Nearing the end....

It's hard to believe that my first year is nearing an end, and these final days are an experience all in themselves. Senioritis runs rabid, but they remain focused on getting to the finish line. Some of my freshmen students have secured the long-awaited sense of urgency, scrambling to complete overdue assignments and pleading to retake exams originally given 2-3 months ago. These are trying times for every first-year teacher, but I am MOST comfortable in my new threads.

Since Seniors finish school a few days earlier than other underclassmen, today was FINALS DAY and they closed a long-awaited chapter in their lives. Prior to taking their final exam in Econ Class, I paused to say "thank-you" to this group of thirty students. "I appreciate the respect you provided to me as well as your insight on life. You have much to look forward to, not only at Sunday's graduation, but in the months and years to come. Good luck!"  I could feel their stress and assured them that all would be well. Now, the test.....

When the final bell rang, I collected the scantron sheets and entered grades into Skyward- as is the normal procedure, then went about my business for the balance of the day. Prior to closing up my room, I pulled those Econ tests and read their "No Count Essay Response" to the following question: In a minimum of fifty words, tell me whether this class truly provided you with a feel for the subject of Economics. Do you believe you'll be able to put this information to good use at some point in your lifetime? And yes, I can handle the truth!

I expected some sarcastic responses and even prepared myself for a couple of atomic bullets. It was a wonderful way to end the day and every comment hit close to my heart. One such individual shared this with me: "Yes, I actually do believe I will use the stuff we learned in the future. I already used one piece of your advice when I wrote a thank-you card to a company after they gave me an interview. They called me back three days later and said I was the first to ever do that, and they appreciated it so much I got the job and will be moving to Iowa next week. Thank you Mr. D....this was the best class of my senior year. :)"  The balance of the written responses were just what I needed to end the day on a positive note. I did make a difference in their learning experience and they have knowledge in place which will aid their success.

Moments like this make my new career all so worthwhile. It has invigorated me to take it to another level and I look forward to taking "teaching" to the next level in years to come. I've accepted the position of AP Economics at BDHS next year, a first-time offering at our school. I have an opportunity to engage students looking to excel at a college-level course, and I'm up for the challenge like never before!

A Quick Talk about Memorial Day

Today was the perfect opportunity for me to spend a few minutes to interject how Memorial Day first came to happen during the aftermath of the American Civil War. Although the fighting had officially come to an end, it was a time when our country was still emotionally torn from over four years of fighting. General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, called for a day when soldiers of both North and South would be remembered for giving their lives for the freedom and liberty of past, present and future generations.

This weekend is the first in a series of summer holidays and everyone was looking forward to a long weekend. My students were anxious for the long weekend, but as is the case with many of our patriotic days, I fear the true meaning of Memorial Day is diluted in a pool of commercialized selling sprees. Lost is the historical significance and values we've achieved as believers of democratic ideals. When people question why this new generation of learners doesn't have a grasp of real history, I believe we have only ourselves to blame.

I provided them with pictures of Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC and a stirring 3-minute video of Amazing Grace by the Armed Forces Bagpipes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhGuhfBk5xk 
It was laced with images of fallen soldiers and ways which they are remembered by comrades and everyday citizens. I ended with a simple request that my students take a few minutes before the end of the day to visit the school's in-house memorial to recent graduates who gave their lives in battle. One of these soldiers was the brother of a current classmate of theirs and few were aware of this association. I asked that they also spend time on Monday in reflection of the true meaning of Memorial Day, recognizing the efforts of soldiers who have defended our country. As each of my five classes departed for the day, there was a somber sense of "I got your message" amid them all. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

My Best Day in the Classroom

For the past four weeks my freshman students have been engulfed in learning about the Civil War, a fascinating time period in American history. Teaching the Civil War is a challenge in that there is so much going on and a teacher can only cover so much material in limited amount of time. It's not only the battles and politics of the mid-19th century, but the individuals who impacted the fate of our United States. As a high school student I never imagined there were things happening behind the scenes, and this unit provided me with the opportunity to explore such unique things as 3D photography, commonly referred to as stereoview in its time. Nowadays students think 3D is new, but they are surprised to learn how commonplace it was almost 150 years ago. After I purchased a DVD with almost 100 stereoview photos, I was amazed when I discovered how they were digitally colored, bringing scenes to life as I had never imagined possible. My students loved it when I distributed 3D glasses, logged into my iTunes account with an hour's worth of music from the Civil War, and then turned out the lights. I guided them on a one-of-a-kind journey into the past. It was amazing!

