tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90215454033027254672024-03-08T11:09:54.651-08:00Miss Rim's tales from the short busMiss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-86761237688043873412013-09-05T18:02:00.001-07:002013-09-05T18:02:16.338-07:00Loving the bombMy dear friend and colleague, Mr. Pop, sighed and said "I think we should stop worrying and love the bomb."<br />
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Of course, I immediately pictured my self riding a nuclear missile, cowboy hat in hand, "woo-hooing" about the fact that I was going to blown to bits soon.<br />
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This is obviously hyperbole, but I find I really do have to consciously fight the feeling that we're not all going to be "blown to bits." Now, Mr. Pop went on to say that it would benefit us all to become versed in Danielson's domains and be able to say, for example - "Little Timmy is leaving the classroom to use the bathroom every 30 minutes because he's an 8 year old who needs to be toilet trained. Domain 1, B and C - knowing the student and setting outcomes!"<br />
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Will that work? I don't know. You can shoot the lock off the soda machine to get change and call President Muffley and try to prevent nuclear war, but you'd have to answer to the Coca-Cola Company.<br />
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Well, that's stretching the metaphor a bit.<br />
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But it is kind of sad that many of us feel like we have to be able to call out "2-D, 3-A" etc in order to prove what we do fits into this very subjective evaluation rubric. We feel like we have to love the bomb in order to survive. (This just popped into my head - the US and Finland have a "mineshaft gap!" I'm going to have to attempt Dr Strangelove as an allegory or metaphor for public education today in some parallel universe wherein i'm getting a PhD in political economy.)<br />
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Anywho...where was I? Oh yes, the bomb, Dimitri. Calling out Danielson domains in the middle of everything in order to prove I know what I'm doing. Kid needs a drink of water, water fountain is down the hall - 1D demonstration of knowledge of resources!Reflecting on teaching - 4A - reflection on teaching...no don't do that.<br />
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There are some aspects of this framework I actually am interested in, engaging the kids in learning more, better classroom management - but the thing is - EVERYONE is interested in that. And it's going to look very different in my D75 classroom than it will in a general education setting. I have some fanstastic colleagues and I will say the paranoia about the new evaluations is helping us to think and collaborate more.<br />
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But that's because my colleagues are fantastic, and have a sense of humor. i'm afraid all this 2D, 4A stuff is real and crazy. "loving the bomb" will make me, I fear, focus less on the kids and their needs and more about not being able to pay the bills. i have already felt the quality of my practice decline a bit - a comment on previous post wrote about how getting Danielson'ed often leads to positive aspects of a lesson gettting minimized or ignored, and minor aspects worthy of a positive suggestion or two are magnified as major errors. ( AS Lewis wrote that, i'm too lazy to link today). I operate how most students operate, lots of praise for the good, positive suggestions for the bad. And I tend to shut down when I'm feeling judged unfairly. (Ore my purity of essence is being drained..sorry, last one)<br />
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So some positives:<br />
The principal and chapter leader at my school explained at the 1st day PD that everyone, especially higher ups in D75 are very concerned about how the new teacher evals will work. One of them told the entire staff that it is indeed true that Ms Danielson herself said she doesn't think her rubric or framework is appropriate for special ed (Good job, Charlotte - Domain 4 , A Reflecting on practice!) <br />
they also explained that those purportedly "rare" cases where the student scores aren't great but the teacher does well with observations would obviously be more of the norm in D75, because of the very nature of the district - and that we'd probably not get fired this year, but we'd better start adapting because we need to "love the bomb."<br />
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Hi Mom! Woo-hooo!<br />
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<br />Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-20411103217888099452013-08-22T01:15:00.001-07:002013-08-22T01:15:58.583-07:00Hopes and Fears, Fears and Hopes...I taught summer school, which was finished about a week ago, and now I have about 2 and 1/2 weeks off.<br />
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I have not really been able to enjoy my vacation (and I have tried, thank you, box o' wine) - I;m feeling rather anxious and fearful about next year. Like it's a 2 and a 1/2 week long Sunday night anxiety kind of thing.<br />
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My greatest supporters, like my mom Mrs Rim and husband Mr Rim are starting to question my sanity. They wonder if i'm being anxious and melodramatic because they remember me being that way when I was 19...or my first year teaching , or after drinking a box o' wine.<br />
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I'm also starting to question my own sanity a bit - because a number of the teaching techniques I used have all of a sudden become "ineffective" or "developing" (well, we all develop, but ya know what I mean) when they were lauded about a year or so ago. See previous posts for specifics about that.<br />
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Im fearing that the Common Core, Danielson, and the new NYC evaluation system will cost me my job and livliehood.<br />
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There are a number of interesting components in each of these areas that i think I could probably learn about and adapt to my classroom with training and practice. And I am confident in saying this may take more time in my special ed school that serves the neediest students - students with developmental disabilities so "severe" that they are still learning to trace their name at 10 years old, to give an example.<br />
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And this is what I fear, and what I have already experienced a bit the last time I was observed using the Danielson rubric...<br />
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I fear that all of this has been implemented too soon, too fast and without the proper vetting<br />
I fear that I will be "forcefeeding" concepts to the students that are not ready for it in the name of progress and "transformative innovation gooddisruption"<br />
I fear that if I stand up to it, or even if I do what "they' want but "they" know I disagree with some of it then my work life will be made miserable oor I'll lose my job<br />
I fear that no matter how hard i try, i'll never hit enough points on the rubric - or i'll never be good enough<br />
I fear that this will happen to my colleagues too.<br />
I fear most of all that my colleagues and I get scared enough about our own livliehood that we end up teaching these cognitively disabled children things that look good on a bulletin board ...<br />
And that even if we do that it still wont be "good enough."<br />
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This is a real fear that i think even Mr and Mrs Rim don't get...but I'm sure most other teachers do.<br />
So in order to preserve my sanity, here are my hopes, very specifically for a special ed teacher next year:<br />
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- I hope the teachers have collaborative meetings about teacher stuff- recommending content for units, commenting in how to enrich the "special ed curriculum" we have (I'm being generous here, its ULS) but we should collaborate on things that mean things for the students - maybe we take 6 or 8 weeks to do a unit -<br />
And that the people who are able to make judgement calls about that do so<br />
- I hope that , recognizing how many systems we have in place for data tracking and seeing as the students we serve need lots of time, we can tone it down a lot and just do something tried and true every 6 months ...maybe 4 if you are really pressured<br />
-I hope that the administrators- who are between a rock and a hard place, decide to stand up and fight for their staff and what they know is the right thing for the students. I appreciate that their jobs are on the line too, but I think they will find a greater deal of support and less tension even if they give lip service to their staff. Also, they have a union too. I hope they use that.<br />
-I also hope that I can survive this for a bit while keeping my job, and when the pendulum swings and I can get on with it, that the next classes of kids learn.<br />
-And I also hope the next fad in education is listening to teachers. Like Finland<br />
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<br />Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-36387861193864395672013-07-31T14:07:00.002-07:002013-07-31T14:07:42.995-07:00I got Danielson'ed! It happened. <div>
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I got Danielson'ed. By that I mean an observation / evaluation went, in many ways, the way teachers fear they can.<br /><div>
