paranoid

So last night at our Student Teaching seminar, we had a speaker that was an attorney for the state education association (ISEA). AKA they represent you if the district wants to fire you for silly reasons, etc.

He told a story of a 2nd year teacher who had always gotten glowing reviews in her first 2 years. She was still on her temporary license, and at the end of the 2nd year if you get a good recommendation from your administration and have successfully completed all of your artifacts you get your permanent license. She had done all of these things and was a great teacher.

In early May of her 2nd year she contacted the ISEA attorney because the district wanted to fire her (and not give her a good recommendation, which means no permanent license). Why, you ask when she is a good teacher? Because she had a blog.

So the attorney went and started reading her blog from the beginning and saw nothing. So he went to more recent entries and saw nothing. It was just funny to him. Downright hilarious. Turns out that even though the teacher had never mentioned the school district by name, nor any students by name, they found it to be unprofessional because she told stories about a nitwit freshman who asked if lava was hot and referred to another student as "the spawn of satan." And while every other teacher laughed and said "OH YEAH, I HAD HIM!" it made her a poor role model (even though no one knew names, etc.) And according to the Supreme Court, teachers are role models and have to always be aware of their actions even outside of school time.

It was ludicrous. BUT, it was either fight it or resign and try to get a job somewhere else so she wouldn't lose her license entirely. This was a great teacher. And they wanted to kick her out of the classroom for something so silly! No one would know who or what district she was talking about!

So now I'm at a crossroads. While this seems to be a 1 in a million case, I don't want to ruin my career before it starts. Granted, I haven't told anybody about my blog except family and friends. But still. I HATE BUREAUCRACY!!

So while I ponder what I should do here...I'll let you know that it's been a crazy week.

I found out that a student of mine has had an extremely rough,rough past two years. Drugs, alcohol, suicide attempts. A mess. But I like this girl a lot. She is so smart, has a ton of potential, and I just generally like her. She participates in class, works hard. Hopefully she finds the right path.

AND, I broke up my first fist fight today. Fists flying, hair pulling, clothes being ripped off. Happened right outside my room during the passing period. It was INTENSE! I'm having such an interesting experience. It's unbelievable.

So anyways, on that note...I need to decide how paranoid I should be about my blog. Hmm. Input definitely appreciated.

to the point

Yesterday:

A fist fight (between a girl and a boy) broke out bright and early in the morning while we were on supervision duty.

I got into a verbal altercation with a student who refused to listen to me and continued to speak disrespectfully to me while on supervision duty.

A student ran away from my CT in circles as she tried to get him to quit doing something and talk to her. He claimed he didn't have a name when asked. All while on supervision duty.

Then, in 5th hour I tried some conflict resolution strategies between 2 students. It ended with me calling the school security guard to escort her to the office.

Today:

Well today was just an interesting lunch time in general. Our principal kind of walked all through the halls yelling at students. Mine were actually well behaved today (yay!).

I continued to diffuse a brewing fight between two students. New seating chart tomorrow hopefully will help.

--------------------------------------------

8th hour is obsessed with guessing my first name. They will never win. I'll end up telling them if they don't guess after the hints I gave them today.

The funny part? We had Open House on Tuesday night and my CT put my first and last name on the handout that the parents took before 8th hour started into the guessing game.

They came back today and nobody knew---even those whose parents came. 8th graders are observant. It is a fun game, though!

I'm tired and have work to do, though. Time for a night cap.

addendum to the previous

So I'm reading some of the TIME articles my CT gave me. Despite there being some parts that make me want to gag, I found a few things that are worth mentioning. They sum up the part of teaching that those individuals who make comments like "those who can't do, teach" and "how hard can it be to teach?" and "why should you get paid more, you get summers off?" truly do not understand. Do not speak of what you do not know.

"First year teachers tend to be unprepared for the astonishingly disparate demands of the job--speaking loudly without shouting, deciding what to do when someone throws a spitball, looking up the rules for bathroom breaks, determining whether the class on Abraham Lincoln should come before or after the one of Frederick Douglass."

--------This might sound silly to you, but it is imperative to know all of these things. If you find yourself in a situation that you don't have an answer to, 7th graders will EAT. YOU. ALIVE. Guaranteed.

Here's a good one (yet another reason why people should study some freaking history)

"Since the early 1970s, high schoolers' math and reading scores have barely budged.....teenagers are now less likely to graduate from high school than their parents were."

Take a look at what started happening in education in the 1970s. More (extreme) 'progressive' education. Don't make my students actually learn. They need to be coddled, you need to be building up their self esteem.

It was the beginning of grade inflation. It was the beginning of the lowering of the ceiling and the raising of the floor. Let's make all of our kids mediocre so that their self esteem is not hurt by their higher achieving classmates. Please. It's called competition.

