Technology Training

Professional development days are usually wasted days. Today is no different. Instead of determining who needs training or how much is necessary, my district shoves everyone into an all-day session that covers everything from setting up your email settings to sharing folders with fellow teachers and students. Almost everyone is lost and frustrated by the approach to this instruction. We are preached to about differentiation in our instruction, but none is done for us as teachers. So I sit here bored and creating a new blog post as the instructor tries to figure out what she should already have prepared. Sigh...

Delayed Gratification

Last night, as I was shopping for a gift for my daughter's second grade teacher, an attractive young woman smiled at me. Of course my vanity was reinforced as my step got a little quicker and I stood a little taller. Here I was, a middle-aged man still getting noticed by twenty-somethings.

However, much to the dismay of my fragile ego, this young lady was smiling at me for a much more important reason than my appearance. She turned back to find me but to tell me the most amazing thing a teacher can ever hope to hear. She thanked me for being such a great teacher. She went on to remind me who she was and that I had been her sophomore English teacher more than 4 years ago and that because of what she had learned in my class, she had continued to make A's in her English classes throughout high school and on into college. AND she attributed her success to her time in my class.

While I can't pretend to take credit for her achievements, it is an affirmation of the struggle we teachers go through year after year. We languish in schools where administration continually makes our jobs more difficult, where standards constantly change, and where the apathy of students seems to grow exponentially. But here, standing in the aisle of Walmart, I received appreciation for my dedication and hard work. It may have taken four years to arrive, and it may have arrived simply through serendipity, but it had come.

Whenever you get a chance to do it, make sure to thank your teachers and let them know that the mattered to you. It will mean more to them than you could ever imagine.

I hate grading research papera

Every semester, there comes a time when my life sucks. That time is research paper time. I have yet to find a successful way to impart the simplicity of MLA citations to my students. One day, before I retire, it will happen.

Broken Windows

Had a conversation today with a fellow employee about the lack of discipline and disregard for school rules and policies by others in our school. It is something we deal with on a daily basis. There are a small percentage of teachers who enforce the rules, yet the vast majority do not. This becomes a burden on those who do. We look like the "jerks" of the school and the students quickly learn which classes to avoid and which teachers they need to placate in order to not get a referral. Most of this attitude on the part of the staff comes from the administration who are too busy to handle the small referrals in a timely manner so they get shuffled to the bottom of the stack and often don't get dealt with.

Unfortunately, this sets up a series of events and situations where even the good kids begin to flout the rules and chaos begins to slowly creep in. I know that there are some rules that seem meaningless and mundane, but it is their arbitrariness that creates a tone in the school. If we don't fix the small issues, then the small issues become big issues and suddenly you're in free-fall. Rant over.

Spring Break

The kids think they rule the joy of spring break, but I guarantee teachers are just as excited. My question for today...what can I learn today and use in the classroom in the future? Even on break, I am in planning mode.

BOY TOY

Before anyone who doesn't know gets the wrong idea, BOY TOY is the pet name given to male Teachers of the Year at my school. It is a moniker that was bestowed upon me to wear for the 2014-2015 school term. I am deeply honored to have been chosen; however, I don't feel that I am all that deserving. I see myself currently as mediocre teacher. There is a lot I need to improve about my teaching. Strangely though, I get the impression that being named Teacher of the Year will be the catalyst to me becoming Teacher of the Year, as paradoxical as that may sound.

Summer 2012

Here we go with another summer as I prepare for a new school year. I hope to become a better teacher and put my administrative dreams on hold.