level of their abilities and the results are available immediately, so they can be used to inform instruction. "You have just passed Reading, Level G, Inferences from Pictures; you are ready for Reading, Level H, Inferences from Metaphors. "
9. Freedom of speech is vital, but is seldom practiced below university level.
10. Equality is impossible. Any parent of more than one child knows this. Any emergency room doctor knows this.
Thanks, SH, for food for thought.
Friday, December 07, 2012
27 Rejections for One Job Application
I recently applied for a job and got the usual, "Thank you for your interest in applying to the XXXX School District, specifically the position of YYYY. The District is fortunate to have many qualified applicants; regrettably you have not been selected for an interview at this time." and so forth. Only, this time I got the email message 27 times. I guess they REALLY didn't want to consider me for the position. Nor 20 other applicants, whose complete names and email addresses were also included in the rejection note. I hope someone is suitably embarrassed about the error and the breech of privacy. They did apologize and they blamed it on the software the district was using.
Looking on the bright side, this is a new record for the most rejections I have ever gotten in a day - and this was for a single job application.
It looks as though I will never get a regular job in a school district around here. I am simply too old (63) and too expensive. I have two master's degrees and 199 hours beyond the second master's degree toward a Ph. D. And, even though I have a perfect score on a relevant PRAXIS exam, 200 points, and a commendation from ETS for Excellence, I evidently am not good enough for the school districts that are close to me, as most of them do not even call me to interview.
I guess it is fortunate that I actually find subbing interesting, even though it is exhausting and often extremely difficult. I enjoy comparing school districts, schools, classrooms, teachers, curriculum, and above all students from different educational venues. I just wish the pay rate wasn't such an insult - no person living alone could afford to be a substitute teacher - at least around here.
And, 27 rejections is discouraging, even if I know it was a mistake - because they have been preceded by many other individual ones.
Looking on the bright side, this is a new record for the most rejections I have ever gotten in a day - and this was for a single job application.
It looks as though I will never get a regular job in a school district around here. I am simply too old (63) and too expensive. I have two master's degrees and 199 hours beyond the second master's degree toward a Ph. D. And, even though I have a perfect score on a relevant PRAXIS exam, 200 points, and a commendation from ETS for Excellence, I evidently am not good enough for the school districts that are close to me, as most of them do not even call me to interview.
I guess it is fortunate that I actually find subbing interesting, even though it is exhausting and often extremely difficult. I enjoy comparing school districts, schools, classrooms, teachers, curriculum, and above all students from different educational venues. I just wish the pay rate wasn't such an insult - no person living alone could afford to be a substitute teacher - at least around here.
And, 27 rejections is discouraging, even if I know it was a mistake - because they have been preceded by many other individual ones.
Tuesday, December 04, 2012
Just Coincidence?
I was in a top-rated school today and enjoyed the students. But, there is one thing that seems a bit odd. I have been ranting about large class sizes in most schools. This class was only 22 students. That is the smallest class I have had for a long time. It could be just a fluke of numbers and classes, but it seems odd that a top-rated school would have a smaller class and the struggling schools have much larger classes.
Monday, December 03, 2012
Don't Bother
I am now annoyed by an entirely different thing. If the only reason you comment on my blog is to advertise or solicit views for YOUR blog, don't bother. If you truly think your blog is relevant to my comment, explain why, don't just give me a link. I don't follow random links.
Sunday, December 02, 2012
Questions about Differentiation
I know I have talked a lot about differentiation - how it is not adequate for highly gifted students, how most teachers don't seem to be able to do it consistently or adequately. So now I have additional questions. Has the gifted field's emphasis on differentiation helped? Are there more accommodations for gifted children or fewer? Are the needs of more gifted children getting addressed at an appropriate level or not?
I don't know if there is research about this, but I do know that one state I lived in, Illinois, dropped funding for all gifted programs. I have also been told that a school district neighboring where I live now has eliminated all gifted teacher positions. The thing that I feared a dozen or so years ago seems to be coming to pass. Educators of educators tout differentiation -> new teachers are all expected to subscribe to the differentiation mantra -> now that all teachers can differentiate, they can take care of the needs of all students in their classrooms -> special programs are no longer needed. Only, there are laws about students with disabilities and there are high stakes tests for students who are struggling with the regular curriculum. So, it turns out that the special teachers who help students with disabilities or those who need extra support are still there - and in even greater numbers. There are literacy support teachers, numeracy support teachers, ELL teachers, LD teachers, special education aides. Do you notice the one group that there is no more? GT teachers.