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You may have read <a href="http://missrimbus.blogspot.com/">that one post </a> I wrote about a dud observation I had. I wrote about how there were a number of things I could have done better, and also a number of things that I felt the observer didn't notice that I thought went well, and my surprise about that. In the<a href="http://missrimbus.blogspot.com/2013/07/are-lesson-plans-sacrosanct.html"> post after that </a>, I wrote about writing my summer unit plans and being concerned about them being written the "right way." where my professional judgement calls digress from that, and how it was all going to turn out.</div>
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Some of those worries were justified. </div>
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The felt the unit / lesson plans I developed were good. To be specific, there is a summer theme, and I chose books relating to that theme and as a culminating project, students would create their own booklets based on them. In addition we used words from the book to reinforce sight word recognition, and decoding. And I also know its really important for my cognitively disabled students to continue to review concepts and drill - the alphabet, the sounds, etc in order to be able to access their learning in a variety of areas.</div>
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So I wrote all of that in the lesson plan. Well, actually it was a unit plan.</div>
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The observer did not read it.</div>
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She did glance through it - and did note that it was formatted and structured decently in the feedback. However in the feedback it was also noted that the sight word work we were working on that day was disconnected from the summer theme, which made me hurrumph a bit, because I feel like if she had read the lesson plan - which listed the sight words in the book that were the targets for the unit, along with the daily practice i feel is so important for the students - she would have understood better. </div>
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Also, she stayed for about 20 minutes, and entered about 10 minutes into the period. I also feel like if she had been able to see the beginning of the lesson, she would have seen the class read through the pages of the book and point out the sight words - and would have understood better.</div>
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So, I was rated "developing" in some areas that I felt were in fact effective, and may have reflected that if the observer was able to read through the lesson plan, stay for the whole period, and ya know...just ask me. </div>
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It felt sort of unfair. Not because I'm not "developing" in some areas (and my superteacher mommy Mrs Rim correctly pointed out that all teachers are always developing, if you wanna look at it that way). But if my intent and purpose and professional judgements are not discussed or misconstrued by an observer who has not read a plan, then how can I improve? </div>
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I know these things are a snapshot, and I think the observer does, too. But you can't really cram all zillion domains into 20 minutes or so. To be fair, I think these Danielson evaluations are a weird panacea to the nonexisitent "education is in crisis because teachers are bad" rhetoric that's bouncing around. Observers and administrators are in a pickle, too. That goes double for those of us that work with special ed students...(that's another post altogether). </div>
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What to do about it?... The culture of my school is such that I feel like having a conversation with someone about this would be to put myself too much on the radar, I'd be a complainer - and also, it's summer. I'm also not especially confident that one person would be listened to...</div>
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I'm getting ahead of myself here, but I think the anxiety of this kind of stuff is very much in the minds of teachers as this new evaluation thing goes forward. What usually worked and got great feedback in years past is suddenly wrong - and most of it I think is because the Danielson rubric is mystifyingly specific and vague.. and that goes double for applying it to the most challenging special ed populations. </div>
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I seriously worry that I'll get some sort of "developing" rating 2 years in a row and end up in fear for my job and bread and butter. I've been teaching for 6 years and have had a number of years of experience with people with developmental disabilities before that - I'm almost 40. This is a real source of anxiety for many, more experienced, and better teachers than I. </div>
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I'm all for working on the stuff that is "me," but I really don't like it when "you" make me feel wrong.</div>
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Especially if you don't ask me. </div>
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Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-79205147235828329532013-07-09T15:49:00.000-07:002013-07-09T15:49:42.420-07:00Are lesson plans sacrosanct?I'm teaching summer school this year, all of my students need a 12 month program. I spent some time today writing out some plans and really started to freak out. The heart beating fast, sweaty palms, "I'm going to get fired" freak out.<br />
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I have heard and read that under the new Danielson - heavy evaluation system for NYC teachers that the written lesson plans will be subject to just as much scrutiny as the teaching / lesson., etc and that makes me nervous.<br />
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I';m going to use an old essay cliche here, sorry. In the dictionary sacrosanct is defined as sacred, inviolable; regarded as above and beyond interference, criticism. Now nothing in heaven and earth is sacrosanct, Horatio - but most teachers worth their salt plan their work and work their plan and write it down.<br />
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I have written some horribly misspelled nonsensical looking, crappy lesson plans that made sense for me and the paraprofessionals I work with and had incredibly successful lessons.<br />
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I have written brilliant lesson plans on nice paper with bullet points and that made sense for me and the paras and they have been duds.<br />
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I have written crappy lesson plans that observers like and understand.<br />
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I have written great lesson plans that observers don't like and don't understand.<br />
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And every combination in between. That's the job, that's what we do. Use tried and true stuff - making adjustments along the way. Use new stuff - it's not always going to work the first time, but you try until you can see if it becomes "true."<br />
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What has never happened to me is that I had a badly written / planned plan but went well with the kids and been evaluated in a negative manner because of that. I'm worried about that now.<br />
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My best lesson plans are written for the students and adults in the room. Often the "why " or "how" of it all for an observer is explained in a conference. Sometimes it takes that.<br />
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Not to bore you, but my kids learn best in small groups and in "center" type activities. They need practice and repetition and routine. What works best is doing center type activities that last 10 minutes or so each and one of the centers is ALWAYS the "daily practice" - number / letter recognition etc. Then I do another center where they practice that in context of the theme or unit, because accessing learning and transferring and such. And a 3rd with writing or problem solving.... (I got it, I really do.)<br />
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But I freaked out today, because I feel like if it;s not written perfectly, one tiny thing doesn't connect, there is no "Stand and Deliver" moment with swelling tear jerking movements over the credits... or if someone doesn't get what I'm trying to do...then I will have done something "wrong."<br />
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It used to be that lesson plans were for the students and adults in the room, and perhaps the principal or AP in order to support the teacher best. Almost sacrosanct. If the lesson worked, then who cares if it's written in a certain way? If it didn't, maybe writing it out better will help next time. Again, that's the job, that's what we do. Not beyond reproach or criticism, but certainly not WRONG.<br />
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Now it seems lesson plans are for some other entity entirely. Dogma and sacrosanctity (sp?) for the sake of proving something to someone somewhere. I'm about to be an educational atheist - this guilt about perceived wrongdoing is worse than my residual Catholic guilt.<br />
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In the comments, I'd love to hear how you all feel about the sacrosanctity of lesson plans.<br />
