revealing adios

Today was my last day. I wondered how it would go. I wondered if I would be sad and how hard it would be to tell some goodbye. Honestly, it wasn’t a big deal. I will keep in touch with those I care anything about. We will stay connected and even see each other on occasion. Something was reinforced today. Events of the morning made all easier, despite the insult I am thankful that the rest of the day was improved. My department “head” was rude. It’s true, if you wait long enough the true character of a person will be revealed as well as how they truly view you. Sarcasm says so much when used at the “right” moment. It can be funny. It can express frustration. However, at times it is the most revealing tone of communication. At first I was bothered, but I realize just how pathetic the situation is and am thankful that I am no longer a part of it. I do feel bad for my department friends though. I will miss my immediate administrator. He is a man of true character.

Tomorrow is another day. I have to attend an ESL workshop. I really think it will be beneficial. It is required. Well, not the workshop, but attending a workshop of some kind is. I owe the district one day.

Happy note…12 years together!!! Smiles to my Djembe. A few anniversary quotes:
It’s so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life. ~Rita Rudner

Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking together in the same direction. ~Antoine de Saint-Exupery

An anniversary is a time to celebrate the joys of today, the memories of yesterday, and the hopes of tomorrow. ~Author Unknown

Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.
Robert Heinlein

I don’t pretend to know what love is for everyone, but I can tell you what it is for me; love is knowing all about someone, and still wanting to be with them more than any other person, love is trusting them enough to tell them everything about yourself, including the things you might be ashamed of, love is feeling comfortable and safe with someone, but still getting weak knees when they walk into a room and smile at you.

Camera practice

Sage was right, new photos for the site! I’m just practicing with the new camera. Below I have posted the results of my limited time to play yesterday. Nothing fantastic, but I am at least familiar with the camera now. I can’t wait to play at the beach!

This one was taken from our side of the pond looking at Tweety, across the pond playing in the neighbor’s sprinkler.

The more they move the more we spend

I spent two excruciating fun-filled hours at Wal taking over the world Mart this afternoon. I think they have perfected their strategy for increased consumer spending. You can get just about everything you need in one place. Many things are cheaper because they can purchase stock in tremendous bulk. They ad match. In-store advertising is also annoyingly done. Finally, they have figured out that the longer an individual is in the store the more they will likely buy. To keep consumers in the store they move everything around on a regular basis. They are playing on our impulses and confusion people. Wal*Mart is here to stay, no doubt. They are growing and because I can’t afford to do all of my shopping at their competitors, which are considerably less annoying, I have to shop there occasionally. ALL that I ask is that they leave the blasted products in the same place week after week. They’re still getting a large portion of my check but it is frustrating as all get out!

On a happier note, I purchased a new camera today. I researched online first at Best Buy, Circuit City, Radio Shack, Sears, and even Wal*Mart. I found the best deal at Dell.com, but I didn’t have time to wait for shipping and didn’t want to pay for the overnight b/c that defeats the purpose of a good deal. I decided on one at Best Buy, but still went to a Circuit City to see if their in-store deals were better. They had only one type of Kodak camera and I wanted something with more than 3x zoom. The one I had my eye on at Best Buy was a 7mp w/ 12x zoom. It was at the high end of my price range in store, but they were willing to give me the online price. GREAT! Since I had to go to Wal*Mart anyway I thought I would look at what they had. I really hate buying electronics there, but again…cheaper. They had a comparable camera to the one at Best Buy. The difference was $40 and 1mp. Shoot. I can live with 6mp. Here is the camera I chose…the Kodak Z612

So far so good. It has more features than my Z700, better zoom, and more megapixels. We’ll have to be more careful with this one. I can’t wait to play with it this weekend and then take great pics at the beach next week!

Top Schools

I am just finding all kinds of wonderful edu info tonight. After checking school mail I was directed to an article on “top-schools” for 2007. I didn’t find us on the list. :-0 *remembering Granny’s rules on speech* However, Irondale in AL made the list again. C’grats to them, #4. From the edu section of Newsweek online I found a very interesting article concerning the role of the principal. Let me say that my building principal is awesome and an example for others. He respects us, and in turn has earned our respect. Hourly, he is seen by the students. He makes a point of speaking to the faculty and students, and not out of the sense of obligation because *blast it* you moved into his line of sight. He is genuine and it is obvious that he cares.

