This Nine Weeks in Education

With every new year I have to do what I always do, decide I need to change things up! I am going to classify that as "pulling an Emily." I can't ever leave well enough alone; there is always another big idea or interest I have that I must find a way to pull into the class. Let's face it, even though there are serious educational standards met in teaching Serial, my ultimate reason for including it in my curriculum is because I need someone to talk to about something I am interested in and my husband refuses to listen to a podcast. I guess he is too afraid he will wake up wearing skinny jeans and ironic t-shirts, in other words 19 year old John. 

But back to starting the year, I made the decision to restructure my AP Language course by topical units.  This was not a wholly original idea as I spend much time reading other Language syllabi online, and now also have the AP Seminar model to gently take ideas from.  For each nine weeks, we are exploring a different topic with the overall goal within each nine weeks being we will practice rhetorical analysis as we look to identify the construction of arguments in various modes (video, audio, articles, and passages), argumentation as we develop our positions in response to each topic, and synthesis as students are asked to see the connection between each piece we cover identifying common threads in seemingly unrelated materials. 

This nine weeks is all about issues surrounding education. I have several articles, TED talks, documentaries, etc. that I began this unit knowing I wanted to cover, but I am allowing for the flexibility to see where the students' interests develop and adjust as needed. This probably drives some of my students crazy that I can't hand them a calendar of assignments for the nine weeks...but thank goodness for Google calendar! Easy to move around with no mess! So what has been the result half way through the nine weeks? 

Well, first we started by looking at a course letter written from a professor, Bill Taylor, discussing academic integrity. The letter gave my classes an opportunity to discuss transparently some really sensitive issues concerning their own behavior within the academic environment without actually talking about themselves (clever right?). It also allowed me to discuss what I feel is my responsibility to my students as a teacher. I found that overall students were really engaged. We were able to talk about the real root of cheating and plagiarism; a lack of confidence in their own abilities. One of my students even emailed Bill Taylor, which the class decided was really dumb because this guy is way too busy to respond to a bunch of teenagers. To their surprise he e-mailed back a thoughtful response withing 24 hours. Thanks Bill! Here is the letter. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-RuXBPe6RUkUWZ2REN3ZFpuTEU/view?usp=sharing

Next, we watched two videos concerning issues in education. The fist was Derek Muller's “This Will Revolutionize Education”https://youtu.be/GEmuEWjHr5c in which he discusses why technology won't revolutionize education focusing on two reasons: 1. Technology is not inherently superior, animations over static graphics, videoed presentations over live lectures etc. and 2. Learning is inherently a social activity, motivated and encouraged by interactions with others. My initial thought was that my students would return to class disagreeing with many of Muller's statements seeing has how I frequently find them watching videos solving math problems and Chemistry concepts. However, they overwhelmingly agreed. I had them complete a follow up using an anonymous Google form as to try and get honest feedback. The students want to have face to face interactions! Most seemed to feel that the technology integrated into their classrooms caused more problems and generated more work. While the flipped classroom is an excellent idea, it still requires students to be accountable for material outside of the classroom when their lives get even more hectic. It essential keeps them connected 24 hours a day, and I don't know about you, but I like to do "m y life" when I'm at home. That's really a whole issue to discuss in itself and probably just extinguished any hopes of me being added to a technology committee. One comment that stuck with me was when a student asked "why don't these people making decisions ever come and talk to us about what we want?" We also followed up this discussion with Sir Ken Robinson's "Education Paradigms" video https://youtu.be/zDZFcDGpL4U

For the rest of the nine weeks we will be exploring different issues in education dealing with gender, race, and socioeconomic concerns. This gives me a chance to show students the documentary Waiting on Superman. It is an eye opener for them to see how desperately some students want an education and are put in an impossible situation in which to try and succeed. I am full of ideas about what I want my students to do with this information. They are also full of opinions about what teaching models they believe work best. So here is my idea: why not give students the opportunity to present a lesson to the class in a way they feel like would be most effective. This is for two reasons, one being that I am interested in their ideas and if they work! Also, they need to see how very difficult it can be to adapt lessons to a multitude of learning styles. I am also considering testing out the stability ball theory for students who have difficulty focusing. Could be very risky....

I am trying to be flexible and let the students dictate where we go next! The hope is, in the end, they will be able to create a compelling solution to all of the education problems we are facing. Big dreams!!! 

Students Needs Are Our Needs Too.

