A Short Gripe Session...

Just to fit the mold, I'd like to hold a gripe session (since I am a teacher). I don't want to just complain for the sake of complaining, but to point out some great things going on in my county to attempt to fix things.

I just had the pleasure of sitting to plan with my 8th grade colleagues. It was a productive time of feeling like we couldn't get anywhere. We were analyzing the Common Core curriculum standards to figure out what we needed to teach next. Then, just for fun, we looked at the Tennessee Department of Education website to look at what they had released about TCAPs this year. What we found out disturbed us. Although we are teaching the Common Core curriculum, the 8th grade TCAPs are going to (yet again) be aligned to the old curriculum.

The test my students take at the end of the year will NOT match what I am to teach them this year. Can you imagine taking a class and the final exam not matching what the teacher had taught you? As you bubble in your best choices, feelings of frustration and disappointment rise. Your heart sinks more each time you see something you are unfamiliar with. Confidence levels slowly (or quickly) slip away... And that is just the student.

Now imagine this test being used to judge your effectiveness as a teacher. This test is going to be used to determine bonuses, tenure... In cases of the number being low, you can be placed into mentor programs (i.e., lots of extra work and lots of extra time) in order to make you a "better teacher." 

I've personally known two stellar teachers who endured a year of jumping through hoops to demonstrate they are in fact good teachers despite their low test score. For a whole year, they had to write extensive lesson plans, go to extra meetings with their mentor (when they could have been working on preparing for students), and so much more. If the mentor had an idea or suggestion, it had to be carried through as if it were inspired scripture. (Please keep in mind, these were veteran teachers of 10+ years and 25+ years) 

In a profession where so much more time is needed... As learning gaps increase with each curriculum change, as class size increases at an alarming rate... I have to ask... What can be done?

This is where I get to brag... My county is filled with amazing educators who have begun to show up in full force to board meetings. Parents are even beginning to voice their concerns at an increasing rate. At least I have hope that with the persistence of the community where I live, we will push the issues until something is done.

Now that my "gripe session" is drawing to a close, I hope you have a glimpse. I have no desire to just be a complainer. I want to inform and educate others, as well as improve the realm of education. I want to see a change... I want to judged fairly, but even more so... I want to see my students and my peers judged fairly.

With that, I need to write some lesson plans!

Straight from Facebook...

Perusing the Facebook news feed always leads to great finds. There are always the political rants going in full force (my favorites are from the ones who esteem themselves as the most educated and well-articulated... and who can't get through a single sentence without several F-bombs), articles on the deterioration of public education in America (my favorites as an educator myself), and the random photos/memes (please, no cat-lover pages...).

Nevertheless, a good friend of mine posted a quote from an article. Upon the reading the article and his quote, my own thoughts stirred. Here is his quote, followed by the link to the article, and lastly my response.

Friend: “Clearly what Jesus was really into was having guns, and not having abortions, and not being gay. Those are his main priorities. But after he made sure that everyone had a gun, no one had an abortion, and nobody was gay, he had a little think about the poor people and whether they needed anything.”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/11/russell-brand-4-billion-spent-on-elections-but-feeding-the-homeless-is-illegal/

My response: "The sad thing is that the church has dropped the ball in 1) taking care of its own and 2) equipping itself to be able to make a difference in the lives of others. When we began relying on the government and social programs is the day the church "lost" much opportunity. It is still there, but I wonder if the church will rise to the occasion?"

(I apologize as my thoughts develop further... actually... I don't apologize. Here are my thoughts.)

I am not against social programs to help the poor, but I hate that the church has let others take over that aspect of "the market." Before welfare and such, that was one of the obvious functions of the church: to see the need in the community and take care of it.

Over time it appears the role and function of the church has changed. It shouldn't have changed. Jesus was clear that we were to "go and make disciples." We were to go and heal the sick in his name. We have that authority in Jesus' name; he kind of gave us that authority. (I'm just assuming he didn't give his authority and decide to revoke it...)

Instead the church has become the "social club" of Christ. It has become about producing good programs to keep families busy and help raise proper acting adults. Don't get me wrong, I'd like to have some more moral citizens, but that's not the point of the church. The church is supposed to be the "body of Christ."