It wasn't until the Civil War unit came to an end that I experienced my best day (to date) as a teacher, and once again I've realize the best lessons in the classroom are those made with a connection with life. When the Civil War unit began, I informed my students that I would allow them to use their notebooks for the unit final, provided they were written notes in their own handwriting. In other words, no xeroxed copies or worksheets from textbooks- rather, everything they transcribed from notes in class or taken from assigned readings. Throughout the unit I reminded them that by taking good notes and organizing them appropriately, they would improve their chances for success on the unit exam. For those who chose to ignore my warning, the day of inevitability hit home on Thursday, May 2nd. As I handed out the test, I caught a glimpse of some of their enlarged eyeballs and a sudden realization that they had made a huge error in judgement as to my sincerity of the difficulty of the test. For those who heeded my advice, they excelled like never before.

It was on this same day that I celebrated the success of two students who had previously struggled with tests such as these. Other teachers refer to 'Joe' and 'Jim' as dysfunctional and derelict in nature. They are kids other teachers quickly toss from their classroom, while I tend to tolerate and focus on ways to motivate their passion for learning. Our relationships have grown over the past several weeks after heart-to-heart talks after school when they dropped in to grab a Jolly Rancher from my candy jar. I challenged them to take my advice to prove, if only to themselves, that they could ace the test just by following through on my advice. There were times when they worked together to update their notebooks, talking smack with one another...all the while having just the tiniest of doubts in their abilities. When I finished grading their papers, I was elated to be able to place 'A+' in the top corner. They popped their heads into my classroom this morning and I sat them both down in front of me with a stern glare, then broke the news of their success. They NAILED IT like never before!

I asked if they would allow me to use their names and notebooks to share with other classes, if only to model how successful others could be by following my advice. They were proud of their accomplishment and I matched their elation by suggesting they do it again on the next test. They jumped on board immediately!  Later in the day I strolled into the Dean of Students and asked Shawn to seek out these two students at some point in the afternoon by congratulating them in person in front of their cohorts. In the past Joe and Jim have been frequent visitors to his office, always being reprimanded for their negative actions. Today was genuinely different!  :)

As the day progressed, I had heart-to-heart chats with each class in hopes they would understand the sincerity behind my words. In one of my most difficult classes, one-third of the students received an 'F' on their test, and I shared that they were capable of better work. After all, three students in this specific class earned top honors with perfect scores...so the issue of attitude and attentiveness in class clearly came into play. Rather than rubbing their nose in the results, I elected to challenge them to do it 'right' when we begin the next unit on Reconstruction. My students were STUNNED (yet very happy) to discover that Joe and Jim did something that no one expected, much less ever considered possible.

While the good news has yet to spread amongst my comrades in the Social Studies department, I take great satisfaction in knowing that kids who are often tagged as "impossible" can turn their academic lives around in short order. Their success can truly inspire others...be it the teacher or the student...to achieve what was once considered unattainable.

Getting Students to Believe in Themselves

I sense there is an ever-growing segment of young people, mostly male, who are unable to compile a written response to the simplest of essay questions. After growing tired and confused as to why they would choose to not answer a test question, I decided it was time to inquire as to why "John" was finding it hard to pen a few lines. In a polite manner I asked what he knew about the subject in general. His mind was in lock-down mode and he was having difficulty laying it before me...so I supplied him with a 2-3 clue words to cue his thoughts. John proceeded to rattle off everything he knew about the subject, nailing the original essay question in a way which surprised both me and himself.

"Why did you find this specific question so difficult to answer on today's test?" John told me he knew all the information, but didn't know that this is what I was looking for, nor did he know how to get it out of his brain. While there are some educators who would simply accept an unanswered essay question, I am becoming rather insistent in finding out what my students know and why they are willing to bail ship by accepting their lackluster performance. In the real world, employers won't consider any job application that contains blank space in an area which is designated for thoughtful response. Are schools so forgiving to accept this behavior?

I am exploring new ways in my classroom to change this behavior while still retaining their trust and buy-in to my teaching style. There is a segment of students who dislike writing assignments and often ignore them altogether in hopes that they'll simply go away. They accept failure as routine and normal. My grandmother had a saying that the hardest nut to crack often had the tastiest meat to enjoy. The same holds true to a small segment of students who are often considered hopeless- the knowledge is there, you just have to crack through the barrier. There's a wonderful world of intelligent thought waiting to be revealed!