And, no offense to Mom and Dad, but think about whose kids were starting Kindergarten around that time? The baby boomers. The hippies. Free love!! Don't tell my kid that he is failing! Shame on you, teacher. Life isn't about what grade you get in school. It's about how you feel.

You're right, dear hippie, life isn't about the grades you get in school. But your work ethic, your behavior, and your desire to succeed generally shows how well you will do for yourself in life. And, well, our country is currently not in the greatest shape. So thanks for all that you've done. Free love, it is. Free love for everyone!

Now, I'll sit back and listen to the rest of the country complain about the state of public education in the United States all while they vote down any type of bond issue that would increase the amount of funding for their public school.

So, go to your fancy 9-5 job 5 days a week and tell me that I don't deserve to be paid more because I get summers off. I am at school every morning by 7 AM, I don't leave until at least 3:30, only to come home to grade papers, essays, or projects, enter them into the grade book, write lesson plans (ensuring that I have made accommodations for students with special needs---yes this sometimes means an entirely different assignment), make sure that I am contacting parents of students about behavior problems or homework that has not been turned in, keeping track of which students miss class on which days and getting extra copies of notes for them, worksheets ready with their names on it, and generally taking care of their every need because if I don't and they fail? IT'S MY FAULT.

Not to mention while I'm at school I have students mumbling things like "What the hell?" under their breath, students yelling "This is bullcrap!" because I took their phone away, which is blatantly explained in the student handbook, and students almost getting into fights every day in 5th hour.

My day at school never ends, even when I'm at home. So go have some calamari and drink some sparkling water. Then come to my classroom and takeover tomorrow. And vote for a bond issue for once.

SOAPBOX OFF!

r-e-s-p-e-c-t

So I'm not sure if I intentionally or unintentionally failed to blog about my week last week, but it was eventful. Short version: 2 of my students (7th grade) are suspended out of school for 2 days (nothing that happened in my class), I took away my first cell phone from a student on Thursday and sent my first student to the office (they were one in the same), and on Friday I got so frustrated with my 5th hour class I found myself getting out the dictionary and defining the word 'respect.'

Yep, I'm THAT teacher. You'll thank me for it later, employers of the world.

BUT, it's a new week. We are all new people, starting over, clean slate. Today was overall a pretty good day. Aside from the staff meeting at the end of the day that lasted longer than it should have. That's what you get when your district implements a new grading system, tells the parents about it, and then 4 weeks into school the school district sends out a letter to teachers saying "We want you to be on board with the new policy and do your best to implement it, but if you want to work based on percentages this year that is fine."

Crazy letter=even more confused teachers. Crazy letter=very upset administrator at our school (who has been extremely gung-ho "implement the Standards Based Grading, 0-5, trend grading scale!!!!!!"). Crazy letter=ridiculous parents tomorrow night at Curriculum night who will have NO IDEA WHAT TO THINK!

Oh my, I just can't wait to answer (or try to) all of their incessant questions.

And who can blame them for having non stop questions? They are hearing 3 different things from the district. I (and the rest of the staff) are being told 3 different things by the district.

Teaching's fun!!!!!

You can choose to read that sarcastically, and it was said in that way. But as much as I have those moments-- I do love it. Even though TIME Magazine just published an entire issue about why public schools in America are failing because they have bad teachers (Hey! That's me!! woo hoo! Thanks, TIME). Even though my students say "What the hell?" to me under their breath when they think I can't hear it. Even though I plan what I think to be an awesome lesson and it only works in 2 out of 3 classes because I have one class full of shitheads. Even though I know that good parenting, while it might not solve all of the my problems, is the real answer to students arriving in 7th grade with more RESPECT for authority---despite all of that---

It is always my fault. If my students fail? My fault. If I can't effectively differentiate because I have a class full of shitheads who ruin it for everyone? My fault.

But hey, I love it. What does the Statue of Liberty say? "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Sure, most of these kids don't understand the fact that a solid educations is their chance to "breathe free," and they are just in school because they don't have a choice. But I know that an education is their chance to "breathe free" and change what is currently their sad destiny. Teachers may not succeed in doing that for everyone, but it is the few that you do succeed with that count, right?

So, please...bring me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses...and the wretched refuse. I'd love to. And I'd love to grade their work based on trends. And I'd love to force them to read the Declaration of Independence out of a textbook which some former student has so cleverly written "He's Sexy" next to a picture of good 'ol Tommy Jefferson.

Yes, dear 8th grader. T. Jeff knew how to pick up the women---he was particularly fond of slaves. But we'll leave that for another day....on to Independence.