There is NO way I would ever be interested in administration. However, if by some off chance I pursue that route I have learned what I don’t want to be like, and the examples to follow. IMO it is a testament to leadership when the principal is seen, or the name is said, and students ask, “who?” The article linked describes several characteristics of a good principal, and visibility/involvement is on the list. I would add that it shouldn’t be because one HAS to be in the halls or at an event, but because there is pride in being present. I would also add that personal ambitions have to not be the guiding factor. If the job is being done correctly, those personal ambitions will eventually be met. From the article:

“They still want someone to care about them. The principal has to be someone who really loves kids and understands what it takes to motivate teachers to change every child’s life.”

Very true. It isn’t only the students who want someone to care. The teachers as well. When faculty morale is low, the school will not perform to potential. When teachers are frustrated with their assignments, overwhelmed by and uninformed of expectations, given incomplete information, and feel like they are creating the plays as they run on the field for the game it decreases their effectiveness.

I’ve learned a good bit tonight. Actually, it is nothing that I didn’t know, but it eases my frustrations. It’s true, “we’re all in this together” and it takes all of us to make it work.

Hope everyone, teacher and non, is having a great night/day and wrapping up the school year with ease. If you aren’t involved in a school system, ask yourself why. We can use you!

Oh…and one more thing…come back and check out the posts below. There are some GREAT articles there.

Holding those responsible, accountable

Found what I had in mind. (See previous post.) I wish the author addressed teachers in the accountability profile. We are not without “blame” and the author points this out, but to address both sides of the situation it is important that teachers realize where they are failing as well. (I’m sure there are many in line to tell us this, but in the context of this article I think it would have been valuable.)

Written by Diane Walker
Updated by Melissa Kelly
A Novel Idea:
Holding Those Responsible Accountable

Little is said publicly about the negative impact on student performance of well meaning school boards, employers, parents, coaches and judges. Certainly these groups are not held accountable for their role in the failure of today’s educational system.

Nevertheless, if we are to improve student performance, it behooves us to make a few changes outside the classroom before schools are restructured or reinvented and before dedicated teachers are defamed and demoralized.

