In September 2009, a charter school in New York City will open with a refreshing philosophy; pay master teachers, and they will come. Correlating quality educators with high student achievement, The Equity Project has designed a program of rigorous qualifications, redefined expectations, and revolutionary compensation. Teachers will earn $125,000 per year with potential bonuses that may amount to as much as $25,000. Read more here.
Missouri Representative Jane Cunningham is sponsoring a bill that would, in part, ban teachers from sharing password privileged profiles with students they've taught within the past two years. No penalties for doing so are outlined in the proposed legislation, however.
My experience as a field service coordinator for MSTA compels me to caution members about using social media as a form of communication with students and parents. The technology is too new to know the full range of pitfalls that may result from on-line conversations. In fact, I am still taking calls from teachers who have had email tone misinterpreted by students and parents, and email has been around "forever," relative to this technology.
Take a look at this article. Opinions are welcome!
U.S. News and World Report recently joined the ranks of other newspapers and journals by publishing a list of what they perceive to be the top 100 high schools in our country. I have some questions: Why are lists like these necessary? What good results from these lists? And are journalists the best source of information regarding the quality of public education?
Sure, they enlisted the aid of a school evaluation service. But admittedly, they used only three criteria to judge a relatively small number of our nation's 18.000 or so high schools.
This issue of U.S. News may just have to line the bottom of the bird cage.
In an article that really just amounts to another argument for good mentoring programs, the obvious is stated: "Teacher experience, and not advanced degrees, has a greater effect on how well students succeed. . ."
However, during the holiday season, first-year teachers are moving through the phases of anticipation and survival to disillusionment with the profession. In fact, over the winter break, some will be making the crucial decision whether or not to continue a career in education. So they may never garner the experience needed to be effective instructional leaders in the classroom.
This is the time to remind everyone that good mentors armed with solid programs can rejuvenate these folks. Students deserve teachers who (through practice, practice, practice) develop into masters of their craft.
The National Center on Time & Learning will provide research, advocacy, and technical assistance for efforts to increase academic and enrichment opportunities for students, which some experts say can help improve student performance overall and close achievement gaps between disadvantaged students and their better-off peers.
The real outcome of this study shows that students need a longer school day and school year in order to achieve the goals we've set for them in measures like No Child Left Behind. I don't see this happening any time soon. The increased cost of personnel salaries alone is prohibitive. However, that doesn't mean I don't see the value in more instruction time for students. I agree it is virtually impossible to meet all standards and grade-level expectations in the limited seat time kids currently serve.
I wonder how many faculty and staff would flee education if it were a year-round proposition. . .
A Massachusetts school district may have found a brilliant way to get a much-needed tax override passed: eliminate all bus transportation for its students. Over the past five years, voters have failed to pass measures that would provide additional money to the school district. Now they are really paying the price. Perhaps the public should reconsider its position when money matters are placed on the next ballot.
Kudos to school district officials who state there are no more teachers they can cut.
I knew it! My sisters, however, will disagree that the eldest sibling has an edge on the others when it comes to smarts. This article cites a Norwegian study of birth order and intelligence. Should we be watching for schools to ask for birth order information on enrollment forms?
My favorite assignment in senior literature class was to read "The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger. I identified with the isolation and desperation felt by Holden Caufield, not particularly because of any devastating event in my life, but simply because I was a teenager (with all the angst that implies). When I became a middle school teacher at the tender age of 22, I vowed to read the novel every summer, so as not to forget what troubles my students may be experiencing. I kept that promise.
As each additional year of teaching passed, and as the age gap between me and my students increased, I found myself growing apart from the kids with whom I identified at the beginning of my career. Gradually, I fell into the ranks of the veteran teachers - those who saw my youthful enthusiasm at 22 to be amusing. However, I was grateful my mentors had empathy for a young girl whose ambition outweighed skill, and in whose shoes they had walked at one time. It is, perhaps, one of the primary reasons I remained in the profession.
If you are a mentor to a new teacher, consider reading this article. It may refresh you in the same way "The Catcher in the Rye" helped me keep perspective with my students. A little empathy for your protege will go a long way. . .
"Classrooms can be the safe haven where academic practices and classroom strategies provide students with emotional comfort and pleasure as well as knowledge. When teachers use strategies to reduce stress and build a positive emotional environment, students gain emotional resilience and learn more efficiently and at higher levels of cognition. Brain-imaging studies support this relationship."
Judy Willis writes an uplifting article that should remind us all of our mission in education. I don't believe the information is new or revolutionary, but is serves to focus our efforts as we return to the classroom this fall. Learning can and should be an enjoyable experience! However, the testing bandits have wreaked havoc with this premise.
Take a quick look at what Willis has to say about giving students a break, creating positive associations, prioritizing information, and allowing for independent discovery learning. I promise - it is a short article well worth the read.
Politics aren't "as usual" for teacher unions these days. A recent study from Education Sector shows that local union presidents aren't as active in traditional labor negotiations as they used to be. . .
It is about time they recognized the benefit of collaborative meetings with school boards and administrators. What MSTA has known all along is that putting on the gloves and emerging from separate corners of the ring doesn't garner desired results in education. Shared accountability for student achievement puts us in the same corner, and the only opponents to tackle are literacy, proficiency in mathematics, science education, the arts, etc.
So has NCLB threatened the viability of teacher unions? I don't think so. There will always be a need for employees to voice concerns about salary and working conditions. But if we can expand those discussions to include what is best for kids, we'll have created a climate in which real progress in education can be achieved.
There is my optimistic outlook upon returning to work from an extended break!
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