Today in Team Plan, our Team Leader (the science teacher) said that when in doubt we could blame him---he is white, Republican, and Catholic--- said he was used to it.

Always nice to start your day off with a good laugh.

Wednesday my CT and I have to cover a 3rd hour Chinese language class for the teacher. Any fresh ideas of interesting phrases to teach the students so they can surprise their teacher on Thursday are appreciated. (This is aimed at a very small audience, obviously).

Happy Monday!

Thank the good Lord it is Saturday morning. It has been a long, stressful week. Both school wise and otherwise. Hopefully things start to look up (I know, I said that the last blog post). I have a feeling they will but it will just take time, and patience and I are not getting along too well.

As we speak, I am glued to the History Channel reliving 9/11. The memories, the stories, the pain, the heartache, and the overwhelming sense that I have lived through one of the most defining moments our country has ever seen. I know it seems morbid that every year I continue to relive that awful day, but I do it because I don't ever want to forget what happened; the emotions I felt watching it happen, and the palpable feeling of an entire nation experiencing the same thing at the same time. Shock, fear, uncertainty, sadness, anger. I will never forget seeing the constant stream of photos posted by family members, desperately seeking out lost loved ones that were still missing. Clinging to one last bit of hope.

My 8th grade students were 4 years old when it happened. They have no idea. They may have been told what happened, but they don't understand it. They can't possibly. I am so glad my CT and I share the view that they should be exposed to some of those images. The video of the plane hitting that second tower. The people running desperately for their lives. We both shared our stories (fittingly, I was an 8th grader when it happened). As a history teacher, it was a strange experience to teach a history to students that have no recollection of something that I do. It is history to them. It is reality for me. It is strange to think that in just a few years I will be teaching students who weren't even alive when it happened.

9/11 changed my entire world, and my family's world. At the time my oldest brother was in the Marine corps. I knew the minute it happened that his life would change. In the years that followed, the enlistments in my family increased. This came as no surprise, as even before 9/11 we had expected it to happen. But enlisting meant something entirely different after 9/11. At least 7 deployments later, tears shed worrying after news of 14 Marines in my brother's battalion being killed, waiting for a Marine in dress blues to show up, humvees and strykers being blown up on a semi-regular basis...well, you could say life hasn't turned out the way we expected it to on 9/10/01.

Please, please, please remember. Relive the images. Relive the heartache. Tell your kids about it (if they're old enough). It is odd to think that one day I will be my grandmother's age and people will be asking me about where I was on 9/11, just as people ask her where she was on 12/7. Have a story to tell. Personal accounts are what make history. Textbooks can never tell the story the way that you can. I even encourage you to write it down. Save it for future generations that you will not be around to tell. It sounds so dramatic for me to say that, but I spent this summer reading diaries from 19th Century America and it was extremely powerful to read the accounts of an individual.

What do you remember? Where were you? What were you doing? What did you feel? How did it change you?

I am tired!! Weirdly tired. I didn't stay up any later than usual, didn't get up any earlier, and I just had a 3 day weekend. You would think that I would feel refreshed. Not so.

It doesn't help that I have a lot of stresses right now outside of student teaching and all that comes with it. Hopefully things all work themselves out and I can feel a bit more at ease about life. If that doesn't happen, then..well, I won't think about it.

The last two days have been fairly uneventful. It is Week 4, but it feels like we have been at it for a long time. My CT took her youngest to her first day of pre-school yesterday, so I had a sub. Not that it mattered, I still taught everything per usual.

The 7th graders did fairly well on the portion of the test where they labeled latitude and longitude coordinates. But give them a multiple choice test about a map of SW Asia and they are done for. I thought that would be the easiest. Ah well. We will get there.

I think the thing that is most tiring about teaching is that if it's not one thing it's another. For example, the students were pretty good overall today but then we had to figure out progress reports (which are due tomorrow). That might sound easy--don't you just look at the average of their grades? Not anymore! It's "are they meeting expectation or not meeting expectations?" Not to mention we are still unsure of grades in general....ugh. So that was interesting.

I had a small chat with one of my students today. She has a ton of potential but she is just throwing it all down the drain with her choice of actions, words, etc. It is so upsetting to see! Let's hope I can put her down the right path. Middle school really is where it is decided. Granted, everyone can change their life path whenever they want to but this is a make or break year.

On that note, I'm tired, need to try and get some 8th grade tests graded and then get to bed. Don't let the bed bugs bite, right? (For real, though, there's outbreaks across the country...including in some apt complexes here in the big O. Sick) Try to go to bed tonight and not be paranoid....

lovely weekend

I never thought this would be the case, but three day weekends are so much more enjoyable when you're the teacher and not the student!