Regarding the Quiet-Learners

As a first-year teacher I often take notice of those students who lag behind mainstream learners. After all, they are the ones who need the most immediate attention as they impact WKCE scores the greatest as well as the general classroom climate. Over the past several weeks there are others flying beneath the radar screen and they deserve as much, if not more, of our notice. I refer to these students as the quiet-learners, those who ALWAYS complete their assignments on time in a thorough manner with very few errors and distinct writing styles. Some might reference them as 'gifted and talented.' They challenge us not with mischievous actions or poor attitudes, but with anticipation for more rigorous learning activities. They have my attention and I am attempting new ways to keep them engaged in my classroom. Each one is different, yet uniquely similar.

At any point in the school day, regardless of my class size, I still need to manage a wide variety of attitudes and personality styles in addition to addressing the needs of lower-level learners. It's here where the quiet-learners become lost in the shuffle, and in many ways they could very well be the reason as to why higher academic standards via the Common Core are being designed for tomorrow's classrooms. These individuals do not need our ongoing attention, but they do require both acknowledgement and optional assignments which elevate their thought process. With test grades at the 97-percent-plus level, they are already exceeding our expectations and sometimes they will not accept more work for fear of falling backwards. They're already riding a well-greased slide, but whether they realize it or not, they also need to learn something new every day to satisfy that inner thirst for knowledge. It is here that I assure them that their "safe-grade" will not be jeopardized, only weighted with greater regard and higher prominence. I am doing nothing more than coaxing them into deeper waters of higher learning. I want to stay at least one step ahead of them, ready to offer challenging lessons at a moments notice.

This is just another reason as to why I enjoy teaching at this point in my life, seeing the potential in students on both ends of the spectrum...and everything in between.

The Importance of Writing Skills

When asked to respond to essay questions, my students are all too often willing to only provide basic simple answers. I remember this trick from my early days in high school as I just wanted to answer the question to make my teacher happy, then turn and run as fast as I could to avoid focus on any of my half-inspired sentence fragments. I use the word "fragments" since that's all they were at the time. I just needed to give the teacher what they thought I knew, then skedaddle back to other busy work without expanding on any ideas...and no doubt it drove them nuts! Now I find myself on the receiving end of such a strategy and I sense that I need to attack this mindset.

After handing back student exams, I pulled out my stool and asked every freshman to look me straight in the eye in order to concentrate on what I was about to say. I paused until every face was focused at me, maintaining silence until there was total calm in the room.  "How many of you are going to look for a summer job in the coming weeks?"  An overwhelming majority of hands went up and I knew I had captured their attention for the next que.  "Are you aware that when you approach a potential employer they ask you to fill out a job application which in many cases includes a question or two about WHY they should hire you? Several employers also ask questions about your life goals and even a question about how you interact with people. They ask those questions in order to see how you will respond...and if you answer with words rather than sentences, your application will go into their trash. It's the cold hard truth, and if you can't construct a sentence, you will NOT be given any consideration for employment."

I explained how my past career was involved with the hiring of people for an assortment of jobs, be it management, salespeople, truck drivers, warehouse personnel, and high school youth helping us out for the summer. I shared how I reviewed their writing skills to get a sense of how much they wanted the job. It made sense for me to hire the best candidate and if they couldn't communicate their feelings in writing, I didn't want them to waste my time nor theirs. They listened and I sensed that most of them 'got it' for what it was meant to be...a moment of greater awareness of what Mr. D wanted (and expected) from his students. "With that being said, I assure you that we're going to keep working on your writing skills in the days to come...count on it. This can be a learning experience for you in more ways than you think, so work with me!"

In the coming weeks I have every intent on allocating more time to improving their writing skills, not with huge assignments but in simple tasks which will inflict little pain or traumatic stress. In an age when young people text in abbreviated acronyms, there is all the more sense of urgency on my part to make sure they are aware of the need to have the ability to write good sentences...not just for unit exams and the accompanying essays, but for life itself.

Wanting What's Best and Getting Feedback

Make no mistake, a good teacher always wants what is best for their students. We have every desire for them to understand the meaning behind our lessons, much less the knowledge that's associated with it. We want our students to perform to the best of their ability, whether or not they aspire to attain greatness. Recognizing that they are human individuals holding the ability to make personal choices (good, bad or indifferent), we need to remember that they don't always want to travel in the same direction which we point them in. We see them for who we think they should be, rather than accepting the authenticity of their free spirit. I am not advocating that they should be provided with a free reign in their approach to learning, only my acceptance that they will see things from a different perspective. However, it helps when they provide feedback on what they perceive to have learned, offering insight on ways learning has taken place.