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<br />Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-10320855594927607372013-06-17T15:56:00.001-07:002013-06-17T15:56:15.508-07:00Wherein the author completely choked during her observation....Oh, hi!<br />
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So it's been a tough year for me. Lots of difficulties in the first months of school with challenging student behaviors, and after I did a lot of hard work to sort that out, I found that the relentless drive for data and all that implies to be kind of soul crushing. So soul crushing, in fact, that my formal observation in May did not go very well. At all.<br />
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You might be asking yourself now why my formal observation was in May. I dunno either. My guess is that the administration at my D75 school had a difficult time getting to it because of the aforementioned soul crushing relentless data. They have a lot of work to to do, too.<br />
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So, the administrators at the school I work at usually don't announce or make appointments to do formal observations - which they are "allowed" to do, I'm told. And they really do want to see an average lesson, and that's all fine and good. Now, because I work with kids who have severe cognitive disabilities, we need to do a lot of practice and repeating of tasks, and have a pretty structured routine. I handle that by making 4 or 5 general lesson plans for the month and vary the task but not necessarily the skill in order to help the students transfer and access their learning in different "modalities." And I leave some stuff open, and have a couple of quick - go to things just in case.<br />
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Usually that works, and when it was announced that the teachers would be observed sometime the first week of February, I enhanced the plans more. And I utilized the Unique Learning Systems "curriculum" because, well... I have to. But still used the month format because it worked for me, the paras, the kids and lesson plans are sort of sacrosanct.<br />
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So I was not observed that week, nor was I for the next 9 or 10 weeks. I kept my regular plans, yet did not enhance them. So, we'll forward to a rainy Thursday in mid May wherein the author oversleeps because it's so dark, has to clean up a cat hairball and can't find the keys, then misses the bus by a second and since its raining the next bus is late and when I get to school 3 minutes late the kids are cranky and off - well, we've all had those days, haven't we?<br />
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So imagine my dismay when I hear that the principal is there to do observations and I got about 10 minutes notice. Already anxious and flustered, I go to do the normal activity ...and it's a dud. And I realize this within the first few minutes and just choked...my mind was a blank and I didn't / wasn't able to regroup. Is it here that I should mention that I subsequently learned my chills and malaise and horrifying cough was attributed to a raging case of bronchitis a few days later?<br />
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It did not go well. And I own what I own about that: my lesson was wanting in a number of ways, and I literally (bronchial cough) and figuratively choked. It did not help that the observer was touching her iPad the entire time and i was PISSED that she was Danilesoning me. NOT allowed this year.<br />
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So I get the feedback and it's all Danielson rubric-y. Now, i own what I own about that dud lesson. But I found some of the other things, frankly shocking. That I don't have a clear behavior plan for the class - I've got color coded rules and a big deal sticker chart and made a big thing about asking kids about their reinforcers at the end of class - but seriously, the observer was furiously punching her iPad at the time. That hit home, especially. This observer has always assigned student teachers to me because, she says, my classroom management skills are good and are what first year teachers really need to know. . So for her to rate that component "developing" was hard for me - and even more perplexing was that of the few "effective" sub-domains was "students are well behaved and take pride in their work." As disjointed as my lesson was that day, so was the evaluation of it.<br />
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I feel like I have always done a good job working with students with developmental disabilities, and I've enjoyed a decent reputation among my colleagues and administrators the last few years. It's my 6th year teaching, and i'm in my late 30s - there are many things I need to and would like to learn - but I'm wondering more and more if the people who are evaluating me and my kids even know what they're looking for.<br />
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<br />Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-19384516157141301792012-11-02T13:05:00.002-07:002012-11-02T14:07:17.877-07:00Yes, we are also over assessing and over tracking the neediest special ed students. Now I need someone better at math to prove it. I spent most of my post-storm day at work without students getting ahead with lessons and student portfolios and that kind of thing, and in the middle of it all, I got kind of paranoid and felt I had to justify some instructional decisions which led me to create and solve a couple of math problems - perfect for the week of Halloween since math is a bit scary to me.<br />
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Some background:<br />
In our school, we have an expensive new copier that does all kinds of great stuff like color copies, but is not made for endurance and durability. Since our site works exclusively with 6 alternate assessment classes, we use a ciriculum that is on-line and is heavy on the cutting and pasting since a lot of the students can't write.<br />
So, a lot of copying. Also, we didn't have regular letter sized paper for a month or so. SO the copier jammed so much that it was deemed from ON HIGH that only the secretary can make copies, submit them in advance, please. (Our secretary is a lovely hard working woman who literally RUNS up and down the hallways every day to get the other things she needs to do done, it's unfair)<br />
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Then we ran out of toner, likely due to some backlog in the copying due to the aforementioned problems.And are low on paper. So now our unit coordinator has to look over the copies we would like to make and has veto power. Clearly we're making too many copies, and it's getting to be expensive and a hassle....<br />
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OR ARE WE?<br />
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In our school we do student portfolios that track IEP goal progress, which is fine and good. Classroom teachers must create 2 reading, 2 writing, and 2 math goals per student on IEPS and track them in a portfolio with evidence, and work products are the STRONGLY PREFERRED method. Oh, and we also have to track 2 other IEP goals in this portfolio - we create our own, or track something from, say, counseling or OT/ PT. That's 8 IEP goals each I have to gather evidence for a month.<br />
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These providers, along with the cluster teachers do their own portfolios of each student, so I don't get the point of that, but am beyond pointing out the redundancy. But I digress.<br />
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_19_1351883989764_122">So I did these math problems:</span></div>
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12 kids x goals each to track + 8 pieces of homework/ week x 12 kids:</div>
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Per month it's 96 for classwork + 384 homework = 480.</div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_19_1351883989764_150">and really the 96 is supposed to be more, since we're just supposed to be taking samples of classwork - and I gotta make pictures and things for the kids who can't write to cut and paste, so we're looking at a ream a month, if not more. I can only make a few things double sided, what with all the things that need cutting and gluing.</span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_19_1351883989764_165">That's a fine how - do- you- do, huh?</span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_19_1351883989764_203">Then think about their science/art/speech/OT/PT/ gym portfolios</span></div>
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<span>I shiver to think about how much more paper the NYS Alternate Assessment will eat up, and then those citywide task "bundles" which AA students are not exempt from. </span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_19_1351883989764_184">Talk about not seeing the forest for the trees. Or rather, not seeing either as they'll all be in files in public schools.</span></div>
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<span>And then add in the special ed social/ emotional factor - none of these kids can sit through doing a worksheet independently, or even sit for more than a minute or two without blood, sweat, tears, flying furniture, eating their work, etc. </span></div>
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I haven't even mentioned, nor thought about til this very moment, the time consuming assessments I'm required to do. Two benchmarking kind of things that take about hour each, (I'm lowballing it) twice a year (12 kids x 2 hours x twice a year = 48) and a pre and post unit test that our curriculum requires every month (15 minutes per student x 12 =180 minutes twice a month is 360 minutes...6 hours/ month)</div>
