A Teacher's Insight

We never fully know the future of those we teach. We must model a strong work ethic, expect their best work, and prepare them to confront life.

For Those Who Are Retiring...

To our friends who are retiring from education...

As your career in education comes to a close, we who remain salute you.

We understand your masterpieces, the students whom you have taught, may not be found on display as those of van Gogh, Picasso, or Monet, nor may society value them the same...van Gogh's Portrait of Dr. Gachet is currently valued somewhere north of $130 million.

But know this...your masterpieces are out in the world creating their own masterpieces. Your impact on their lives lingers. Your legacy is living, active, and dynamic. Savor these thoughts, enjoy the journey ahead, and thank you for the time invested in the lives of your students. Strong work!

Entitlement 101

Entitlement 101: In the United States, you are entitled to a free public education. We expect you to make the most of this opportunity by doing your best work in school and use your education to be a productive citizen. 

Right, Wrong, and Tolerance

Everyone is a person of value. 

As we go through life we develop a sense of right and wrong as well as some level of tolerance. In society we attempt to influence this process through the family, organizations (e.g. churches), and laws. In schools we facilitate this process through the use of rules and regulations.

Unfortunately, the human condition takes over and the lines of right and wrong become blurred. An attitude of "something is wrong only if I get caught" developes. Tolerance extends to limit the liability and responsibility of the individual. Hence, the logical next step becomes "you caught me, I apologize, and here is who hurt me". Liabilty and responsibility are deflected and placed elsewhere.

Everyone is a person of value and responsible for their own actions. Everyone should be extended respect. This does not imply, though, all of their actions are acceptable, nor does it imply the extension of tolerance is infinite.

Cultivating And Following Your Passion

Cultivating and following your passion* is easier said than done. In education, we have an incredible opportunity to nurture and support this pursuit. We also have the responsibility to create a culture within schools which models the sustained work ethic required to do so. Once the passion is present, though, intrinsic motivation should trump any societal norm or mandated requirement. Check out these examples below of passion and work ethic combined...

GRINLING GIBBONS: The Michelangelo of Craving

 ATTRACTION: Shadow Theatre Group

 SUSAN BOYLE: I Dreamed A Dream

JERRY FISH AND THE MUDBUG CLUB

ALERT: Strong Language

*"Passion comes after you put in the hard work to become excellent at something valuable, not before. In other words, 

what you do for a living is much less important than how you 

do it." (Cal Newport, 2012) See So Good They Can't Ignore You.

(Online) Instructional Design 1

Start with David Merrill On Instructional Design. Listen carefully as he discusses the principles of instructional design: "demonstration", "application" and "relevance".

Let's begin with organizing the learning guides for each unit or module of the course.

The Learning Guide

The learning guide is a “one page” interactive document stating the learning goals and activities used to guide the learner through a unit or module. A learning guide should also include assessment information as well as provide an opportunity for the learner to self-assess.

  

In the learning guide provided you will see examples of reusable learning objects (RLO), to include teacher-created, online-accessed, and textbook-generated. An RLO is any resource you (re)use with your students to support their learning. The fundamental idea is to organize the learning guide for efficient "one-stop shopping" by your students and their parents.

Many of the RLO's you will need to get started are already made. Technology provides the opportunity to make those and other RLO’s more dynamic and interactive. This is where additional work and a large amount of time will be invested.

What ever happened to local Science Fairs?

Science inquiry is important to the development and maintenance of a sustainable society. When critical thinking and critical analysis are placed behind entertainment, the future of the society grows dim.

The skills involved in a long-term investigation project are foundational to building a strong society. Question generation, data collection, data analysis, and presentation of results are skills which translate to the development of people who are thinkers and problem solvers. 

In schools, our students should complete and present age appropriate, long-term investigation projects from 3rd grade onwards. Data collection should be rigorous. Data analysis thorough. The presentation concise and clear. As students get older (or competent in a foreign language) part of their presentation should be in their second language. The project should be interdisciplinary and include assessment from science, math, English and foreign language teachers.

The richness of this experience will equip people with skills who we could expect to become significant contributors to their society.

Reflection: Consider a generational collection of high school graduates each having nine years of authentic investigation experience. What is their potential impact on their society? Could we conjecture a bright future for their society? Why?