Discussing teaching styles and effective educational practices in my classroom over the past few weeks has been a vulnerable position to be in as a teacher. You can't have students engaged in discussing their own classroom experiences without reflecting to see if any of these comments are based on events in your own classroom. I was transparent with my students about these feelings as we discussed, because as uncomfortable as it may be, I have to be open to hearing how students view their experience in my class. I could very easily continue teaching with blinders to my effectiveness; teacher knows best right? We can very easily slip into this sort of mentality, as if degrees and training make us above taking into consideration student input. At the root, it is a pride issue.

While reflecting on my own teaching practices and discussing what an ideal classroom environment would look like, I couldn't help but make a natural connection to the parallel of a teacher in the school environment. We spend so much time focusing on how we can engage our students and create positive classroom environments conducive to student success, and for good reason. Students are our audience. We are here in order to help them succeed.  However, how much time do we spend making sure that our educators in the front lines feel just as encouraged? engaged? challenged? Here are a few of my observations. While I know there are many facets to educational leadership that make focusing on some of the following points difficult, I just want to point out areas in which I feel are important to creating a positive climate.

1. Engage all teachers in meaningful positions of involvement. We as teachers learn to make a concerted effort to include and engage all students in our classrooms. Whether we use graded discussions, online feedback, or old school popsicle sticks, we all long to figure out a way to pull that reserved student out of their shell and into the conversation. It would be so much easier to let the four students who are always willing to participate dominate the discussions, and as a result, the classroom. This is easy, and truthfully lazy. It takes absolutely no effort on our part to continually look to Suzy "people pleaser" as our go to for running errands, passing out papers, answering questions, and leading classroom activities. But what do the other 25 students in the classroom gain besides a strong sense of animosity toward the blatant bias? We have taught the other students, while maybe unintentionally, that they are not needed and their efforts aren't important. At one time or another we have all been a part of this class. The one where the same few students are constantly crowded around the teachers desk while the rest of the students are left to feel that they are somehow less important.

Maybe in the end it doesn't really matter? As long as the duties are completed and the committee positions are filled we can all go along without any issues. And maybe that is true. But what if there is a better way? What if we could work to engage more of our teachers in meaningful positions?

If in our classroom we continue to allow the same four people to run the show, we are constantly only hearing from the same point of view. These students see through their own unique lens of experience and will not generate a new perspective. Maybe we like it that way because their personalities and philosophies fit with our own thus not causing us to have to stretch our own understanding. Without the input of other students we have resigned ourselves to continue down the same line of thinking. But what we have given other students the opportunity and they choose not to volunteer? We face this every day in the classroom and it would be easy to throw our hands up and say "I tried." It is our job as leaders to cultivate the relationships. Find opportunities to place students in positions to succeed. One small success may very well lead to the confidence to engage more often. In the work environment it is the responsibility of educational leaders to push their faculty out of their comfort zones in order to promote growth. Is it easier to go to the same few teachers for every position you need filled because you already have an established relationship? Absolutely, but that is also the path of least resistance. And how might the other teachers who have been looking for an opportunity to plug in feel as a result? Probably resistant to offering any real help if they don't feel valued. Rita Pierson in her TED Talk "Every Student Needs a Champion" makes a statement that "students don't learn from teachers they don't like." Employees don't work at their optimum level for employers who don't value them. It is our job as the leaders to build the relationship and motivate involvement.

2. Get to know those who work for you. We spend much of our time the first weeks of class conducting personality type surveys, learning style inventories, student interest questionnaires and get to know you activities. Why do we do this? To learn who we are working with in order to effectively meet our students where they are and adjust our teaching methods to meet their needs. Think back to the last time you started the school year at your school. How much time was spent trying to get to know who you are as a teacher? How much time was spent asking you what needs you have and how they might best be served? How much time was taken to discuss your strengths as a professional and your long term goals as a teacher? Probably little to none, and it is understandable why. There is far too much to do before students walk into the building. I wonder though what a world of difference it would make if we committed and invested in knowing who the teachers in those classrooms, the teachers we place all of the pressure on to meet standards and teach students, the teachers we ask so much of beyond their classroom duties, really are? How could we utilize so many creative, intelligent, innovative minds to make an impact? I can tell an immediate difference in my students when I begin to show interest in the qualities that make each of them unique. We just finished taking the Myers- Briggs personality test in class last week. We took a day to just discuss the results together and figure out what roles we would each be most effective in. Participation in the classroom discussion the following day on an article they were asked to read was significantly higher. Why? They felt important and understood. They felt validated for who they are, even if they aren't the extrovert sitting on the front row. They felt like a meaningful part of a large social structure. What if we showed this kind of interest in our educators?