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Is it even mathematically possible to get all this done? </div>
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Can someone out there crunch numbers for me?</div>
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Take into account the time assessing/ benchmarking above. If I spend 5 minutes with each student working on their piece of evidence for their portfolio (96 a month) how much time is that?</div>
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Compare that to how much time I have in class. School is from 8:20 to 3:10. We have 7 periods that are 50 minutes long, with 5 minutes in between. 1 period is taken up with an intructional breakfast (95% free / reduced meals) and the kids do need that amount of time to eat, get settled, etc. There's a lunch period. I have one prep period and one admin period a day - let;s say I use my admin period to do this work, but take the prep period to, well prep.</div>
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Also, cost of paper/ toner/ secretary's time/ unit coordinator's time reviewing and vetoing copies?</div>
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<br />Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-88406802622720733782012-08-27T16:50:00.000-07:002012-08-27T16:50:27.536-07:00What I have to do vs what I want to doI work in a special ed district, D75, in NYC that encompasses all 5 boroughs, that serves the neediest students. There are a number of stand alone buildings and a lot of off-sites - a floor here or there in a community school that are co-located. (Which gets just as weird as charter / public school co-locations, I'm sure) This school year, my site is moving to brand new campus: I'm told it's a nice building, Smartboards in every room, etc. So I suspect at least my classroom will have at least a fresh coat of paint. Tomorrow, the teachers and unit coodinator will meet there to check out the place and start unpacking. I got an email today asking for a brief meeting with everyone in order to discuss goals for the following year.<br />
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This is the time of year that I'm most idealistic and gung ho - and it usually lasts until I arrive for the first - day -of- school - for - teachers PD and receive a laundry list of ridiculous hair-splitting tasks. Then I lose my enthusiasm. But, I'll save that for another post.</div>
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Now that I've been at this for 6 years, my idealism and gung-ho edness has become decidedly less idealistc and gung - ho. The gap between what I want to do / feel is best for the students and what I <i>have </i>to do to make it look like the children "is learning" is becoming much wider. All over the country, this disconnect is infuriating teachers - and I think that us special ed teachers are feeling it the most. In particular, those that teach the students who have the most severe cognitive limitations.</div>
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But in the spirit of a new year, and for posterity's sake, here is the best balance between what I <i>have </i>to do and how I'm going to reconcile that with what I believe is best for the students</div>
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<i>Have to: Use the language of common core in student IEPs at grade level, in 2 reading, 2 writing, and 2 math standards</i></div>
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Will do: Utilize the option to create short term objectives to create more developmentally appropriate goals that will also teach living skills</div>
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Example: Most of the students I teach can't count very well, but I am supposed to teach fractions. I will create real world examples of fraction use: measuring while cooking, 4 quarters make up a dollar, etc </div>
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<i>Have to: Document progress in common core standards in student portfolios</i></div>
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Will do: Document the level of independence a student achieves within that goal - reassess the goal as needed</div>
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Example: Johnny counts out that 4 quarters are in a dollar with full assistance, a little help,or independently. If he can do the task independently within a few months, or it doesn't seem like he's getting it, then the goal will be re-assessed</div>
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<i>Have to: Document student progress is 2 other optional areas other than the 6 discusssed above for each student</i></div>
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Will do: Optional area #1 will be a "reading" log. Optional area #2 will be a target behavior log</div>
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Example: Since most of the students are non readers, the log will incorporate how long a student can, say, attend to a read aloud in a small/ large group, if they can point to targeted sight words, if they looked at it with a friend,. did they discuss and comprehend the pictures? Students can chart the books they've "read" and get a prize for every 10 or so. This will, I believe, get them excited about and interested in books and give me ideas about what their strengths and needs are. </div>
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<i>Have to: Not teach spelling or multiplication or any of that stuff by memorization or rote</i></div>
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Will do: Just do it anyway. The students I teach really need to sing the alphabet and practice counting by rote and all that stuff. . I will be sure that I note on IEPs that students need frequent opportunities for repetition and practice. Keep a number of my textbooks from grad school around to back me up on that.</div>
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Example: "Hi Mister or Miss Quality Reviewer - if you refer to the IEP you will see that the student benefits from frequent opportunities for repetition and practice, if you look at this book...." </div>
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<i>Have to: Make an aesthically pleasing classroom that looks cute and teacher-y and is functional -</i></div>
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Will do: Put books in bins on the bookshelves, hang some posters, also be sure to write in IEPS which students benefit from an environment with few visual and auditory distractions. </div>
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Example: Most of my students benefit from a place that has few visual and auditory distractions - I write that in most IEPS. </div>
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<i>Have to: Make sure anything and everything looks good enough for "visitors" to not "question" (I'm quoting my administrators from the last Quality Review)</i></div>
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Will do: Make sure anything and everything is user friendly for the students and adults that are in the classroom daily. Be ready to explain those decisions. Put them in the IEPs - Offer opportunities for large, small group activities, write the rules of those and display them in the classroom so a "visitor" who might ask a "question" will see that it does happen</div>
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Example: Poster titled, "Group Activity Rules" with stuff like "keep hands feet to yourself" on it. </div>
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Any other ideas out there?</div>
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Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-82453164928874028212012-08-24T19:16:00.001-07:002012-08-24T19:16:16.206-07:00Hello, Mr. Plop!: What are we gonna do about "those gays?"Hi there, the 5 people who read this! Wait, 4....and a special hello to my mommy!<br />
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I have been following most of the important education news all summer, and am interested - but not exactly eager- to see how all that bullshit will play out in the world of special ed.<br />
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But for this post, I'm going off on a tangent - I'm going to talk about another big problem we have in the public schools in NY State:<br />
the gays.<br />
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The teacher gays, I mean.<br />
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What are we going to do?<br />
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My closest work colleague, Mr. Plop, is also a personal friend. He went and got all married to some other gay dude, Mr. Pap, this summer. The Plop / Pap union is... GET THIS - completely legal and legit, and they even had an actual CHRISTIAN minister to perform the ceremony. People went to the wedding and even were happy about it - including their entire families, some southerners, myself, and Mr. Plops's mom is his mom AND southern!<br />
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People bought Pottery Barn gift cards to this thing.<br />
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Seriously, what're are we gonna do?<br />
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What if, in the natural course of conversation, someone, maybe even me, inadvertantly refers to Mr. Plop's husband as "Mr. Plop's husband?" and not "Mr. Pap," or "wife?" What if we forget to play the pronoun game and then - someone's parent finds out that the Misters Plop and Pap have engaged in a completely legal and legit act of blatant love, gayness, a true commitment to become just as boring as every other married couple and are judged unfairly? Or perhaps even an administrator who is feeling pressure from parents?<br />