Let's just say that Friday was...an adventure. We did a Map Lab in 7th grade which consisted of group work in stations. It went great with the first class, went well with the second class, and just fell apart in 5th hour. They really might drive me off the deep end. One girl had just returned from 2 days of out of school suspension. (Count it now--three 7th graders in ISS, one of whom then got suspended out of school) She nearly got into a fight on Friday in my class. As I was turned around dealing with her and the other kid, I hear a crash behind me and there is a kid on the ground. WHAT THE HECK!

My patience was gone. It didn't get any better after lunch, I'll just leave it at that. It actually came close to getting worse. It was Friday, and I just wanted the day to be over with.

The drive back to the great state of Iowa with its rolling fields full of late season corn was nice and relaxing. I played my music as loud as I wanted and no one could hear me screaming. It was glorious. For the third time I fought my urge to stop at the Danish Immigrant Museum on the way. It will happen one of these times.

I thoroughly enjoyed my weekend at the Farms. It was extremely busy, but it was much needed. It has been a slow season with the weather being either extremely wet or extremely hot. Plus, we had some awesome visitors who had great questions. It isn't always the case. Needless to say, I enjoyed the change in scenery.

Despite last week being a bit rough in the classroom, I feel like I can go back tomorrow energized and ready for a new week. The poor sevies are taking a test tomorrow over the information we have been reviewing the past 3 weeks. They get to use their notes, but I'm still severely concerned.

I'd like to take this time to request a moment of silence for the government issued day off known as Labor Day. It would only be better if I could be outside grilling, having a cold one, and generally enjoying the weather. Instead, here I sit, surrounded by papers to grade, lessons to plan, and learning goals to write.

so maybe not EVERY day

Yes, it's Thursday. No, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. I've had a stuffy nose and a sinus headache since Tuesday. It is better, so I am thankful for that. It's been a rough week, though.

Tuesday 5th hour pissed me off SO. BAD. I was going to go over a few more things that would help them on their assignment but they just would not. shut. up. Their word vomit (aka saying everything that comes to mind...really loudly....while I am trying to talk) was out of control. So I essentially threw the assignment at them, explained it, and told them that I didn't want another word out of them. If you have a comment keep it to yourself, I don't care. If you have a question, raise your freaking hand! ARGH!

The sinus headache did not help, I'm sure. The next day was measurably better, but not perfect. Same goes for the cold.

Today was a trillion times better! Still not perfect, but they are middle schoolers with raging hormones. I can't ask too much. However, 2 students were gone from 5th hour (mind you, one of them is serving a 2 day out of school suspension) and it made all the difference. This class frustrates me more than any other because having just one or two students gone changes the whole dynamic of the class. Of the 3 7th grade classes they by far have the best discussion. These kids are smart but when all of them are together they can. not. focus!! Cue my frustration.

My summer internship at the Farms is shining through in these opening weeks. I can think of no better examples for the impact of human-environment interaction and movement than the history of the pioneers pushing further and further west and the impact that has had on the environment. It is so natural at this point for me to talk about it. At least I am getting a little out of it, since I won't still be teaching when the 8th graders get to that era in history.

Speaking of 8th graders, I came to a realization today. After 8th hour we have homeroom and one of the girls in 8th hour is also in our homeroom. After the students left she said "I bet you're glad to have that over with." What does she mean, you ask?

8th hour had been a bit of hooligans today. We were talking about life in Colonial America, which for me is exciting... I get to talk about clothes, and fun customs, food, herbs...things that I learned a lot about this year (for a slightly different time period, yes, but a lot of it can apply). They can be a chatty class and they were exceptionally so today, but not unmanageable. We had talked about the fact that gentlemen especially were expected to stand up when a woman entered the room or stood up from the table, etc. They thought it was stupid, and I attempted to teach them otherwise. Needless to say when my CT left the room they plotted to all stand up when she came back in. Distracting? Yes. Funny? Yes. It was a nice break in the monotony of saying the same thing 3 times a day.

Anyways, they got progressively rowdier and I powered through simply "shushing" them here and there. That is why this student asked me if I was glad it was over. My response?

Actually, I could handle a class like that any day as compared to 7th graders. For some reason a rowdy bunch of 8th graders is so much better. I don't know why, they should be equally as annoying. Simple fact of the matter is, they're not.

So the verdict for this week? I like 8th graders. I don't hate 7th graders, but they are just a completely different beast. Still stuck in elementary school, they are. Sorry, I'm not here to baby you anymore.

I am headed back to DSM tomorrow afternoon to finish up at the internship. I'm pretty excited to be back at the Farms for a weekend. It will be a nice change of pace! Plus, I have Monday off altogether. Woo hoo for made up holidays!!!