3. Spend time showing understanding the teachers. Positive feedback is essential to building our students' confidence. We as adults have been told ratios like 3 positive comments for every negative comment are the most effective models, yet why do we think the same shouldn't be true within the professional community? Rita Pierson discussed her strategy for motivating failing students by placing a +20 on their paper rather than a -80. Still an F right? Yes, but you have told the student that they aren't all bad. +20 says you did something right, +20 says you aren't a lost cause. We as adults need this same encouragement. We all walk into our school buildings with so many outside struggles weighing us down. Sick parents to take care of, concerns for our children to think about, spouses, and bills, and second jobs, and our own mental health. Yet, we often time treat one another with very little compassion. We quickly bark out all of the negatives and judgement without spending any time building up and encouraging. Why would we think this would work? Why do we think that people will feel compelled to go above and beyond for those that have put little effort into being empathetic? We can't understand a behavior until you take time to get to the root of the problem. We can't continually yell at students for not completing assignments or being a disruption in class and have any real meaningful effect without understanding. Why are they not completing the work? Do they not understand the assignment? Are there circumstances that are making paying attention in class difficult? This is our job as classroom leaders to figure out. Could you imagine showing up at a parent conference and saying " I have no idea why Johnny has an F in this class, I mean I did my part. It is up to Johnny to figure it out." Why shouldn't we create working environments in which education leaders seek to understand those where a possible frustration really stems from?

4. Set clear team goals. When we pass out our course syllabi every fall it begins with a list of intended outcomes and goals. Many of us have these objectives visible in our classroom in the form of essential questions that we will look to answer throughout the school year. We create a united long range goal for the course. In lesson planning we break each lesson into smaller sections. We give our students objectives to be met in order to show mastery of a concept. We may even write these on our board each day. For a school faculty to be successful there has to be a clear focus. One united vision in which we are all working together to achieve. We also can't have goals thrown at teachers without any clear path as to how to meet these goals. This creates uncertainty and frustration. It is the responsibility of the leader to come to its members with an organized and structured plan of action.

So many of these points come back to seeking understanding first. Understand your audience, make choices based on their strengths, utilize more of your members, create a clear achievable goal, and seek to support and understand. A positive work environment can only have a positive impact on our students. Because in the end, adults are just big kids who have become better at pretending we have it together. We still all have the same needs.

Picture It: Sketch Notes Day 2

I began class on the second day by going over my sketch note instructions. I've try to let students know that everything I am asking them to do I am attempting as well.  Students broke into three groups today based on the poem they chose for their writing assignment. They then shared their sketch notes in order to help analyze and understand the poem. Here are some examples.

They were also asked to continue to add to their sketches as they discussed. I know for myself, I added to my instructional sketch notes throughout the day depending on questions students asked. The prompt question for their essay asked for them to identify the “complex relationship” in the poem. It didn’t occur to me until half way through the day that some of the students didn’t fully understand what I meant by complex. I then added an illustration to better capture the concept.

For some students, this type of assignment is their kryptonite. It pushes them out of their comfort zone. My response has been #1 sometimes we need to be pushed to look at something a different way and #2 not every assignment will ask you to process information in this way. For me it is my comfort zone. I visualize everything. I can see how pieces fit together and how one concept is part of a larger idea. I felt encouraged to see students come to an understanding by looking at someone else’s visualization even if they weren’t able to capture that same level of visualization on their own.

My hope is that as students come in on Monday to write, the visual cues will serve as a quick reminder of their analysis and help them to formulate ideas for their essay.

Picture It: Visualization and Sketch Notes

This week in class we have been preparing to write our first poetry analysis essay. We have spent the week discussing the purpose of the essay and walking through a practice essay prompt and poem. As I planned for day 3, I just felt like we were getting into a rut in the process. This may be even how you feel having read the first three sentences of this post. Even though I was varying the activities from whole group discussion, small group, modeling, and students creating samples...I just wanted something else to do.

I came across a link to a blog post discussing the idea of "SketchNotes" The concept isn't new. I regularly include visual representation in class whether it be graphic organizers or projects, however I like that this is taking visualization out of the realm of the creative assignment and positioning it as a new way of note taking. There are some great examples of student who have created notes for their history chapter lectures.