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I wouldn't ask if I didn't think it could really happen.<br />
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What are we going to do?<br />
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Except stand with them of course.<br />
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<br />Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-25562393366828307142012-05-18T15:14:00.000-07:002012-05-18T15:14:24.493-07:00The Men Who Stare at Coat HooksToday, the teachers in my school had to turn in student portfolios for review. In the grand tradition of education, there's been a lot of fuss about binders, plastic sleeves, and tab dividers; some fairly vague expectations about what sort of data we should have in there laid out that have been changed several times over the school year; and no examples provided.<br />
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Now, most teachers worth their salt can come up with a system to track the progress of their students in a way that makes sense to teachers, parents, and the kids. Special ed teachers face a bit more of a hurtle due to the small steps their students need to take to master something.<br />
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That can be hard to do with a child who has been working on a skill for several years - like identifying letters. A lot of that stuff is hard to put on paper: For example, a kid can trace or copy the letter C until the cows come home, produce some sort of worksheet with a big lteer C on it and place pictures of a cat and such on it - but does that really prove they know it? What if I showed them a C and a G on a flashcard and they found the C, but what if they couldn't make the distinction with magnetic letters? Or what if I always held the C in my right hand?<br />
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You probably get the picture. What I decided to do was create a series of checklists for my alternate assessment special ed kids, note exactly HOW I asked them to identify the letter (flashcard, written on paper) whether they did it expressively (student saying, "That's a C") or receptively (Teacher asking, "Find the C) how much assistance did they require, etc. I choose a day once a month to "test" them on a task, record the method, if they met IEP criteria, how much adult prompting was needed, and so forth. Changing up the method will tell me if the really know what this is or have just memorized something; and going from, say, helping the student point to the C hand over hand and and giving a verbal prompt "c like cat" is HUGE for my kids.<br />
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However, I was dismayed to see that my student portfolios were extremely thin compared to the others turned in. Although I had the tab dividers and sleeves and of course examples of student work for the things they could actually do on paper, I'd been nervous all day. I knew I could "speak to" my decisions about the checklists, I had a feeling that it might not cut the mustard and that in the grand tradition of education - the size, weight and lack of quantity would be considered more than what quality of these checklists.<br />
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This is the part where I need to mention that I think most of the administrators in D75 understand and care about how difficult it can be to prove progress with special ed kids. I think many of them have "argued" with the powers that be about the very issues I've mentioned above. I think they are losing more and more of these battles. I think the consensus coming from On High is "Figure it out. We'll let you know if it looks good." And I was freaking out today, just KNOWING I'd have to have an awkward conversation about my portfolios, state my piece, and then do it the way "they" want anyway.<br />
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So a knock at my door came about 2pm today. I waved the principal in. She didn't come in. I opened the door. She was standing there with a 4 men in suits and two women in business casuals. I invited them in. They gave me a blank look. The principal said, "We'll be in in a second." I just KNEW it - some sort of mock Quality Review. I was in for it.<br />
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I went back to work for 15 minutes, they entered. I extended my hand, "Hi, I'm Miss RIm." They gave me a blank look. No one said anything. I had no idea who they were. They came into the room, stared at the students' coat cubby, calculated how many hooks were there, had a debate over whether or not students could or should have a hook for a coat AND a bookbag, or what. They opened closets. They turned the water in the sink on and off. They muttered and whispered. Then someone said, "Well, we can always add another row of coat hooks. Or probably 2 more."<br />
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Then they left. The Men Who Stare at Coat Hooks.Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-58581802424686398622012-05-09T14:39:00.001-07:002012-05-09T14:39:24.287-07:00PS- the kids hit us. When are we going top talk about MY kids, PartIIISpecial ed teachers have the challenge of teaching academics to a wide variety of students with disabilities and abilities. In District 75, all the schools are specialized schools. That means in order for a student to be placed there, they have had to exhibit physical, behavioral, or academic deficits so severe that they cannot be supported in another type of special ed classroom.
The special ed teachers in D75, therefore, not only have to implement "rigorous" academic instruction, but also plans for instruction in behavior, social skills, activities of daily living, even toilet training. It's a lot of work,. a lot of trial and error, and a lot of just thinking to make a plan that addresses all these areas for 6,8, or 12 students that's do-able.
Especially when the kids hit us. Or scratch us. Or push us, or throw chairs at us. Or other students. Or punch out the glass in a window.
Sometimes the student may not understand what they are doing, but sometimes they do. And hit a teacher intentionally. Or scratch one intentionally, Or push one, or throw chairs at one intentionally. Or call a teacher a "fucking cunt" intentionally.
Sometimes there's a gray area where a teacher can't quite figure out if it's intentional or not.
But we get hit. Often.
And from what I've been reading lately, there's been an awful lot of 911 calls from community schools who do not have the supports in place for an out of control student. Often the student is taken to the emergency room but is not admitted and in school the next day. Maybe after several incidents the student may be transferred to a D75 school, but I'll tell you what - we don't have the supports either.
The way the system is set up, it's becoming increasingly difficult for teachers and schools in general to keep staff members from getting hit. We are not supposed to restrain a child, so what are we to do when they beat us and smash their fist through glass - all the while calling us names that even make a person who calls herself "Miss RIM" blush?
And even if we could "just hold him down for like a 1/2 hour" like a parent suggested to me once, how are the other students in the class supposed to get the rigorous, highly effective instruction I have to develop and deliver in order to keep my job?
No one says this. No one outside education acknowledges that we go to work knowing that students verbally and physically abuse each other and the staff. Bill Gates doesn't go to work and get smacked. If that happened to Geoffory Canada at the Harlem Children's Zone or Eva Moskowitz at Success Academies, the student, oops, pardon me, "scholar" would receive demerits and be "counseled out"....(then be "our problem") If some kid called Michelle Rhee a "fucking cunt", they'd get tape over their mouth.
What gives? With all the hullabaloo starting a big national conversation about education, let's have this conversation.Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-82109103622151066082012-04-24T14:36:00.000-07:002012-04-24T14:36:00.729-07:00When ARE we going to talk about my kids?...Part 2Today I decided to support the National Resolution on High Stakes Testing. <a href="http://timeoutfromtesting.org/nationalresolution/">http://timeoutfromtesting.org/nationalresolution/</a>
I support the resolution because I feel the same way most teachers do about high stakes testing. I also wanted to take a moment to describe how the testing culture trickles down into classrooms that serve students with more pronounced cognitive limitations...you know, my kids.
My kids have to complete a NYS Alternate Assessment Datafolio. Each grade level has "alternate level grade indicators." (AGLI) Teachers choose 2 ELA, 2 Math and for some grades Social Studies and/ or Science in elementary school. In high school, it's all subjects. We can chose discrete trial samples, video evidence or work samples to prove progress in each AGLI. There is a handy manual about 1000 pages long with samples of tasks.
Sounds reasonable so far, right? Unfortunately, it never seems to go as simply as it should.
First of all, most AA teachers will tell you that working most children to complete a worksheet is like pulling teeth. Gathering video evidence requires parents of the student AND their peers to sign and return a consent form. That's harder than you think. Using work samples is the most simple way to complete a datafolio.