Don't get me wrong - I think differentiation is a great thing for teachers to learn to do. And, as much as they can in the limited time they have available, all teachers (in my opinion) should be able to differentiate for the students in their classes. But has the gifted field's emphasis on differentiation helped gifted students get the services they need? Convince me.
I don't know if there is research about this, but I do know that one state I lived in, Illinois, dropped funding for all gifted programs. I have also been told that a school district neighboring where I live now has eliminated all gifted teacher positions. The thing that I feared a dozen or so years ago seems to be coming to pass. Educators of educators tout differentiation -> new teachers are all expected to subscribe to the differentiation mantra -> now that all teachers can differentiate, they can take care of the needs of all students in their classrooms -> special programs are no longer needed. Only, there are laws about students with disabilities and there are high stakes tests for students who are struggling with the regular curriculum. So, it turns out that the special teachers who help students with disabilities or those who need extra support are still there - and in even greater numbers. There are literacy support teachers, numeracy support teachers, ELL teachers, LD teachers, special education aides. Do you notice the one group that there is no more? GT teachers.
Don't get me wrong - I think differentiation is a great thing for teachers to learn to do. And, as much as they can in the limited time they have available, all teachers (in my opinion) should be able to differentiate for the students in their classes. But has the gifted field's emphasis on differentiation helped gifted students get the services they need? Convince me.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Each One Counts
For a long time now, I have been harping about class size and today, I would like to compare two of the classes I have had this week. They aren't strictly comparable - they were different grade levels and in different districts, but since I am not going to make a statistical appeal today, it doesn't really matter that they are not as comparable as one might wish. Both classes were in relatively well-to-do neighborhoods, with fairly privileged children. One class had around 24 students, the other had around 32.
In the first case, as a sub, I had 24 names to learn and 24 new students to interact with. Learning 24 new names each day is doable, though difficult. Learning 32 names is probably not doable for most subs. How would you feel if your child was one of the ones the teacher couldn't learn the name of? Probably, most people would let it slide. But during the course of his/her schooling each child will have nearly a full year of subs. One year of being nameless?
In the first class, I could spend a couple of minutes talking to a boy who wanted to tell me about his project; I could spend another few minutes with the know-it-all girl, who needed to show me how competent she was as a teacher's helper; I could talk individually to each child during the literacy block. In the second school, I got to talk individually to some of the students, but not most of them.
You know what kids remember most about their schooling? - how the teachers made them feel. I could feel so much better about my interactions with the class of 24 students than with the class of 32 students. 24 is still a bit bigger than I would like, but 32 is definitely past the point where it is possible to have a significant number of personal interactions. With 32, there is a lot more time spent keeping kids on task, correcting behavior, and take care of administrative tasks. With 24, there is room in the classroom to move around to different areas for different types of activities. With 32, the room is so packed with desks and chairs that there is frequently very little room to maneuver. With 24, it is easier to get to each student to answer a question or to point out a problem. With 32, it is much harder.
Each child counts. Each interaction counts. When people say that class size doesn't matter, according to research, they are looking at test scores. Maybe there, it doesn't matter. I don't really believe that, but that isn't my point today. Children are much more than test scores. They are real people who need personal interactions, even the surly kid who doesn't want to talk to the teacher. Each one needs to know that the teacher cares. Even if that teacher is "just a sub".
In the first case, as a sub, I had 24 names to learn and 24 new students to interact with. Learning 24 new names each day is doable, though difficult. Learning 32 names is probably not doable for most subs. How would you feel if your child was one of the ones the teacher couldn't learn the name of? Probably, most people would let it slide. But during the course of his/her schooling each child will have nearly a full year of subs. One year of being nameless?
In the first class, I could spend a couple of minutes talking to a boy who wanted to tell me about his project; I could spend another few minutes with the know-it-all girl, who needed to show me how competent she was as a teacher's helper; I could talk individually to each child during the literacy block. In the second school, I got to talk individually to some of the students, but not most of them.