The following are a few factors that negatively impact students’ motivation and performance. They are categorized by those responsible.
~~~~~
School Boards

Providing an Easy Way Out

Students have learned that they can avoid working in a class, fail it, and then make it up in summer school, night school or special programs.

In low performing schools, it is not uncommon to have a number of students who attend summer school every year and plan to fail a particular course during the school year because it is easier to pass in summer school.

Forever Forgiving

Students can have F’s deleted from their transcript by retaking classes. Hence, there is little reason to worry about failing a class.

Grading with Letters Rather than Numbers

When student’s grades are reported in letters rather than numbers, motivation to excel is diminished. This is because an average of weighted letter grades hides the student’s performance level.

For example, if a student earns a B for two terms, he will get a B for a final grade whether he earns an A or a C on the exam.

On the other hand, if the student earns a D for two terms, he’d get a D for the final grade whether he passes the exam with a C or doesn’t bother taking it.

Statistical Reporting
continue reading »

Educational Accountability

I started surfing to find articles on educational accountability with the intention of finding articles concerning student accountability and the changing nature of our public schools. Using incorrect search criteria I stumbled across a really good article at Ed World. Well worth the read, I posted it below. It gives the basic stance and then addresses both sides with comments from those in the trenches. As usual I can see the value in both arguments, but I will save my own opinion for later. Take a look:

From the Principal Files:
Has Accountability Taken All the Fun Out of Teaching and Learning?

From time to time, Education World updates and reposts an archived article that we think might be of interest to administrators. We hope you find this recently updated article to be of value…

Does the accountability movement in schools force teachers to spend more time teaching to the test? Does the emphasis on testing take all the fun out of teaching? Education World’s Principal Files principals share their thoughts about the impact of standards and testing on classroom teachers and students.

Standards. Accountability. Testing. Those things are serious business — on that point most educators would agree. Has the emphasis on accountability had an overall negative impact on teachers and students, however? Has it taken all the fun out of teaching and learning?

It has, if you believe Gail Collins. In a recent New York Times editorial, Collins wrote about a hurricane unit once taught at a Scarsdale middle school. Students loved that unit, which involved them in tracking storms online. The state doesn’t test eighth graders about hurricanes, though, so the school dumped the unit.

“School is not about hands-on learning — it’s about how to take tests,” one teacher commented. New York City school chancellor Harold Levy told Collins, “Creative teachers hate [testing]. And bad teachers need it.”

Testing “is a way of dumbing down the teaching profession, making the job simpler for the instructors who are struggling and making it simultaneously stressful and boring for the people who are capable of working at a much higher level,” concluded Collins.

Are Collins’s comments right on the mark, or does she overstate the case? Can teaching and learning still be fun in an environment that emphasizes testing and accountability? This month, Education World asked the Principal Files principals what they think.

ACCOUNTABILITY NEED NOT STIFLE CREATIVITY

“I believe we can have accountability, testing, and high standards and still have fun at school,” principal Les Potter tells Education World. “We just have to be more creative.”
continue reading »

Looks like fun!

Thanks Sage! Thanks to great reviews by Sage I have a list of books that I need to read. He recently posted reviews as suggestions to Maggie’s Summer Reading Challenge. I think I’ll participate. Something to do and people to discuss it with! Fun!

Thoughts on exemptions

I’m truly ready for this school year to end. I will walk away and be glad to do it. There are a few that I will miss terribly. I know that we will stay in contact via email, but it is sad knowing that the likelihood of seeing them again is slim to none. Tomorrow my building will have a lunch for those leaving. I opted not to participate in my department send off lunch. I know some of you gasp in “how could you” but since you don’t really know how much I hate the center of attention thing I won’t be offended…not that I would be anyway. Besides, as a whole I am close with my building and only a few in my department. The send off for show thing doesn’t appeal.

I really started this post with the intention of discussing exemptions. I may have done this before. My days are running together and I am super tired. Anyway, I disagree with exemptions. Allowing students to skip exams does not prepare them for testing at the college level. It is also a PIA for teachers! Besides, a student with an 80 (a C at our school) needs to be taking the exam to improve the grade anyway! If you insist on an exemption policy then make it where only students with an A and no unexcused absences are exempt…everyone else, see you on exam day. I still prefer no exemptions, but the second you institute that policy there will be parents pitching a royal fit. Did I mention it was a PIA for teachers? Monday was rough. Students are hyped up, in their final week. Announcing exemptions and then dealing with them when they miss the cut off is not fun! It is NOT my fault your absence was not excused. I have absolutely NOTHING to do with the computer coding of your absence. Furthermore, I can’t help it that you are two points short maybe you shouldn’t have skipped doing your homework! “Can’t you give me just one point? (or 3)” SNOT A BUG NO I CAN NOT! Earn it.

Now…on that happy note. I am tired and wish to visit a few of you. Thanks for stopping by and I would like to say hello to my lurkers.

The Final Countdown!

That’s all the students have left. Teachers have a workday thrown in next week, but who cares! Actually, you know what? FOUR DAYS! Make-up exams are set for Friday! I need to get to work early tomorrow and finish entering grades. Exemptions have to be announced.

I disagree with the exemption opportunity. I know we want to reward students for attending classes and passing, however if a student does not have an A they need to be taking the exam! Even IF they have an A they need the practice of taking high stakes tests. I know that I may be in the minority holding this opinion but I firmly believe that it is important for students to develop the study skills, and testing skills, that they will need in college. Besides, figuring the grades before exemptions, for exemptions, and after exemptions is a pain in the butt!

Thoughts and political correctness

It is this time of year that really makes me question my profession. There is so much to do and more keeps getting added. I’m looking forward to teaching at the college level next year. I won’t have to keep an NCLB folder that documents everything I say or do, and student interventions. This week I did realize that I am really going to miss my school. With all its frustrations and everything I disagree with, it is still a great district and one that I am happy to send my kids to.

I read an interesting article today, apparently Massachusetts is considering adding obesity to the anti-discrimination clause. (CBS News article)

My favorite quote from the article, “We might as well add colorblind, left-handed, allergic-to-cashews, and get it over with,” Domke said.

I understand the purpose of the legislation, but aren’t we pushing this a little too far? Where do you stop? There are so many legitimate ways to sue people these days.