Secondly, one can't just take a few samples of work the students are already doing. Teachers have to be sure that each work sample has directions written on it in the exact same language as the state. And of course, sometimes the language is nebulous. "SHow you can distinguish fact from opinion by selecting and identifying statements of fact and opinion from a fact based text." True story - a coach told me that the fact based text I chose for this one wasn't good enough, because the fact based text I used wasn't cited. The facts I was trying to get the student to identify were: A weatherperson tell us the weather. They will tell us if it will be hot or cold. I had to design a new task.
Also - teachers are charged with scoring these pieces of work with a % of answers that are correct AND a level of independence. The levels of independence are from 0 to 100. What does an independence level of 47% mean vs. 54%?
And yes, they do "count" on a school's report card and stuff.
WHen the datafolios are sent to the state, students scores can be thrown out if a teacher misnumbers the pages or even if a student makes an errant mark on the page that a teacher didn't write "student made errant mark" and does not initial it. The scorers do not have access to the students IEPs or any other evaluations.
So, if I choose simple AGLIs without weird language, give the kids work that's easy for them and they can do independently, give them a fresh sheet if they doodle on it, and number the pages correctly....they get 4s. Or, I could give them difficult work and do it hand over hand and then they get a 4 for correct answers and a 1 for independence? Or I could just lie. Or even do it myself - we can give them tasks that are cutting and gluing. Then I look like a highly effective teacher and maybe get a bonus!
Not only is this process really easy to skew, it's more a test of the teacher's ability to dot bureaucratic i's and cross bureaucratic t's.
Finally, it's also gigantic time consuming, money sucking, tree-killing pain in the ass.Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-14550438765961079532011-12-16T16:55:00.001-08:002011-12-16T16:55:37.791-08:00When ARE we going to talk about my kids?... Part 1: My kidsMonths ago, I was inspired by a <a href="http://mskatiesramblings.blogspot.com/">Ms. Katie,</a> a special ed teacher who had such a perfect title for her blog entry that I just had to rip it off.<br />
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Read it in it's entirety <a href="http://mskatiesramblings.blogspot.com/2011/10/when-are-we-going-to-talk-about-my-kids.html">here</a><br />
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The very eloquent Ms. Katie poses the following question: What do we do with the disruptive, most-difficult to educate children? <br />
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Well, I'll tell you - they come to someone like me in a District 75 school or they come to someone like her, a teacher on an inpatient psychiatry unit.<br />
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Inspried by Ms. Katie, I have decided to write several entries about where "my kids" fit into the national conversation about education. I would like to begin by describing them and a typical "week in the life" of a special ed teacher in a D75 school - I think it's important to know how seriously "disabled" the children are before beginning the conversation. Subsequent entries will be dedicated to what does or does not work, what may or may not work, and general grumbling and harrumphing about specifics. <br />
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District 75 - for you non NYC DOE people out there -is a citywide district of specialized schools for special education students. It includes a number of different special ed classifications, students with autism, mental retardation, physical disabilities, emotional disturbance, and "other" (yes, there is an "other") To my knowledge, a few of the schools serve students with one or two types of disability, but most of them serve an array: I work at a school that has 5 sites, serving kindergarten through 12th grade, students who participate in the state wide "tests"- referred to as standardized assessment and those those cognitive disabilities preclude them from participating - referred to as alternate assessment. (more on the joke that is a NYS Alternate Assessment in the future!) Again these students are the most disruptive and / or most difficult to educate children in the NYC DOE. <br />
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Sometimes, I come home from work in need of serious de-compressing and it has become a bit of a ritual in our household for me to give Mr. Rim a list of the day's "atrocities." (A bit of hyperbole, there, forgive me) I think the best way to give readers an idea of the students we special educators choose to serve is to simply list this weeks "atrocities:"<br />
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- Monday / Tuesday: 10 year old Student with MR refuses to transition to classroom (on 4th floor, no elevator) from the b cafeteria or gym on 1st floor. Flops down on floor, refuses to move for 45 minutes to 1 hour - rolls around in various sticky things stuck to the floor. Crawls under difficult to move cafeteria tables. Get's into the bathroom, locks herself in a stall, curls around a toilet, rolls around in someone else's urine. This student is also able to burp and fart AT people. teacher has to leave the paraprofessional behind in order to monitor her. It takes a good 45 minutes or so to get her to tranisition to the classroom - if her behavior plan is followed correctly. Behavior plan involves ignoring. Many other adults stare, try to intervene, dangle food in front of her, even though teacher and para specifically ask them to stop, because it escalates the behavior. Other adults ignore these requests, which results in this student "flopping" around for about 2 hours or so. <br />
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-Monday 9/ 10 year old students with emotional disturbance have an argument in class about one of the "bothering" the other. Student A grabs a pair of scissors and threatens to stab Student B. Student B grabs a pair of scissors and threatens to stab Student A back. A chase ensues. The other students in the class begin to takes sides - anarchy. Teacher steps in between student A and B and student A stabs the teacher in the hand. Teacher in Emergency Room. Student returns the next day. Consequence: not earning "points"<br />
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-Monday-Tuesday 8 to 10 year old Students C,D,E, and F with emotional disturbance(male and female) run in the halls all day yelling very creative things...oh, I'll just tell you: "Suck my dick, suck my motherfucking dick, suck it hard until I pee on you..." (!) to each other. When teachers ask them to stop, they yell other creative things, like "i'm dead ass you can't do nothin'" Gang up on a 5 year old student with Down's Syndrome because she's "looking" at them. Parents called. Principal called. Consequence: eating lunch in the office for the next few days and not earning "points."<br />
Tuesday- 11 year old student with ED, who came to our school about 3 weeks ago from a hospital, arrives crying and screaming. Says she wants to kill herslef. No answer or return call from parent. Interviewed by the school psych and social worker, given lots of counseling...for about 3 hours. Around lunchtime, she grabs a sharp shard of a broken desk lying in the hall (left by another ED student the a few hours before) tries to stab herself - for real - lots of blood.school psych and social worker call principal, who asks them NOT to cal 911 if it can be helped. It coul;dn't be helped, 911 called, takes 4 big EMTs to carry this girl out- This happens about 12:30. She's at school the next day. <br />
Wednesday: Teacher discovers some disturbing drawings and writings of a VERY sexual nature done by an 8 year old student with MR - relatively new to the school. Shows school psychologist and social worker. Both call the grandmother, the person the student lives with. No, she can't come in for a meeting. They do a very quick social history. Student lived with various family members in and out of the US. Psych and social worker explain that this type of stuff is unusual, woman hangs up. Student is out the rest of the week.<br />
