Teacher assessment

How would teachers handle teacher assessment? Somehow, the idea of using standardized student testing just rubs me the wrong way. There are so many other factors involved in that, possibly the worst being that teachers would teach to the test even more than they do now!

Peer Review
This is one of my favorite ideas. Basically I envision it like this: The teacher being reviewed videotapes a lesson. The tape goes to another school where a small review panel of teachers watches it, then evaluates it. They send the evaluation back to the teacher and the administrator, who discuss the results and make a plan for improvement. Every teacher would be on a panel. The panels would not be divided by subject matter, but be mixed, because although a math teacher may not know about diagramming sentences, they might be great at discipline, or transitioning between tasks.

Sending the lesson to another school means that no one assessing the teacher works with them on a day to day basis. It would help to avoid personal dislike or disagreement from affecting the outcome. Making sure every teacher is on a review panel would keep the work of reviewing spread out, not falling on the same people all the time. (I know, teachers don't need another thing to do.)

Visiting Administrators
In this plan, principals, vice principals, and all those officials at the district office would go to schools (other than their own) and evaluate lessons. Again, the idea is to get an objective evaluation. Also, the superintendent etc. would be in classrooms so they could be reminded of what actually happens in a classroom and on a campus.


Teacher assessment will always be time consuming, frustrating, and terrifying (for the teacher!). Maybe these ideas will give some teachers something to think about, and mention to administrators. I just know I am glad I got out of teaching before all this craziness got really going, and I hope it is over by the time I want to come back!

Hello again!

I have been toying with "classical education" lately. It intrigues me and repels me all at once. Of course, I want to take it and make it my own.

The actual substance of classical education amazes me: Latin; history through literature; memorizing poetry, plays, speeches and math facts; critical thinking through Socratic method. Now I know what my honors students needed when I was teaching. I love the idea of using this curriculum instead of "state standards" to decide what my children learn. The world opens up before you once you consider a classical education.

The method of classical education seems all wrong to me, though. I read where the suggested amount of time to be spent on math each day for a first grader was 30 - 45 minutes, and it increased as the grades went higher. One schedule I looked at showed the children starting school at 9:00 AM and finishing after dinner. They spent 90 minutes on literature, and 60 minutes on math. They had history and science for 90 minutes, and so on. From what I have read from classical educators, they feel this amount of time is necessary. If the first grade student does not spend an hour a day on reading, they will not learn how to read well.

I haunt the classical education websites and read the books. I collect lists of recommended reading and math programs. I want to absorb as much knowledge as possible (a classical education goal), but I want to use it in my free and easy way (not a classical education goal). I cannot imagine trying to make a six year old concentrate on math facts for 45 minutes, or read a history book and discuss it with me for an hour.

I intend to have fun with my kids, and I want to use classical education to do it!

My take on home/unschooling

Homeschooling - a topic I keep trying to write about, but somehow it never comes out. Here is one try.

Unschooling
Unschooling appeals to me on many levels. I love the freedom of it, the naturalness of it. I feel like a hippie (in a good way) when I talk about it. Learning is a natural process, let it flow through everything you do all day. Kids want to learn, they will find a way. Everything is a learning experience - no need for curriculum or textbooks or tests. Just learning and enjoying life. Like the movie Surfwise.

Of course, as the parent/teacher, I would provide opportunities for my girls to learn. Fill the house with books - well my house cannot really get any fuller, but that just means I have a good start! Go to great places on vacation (Isn’t any vacation great?). Try to think about learning in every situation. What can be learned from this SpongeBob Sqarepants episode? What can be learned from playing with blocks? or finger painting? or eating ice cream?

Former Teacher
The former teacher in me loves lesson plans. I love to write them and use them and judge their effectiveness. I like to keep a whole year plan, a monthly plan, a weekly plan, a daily plan, and individual lesson plans. None of these are set in stone, but I like to know where I am going and what I am doing. Even as I gush about unschooling, the former teacher makes plans.