You know what kids remember most about their schooling? - how the teachers made them feel. I could feel so much better about my interactions with the class of 24 students than with the class of 32 students. 24 is still a bit bigger than I would like, but 32 is definitely past the point where it is possible to have a significant number of personal interactions. With 32, there is a lot more time spent keeping kids on task, correcting behavior, and take care of administrative tasks. With 24, there is room in the classroom to move around to different areas for different types of activities. With 32, the room is so packed with desks and chairs that there is frequently very little room to maneuver. With 24, it is easier to get to each student to answer a question or to point out a problem. With 32, it is much harder.
Each child counts. Each interaction counts. When people say that class size doesn't matter, according to research, they are looking at test scores. Maybe there, it doesn't matter. I don't really believe that, but that isn't my point today. Children are much more than test scores. They are real people who need personal interactions, even the surly kid who doesn't want to talk to the teacher. Each one needs to know that the teacher cares. Even if that teacher is "just a sub".
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Good Day
Yesterday, I had a good day subbing. I can't say that for every day, but some days make it worth it. The class was respectful and, above all, NICE. It was an enjoyable day.
One of the highlights of my day was a young boy. As a sub, I have no way of knowing if this student is identified as gifted, but I could see it as if it were written in bold letters across his forehead. He was working on a project about American legends for his reading work. [And I might say, as an aside, that this might, in fact, be one of the very rare instances that I could actually see differentiation occurring for a gifted student in the classroom.] He had a list of American legends that he was making a booklet about. We talked briefly about the ones that he had listed. He told me they could be either real people or not real people and he had included several that were rather interesting, including one Native American legend. I made one additional suggestion, Sacajawea, and that was all the time we had. But it was good.
I had met his teacher when I first arrived there - she was going home sick - and she seemed very nice and competent. I am glad this young boy has such a good regular teacher.
One of the highlights of my day was a young boy. As a sub, I have no way of knowing if this student is identified as gifted, but I could see it as if it were written in bold letters across his forehead. He was working on a project about American legends for his reading work. [And I might say, as an aside, that this might, in fact, be one of the very rare instances that I could actually see differentiation occurring for a gifted student in the classroom.] He had a list of American legends that he was making a booklet about. We talked briefly about the ones that he had listed. He told me they could be either real people or not real people and he had included several that were rather interesting, including one Native American legend. I made one additional suggestion, Sacajawea, and that was all the time we had. But it was good.
I had met his teacher when I first arrived there - she was going home sick - and she seemed very nice and competent. I am glad this young boy has such a good regular teacher.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Differentiation at NAGC
OK, I will admit it - I only went to one day of NAGC this year. I am a substitute teacher, which means I don't make very much money ($95 per day * around 160 days per year = about $15,200, which isn't enough to live on in most places in the US). And there were no single day registrations available, unless you registered as a parent and went to parent day. So, I registered as a parent and then went over to the regular meeting and attended the regular sessions. Maybe that isn't what I was supposed to do, but the woman working the registration desk was the one who recommended it, so I took advantage of it.
I met up with two people I knew for lunch, Sally L. and Carolyn K and we got into a discussion about differentiation. I explained that I am opposed to it. Carolyn K was rather shocked at my assertion, but I further explained that the reason I was and am opposed to emphasizing differentiation for gifted students is that most teachers can't do it. It is a great idea, but it just isn't working. As a substitute teacher, I go to dozens of classrooms a year. As a former teacher of the gifted, I am always looking for evidence that teachers differentiate their instruction for gifted students. I don't see it. Sometimes, I will see different spelling lists for different students; different book groups; or kids moving to a different room for math. But within the individual classrooms, there just isn't much differentiation to be seen.
Some people have told me that, as a sub, I might not see the differentiation that is going on in the classroom on a regular basis. This is true. Oftentimes, teachers will dumb down the lesson plans, so that subs can handle their classes. But, if this were the case, I would expect to see pointers to some indications that this is a different day - kids unsure about assignments; kids with questions different from the majority of other kids' questions; kids with different materials or working on different assignments. I see these things for the kids with disabilities and for the kids who are struggling with regular classroom work. I do not see them for gifted kids.
And, I believe Renzulli himself did a study that showed that teachers he trained thought they weren't doing enough differentiation, that they thought they were doing more than they were, and that observers of their classes saw less differentiation than they even thought they were doing.
As I have said before, I think differentiation within the classroom isn't working - especially for HG+ kids. It isn't consistent enough, it isn't at the correct level, it isn't supported enough, and it isn't at the correct pace.
