Tell the truth ...

[wsttxguy]

I teach high school algebra and we have 55 minute classes.
Here is a typical day for me.

Bell rings.
5 minutes to take roll and enter in computer.
5 minutes to call out answers so students can grade papers.
5 minutes on any questions over home work.
5 minutes to go over quiz from the day before.
10-15 minutes to take a quiz.
15-30 minutes to teach lesson for the day. Typically 20 minutes.

Now I do not always have a quiz to give or go over. So some days I have that 15-20 minutes extra.

So that leaves anywhere form 10 to 30 minutes for the students to work on the days lesson in class. Usually they have 15 minutes to work.

I have a average of 22 students in each class. Which is pretty good. Like I said I usually have 15 minutes for the kids to work in class so that gives less than one minute for me to help each student one on one.


I could go on and on about the day and the kinds of students but I would get to long so I will stop.

[bob]

Things could be better.

I think we need:

More reading, of good books, at an earlier age.

Stop overemphasizing technology and computers. Computers are a tool, but a tool most of do not need until we are in the workplace. Computers make smart people more effective, they make dumb people less productive. I think most students would gain more from spending one hour each day with a random book form a good library than an hour each day on the internet.

Teacher education-more time spent honing our teachers to know their subjects better, and how to teach their subjects better. In doing this something will have to give, as teachers have busy schedules. Maybe a three week course each summer devoted to being brilliant in your subject area-not more classes on education. The best teachersI have had were those who were passionate and well versed intheir subject area-it rubs off on students (not all).

Acknowledge that some children sould be left behind-empower teachers and administrators to take control of their classes and not let the weakest and worst set the mood. Enable the best students set the tone, leave the worst behind. The middle will rise to meet the challenge and the lower third will be to insecure not to follow along (not left behind after all). If you cater to the worst, you will lose them all.

Close campuses. Jamb cell phone signals. Those text messages and trips away formthe school are introducing a world of harmful things to the learning environment.

[drillingmonkey]

Wsttxguy you really said a lot. 1 minute per student, if that. That is sad. And, if you have a student who does try, but just doesn't get it, you are advised to hire a tutor, at your expense. One class at MHS last week showed the movie Super Troopers. Midland Freshman spent most of their first two weeks in lock down, maybe related to the "hit list" but, when do they start telling these kids that do not want to be there to find other means of education. It can be a frustrating ordeal sometimes. Back to basics would be nice. The BCIS class did not have enough computers for the first 3 weeks. I say bring back the typewriters and teach old school. Hey, we are all wise, right? Personally, I had so much respect for my teachers and the equipment and books.

[JBird]

Wsttxguy you really said a lot. 1 minute per student, if that. That is sad. And, if you have a student who does try, but just doesn't get it, you are advised to hire a tutor, at your expense. One class at MHS last week showed the movie Super Troopers. Midland Freshman spent most of their first two weeks in lock down, maybe related to the "hit list" but, when do they start telling these kids that do not want to be there to find other means of education. It can be a frustrating ordeal sometimes. Back to basics would be nice. The BCIS class did not have enough computers for the first 3 weeks. I say bring back the typewriters and teach old school. Hey, we are all wise, right? Personally, I had so much respect for my teachers and the equipment and books.

LOL! You have an opinion, anyway.

I want to point out that if the US is ranked 23rd in the world and we are still using the same model from the 1950s, there are those that disagree as to the effectiveness of the "old school" system in the modern world.

I being one of them.

Think about it, this graduating class will not know a world without TV, computers, cell phones, 3 channels on the TV, and many other things.

Although I would seriously question the showing of "Super Troopers" in school, I promise more than meets the eye for the MFHS issues. Speaking of which, what do you perceive is the issues of MFHS?

Are we wise? I dunno. I try to be, but question my success.

[JBird]

Great topic Jbird!

I am confused about public education more than ever, I am confused about Zero Tolerance (which is the stupidest thing we’ve ever allowed IMO) the right to defend ourselves has been stripped away, the attendance laws, the laws that make it impossible for teachers to do their job and I am confused about the reasoning with forcing teachers to teach kids that don't want to be there (I'm not talking about the sleepers.)

Zero tolerance? How many chances should a kid get? Just asking.

Shouldn't principals be allowed to expel students on warning 3 permanently for INITIATING violent behavior towards others?? Force them to go to other schools, or charter... I know it's mostly about money, but dang!

LOL! One might think so.

Also I believe all Teachers should be taught more than one way to teach something, so that more than one learning style is available to students.

They are, but like any other skill it is all in the application.

I remember not so long ago that Teachers had time to work with us a little bit; a few minutes of one on one in class while other kids were working did wonders for our morale and our understanding.

Kids today are so rushed, and are easily kicked to the sidelines, it’s such a shame, the harder we try and change things up, the things that we fail to see is we need to go backwards, to the basics, because when a kid is rushed through the basics and has already missed out on or lost that foundation, it will forever be shaky for that Student... IMO that is our biggest problem.

Don't know how well I agree, but that's just me. Going backwards isn't the solution. IMHO, it is what we know, thus what we are most comfortable with. Therefore, many of us want to say, "Worked for me so it must be right". Like I pointed out earlier, it isn't the same world anymore on many levels.

But that's just me.

[ParagonEos]

Zero tolerance? How many chances should a kid get? Just asking.

Depends always on the circumstances.



LOL! One might think so.

I HOPE so, one of these days.