Grading on their National History Day projects is just about complete, but prior to giving them their final grades I felt it would be a good idea to get their feedback on the past several weeks. Using a Collins Type 2 Writing Assignment at the end of class, with a minimum of eight lines I asked my students to share three things which they had learned from doing their research. What worked, what failed, what surprises did they experience, what were their frustrations...their surprises...their roadblocks. And what did they learn about themselves after undertaking such a project? Their pencils hit the paper fast, as if they were venting feelings which were pent up inside for many weeks. But I've discovered that young people want (and need) to unleash their feelings with writing assignments, and this one would be extra-special for me as a first-year teacher!

Sitting in my apartment that evening, I read every paper which students had provided to me, taking comments to heart in ways that I cherished as being brutally honest. They hit me in a good way- some in the head and many others in my heart. What follows is just a sampling of their many personal reflections, and they're listed just as they were provided (misspellings and all):

• I learned many things about researching. One thing is how to use Badger Link. I didn't know about that before but now I do. I learned that not all sites are reliable. Some information isn't true. I learned that when I have to to work I should use it wisely and not waste my time.
• One thing I learned while researching was to make sure I keep a citation of the articles I use where I can find it. I also learned to make sure I have everything done well before it is due so I have time to fix things if necessary. I learned to make sure I don't mess around or I won't get stuff done.
• I learned that I was able to write a large research paper like I will have to in college. Finding reliable sources and citing them. Also to control the schedule and get work done in the time given. Also learned about what happened after WWII and what the countries were going through. What I learned about myself is I work well in a group.
• I learned how much you have to actually read to research to get good research...
• I learned how to research using our school website. What I learned about my partner was that I probably won't do it again. I am more of an independent person, and I won't want to depend on someone to do something when they end up not doing it. I also learned how to organize stuff on a board.
• I learned that I need to be more patient with myself and that I need to work more. I learned that I have a short temper but in summary I learned a lot...
• I learned not to procrastinate the project to the last day...
• I learned that I don't like to work with people who don't hardly work and expect you to think of most of the ideas. I learned that I have a great History teacher.
• Setting goals helps getting the research done faster and makes everything run smoother. Slacking only leads to not doing your best and not getting the best grade you could...
• There's a lot of reading that takes place in research. There's a lot of new info out in books and websites that I never would've known. I hate doing research because it takes too much time but you have to do it well in a research paper.
• I learned to stay on task and get things done as soon as possible so I don't forget...
• I learned that you should double-check your save. Sometimes a file may not save correctly. You need to manage time wisely. I almost ran out of time during the project. You need to focus. It's easy to lose focus, but you need to concentrate.
• I learned that with dedication and effort and choosing the right partner, that it makes a project a lot more fun...
• I learned that sometimes when your project is not doing so well you have to think on the fly. That you can't argue with your partner otherwise you could put your project on the line...
• One thing I learned about research is that Wikipedia is not a credible site. In order to be a viable site it must have an author and a @ thing. I learned that I liked researching...
• I realized that there are many fake sites and a lot of false information online. Its hard to research a topic you don't know much about in the start. I thought choosing what to write about was difficult in the writing process. During this project I learned that time flies so you shouldn't procrastinate anything...
• I have learned about different search engines you can use for research besides Google. Along with that I've learned how to tell if information from a website is reliable or not and if it is considered a primary or secondary source. I've also learned how to decide what's important and whats not in research. About myself I've learned that I'm very much a perfectionist and I don't want anything to be done wrong. Also that I am able to pace myself appropriately.
• On doing our history day project I learned how to research properly...by not copying and paste. I learned how hard it was to actually get good research that is true. One thing I learned about myself is that I need to work immediately. I can't fall behind. Once I fall behind, I have to work that much more to catch up.
• I learned that even if your information is wrong or your project falls completely apart, you have to rebuild and redo in a rational fashion. I don't take failure well, but when I get a little help, I can keep a positive attitude.
• I learned that working with a friend on a project isn't the best choice. Me and my partner got in a huge fight during our project and it made us fall behind. I learned that you need to work on the project not just at school, but use your free time to get the project done. Use all the time you have.
• I learned that not everything on the internet is true and using Google isn't accurate. You have to know if there isn't one then the stuff probably isn't true. Badger Link helped a lot because everything on it was true. All the webs cited looked very accurate....