I began class today by introducing the idea of sketch notes to my students. We watched this short introduction video http://youtu.be/gY9KdRfNN9w I then went on to give my overview notes for the essay using my first attempt and sketch noting. It isn't nearly as detailed as what they saw in the video, but a nice starting point.

 I then asked students to analyze their poem using the TPFASTT method, which have been using all year. This time we are visualizing the process. They will be able to use these notes for their in-class essay on Monday.

The idea of sketch noting isn't just doodling, which we connect with a juvenile past time. Sunni Brown's TED talk focuses on just that: Sunni Brown: Doodlers, unite! http://on.ted.com/iz4j What I found really interesting after researching the topic is the growing demand for what some call doodlers, or in more sophisticated terms, a graphic facilitator or graphic recorder. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efCiPNjEC0I They are looked at as problem solvers who help companies and organizations structure board meetings in a way that takes conversation and ideas that might have been missed, and graphically represent how they fit into a bigger picture.

Looking forward to sharing finished products tomorrow!

Those Behind Us

Last weekend my family and I participated in the Baby Steps 5k supporting the Amelia Center. The Amelia Center is a grief counseling center for children and bereaved parents. Many of the groups were running in memory of a lost child, and we ourselves were there to support two families who have recently lost children.

My goal for the run was just to run the entire race. No matter how tired I felt I made a promise to myself not to stop. For some people three miles is a warm up to their workout. For me, the three miles is a real accomplishment. Several times I reminded myself of the reason for the run, and that I am physically able to have my heart pump blood and move my legs to carry me through. I also continued to think of what a blessing it is to have a healthy two year old to wake up to bring that morning to the race. That was my inspiration. Run for those who can not.

When I finished the race I felt good about my time and proud of myself. I was standing around catching my breath when a woman about my own age came up to speak with me. She told me she was running in honor of a daughter she had recently lost. She was at the race by herself and her running partner had canceled the day before. Unbeknownst to me, she had been behind me the entire race. She said that staying behind me motivated her to keep going. We had a really touching conversation that left me feeling the impact of a divine appointment with someone else. It wasn't anything that "I" did. I was in the middle of my own struggle to continue.

As I saw my husband come across the finish line with Coley on his back it made me appreciate even more the life of our child. How easy it is to take those moments for granted.

How often in life are we in this situation? We don't realize those that are running behind us. We don't realize the impact of our actions. This really hits home with me as I am at school preparing to start another year. Our words and attitude have an impact. The students sitting in our classroom are looking to us for not only curriculum, but for support in their own lives. My hope is that I can keep the end goal in mind and run a race that is a motivation to those following. We never know who they might be and what needs they might have.

Final Thoughts for the Year!

I am overly critical of myself. I find myself at the end of each school year wishing I had done an assignment differently or spent more time on a particular skill. It is what attracts me something like Crossfit. The competition and the need to do better each time. I get home and keep thinking I could have gone faster or lifted more. When I clipped my toe and had my first injury on the box jump I felt so frustrated at myself that I hadn't just jumped higher. It's the same quality that lead me to finally give up the cake side business. I would constantly scrutinize and pick apart the details. When I felt totally stressed and near tears my husband would say "it's just cake" in which I responded "no it isn't." It is never "just cake" it's a moment of a birth or anniversary. A celebration of a wedding or a baby. These moments happen once and I want it to be special. That's how I feel about my class. No matter my personal issues these students only get one opportunity to have 10th grade English (that's not exactly true, but you get the idea). While I know their whole future doesn't hinge on the teaching of The Scarlet Letter I have a responsibility to give them what they need to move forward.
Reaching back in the vault here are a few of my favorites:

At the end of the day though I have to know this: that I have done my best! I hope that as my students leave my classroom they can feel the love I have for the literature  and how much I really enjoy interacting with them each day. Here is what I sent my students as my parting words. And of course in Mrs. Barnes style it is very short and to the point :)

Words of Wisdom (or an attempt at wisdom) from Mrs. Barnes

1. NEVER EVER use “I think” “I believe” “In my opinion” “In this essay I will write about” in any paper!

2. Weather/season are always more than just about the weather in literature (winter –Ethan Frome, storms-Julius Caesar, etc).

