"Mr. Spencer, why aren't you doing STEM projects with us?" a student asks. "We're doing some of them," I point out. "But not like you did when you taught eighth grade," she says. "True, but I had more freedom. I
Read MoreArizona, Just Be Careful.
This is not about politics, it’s about making decisions based on sound reason and, most importantly, not on fear. Because if history has shown us anything, it’s that reactions based on fear tend to be misguided, ineffective, and can even cause long-term damage.
Read MoreThe Tassel’s Not a Hassle*
Sometimes it is frighteningly transparent who is profiting from access to our schools.
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Their, Them, Mine, and Us
I’m fortunate enough to have a staff that would be willing to have their data tied to the peformance of the whole school, support each other in improving the learning for all through flexible grouping. They are willing to sink or swim as a team. When I asked if such a unique declaration could be made, the answer was simple.
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Teacher Pay: The Opaque Fiction of Salary Schedules
There are pay inequities in teaching that are almost invisible to the public. Inequities that most teachers are not willing to discuss because salary is such a personal issue. Personal? You might ask. But I thought pay scales were public documents? Sure. They are. They are also fictional. Read on…
Read MoreWhite Noise
The Spanish-American War was an act of conquest. I don’t teach it that way. I do, however, offer primary sources, statistics and stories from the time period that challenge the textbook assumptions that Mexico baited the U.S. into war and
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Small Answers to Big Questions
In the coming months, I will be writing on the topics below and explaining why some must be non-negotiable for sustainable improvement. If at least a few of them do not raise your blood pressure in protest, I likely have not advanced the conversation because we’ve all got it wrong. And right. The answers aren’t nestled in a list of ideas that are designed to please or appease any one ideology.
Read MoreAll that is Unsolved in our Hearts
At the end of the day, I could produce the spreadsheets, and get the thumbs up (and the bonuses) from my evaluators, but I knew that I hadn’t grown professionally at all. Not one inch.
Read MoreInvisible Data
I indulge my yearning to simply immerse myself in teaching and with my students without having to collect easily-reportable data for folks not involved in my classroom. One solution is to provide funding or change the school day to allow teachers more time to gather data for public consumption and for use in the classroom.
Read MoreRedesigning School Space
In order to teach the conditional verb tense and the use of vivid imagery, I asked my ELL students to design and redesign spaces. A few students thought about ways to turn phone booths into relaxation centers or podcasting booths.
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