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Wednesday - 10 year old student with autism has been out for 2 days. Her parent, who we all know to be very concientious - called the school office on Monday to say the student had a bad cold and would be back probably Wednesday. Student returns on Wednesday, parent calls the office and asks that if she still seems to be under the weather, please take her temperature and/ or call her to pick said student up- Thinks it's just a bad cold, but please let her know if it seems she's not recovering. Wednesday afternoon, an attendance teacher shows up at the house and threatens the parents with ACS involvement, possibly removal of all the children in the home. Parent calls up the teacher, very upset, wondering why in the world she can't keep her sick daughter, who has good attendance, etc...home sick for a couple of days without a fuss. <br />
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Well, I'm only up to Wednesday now - are you still reading? Note that I'm not privy to how that desk got broken, and likely unaware of a few other "atrocities" that may have occured this week. Please also note the irony of that last one. <br />
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Please also note I haven't mentioned academics yet. Readers of this blog may remember that I was a Teaching Fellow and still feel pretty raw about how useless most of the training was. One thing I do use and say to myself often is something Rick Hess wrote, that a student who can sit down and pay attention is more likely to learn better. We've got to work on the whole student at some point. (I'm paraphrasing) <br />
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The question I ask is this: Given the students I work with,in this "accountability obsessed" (Ms. Katie's phrase - thanks again!) culture of education, what, if any, room is there for the whole child?<br />
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If you know, please tell me.Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-30051765555611466462011-12-09T15:54:00.000-08:002011-12-09T15:54:33.402-08:00A miscellany of comments before I get back to blogging for realz...Hello, all.<br />
Took a break from blogging due to knee surgery. I took a week off of work, and had to hobble around on a cane for a while. I have the following comments / questions/ complaints about the last few months of work:<br />
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-It is borderline criminal that the school I am co located with places 4, 5, 6 year old students with mental retardation (intellectual disability, whatever they're calling it these days) who need PT to walk up and down 4 flights of stairs several times daily. I noticed it before, but hobbling around after surgery really made me empathize. And I had a dr.'s note excusing me from walking my kids to lunch/gym and fire drills!<br />
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- What do we think about the change in terminology from "Mental Retardation" to "Intellectual Disability" in the classification of disability? Of course the term "retardation" has it's negative connotations, and it's obvious this is an attempt to be sensitive. But I dislike the use of the word "intellectual" - depending how you define "intellect", any one of us could have "intellectual" deficiencies/ disabilities. If it's got to be change, I like the word "cognitive" better. But the MR term has been around for so long and from where I'm sitting, so many parents I work with have enough trouble accepting that their child is, indeed, mentally retarded that the change of terms is confusing. And, any second now, other kids will start calling other kids "intellectualy disabled" and then that will have the same connotations as "retard."<br />
*Also, what will the kids in Boston do? "The Red Sox played wicked intellectually disabled last night?"*<br />
Let's call a duck a duck. No, strike that. Or qualify it: a duck with spots, a duck with a white feather, etc. A child is a child. A child could be a child with mental retardation or autism or....well, you know what I mean. This could be a fantastic paper topic for someone who loves semantics.<br />
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- All these iPads? They're killing me! I have had more administrative "visits" and" walk - throughs" and "informal observations" in the last 3 months than in the last 5 years of teaching.I get it, I really do. One must justify the acquiring of an iPad from the DOE by using it. In theory, my school (and probably most others) uses it provide feedback, share best practices, and chart student and teacher growth.<br />
In practice, what happens is an administrator will pop in without so much as a "Hello" snap pictures of bulletin boards or student work, send it to another administrator to with mostly negative - and very vaguely worded I might add "feedback." Then the other administrator has to to show the classroom teacher in person the feedback and when we ask for specifics about what was wrong... well you get it - it's a very adult game of "Telephone." And" Gotcha!" Then, teachers begin to feel, tense, nervous, fearful and "watched." Not a good combination to excel at a craft.<br />
All that puts a bee in my bonnet, but what really makes buzz is this: there are some administrators that are very literal and logical to a fault - but there are enough out there that can use this technology in the right way and direct others to do so as well.<br />
What if AP Sally popped in my room with her iPad and said, "Hello, Miss Rim! I'd like to take a picture of this ____to share with others. I think it's good strategy because of _____. Do you mind? " (what teacher minds that?)<br />
Or alternately, AP Beth popped in to my room with her iPad and said "Miss Rim, I don't think this _____ is working well because of ____. I think that the way you can improve it is ____ . Maybe we can share it with other teachers and get their suggestions. Can I take a picture of it, and after you've incorporated some suggestions and improved it, I''l take another picture and we can use it to chart your "growth "/ to help other teachers?"<br />
It's not that hard, people. With great iPads comes great responsibility.<br />
PS- Annie Sullivan, the "Miracle Worker" had no technology as we know it, no paperwork, portfolios, etc and no administrator. Just sayin'<br />
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-And finally-at my D75 school, in my 12:1:1 alternate assessment class -3rd to 5th grade, so between 8 and 10 years old- there are WISC - scale IQ scores between 35 and 68. Pretty big range, but not atypical of an AA class. And within that scope there are students who are nearing grade level at, say...phonics but when it comes to other skills like comprehension or identyfing money - they;re all over the place. It's hard.<br />
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And that's the subject of my next "for realz" blog - "What about MY kids?"<br />
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NYC education bloggers: Been reading you all in the meantime,love what you're saying. Special shout outs to Mr. A Talk, Sweetgirl Tracie, and South Bronx.Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-88474166074823145342011-09-28T15:49:00.000-07:002011-09-28T15:49:19.443-07:00Trotting out the dogs and ponies....We had some kind of trial walk through the other day...an AP walking around furiously scribbling about bulletin boards. <div><br />
<div>I have a special hate for bulletin board critiques - stemming from an incident in which a "Network Leader" ridiculed me and my SPECIAL ED students- in front of them- so much that I hyperventilated and threw up.</div><div>It was April,poetry month and we made symmetrical paintings and couplets that described our artwork. I even ripped off a veteran teacher's idea about the couplets (with his permission) - I didn't want to do one of those fill in the blank poems - and got reamed out about how my idea of academic rigor was a joke with only 2 lines and how the student's artwork was "juvenile." Of course the other couplet guy and the fill in the blank people got a pass.</div><div><br />