3. You can do more than you think you can do.

4. We are too mature to use transitions like: First, second, finally and in conclusion. Show off what you know!

5. You have probably learned more than you realize from the discussions in class.

6. Connection to meanings aren't the devil. They are actually good practice in seeing the big picture in all of life.

7. Never call authors by their first name when writing. You don’t know them like that. (Always use their full name the first time)

8. If someone has pen on their face…just tell them…they may need to call their mom.

9. You may actually find reading enjoyable! Give it a chance.

10. Always cite your quotes…ALWAYS! If you didn't say it someone else deserves credit for it.

11. In reading comprehension questions remember the rule of thumb to first establish the tone of the piece – then eliminate answer choices based on the tone of the piece. (Passage positive/answers positive).

12. Never underestimate the power of your words on those around you. You have the power to lift people up and tear them down all in one short breathe.

13. The Scarlet Letter really isn't as bad as you may believe it to be. By that standard neither is Great Expectations. Pip and Hester can be alluded to in a lot of your future literary conversations. Use them!

14. Characters’ names are important. Your parents thought a lot about what your name means just as author’s plan out character names. Because of this take the extra effort to spell them correctly.

15. Reading isn't stupid…Stupid people don’t read.

16. Good writing may be one of the strongest tools in your arsenal for the future.

17.  It isn't as bad as you think it will be if you just get started.

18. Projects aren't about artistic ability, but are more about your ability to see an idea in a totally new way. That is what the world will want from you…a creative way of seeing the same things everyone else sees.

19. Never use words like “good” or “bad”…they don’t say anything. Be specific.

20. If you didn't answer the “Why” or “How” you didn't do your job!

21. Tone is not a device…Devices get across tone!

22. Logos, Pathos, and Ethos can’t stand along! Something has to get across the appeal! (Scary movies are scary because of…)

23. Try speaking to people you don’t know in class. You may find they have really interesting things to say!

24. BE careful with the words “Always” and “Never”(forgive me for my usage J). - They can be fighting words!

25. You will be surprised what you already know next year in AP! If you are going on to regular be a smarty pants!

26. Don’t just drop quotes in your writing. Give context- who said what where?

27. If you don’t know…don’t let them know you don’t know. Speak with confidence and you might find they believe you anyway.

28. I find it a great myth that people can only be “Math/Science” or “History/English” you can like numbers and letters too!

29. Literature is not the study of cold words from dead white men on paper- it is the study of our human condition. How we press on against life’s obstacles, how we handle life’s failures, and how love and hope can rise above all else.

30. Be responsible for yourself. In the end you are the only one who holds the power for your success or failure.

31. Have a sense of humor about yourself! It makes life much more enjoyable!

32. Comments on your essays are not personal. They are really there to make you a better writer. See comment # 16.

33. Don’t just use imagery, diction, and foreshadowing on connection to meaning charts. It looks like you couldn't find anything.

34. Each of you are cared for and thought about.

35. If you have a problem it is most easily received when you also have a solution. 

The "S" Word

I've written a draft of this post a few times and found myself really unsure about whether or not to share it, or exactly how to articulate the sentiment. SHARING. There, I said it. Maybe I've become more aware the importance of the "S" word as it has gained value in my own life with a toddler at home. Sharing is not an innate act. We are not all the selfless creatures we might want to believe ourselves to be. We want to keep our stuff - whether it be physical or intellectual. While Coley is determined to keep her pile of rocks to herself, I find many teacher sit on their own ideas and accomplishments like a stubborn toddler. Why the fear? What is there to lose?

I would argue there are no truly original ideas. We are all influenced by what we hear, see and read. Unknowingly we are all probably holding onto the illusion that we created this masterpiece of an assignment, that in all actuality was the culmination of the ideas of many. Why is there such hesitation in our community to share with one another? Are we so afraid of someone getting credit for our great idea? What would that credit look like? A child who learns something? It seems so silly not share in a profession that should be about continually pushing ourselves to find a way to reach our students and innovate new practices for mastering a skill. 

I have a few theories on this, and they are my own so take them for whatever that is worth. I believe in education there is such a lack of recognition and options for upward mobility that we become very stingy with unimportant "stuff". Like who has the closest parking spot, who is closest to the bathroom, whose classroom has the most windows, who has the better schedule.  Without any way to distinguish ourselves we seem to hold on to these silly benchmarks. This is "my" project that I do with "my" class. We can become like dogs marking our territory. In the end the only people losing out are the students. I find it totally ridiculous that people would pay for lesson plans online. Why would we make our colleagues pay for an idea that is probably the hodgepodge of workshops and online resources and other teachers' previous projects? I know many may feel differently about this, but I think it is terrible that we would make it so difficult to help one another. Why would you keep something that has been a successful tool for you away from those it could benefit?  Why would you withhold your shovel to watch someone dig their hole with a spoon? 