Is it an oxymoron to say planning and unschooling together? Not for me! Think of it like this. I know Kindergartners are supposed to learn to count to 100. So, I plan that by June 2009, my five year old will count to 100. My September plan says, practice counting everyday. My first week of September plan says, find opportunities to count each day. My daily plan says, going to the grocery store today. Count fruit as we put it in the bag. I think I can forget about individual lesson plans, until the topics get a little harder (figure out the circumference of the planter so we know how big a hole to dig, for instance.)

The Difference
The difference between “traditional” education and unschooling is, if my daughter says,”I don’t want to count apples today!” I say, “Okay, let’s not count them then.” We go on to something else. No pressure. I know my daughter will learn to count to 100 someday. At the right time, it will click in her brain and the pattern will make sense.

The most important part of unschooling is faith. I must believe my daughter will learn, and trust her to learn at her pace. I present the opportunities, she takes them or not, and we go on. I know my child can learn, and I coach along the way. I try not to get anxious when she seems “behind,” just as I try not to gloat when she seems “ahead.” Behind and ahead do not exist in the unschooling world.

Because I was a teacher, and I love to plan, my unschooling will not look like someone else’s. I might have more “teaching” episodes than others, I might set aside some “school time” on occasion. But I really do want my kids to learn naturally, as they live. It is all a matter of making it work for the whole family.

What is school?

When I was a teacher, I talked as a teacher, I thought as a teacher, I reasoned as a teacher. Now that I am a stay at home parent, I put teacher-ish ways behind me. ( 1st Corinthians 13:11, sort of)

Well, I do my best, anyway. I do teach my girls, four and two, but I do not make them sit still or write in a workbook. That is school work. We just live, and learn as we go. Sometimes I introduce a topic, but our day is not broken down into different subjects.

I think public schools are good institutions. For many kids, the only person that cares about them is a teacher or secretary or janitor at their school. Some kids find a safe haven at school, away from the chaos or neglect at home. I taught public school for eight years and never met anyone who did not care about the students. Really. The boring teachers that lecture all the time, the mean teachers that yell at their students, the new teachers who just do not know what they are doing yet, all care about the young people in their classes. Think about the worst teacher experience you ever had, and remember that teacher probably cared a great deal for you and wanted you to succeed. (I know some teachers really are just awful people, but no more than some bankers or store clerks or doctors).

No matter how good public schools can be, my kids will not be attending one. My daughter starts kindergarten this year, and we will be homeschooling. I do not want her to experience bullies, testing, grades, or pressure to conform. Even though public school provides a refuge for many children, I choose not to expose my daughters to it.

My daughters can get more out of education than a safe place to be during the day. The best and highest goal of education is a love of learning and of life. John Dewey said that school is not preparation for life, it is life. I want my girls to get the most joy possible out of life. Sitting in a classroom, doing what you are told, and not talking does not create joy. The best teachers help you appreciate that formula, but outside of school that kind of learning does not exist. You learn by living, trying things, looking things up, trying something else, and maybe by calling an expert.

We need to rebuild our public schools from the ground up. They have so much more potential than just a place to get away from home, or a place to spend the day. Let kids lead the way, listen to them, and learn what they require. Then make a school system around that.

Broader and Bolder?

“America has a decision to make. We can continue to pursue education strategies that focus on schools alone and on narrow, test-based accountability—and be content with the modest improvements long associated with this approach. Or we can ratchet up our ambitions and adopt a new and expanded strategy with the capacity to improve student achievement and adult outcomes more effectively and efficiently.” --A Broader, Bolder Approach to Education www.boldapproach.org

Applause, applause! “A new and expanded strategy,” this is so exciting. What will they suggest? Allowing students to choose their own course of study? Really reduced class sizes, say ten to fifteen students per class, for all grade levels? Flexible scheduling? They want to “ratchet up our ambitions.” This is gonna be soooo good.

Actually, I found myself disappointed in the suggestions made by this task force of educational experts. This illustrious group thinks that school is so broken we need to start it earlier in a child’s life, make it longer during the day, and extend it into summer vacation.
"The new approach recognizes the centrality of formal schooling, but it also recognizes the importance of high-quality early childhood and pre-school programs, after-school and summer programs"
How can subjecting our students to more schooling solve the problem? Many kids hate school already. Kids will resent the longer school day, even if it is to experience
“the cultural, organizational, athletic, and academic enrichment activities that middle-class parents routinely make available to their own children.”
This “new vision” of education focuses on the students who struggle in school. In it, they make suggestions for parenting classes, more accessible health care, and coordination between grade levels; certainly good ideas, but definitely not new.