It's about the life of Christ being produced in us. Once it's produced in us it's meant to go out and be planted in the lives of others. When it takes hold in the lives of others, it begins to replicate itself more. It's about living and sharing the Gospel...

If we were truly about what Christ was about, it definitely isn't just about social agendas. It's not about guns or no guns. It's not about homosexuality or heterosexuality. It's not just about pro-choice or pro-life... (although His position on things makes me take certain positions on matters). 

The question we need to ask is... Are people becoming new creatures in Christ? Are they becoming characterized by the fruit of the Spirit or the deeds of the flesh? If we were more focused on this, we'd spend more time pulling weeds in the church before we start pointing fingers outside the church.

If we can restore the church, I believe the impact would only go out from the church to start making the difference in the world that Jesus intends for us to make in the first place.

Purposeful Weekend

As I wind down for an early bedtime, I feel I must brag on the accomplishments of the day.

I enjoyed my day in the mountains with the love of my life. We galavanted through Cades Cove and Gatlinburg, just the two of us (having left almost four-year-old with one set of grandparents), having nothing less than a marvelous time.

Upon our return, I abysmally lost in a game of Yahtzee... This never happens to me. Never. The odds just weren't in my favor this evening I suppose...

In the morning, the men of our church will gather to eat sausage biscuits and lift up holy hands in prayer. Men's prayer breakfast is one of the highlights of each month. You should hear the prayers that are lifted up to God in our gatherings... But now I sleep...

Processing...

This will be a short post; it will also be a new post. Also... I write for me. 

I truly hope that didn't sound too self-centered. As a teacher, I'm reminded of my time in college where an educational leader encouraged us to tend to ourselves. She told us not to spend too much time on the perfect lesson plan, but instead to have a life. We were encouraged to have much time for family and friends, and less time to attempt to solve all the societal ills. So as I write this, I'm thinking about restructuring my priorities.

These past two years I have worked hard. Perhaps too hard... I don't regret the growth I've experienced as an educator, but I do regret the decline in things not school related. Whether it be time with friends, time with family, or time for personal interests, I have seen those diminished to some degree. (Btw... I've no one to blame but myself for not tending to life properly)

So as I write tonight, my thoughts are... It's time to begin to rebuild some of those things. It's time to make time to sit and reflect and write. It's time for me to read the thoughts of others and reformulate my own thoughts. It's time to make time to check in on friends more, to stay better up to date on the thoughts and dreams of my family...

As I write and reflect, I hope to learn and grow into the best that God has for me.

That is all. Goodnight.

Math is fun, people...

Who said math isn't fun?

Algebra 2 and Pre-calculus would be the bomb with some sweet tunes and dance moves like this.

Maybe one day...

The Positive Note

What makes it worth it all?

God.

Family.

And the opportunity to enjoy fellowship with God and family every new day.

Goodnight!

Common Core Transitions...

It was a good day to plan... Until we really saw the curriculum changes...

(note: the following problem has nothing to do with the 7th grade mathematics curriculum.     It is just a challenging problem for fun, and for my conclusion...)

Tonight I have a tiny beef. We sat down as a team of teachers to plan for the week ahead. We knew there'd be changes to the curriculum. We weren't expecting what we found...

With the changes due to Common Core, students who would have expected to solve simple proportion problems utilizing technology are now expected to solve complex problems without their calculators. Last year they mostly saw whole numbers. This year, entirely fractions, mixed numbers, and decimals.

I'm all for strengthening the rigor of mathematics to ensure true student learning and success in school and real life. However, these giant curriculum leaps create massive learning gaps that many students (if not most) cannot overcome in a single year... This is especially true at my school where so many families come from a low-income household.

I just wish that curriculum was implemented at the low grades and transitioned through year-by-year rather than implementing it at all grades all at once. This, in my opinion, is what true concern for students would look like.

Many intelligent people can find a solution to the problem at the beginning of this post. But if you really want to feel how the Common Core transition feels to my kids, make sure you write the formula for the infinite number of solutions to that problem. We wouldn't want to neglect the rigor required to accurately answer that question...