Don't know how well I agree, but that's just me. Going backwards isn't the solution.

I didn't necessarily mean going backwards.. How about not allowing a child to go forward until they learn what they need to learn...

Doesn't sound like too much to ask?

[JBird]

Doesn't sound like too much to ask?

Nope.

Not by a long shot.

Begs the question: Is the current school year too short to get everything in?

[BERT]

I teach high school algebra and we have 55 minute classes.
Here is a typical day for me.

Bell rings.
5 minutes to take roll and enter in computer.
5 minutes to call out answers so students can grade papers.
5 minutes on any questions over home work.
5 minutes to go over quiz from the day before.
10-15 minutes to take a quiz.
15-30 minutes to teach lesson for the day. Typically 20 minutes.

Now I do not always have a quiz to give or go over. So some days I have that 15-20 minutes extra.

So that leaves anywhere form 10 to 30 minutes for the students to work on the days lesson in class. Usually they have 15 minutes to work.

I have a average of 22 students in each class. Which is pretty good. Like I said I usually have 15 minutes for the kids to work in class so that gives less than one minute for me to help each student one on one.


I could go on and on about the day and the kinds of students but I would get to long so I will stop.

And what made it worse is they added another class in right after I graduated, cutting down class times even more.

[MentalVengeance]

Computers, computerized textbooks, etc., etc. I know that the single most important factor in how any kid does in school is the involvement of the parents. Look at Catholic schools in places like New York City. They have huge class sizes, run on shoestring budgets, and the kids run circles around their public school peers. The fact that these parents have taken a hand in their child's education is a big part of this.

Many kids come from nightmare homes where their parents often aren't even around, let along involved in their education. Even in more stable homes, the parents don't really get that involved. They expect to be able to dump the kids off at school and have nothing else to do with the education process, then complain when test scores are bad. Oh, but they always have time to come down and raise hell because their kid's been treated unfairly somehow. We see how many uneducated, irresponsible adults we have in society, and yet we are surprised that the schools can't turn out wave after wave of little geniuses.

There's no miracle cure, whether it be throwing more money at the problem, putting up snazzier bulletin boards, or harnessing the power of the internet. None of it's going to improve things if parents don't get back to realizing they bear a lot of the responsibility for educating their children.

[Kay]

Amen to that.

[scouch71]

Computers, computerized textbooks, etc., etc. I know that the single most important factor in how any kid does in school is the involvement of the parents. Look at Catholic schools in places like New York City. They have huge class sizes, run on shoestring budgets, and the kids run circles around their public school peers. The fact that these parents have taken a hand in their child's education is a big part of this.

Many kids come from nightmare homes where their parents often aren't even around, let along involved in their education. Even in more stable homes, the parents don't really get that involved. They expect to be able to dump the kids off at school and have nothing else to do with the education process, then complain when test scores are bad. Oh, but they always have time to come down and raise hell because their kid's been treated unfairly somehow. We see how many uneducated, irresponsible adults we have in society, and yet we are surprised that the schools can't turn out wave after wave of little geniuses.

There's no miracle cure, whether it be throwing more money at the problem, putting up snazzier bulletin boards, or harnessing the power of the internet. None of it's going to improve things if parents don't get back to realizing they bear a lot of the responsibility for educating their children.

There is so much truth in this post it isn't even funny. We (teachers) are often playing the role of parent as much and in some cases more than we actually get to teach. Students are often starved for attention. They are going to get it one way or another. When parents aren't giving it to them, they often resort to misbehavior at school where they know they will get attention from their peers and teachers. They do not care that the attention is negative either. They just want someone to notice them.

[BERT]

Scouch hit the nail right on the head

[JBird]

OK, any ideas on how to stop a neglectful parent from doing this damage to a child? Scooch is correct about En Loco Parentus (I believe); that educators act in place of a parent for the student's best interest. Unfortunantly, the parent's perception of reality and the educator's are not always the same.

BTW, anyone want to wade in an opinion on year round school?

[scouch71]

Jbird, as a teacher, I don't think I could handle year around school. After giving everything I have for 10 months, I need the two months to emotionally recharge. I am afraid I would burn out with year around schooling.

[JBird]

Interesting, yet many people put the same dedication in their job year round with what ... 2 weeks off at best? Also, year round school has time off built in such as 3 months on and 1 month off or 6 weeks on and 2 weeks off (Still gets in the 187 days of school per year).

Another point of interest is that world wide the students go to school year round and cover 1/3 more than we do in the age catagory (grade) with more time to apply what we teach. They are more on Blooms "Synthesis/Evaluation" level than we can usually hit.

I think the 2+ months off educators get is great for the educators and kids, but is it really?

Or is it us looking at tradition and unwilling to consider changing it because, "It's always been done this way."

Something I have always been interested in is how parents perceive and deal with the change in their schedules when the student has the summer off. Just before the school year started, I was at a Dr. appointment and the receptionist who knew me to be an educator said that she was ready for school to start again. I off handedly stated that we are not a baby sitter service and she said that we were. Forgive me if I'm repeating the story as I cannot recall if I already posted this story. However, this didn't sit well with me.

Also something I wrestle with is does the learning actually mean anything to the student if it isn't in context? This is more so for the secondary levels, but kids see school as just something they have to do. I also feel like w don't really teach up, but rather down to the ones struggling. While I officially draw the line at saying we are "dumbing down" the curricula, the question does get begged.