There is also the new emergence of individual branding. My sister-in-law and I were having a conversation over Christmas about this very thing. She had just come back from a conference for dietitians  At the conference there was an entire session just on professional branding. Finding your "thing" and tweeting, blogging, promoting yourself as a master of knowledge in that area. The same thing is happening in education. You first need a Twitter presence, a cool nickname (preferably with a pun or some obscure literary reference if you are an English teacher), a blog (well...can't beat 'em join 'em), and then you can get on the presenter/lecture circuit. I'm really not degrading the practice, but it does create competition that wasn't there before. It isn't enough to just do a good job in the classroom. You also have to be the face of a whole movement. You need a professional head shot on Twitter to reach your mass audience with 140 characters of life changing wisdom. I think it perpetuates some fear of sharing. We are pushed to self-promote and talk about our awesomeness. We can become, if we aren't careful, educational narcissists. 

I have encountered some wonderful educators who have literally given me everything they have. At the mention of something I am thinking about teaching, they get absolutely giddy about passing on everything that they so enjoyed using. Why can't we all be so gracious? How do we create an environment that supports the art of sharing? It is such a disappointment to see great strategies someone is using after the unit is over. Sharing, as in any element of a relationship, works best when both parties are participating. Sharing our successes, and failures as well, are what help us grow. All of my best ideas have come from being able to brainstorm with fellow teachers. I am thankful for all of those who help me daily to take an idea and turn it into something wonderful. In the end everything amazing that our students create is their own creation. We only give them the tools and direction. 

By the way I am more than willing to share anything I have...:)

I guess you had to be there...

It's that time of year when you begin counting down the days left until summer. Along with counting the days comes the anxiety of somehow squeezing in every last bit of information that you so enthusiastically planned out at the beginning of the year. It is always a bittersweet time for me as a teacher. I find myself excited about the break and being able to spend time with my daughter, but I also become critical of all of the expectations I don't feel I have met during the year. It makes me take a look at how valuable every day is with my students. There never feels like enough time!

In saying that every year I've been teaching I feel there has been more pressure put on us to do more, create more, comply more, develop more, engage more...more....more. There is always an endless list of to-dos awaiting my return every morning. On my drive in every morning the media continues their spin that teachers just aren't fulfilling their responsibilities to the students and that the education system is broken. As always you question what is the real problem. A problem this big however is never just on one person's shoulders. One concern that I have though is the value of time. 

I see more and more students just not here. Not present for the material. How can we value the education if we don't value and honor the classroom time? On some level I know that our technological advancements have allowed for students to, if the teacher creates the opportunity,  have a relatively similar experience of the  classroom outside of the classroom via the flipped classroom. But how many students are taking that extra step? I know even with a week long calendar on the board and all of my resources for the week on edmodo, I still have students come in from missing a day asking "what did I miss" without feeling compelled to spend the extra time to get caught up before they return. 

Is it because our society has adopted the mentality of fast results with minimal effort? We think things should all come easily to us without having to put in the hours of work to get there? Education should just happen if your teacher is doing a good job? 

It's like expecting to get in shape by having a gym membership without putting in the hours of sweat and tears to produce the results. How can we expect to raise the standards we have for our students when we can't get them into the classroom five days a week? When there is always another field trip or retreat or training? I understand the value of a real world learning experience. But I don't see why we aren't using all of the technology that has literally been handed to us to make some of these trips happen in the classroom during class time.  

I'm not trying to just complain, if anything I am trying to work out a resolution in my own mind, I would really love to find a solution to the problem. Where does it start? Does it mean that maybe we have to reevaluate what constitutes a legitimate reason to have students miss class time? I think that is a start. Does the value of the school day have to first be recognized at home. I think so, I think we have to expect parents to see that week long Disney adventure in October as a bad idea. If we want to offer our students the best we have, we have to expect that they are here to receive it. On the other side we in the classroom have to give students a reason to expect more. If we find days that are a "waste" and "don't mean anything" then why should they want to be here? Whatever the solution it requires everyone to put forth additional effort, including myself. 

Experiencing Feedback?

Following up on my last post on the writing portfolio, we are well underway with one essay down! We have successfully worked through our rhetorical analysis essay and reflected on our writing. I was really surprised at how much my reading of the essays was affected when I wasn't having to attach a grade to the paper. I was more free to really read what they were saying and provide feedback on both what they were doing well and what things they could improve on for a final paper. The next question is will they be more receptive to the feedback since they are not being penalized for the work? I'll have to come up with a way to gauge that!