In the end, I have one question. Did the “experts” include any kids - anyone currently in the education system? If you want to make someone’s life better, it is always a good idea to ask that person how you can help them. We all might be surprised at what they say.

To my students

 I feel like a blasted,

burnt-up,

gnarled tree.  

Is there any life left in me?

Do I have anything left to give?

I struggle to produce

on green leaf,

to provide sustenance

and shelter for you

as you light 

match

after

match

and

hold

them

against

my 

withered,

black

branches. 

I wrote this during a particularly bad year.  You know, the class that seems to be against you, the small group that makes the rest of the class negative.  The class that, as my friend and coworker said, makes you want to stick a fork in your eye.

The same year I had a particularly good class, too.  I didn't write any poetry for them, but they probably deserved it more.  However, a poem that says, "Thanks for coming in politely, getting right to work, trying hard, and going along with my experiments," just isn't as interesting.

Here's hoping my next class will not inspire much poetry.  Or at least, only the boring kind.

The Internet: Is it a gateway drug?

I have a confession to make - I am an addict. My husband wants me to get help, but I cannot find a local chapter of Readers Anonymous. They say admitting it is the first step - maybe I am on the road to recovery.

Recently, nytimes.com had an article about online reading called “Literacy Debate: Online, R U Really Reading?” After I read the article, I began thinking about my reading addiction. Magazines, newspapers, books, blogs, fiction, non-fiction. Could anyone say one format is better than another? Surely each type of writing offers it’s own benefits and drawbacks.

Nadia, the fifteen year old girl in the nytimes.com article, spends about six hours a day on the Internet. What is she doing there?

“She spends most of her time on quizilla.com or fanfiction.net, reading and commenting on stories written by other users and based on books, television shows or movies.”

Her teachers must be thrilled. This Language Arts teacher would give up various body parts to get my students to willingly read and critique each other’s work! The fact that she reads stories written by other kids, with spelling and grammar mistakes, helps her learn how important correct spelling and grammar are. If someone spells so badly their story doesn’t make sense, no one will read it.

So far, she writes fan fiction - stories based on other stories. Many young writers begin this way. They learn characterization and descriptive language, plot, story telling technique, but don’t have to worry as much about setting or genre. It narrows down the requirements and lets them be creative within a set of limitations. Beginning writers feel more comfortable and less overwhelmed when their creative world has boundaries.

What other types of skills do Internet users learn? Zachary, an eighteen year old, loves to read about politics online. He does not just read, but confirms the information he finds.

“The kinds of skills Zachary has developed — locating information quickly and accurately, corroborating findings on multiple sites — may seem obvious to heavy Web users. But the skills can be cognitively demanding.”

Another thing Language Arts teachers want their students to do. Zachary and Nadia taught themselves skills we want them to learn. They both readily read, critique, support arguments and create their own ideas. All without a teacher looking over their shoulder or grading them.

So, how does this make the Internet a gateway drug?

Just imagine that a heavy Internet user becomes interested in the Holocaust. They crawl the Internet finding all the information they can. As they learn more and more about the death camps, Nazis, Hitler, Germany, they find certain books being mentioned over and over: The Diary of Anne Frank, Night, Mein Kampf, The Hiding Place, Schindler’s List. The more they look into the Holocaust, the more books they hear about.

Although the Internet can give them a broad picture of the Holocaust, these books can give them a personal view of the Holocaust. They will learn about the existence and conditions of the ghettos on a Holocaust website, but they will experience the ghettos in detail when they read Schindler’s List.

Oh yes, I myself have experienced this addiction. Look up classroom management online - the list of websites is endless. Soon, you find yourself reading about different experts on the subject, then you find yourself looking at the experts’ webpages, then you find yourself at Barnes and Noble with an armload of books by Alfie Kohn!

I am not sure why some question the validity and value of Internet reading. If this is an addiction, it leads only to reading, writing, and critical thinking.