Today fellow educators have been encouraged to blog about the current crisis in American education and what we think would fix the problem. Everyone in the education field is up in arms about the film, "Waiting For Superman," as if teachers and unions were the only problems in our educational system. We educators know that there are many problems that are out of our control, but no one seems to want to listen about societal issues right now. No, the problems are too many to list, but I will try my best to focus on one of them, and that is that all too often, joy is taken out of our classrooms.
I choose to focus on this because this is the one thing we CAN control. As a principal, I am all for accountability measures and making sure that all children learn. NCLB has certainly made schools focus on those two things, but what has simultaneously occurred is that joy has been sapped out of the classrooms.
Teachers are so driven to make sure that they teach specific skills, and are constantly worried about state tests. Principals (including me) put standardized test scores in front of the teachers, along with pacing guides, and GLE's. Our focus has become those scores, not what it will take to light the spark in each and every child.
I work with the most talented group of teachers. They work so hard. They care and love these children and would do anything for them, but I'm afraid that with all of these accountability measures and focusing on scores, I have contributed to the "joy sapping." I am the mosquito sucking the blood right out of them.
At our school, we are going to get back to making sure that joy is in every classroom. Our focus will be on lighting the learning spark for every child and making sure that children have an enjoyable learning experience. I don't want my teacher's first thought to be author's purpose, context clues, predicting, summarizing, sequence, and cause and effect. Instead, how can we instill the joy of reading? How can we help children be the most effective communicators that they can be?
If we focus on the joy, on lighting that spark, then we will be a successful school. Yes, author's purpose is important, but it is more important to instill joy. I must help my teachers maintain the balance between the two: focusing on accountability and maintain joy and happiness for each of our students. I am a rebel and I say that instead of more tests we need more joy, joy, joy! I hope I never forget that............
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
What is the Purpose of Your Staff Memos?
Each week I send staff a Weekend Update, which is a weekly memo for staff explaining upcoming events and information. This school year I have vowed to devote the majority of the memo to getting staff to think about things. I try to put information on instructional strategies and ask compelling questions. Here is a sample of one of my articles:
Let’s ask ourselves this: what is the purpose of the traditional spelling test? Well, our first answer might be that we are teaching children the correct way to spell words. However, if you think about it, we are only asking them to memorize the spelling words. Will this DOK 1, Recall, be enough for most students? Is there a better way?
Our training in DOK tells us that students learn best when they are able to apply the knowledge that they learn. Asking someone to memorize a spelling word, recall what the capital of North Dakota is, or what the definition of a word is will result in short term learning. Usually, most students will remember the terms for the test and then it is gone. Is this what our purpose is?
So, how can we take the knowledge we need students to learn and have them apply it to something? Let’s take spelling – if students are able to use the words and spell them correctly in their writing, they have applied the knowledge. Teaching students those spelling rules like “I before E except after C” is something that will help the children (I still use that strategy). Showing students how to identify a word that is misspelled and how to fix it is a strategy that students will use forever. Shouldn’t that be our focus?
In today’s classrooms, we are bogged down with things to do: small groups, re-teaching, formative assessments, data analysis, etc. As we find new and better ways to teach students, it is OK to give something else up. I propose that you think about how you teach spelling and try an alternate way.
Does this mean that you don’t have to have a spelling list? NO – instead, make sure that you give students practice with the words. Teach them about word families. Teach them to apply the words in their writing. Teach them to identify when one of those words are spelled incorrectly.
Tradition means that parents expect it. If you choose to assess spelling in an alternate way be sure to let your parents know. Explain why you are doing things differently.
Here is an article that you might find interesting:
http://www.dldcec.org/pdf/teaching_how-tos/spelling_tests.pdf
What do you include in your memos to staff? What topics have you discussed? We, as principals and teachers, have so much knowledge that we can share with each other. Use this blog as a sounding board for sharing great ideas!
Can We Opt Out of the Weekly Spelling Test?
Let’s ask ourselves this: what is the purpose of the traditional spelling test? Well, our first answer might be that we are teaching children the correct way to spell words. However, if you think about it, we are only asking them to memorize the spelling words. Will this DOK 1, Recall, be enough for most students? Is there a better way?
Our training in DOK tells us that students learn best when they are able to apply the knowledge that they learn. Asking someone to memorize a spelling word, recall what the capital of North Dakota is, or what the definition of a word is will result in short term learning. Usually, most students will remember the terms for the test and then it is gone. Is this what our purpose is?
So, how can we take the knowledge we need students to learn and have them apply it to something? Let’s take spelling – if students are able to use the words and spell them correctly in their writing, they have applied the knowledge. Teaching students those spelling rules like “I before E except after C” is something that will help the children (I still use that strategy). Showing students how to identify a word that is misspelled and how to fix it is a strategy that students will use forever. Shouldn’t that be our focus?
In today’s classrooms, we are bogged down with things to do: small groups, re-teaching, formative assessments, data analysis, etc. As we find new and better ways to teach students, it is OK to give something else up. I propose that you think about how you teach spelling and try an alternate way.
Does this mean that you don’t have to have a spelling list? NO – instead, make sure that you give students practice with the words. Teach them about word families. Teach them to apply the words in their writing. Teach them to identify when one of those words are spelled incorrectly.
Tradition means that parents expect it. If you choose to assess spelling in an alternate way be sure to let your parents know. Explain why you are doing things differently.
Here is an article that you might find interesting:
http://www.dldcec.org/pdf/teaching_how-tos/spelling_tests.pdf
What do you include in your memos to staff? What topics have you discussed? We, as principals and teachers, have so much knowledge that we can share with each other. Use this blog as a sounding board for sharing great ideas!
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