Part of writing the paper for the portfolio was to complete a reflection on the essay writing process. The questions were:

Reflection Question

“Without reflection, we go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequences, and failing to achieve anything useful. “ - Margaret J. Wheatley 

Write a reflection on the process of writing your Rhetorical Analysis Essay. Make sure you cover the following questions. You can elaborate on ideas that are not covered in the paper.

·         Do you feel you achieved the paper’s purpose? Provide some evidence to discuss how you did so.

·         What is a successful part of this process and paper for you? Explain why it was successful.

·         In editing this paper, what would you do differently?

·         What did you find you struggled with on writing this essay? Is there feedback you can give that you feel would help you to be more successful next time?

·         What preparation for this essay did you find helpful? What preparation did you find was not as helpful? 

As I read over their reflections, I saw that many of them were really examining the work they had done. They were taking time to think about thinking! It can be hard enough to get them to think, much less think and write, even harder to think and write and think about writing. Whew! In the feedback I asked what prep work was useful and what wasn't. I began to realize for every person who said one thing didn't help, someone else said it was the most helpful part of the process,  but that is what differentiating instruction is. While a chart helped organize some students' thoughts, reading the student sample papers helped create a clear idea of the assignment for others. Peer review in groups gave the feedback some students needed to continue writing their paper, while others felt the group time was the least valuable part of the process .Providing opportunities for each student to find something that works for them seemed to make the class in general feel confident about the assignment. I gained a lot of valuable feedback as to how I will approach this essay next year as well. 

Creating Opportunities for Feedback

What does feedback look like? It could be as simple as an exit ticket, survey, written response or discussion. Here are some things that I have tried so far this year:

Writing Survey  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1JNkSmoKkpJ9a1VVOyh0jYAqHXHz6qJpEqPT78uXQY4w/edit?usp=sharing
- Students took the survey on their own writing abilities before we began the portfolio. I could then use the data to guide what I would spend time on in class. Here is a small part of the analysis. I love ending up with visuals to show the class. 

PollEverywhere.com  This survey helped to gain information at the beginning of class to see what we need to go back over during our discussion on day two.  

After I asked for general feedback of understanding, I asked students to respond with specific ideas that we needed to cover.  This was a great opportunity to have students respond to one another. 

Book Club Survey

Although this one isn't tied to the curriculum, students had been asking throughout the year what I was reading and what other students were reading. Responding to the feedback from students we are in the beginning stages of starting our first book club!  I sent out a survey and the students chose when to meet, what to call the club, and what our first book to read would be. 

http://new.evite.com/?utm_source=gmail&utm_medium=email&utm_content=text&utm_campaign=host_conf#view_invite:eid=0322AAQZXGL24EVDCEPCPQXTDC4IWI

What do we do with feedback?

Last year at the end of the year I remember the anxiety in the workrooms as teachers sent out a student survey to their classes to gain insight on their teaching. There was a mixture of emotions from various teachers from hurt feelings to anger to appreciation. I found myself focusing on the one or two negatives rather than all of the positives. It is really hard to not take something personal that is personal. There will always be a students to takes this anonymous survey as a golden opportunity to express a feeling about you that has nothing to do with you as a teacher. So how do we handle feedback in an appropriate way? We can never know what we are doing well until we hear from those who are a part of the process everyday. I don't have the answers, but I will share some things I took away from the experience. 

In asking for feedback you have to be ready to hear things that may not make you feel good. That idea of a perfect world where all of our students love us,our class, the work and can already see into the future where they will reap the benefits of their quest for knowledge...is unlikely. You can't ask your husband " seriously, does this dress make me look fat?" unless you can handle the honest truth (which I can not so I don't ask!). We have to take the egotism out of the equation...and it is SO HARD! Here are some things I have to remind myself:

- Focus on the OVERALL feedback. You will always have extremes either way. If all but one person felt an assignment to be worthwhile and meaningful - let that resonate with you.

- Keep the goal in mind. If the goal is to gain insight into what is working and what isn't, keep that in mind when reading the feedback. Don't get caught up on things that are not relevant to your purpose. 