And now, for Carolyn K, I have an additional question. How many of the sessions that you went to at NAGC were differentiated? For me, it was none. It wouldn't have mattered if I were a newbie GT teacher or a seasoned veteran, none of the talks I went to adjusted for the level(s) of the audience. It is true that the talks specifically scheduled for parent day were differentiated for them. That is the kind of differentiation I support and believe works. But differentiating a single class is hard. Most people can't or don't do it. They can differentiate the offerings, as NAGC does, by having a wide range of choices available. But within each choice, people just don't differentiate what they offer. And these presenters had months to prepare. Regular classroom teachers don't have the luxury of that kind of time.
I will say it again. I think we need to emphasize different offerings, not differentiation within a single teacher's classroom. Most teachers (and NAGC presenters) can't or don't do it.
I met up with two people I knew for lunch, Sally L. and Carolyn K and we got into a discussion about differentiation. I explained that I am opposed to it. Carolyn K was rather shocked at my assertion, but I further explained that the reason I was and am opposed to emphasizing differentiation for gifted students is that most teachers can't do it. It is a great idea, but it just isn't working. As a substitute teacher, I go to dozens of classrooms a year. As a former teacher of the gifted, I am always looking for evidence that teachers differentiate their instruction for gifted students. I don't see it. Sometimes, I will see different spelling lists for different students; different book groups; or kids moving to a different room for math. But within the individual classrooms, there just isn't much differentiation to be seen.
Some people have told me that, as a sub, I might not see the differentiation that is going on in the classroom on a regular basis. This is true. Oftentimes, teachers will dumb down the lesson plans, so that subs can handle their classes. But, if this were the case, I would expect to see pointers to some indications that this is a different day - kids unsure about assignments; kids with questions different from the majority of other kids' questions; kids with different materials or working on different assignments. I see these things for the kids with disabilities and for the kids who are struggling with regular classroom work. I do not see them for gifted kids.
And, I believe Renzulli himself did a study that showed that teachers he trained thought they weren't doing enough differentiation, that they thought they were doing more than they were, and that observers of their classes saw less differentiation than they even thought they were doing.
As I have said before, I think differentiation within the classroom isn't working - especially for HG+ kids. It isn't consistent enough, it isn't at the correct level, it isn't supported enough, and it isn't at the correct pace.
And now, for Carolyn K, I have an additional question. How many of the sessions that you went to at NAGC were differentiated? For me, it was none. It wouldn't have mattered if I were a newbie GT teacher or a seasoned veteran, none of the talks I went to adjusted for the level(s) of the audience. It is true that the talks specifically scheduled for parent day were differentiated for them. That is the kind of differentiation I support and believe works. But differentiating a single class is hard. Most people can't or don't do it. They can differentiate the offerings, as NAGC does, by having a wide range of choices available. But within each choice, people just don't differentiate what they offer. And these presenters had months to prepare. Regular classroom teachers don't have the luxury of that kind of time.
I will say it again. I think we need to emphasize different offerings, not differentiation within a single teacher's classroom. Most teachers (and NAGC presenters) can't or don't do it.
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Eating Habits of School Children
This post is taken in part from a book review I published on my other blog http://lauralynnwalshbooks.blogspot.com/. I have augmented the book review with additional comments. The book is titled:
Although I do not have young children any more, I enjoyed reading this book. As a substitute teacher, I go to many different schools and I have previously taught regularly in quite a few more and I am not happy with the eating habits I see kids developing.
It started with water. There was a big push to have kids drink more water and since the water from drinking fountains was often not very good, kids started bringing their own water bottles and keeping them on their desks. Some kids didn't especially like plain water, so they would substitute juice for plain water, which soon was switched out for energy drinks. The morning milk and cookies snack, became the morning juice and crackers snack.
Then came the popular opinion that kids should determine when they were hungry and thirsty, so they should be allowed to eat whenever they felt they needed to. In some schools, VERY MANY of them, actually, this has become "kids can eat all day, whenever they want". Some schools try to regulate the types of snacks that kids can eat - candy is a No, but fruit rollups are OK. Cookies are frowned upon, but almost all chips are OK. Consequently, when it comes time for lunch, kids aren't especially hungry. They have filled up on juice and chips, so where is the appeal of the school lunch or the lunch brought from home?
