Great Teachers

Posted on January 31, 2010 by jennifer

Have you ever known a great teacher? You probably have. Perhaps she was your teacher. Perhaps he was your child’s teacher. You know it when you see it. But can you describe it? And can our school systems replicate it? Can our school systems teach teachers how to be great teachers? Is that even possible? Or is it really about selecting candidates who will be great teachers?

If your child has a great teacher right now, this year, let that teacher know. Knowing that someone has noticed matters. And let his or her principal know so it’s clear that parents are paying attention. A great principal knows who his or her great teachers are, but it’s important for the principal to be aware that parents see a teacher’s strengths too.

District 200’s “Distinguished Teacher” nominations are happening right now. I’m thinking of nominating one of our children’s teachers. It will take me a bit of time to complete the form to nominate her. But I think I’ll do it. She’ll appreciate it. Our principal will appreciate it. And it is one tiny way of acknowledging how generations of students are impacted by one person who takes the time to do her job with excellence.

Thank you, JH. I am so grateful for what you are building in my son.

Posted in regular | Leave a comment

Right away, certain patterns emerged. First, great teachers tended to set big goals for their students. They were also perpetually looking for ways to improve their effectiveness. For example, when Farr called up teachers who were making remarkable gains and asked to visit their classrooms, he noticed he’d get a similar response from all of them: “They’d say, ‘You’re welcome to come, but I have to warn you—I am in the middle of just blowing up my classroom structure and changing my reading workshop because I think it’s not working as well as it could.’ When you hear that over and over, and you don’t hear that from other teachers, you start to form a hypothesis.” Great teachers, he concluded, constantly reevaluate what they are doing. Superstar teachers had four other tendencies in common: they avidly recruited students and their families into the process; they maintained focus, ensuring that everything they did contributed to student learning; they planned exhaustively and purposefully—for the next day or the year ahead—by working backward from the desired outcome; and they worked relentlessly, refusing to surrender to the combined menaces of poverty, bureaucracy, and budgetary shortfalls.

Posted on January 31, 2010 by jennifer

Right away, certain patterns emerged. First, great teachers tended to set big goals for their students. They were also perpetually looking for ways to improve their effectiveness. For example, when Farr called up teachers who were making remarkable gains and asked to visit their classrooms, he noticed he’d get a similar response from all of them: “They’d say, ‘You’re welcome to come, but I have to warn you—I am in the middle of just blowing up my classroom structure and changing my reading workshop because I think it’s not working as well as it could.’ When you hear that over and over, and you don’t hear that from other teachers, you start to form a hypothesis.” Great teachers, he concluded, constantly reevaluate what they are doing.

Superstar teachers had four other tendencies in common: they avidly recruited students and their families into the process; they maintained focus, ensuring that everything they did contributed to student learning; they planned exhaustively and purposefully—for the next day or the year ahead—by working backward from the desired outcome; and they worked relentlessly, refusing to surrender to the combined menaces of poverty, bureaucracy, and budgetary shortfalls.

Amandy Ripley. The Atlantic. Jan/Feb 2010. (via my friend @ ayjay.tumblr.com)

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/print/201001/good-teaching

Posted in quote | 1 Comment

Do you think America needs more pubs? Do you love the community and the music in little villages and know that all the world’s problems might possibly be solved if we all stopped by on a Saturday night? You’ll enjoy this Peter Mayer song.

Posted on January 31, 2010 by jennifer
Posted in video | Leave a comment

Ever want to escape from life? And go to your happy place? Here’s Peter Mayer’s take on it.

Posted on January 31, 2010 by jennifer
Posted in video | Leave a comment

Driving with My Knee, Peter Mayer

Posted on January 31, 2010 by jennifer
Posted in video | Leave a comment

Inaugural Post

Posted on January 30, 2010 by jennifer

Blogging. Thought about it for a while. Tumblr seems easy. Gonna try it. And see what I think. Stay tuned.

Posted in regular | 1 Comment