Only in Philly....Not Really

Only in Philly can a teacher-x, who uses a multimodal approach to teaching so that each student can be involved in the learning experience, be rated ineffective for communicating with students because objectives are not posted on a chalkboard using pedagogilese!

Oh, it's not only in Philly? Didn't think so.

Are teachers the only ones?

It's been a little while since my last post. It's been that kind of busy!!
In any event, earlier in the month, I posed a writing warm up question to the kids. "Are teachers the only ones responsible for making sure kids learn?"

I love what one girl wrote. "No, because teachers are not the only ones who teaches kids parents do to. Your parents tolt you how to talk and walk, eat, play not teachers"

(I tried to preserve some of the writing miscues intentionally)

Her argument is solid!!

Principals must be...

Here's a random Saturday thought for you, I'm opposed to "quickie" principals, principals that haven't spent but a half a second in the classroom and now are in roles where they are instructional leaders and set the tone and course for the entire building! What do you know?

Principals must be instructional leaders. To become a great TEACHER it takes years of teaching, trying, failing, and trying again, a willingness to learn and collaborate, a solid foundation of at least undergraduate coursework, etc. But fast track to be the "boss"? Nope.

If you are 20-anything and are a school principal, it's highly unlikely that you spent at least 10 years teaching (which is what I think the minimum should be). I know it's unrealistic because outsiders have beat up so much on teachers, that some cannot take another bruise and would rather be the ones doing some of the bruising. Self-preservation, I get it (or nah?).

I may be provincial in my thinking and may be limiting myself to become an even better educator, but I'm also honest. If I ever have to answer to a principal who hasn't taught but maybe a year or two, or even three, take a seat in the back of the class and learn something.

At 8 years in, I'm still learning and am enjoying it! I couldn't imagine having three years in and then become a teacher-leader or principal. Credibility lost!! Go brush your baby teeth.

Legacy of black educators in my family

Shout out to the members of my family on both my father and mother's side of the family who are/were teachers! This teaching "thing" didn't just begin with my generation. On my mother's side, we have generations of Philly public school teachers, beginning with my grandfather. On my father's side, New Jersey's and Philly suburban public school teachers.

Proud legacy of educators! Now my sister and I are currently Philly public school teachers with a couple of my other siblings going back to school to get graduate degrees in education so they, too, can join the most noble profession on the planet!

Roebuck

Why the SRC shouldn't approve the 39 new charters...

Want to know why the SRC shouldn't approve the THIRTY-NINE (39) NEW charter schools?

Multiply John B. Kelly Elementary School's story by SEVERAL DOZEN real public schools and feel free to add things that at the moment I can't think of because I'm irritated:

1.  We don't have a nurse five days a week, we have her 3x per week (and some schools less than that)

2.  We have an art teacher once a week. On a Tuesday. (many schools don't even have that much)

3.  We have four Noon Time Aids for 700 kids at the lunches

4.  Kindergarten classes are sitting at 30 kids (contractual limit yes, but why max out?)

5.  One secretary for 700 kids, more than 100 adults, and a host of parents, delivery persons, outside agencies, etc. who need to be "buzzed" in. But security is a priority?

6.  I buy dozens of books so that my kids can have NICE, clean, new books to read and not tattered, old, donated books from the 1980s and 1990s

7.  I painted my own classroom from whatever old, jaded (is that the word I want? Probably not, but I'll use it anyway) color it was to reflect a classroom that says, "You're Welcome Here" and not "I don't give a rat's houtinany about you"

8.  With my own money I purchased magazine subscriptions and have purchased whole class sets of grade level (or slightly above) books that are relevant (i.e. The Story of Ruby Bridges)

9.  A guest teacher, during her prep and lunch is organizing Afro-centric books and placing them  in clear view for teachers to use in class because we have no librarian

10. I haven't seen a raise since January, 2012, nor have I seen a step increase since 2013 or an upgrade in pay when I received my M.Ed (and Reading Specialist cert, by the way...an area that many of our children struggle in...I'm just saying...)

I'm sure I'm missing a TON of other things that I'm not thinking of that truly make our schools, schools and places where teachers feel respected and appreciated.

But there's a whole movement out there that is pushing for the approval of 39 NEW charter schools which would all but completely bankrupt our district and cause more harm than good! We have 86 charters already. The second largest district in Pennsylvania can be found right here with our charters along with the largest district, our district run, real public schools!

Stupid people we have in this world. Just idiots! Sheesh!

Scholarly Orderly Chaos

Just sitting here reflecting, as I often do, on my classroom. One of the aspects that I was thinking on, was on what some unenlightened soul could perceive as "chaos" in my classroom. It is anything but!!

There are times when they are sitting and quietly working, but there are times when we:

1.  get up and converse with other classmates about what we read during our silent reading time

2.  get up and converse with other classmates about the math that we're working on

3.  take several "30 seconds to stretch" breaks throughout the day

4.  are scattered all over the floor with personal rugs, pillows, or on the larger area rugs to read

5.  are up and moving and dancing to the beat of some educational rap/rap video

6.  are up and moving to a wall or corner of the room where the answer to some question I asked
about grammar or figurative language is posted on construction paper in the teacher's handwriting

7.  when we just sit quietly and doodle after lunch, in the dark, with filtered light from the sun and the sound of WRTI 90.1 FM's classical music playing in the background

8.  are doctors performing sentence surgery on sick sentences

9. quickly make our way back to our seats as the teacher counts down from 5 with the warning starting with "original seats in 5, 4..." or to the tune of a preschool song, "Everybody take a seat, take a seat, take a seat! Everybody take a seat, right in your chair. Not in the ceiling, not in the air, everybody take a seat right in your chair"

Chaos for lack of classroom management? No sir! Scholarly Orderly Chaos!