This has led to an INCREDIBLE amount of food being thrown out - from their school lunches or from their packed lunches, usually food that is higher in nutrition than sweet drinks and chips of various sorts. Even at the high school and middle school level, in MANY schools, kids are eating virtually all day. I had one very chubby second grade girl tell me that she "needed" to eat all day, or else she would suffer from faintness. She could have been telling the truth, I have no way of knowing, but it certainly wasn't doing her any good to be eating all day.
So, it was very interesting to me to read about a different culture where this was not accepted. Kids in France, evidently, eat four meals a day - breakfast, mid-day meal, after school snack, and dinner. These are eaten at fairly strict times and there is virtually NO snacking outside of these times. If the kids are hungry, that is considered a good thing - they will eat well when the time comes. Kids eat regular adult foods - no macaroni and cheese for the kids, while the adults eat something exotic. It is accepted that kids won't like foods the first few times they taste them and it is expected that they will eventually learn to like all of them.
The only problem with this book for me personally is that I really do not like to cook. It made me wish very much that I did.
I must also admit to skimming a lot of the latter part of the book. Still, if either of my daughters ever decide to have children, I may seriously consider buying this for them.
And should I ever have a say in the matter, I would also seriously advocate for changing the eating habits of children in American schools. Many, many years ago, I worked for a year and a half in a private school in the eastern part of the United States. At this school, there were two teachers for every grade level (the regular teacher and an assistant teacher). The whole school ate lunch at the same time and it was served family style from their own kitchen. Two teachers headed up tables with approximately 20 students, two from each class. Any extra teachers ate at the same time at a separate table. Kids were encouraged to try everything, but no one was forced to eat anything. I remember how good the food was and how relaxed the meal was. No rushing through the eating in order to be the first ones to line up for recess.
I have also subbed at a Montessori school in Alaska, where the kids set the tables with tablecloths and and candles and the teacher sat with around 8 of the students at one table (on a rotating basis). They, too, were encouraged to eat only wholesome foods and, although they were allowed one snack per day, it was usually one that was brought in by one student from an approved range of choices.
The above two examples illustrate that it is entirely possible to set up lunch in schools in the United States differently from how they are currently structured. I think we need to take a serious look at the structure of eating and drinking in most schools in the US. Juice and chips all day don't make for good nutrition or healthy children.
French Kids Eat Everything: How Our Family Moved to France, Cured Picky Eating, Banned Snacking, and Discovered 10 Simple Rules for Raising Happy, Healthy Eaters by Karen Le Billon
Although I do not have young children any more, I enjoyed reading this book. As a substitute teacher, I go to many different schools and I have previously taught regularly in quite a few more and I am not happy with the eating habits I see kids developing.
It started with water. There was a big push to have kids drink more water and since the water from drinking fountains was often not very good, kids started bringing their own water bottles and keeping them on their desks. Some kids didn't especially like plain water, so they would substitute juice for plain water, which soon was switched out for energy drinks. The morning milk and cookies snack, became the morning juice and crackers snack.
Then came the popular opinion that kids should determine when they were hungry and thirsty, so they should be allowed to eat whenever they felt they needed to. In some schools, VERY MANY of them, actually, this has become "kids can eat all day, whenever they want". Some schools try to regulate the types of snacks that kids can eat - candy is a No, but fruit rollups are OK. Cookies are frowned upon, but almost all chips are OK. Consequently, when it comes time for lunch, kids aren't especially hungry. They have filled up on juice and chips, so where is the appeal of the school lunch or the lunch brought from home?
This has led to an INCREDIBLE amount of food being thrown out - from their school lunches or from their packed lunches, usually food that is higher in nutrition than sweet drinks and chips of various sorts. Even at the high school and middle school level, in MANY schools, kids are eating virtually all day. I had one very chubby second grade girl tell me that she "needed" to eat all day, or else she would suffer from faintness. She could have been telling the truth, I have no way of knowing, but it certainly wasn't doing her any good to be eating all day.
So, it was very interesting to me to read about a different culture where this was not accepted. Kids in France, evidently, eat four meals a day - breakfast, mid-day meal, after school snack, and dinner. These are eaten at fairly strict times and there is virtually NO snacking outside of these times. If the kids are hungry, that is considered a good thing - they will eat well when the time comes. Kids eat regular adult foods - no macaroni and cheese for the kids, while the adults eat something exotic. It is accepted that kids won't like foods the first few times they taste them and it is expected that they will eventually learn to like all of them.
The only problem with this book for me personally is that I really do not like to cook. It made me wish very much that I did.