- Really think about how you word the questions. If you want to focus on an activity, make sure you word the questions specifically. Ask for follow up questions that ask for why? or how? or a specific example. This makes the students have to think about what they are saying and support what they are saying with an example. Sometimes we word questions so that students are confused as to how to answer. You may, without realizing it, generate negative responses. 

- Do something with the feedback! If students respond to a survey give them some way of knowing you have read the information and you are taking what they say into consideration as you move forward. 
- Do not punish someone for their responses. If someone says that "you never really explain anything" don't respond the next day by giving them a mountain of notes and homework. It defeats the purpose and you won't get anything out of them in the future. 
-Have a discussion about why you are giving them the survey and what you are doing the information. If they have a better understanding of the "why" then they can better give you what you are looking for. 
- Always and Never statements. I try and speak with my students about making these kind of statements and how they are generally not true. I learned early on in creating a positive environment at home that "thems fightn' words!" They put people on the defensive. 

When we as people feel our voice matters and we have the ability to impact our environment we feel important and connected. That's how we stay engaged. When we are important to the community we begin to interact in the community. 

What mark will I leave on my students' writing?

(all quotes from Jeff Anderson)


I went to the ACTE conference this past Saturday and found myself reeling with ideas about teaching writing. This is always such a struggle- how do you teach someone to write? I have my own about what I can and can not do-  I can teach structure and form, I can give resources to expand vocabulary, I can even help students to properly insert quotations with commentary. However, I can't teach voice. They have to find their voice. How do they find it? Through practice and exposure. The best thing they can do is READ! See writing modeled. See writers taking risks.

"Imitation leads to Innovation."

"By exposing students we make them aware of things without realizing it."  

The question remains how do I help to encourage students as writers? During the keynote speech by Jeff Anderson, the "Write Guy", I began tweeting things he said that really stuck out to me. I am included the quotes in this blog post. Two of those I shared with my students today concerning their writing experience.

  "Create more opportunities for students to have a positive encounter with   writing."  

I started my class with that question today "give me an example of a positive writing experience." The students were excited to share about writing that they have had published, poetry contests they have won, recognition they gained from having their writing used as a "good" sample in class. What I noticed is that majority of these experiences occurred to students during elementary and middle school. I shared my own history of having writing be for me, the one area that I always received positive feedback. Poetry contests (I still remember every word of the poem), reading my essay in front of my AP class in high school (which was really shocking to my classmates since I wasn't the front row, valedictorian seeking student) and college fiction writing classes that made me feel empowered. These things remain vivid memories to myself and my students.

When I asked students to share a negative experience with writing they cited primarily high school experiences. Now, I do understand that there are some justifiable reasons for this. Not until high school are they asked to create writing that critically analyzes a work. The stakes are higher and they are no longer writing for creative purposes. But how do you juggle both?

In addition to the conversation I am having asked students to fill out a personal writing survey http://tinyurl.com/ayzevv2.  Hopefully it will start our process of self evaluation and reflection and give us some data to direct what we need to focus on in class.

"We are a first draft society. Push students to reread what they have written."

I could take on a million different ideas here - but I have taken on an ambitious project of a portfolio for second semester. What is our focus? REFLECTION and EXPOSURE.

We will be taking more time to not only write the essays, but really focus on the reflection. I want to make a deliberate effort to conference with my students on what they are doing well. Also, by giving them this cover page I am holding myself accountable to give them very outlined directions for each essay, take time to look over sample essays and model writing together, and finally spend time looking back and analyzing the work. The hope is with four essays to look back over we can identify things we are doing well, and things to improve on. I hope this portfolio ends up being a good experience for all of us.

The thing I am really struggling with is what is my role? How do I effectively grade 400 essays over the next 4 months?

"Take out the guilt- grading everything students write makes you a bottleneck in the process"

My thought is that I read all the essays and give comments - mindful of giving a positive to each- and have them write a reflection for each essay. They will receive a grade for turning in the assignments on time.  At the end of the semester they will turn in the entire portfolio, but submit one essay for a final grade. I'm not sure yet if that will be doing them a disservice for gaining feedback in the form of a grade, or if it might alleviate some of the pressure and allow us to write and reflect without consequence?

"Give them the freedom to take risks."

What I find with teaching is that I need to also give myself the freedom to take risks. I rarely, even after 7 years of teaching the same thing, give the same assignment in the same way. And I feel a bit of comfort in the fact that I can say I practice what I preach and I am a reflective teacher. I am going to see how this works. If I feel like I am ending up with a product that shows their development as writers I have achieved my purpose. So cheers to taking risks!