I must also admit to skimming a lot of the latter part of the book. Still, if either of my daughters ever decide to have children, I may seriously consider buying this for them.
And should I ever have a say in the matter, I would also seriously advocate for changing the eating habits of children in American schools. Many, many years ago, I worked for a year and a half in a private school in the eastern part of the United States. At this school, there were two teachers for every grade level (the regular teacher and an assistant teacher). The whole school ate lunch at the same time and it was served family style from their own kitchen. Two teachers headed up tables with approximately 20 students, two from each class. Any extra teachers ate at the same time at a separate table. Kids were encouraged to try everything, but no one was forced to eat anything. I remember how good the food was and how relaxed the meal was. No rushing through the eating in order to be the first ones to line up for recess.
I have also subbed at a Montessori school in Alaska, where the kids set the tables with tablecloths and and candles and the teacher sat with around 8 of the students at one table (on a rotating basis). They, too, were encouraged to eat only wholesome foods and, although they were allowed one snack per day, it was usually one that was brought in by one student from an approved range of choices.
The above two examples illustrate that it is entirely possible to set up lunch in schools in the United States differently from how they are currently structured. I think we need to take a serious look at the structure of eating and drinking in most schools in the US. Juice and chips all day don't make for good nutrition or healthy children.
Monday, October 15, 2012
Charter School vs. Charter School
In the past month, I have subbed in two different charter schools,
both in the same school district. Both schools have relatively new
buildings, with decent equipment and supplies. Both schools require
their K-8 students to wear uniforms - polos, khakis, plain pants or
skirts, etc. Both schools have large class sizes, though at the second
one, they were a bit smaller. I was in the same classroom at each
school for 2 days.
The first school I will not go back to; the second school, I will return to any time I get called. Why? At the first school, regimentation seems to be the order of the day. My day was planned down to the last minute: at 8:45 take attendance; at 8:47 say the pledge; at 8:49, announce to the class, "Get ready to transition to ..."; etc. As a sub, I felt this to be a recipe for failure - if attendance took longer than expected, I was already behind; if I waited to line them up for something, until they were quiet, they were late to their next class. The day felt regimented and overplanned. Except that, the regular teacher forgot to tell me some important things - like where the math book was (on the shelf, under the white board) and how much of the lesson had already been taught (a significant amount), and where the science test was that they were supposed to take (on a different shelf). It was an uncomfortable two days. And, this time at least, it wasn't really due to the kids. They were reasonably respectful and interesting. Or at least I thought so, until I went to the second school.
The second school was actually enjoyable. The lessons I taught were substantial and allowed me to actually do some teaching - bring some of myself into the lesson. I wasn't just a place-holder, delivering a throw-away lesson, while the REAL teacher was gone. And the kids made me feel like they were actually intrinsically nice, not just regimented into it. I wish I knew the secret to the atmosphere of the second school. I have been to other schools that feel as welcoming and worthwhile, but not many.
The first school I will not go back to; the second school, I will return to any time I get called. Why? At the first school, regimentation seems to be the order of the day. My day was planned down to the last minute: at 8:45 take attendance; at 8:47 say the pledge; at 8:49, announce to the class, "Get ready to transition to ..."; etc. As a sub, I felt this to be a recipe for failure - if attendance took longer than expected, I was already behind; if I waited to line them up for something, until they were quiet, they were late to their next class. The day felt regimented and overplanned. Except that, the regular teacher forgot to tell me some important things - like where the math book was (on the shelf, under the white board) and how much of the lesson had already been taught (a significant amount), and where the science test was that they were supposed to take (on a different shelf). It was an uncomfortable two days. And, this time at least, it wasn't really due to the kids. They were reasonably respectful and interesting. Or at least I thought so, until I went to the second school.
The second school was actually enjoyable. The lessons I taught were substantial and allowed me to actually do some teaching - bring some of myself into the lesson. I wasn't just a place-holder, delivering a throw-away lesson, while the REAL teacher was gone. And the kids made me feel like they were actually intrinsically nice, not just regimented into it. I wish I knew the secret to the atmosphere of the second school. I have been to other schools that feel as welcoming and worthwhile, but not many.
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My Liberal Identity
You are an Eco-Avenger, also known as an environmentalist or tree hugger. You believe in saving the planet from the clutches of air-fouling, oil-drilling, earth-raping conservative fossil fools.
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