</div><div>I've since developed a thicker skin, a better sense of humor about these things but the BB Police thing still really puts a bee in my bonnet! So I was a bit amused in a snarky way when I saw the AP wandering and checking out the bulletin boards.I had everything - appropriate work/rubrics / feedback etc. there were 2 things marked "N/A" -next steps and visual appeal.</div><div>That puzzled me, so I asked "Visual appeal and next steps are not applicable?"</div><div>"They certainly are. I didn't see any evidence of those two factors on your bulletin board." </div><div>"Oh." Pause. "Uh, I'm a little confused. What does N/ A stand for then?"</div><div>"Not applicable."</div><div>"Oh," Pause. " I thought 'not applicable' meant you were not applying that criteria this time around."</div><div>"By criteria do you mean the aforementioned factors that i stated were not in evidence at this time?" (I'm not kidding, this is what she said)</div><div>"Um, yes. But OK I get it! The terminology threw me. Sorry."</div><div>"Do you want to know I why I stated that the evidence in visual appeal and next steps was unapplicable in evidence?" (again, not kidding)</div><div>"Of course."</div><div>"There was no evidence of next steps in your feedback post it and it was not visually appealing." </div><div>"I see. Well maybe you can help me, then. I wrote things like 'Let's keep working on your fine motor skills so your name is legible.' and 'Let's work on increasing the amount of work you do.' Those are things I think are next steps to increase the quality of their work. Were you looking for something else?"</div><div>"If you wrote that, i didn't read it because the next steps factor was not written as a criteria on the paper. I didn't see it applicable as evidence because I didn't know where to find it listed."</div><div>"Wait.... You want me to just label it?"</div><div>"If you had a rubric or a post it and included in the feedback you could write "feedback" where the feedback is and next steps with the next steps, then I could see it in evidence."</div><div>"Oh. Sure. I can do that."</div><div><br />
</div><div>I went and highlighted feedback comments in pink and next step comments in orange, and stapled up a little key by the bulletin board. "Thanks for adding on 'next steps' Ms. Rim" she called out at the end of the day, with a Top Gun thumbs up - like gesture. Didn't tackle the visual appeal there, that seemed a little too subjective.</div><div><br />
</div><div>By the way, most of my students cannot hold a pencil properly, read, identify shapes or colors, etc. Clearly that post it is not for them. Increasing expectations for special ed students is not about this. It's "N/A"</div><div><br />
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</div></div>Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-69282504475050033242011-09-16T17:25:00.000-07:002011-09-16T17:25:02.941-07:00...and I'm literally doing it with one hand / the obligatory September complaintsSo, how's everyone's fist few weeks back been? *sarcasm*<br />
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I came back refreshed. I took the whole summer off to plan and have a wedding. A destination wedding in the Carribbean, which was about 3,000 times better than I expected it to be, - even though Irene tried to crash, she was just a mere tropical wave at that point, not even named yet. A bit of drizzle. Afterward, Mr. Rim and I traveled to my hometown way up in Western NY ,where I tripped on an uneven sidewalk and broke my hand.<br />
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When I reported to work the first day, I was in a splint (which is now a cast) and since the kids weren't there, had some mildly "soothing stuf"f in my system. The morning was dedicated to housekeeping - blood borne pathogens, please-don't-get-arrested-but-if-you-do-call, etc. Since I work in D75 school, with many "offsites" and several different types of students, the afternoon was spent in attempting to align common core / state standards with what we actually DO and what the students actually NEED.<br />
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This is a common issue with all of us, but I think that it's more prominent in D75 - is that it's much harder for most of us classroom teachers to make what we do look good on paper. The Danielson / common core / flavor of the month Eduspeak jargon DOES NOT come with a manual about how to define whatever ill-defined quality of instruction within the scope of the students the any given district serves, and it's always been up to a particular school or a teacher to do that. And as most of you know, there is an incredibly diverse population D75 serves. It's funny how when "network" leaders, coaches, reviewers, or others who may not know about any of what I call the "special / special" ed kids hate what our plans and scores are on paper, but when they actually go to the school show an alarming degree of naivete. For example, in no particular order: I've seen the aforementioned cringe and leave when a child drools, or rocks back and forth or realize than a 10 year old who has still not been toilet trained has a diaper with poop in it; refuse to model a lesson after being called a "bitch" or something in a class full of emotionally disturbed 8th graders, yell "S/he needs a private school!" when spat at - this is what we do every single day.<br />
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And so, about 9:45 a the first day, my blood began to boil. My group is teachers that work with alternate assessment students. We plowed through some Danielson rubrics and sort of got the message that we have to do a couple common core projects for our grades (?) level 1 to 4 questioning techniques., or something.. and at about 10am, I asked ,<br />
" So if I have a class of special ed students with cognitive impairments, who are only able at this point to count to 20, what would a level 4 question be for them? For example, could I ask them analyze the number, oh, say, 17 by comparing and contrasting it to a higher and lower number? Could I have them synthesize it by pointing out that today is the 17th of the school year, or to a given month? At which point on the scale is it that a student in my class can make a connection like, "My sister is 17, she's older than me,." Or say how many years differnece it is between the student and the sister. For most of my kids, this would be a level 4 question for them. "<br />
My colleagues murmured and seemed to agree this was an Ok way to fulfill our charge. The facilitator blinked a few times. shuffled papers, looked at STuff and then, I KID YOU NOT, said if the student could write a 2- 3 paragraph piece about a number being a prime or a multiple of something and why, than "OK, we could probably let that slide" when we explained some of the children don't even know how to grip a pencil properly or spell their names. I asked about social / emotional / adaptive behavior goals - which are a very important part of any child's education, but are the bread and butter of D75 - more blinking and shuffling and less answers.<br />
According to other colleagues who work with standardized "special /special" assessment kids, they asked simliar type questions and got the same type answers.<br />
. Translation: " If you can't make a bulletin board about it, it never happened."<br />
For obvious reasons, that put a big bee in my bonnet - and I still had "something soothing" in my system!<br />
Rick Hess, the assessment guru, wrote - I'm paraphrasing - All other things being equal, a kid that can sit down, be quiet and listen, will learn better. But if a student in D75 was able to do that, then they wouldn't be there. S o it is not only our charge as teachers (in D75 or anywhere) but a big part of our ethic tohelp our students work the social / emotional/ behavioral pieces.<br />
In fact, I think it's disservice to students and teachers to waste so much time on aligning and re-aligning the very basic nature of what we do into whatever rubric of the year is popular. It's Doubleplusnongood for you fans of Orwell.<br />
So there's that, and the stray beginning o' the year "and you wonder why public education is in such a state" observations (read on, you can relate)<br />
- BIG cockroach infestation in the building I work at. I'm not skittish, but I kill about 4 a day and my classroom isn't considered that big a risk. I'm on the 4th floor, BTW. No extermination / spraying/ bombing planned..according to the head custodial leader guy there -" I gotta get authorization from somebody, but can't find who. I don;t even know who my supervisor is this year."<br />
-Moved classrooms, don't have a key - according to the aforementioned custidial leader guy: "So ya want me to find you a key, huh? uh...I guess I could just make ya a copy of mine, you could go to the hardware store or I could, but I don't wanna get in trouble with by boss and I dunno who that is yet."<br />
-Special ed bussing is always a nightmare, and even under the best of circumstances there are many students who have to be on the bus for an hour a more - even if it's a "short bus." In the beginning of the year it's much worse: 2- 2/12 hours. Kids arrive to school or home having had #1 and #2 in thier pants. Also, these busses are private companies, subcontracted, so the only thing I can say top parents is to call OPT or the bus company.<br />
-No printer, toner, copier. limited internet access for at least another week. But we have to give out homework daily and the bulletin boards must be done by Tuesday. Enough leeway, "no excuses" get it done already!<br />
-More often than you would ever think, even district 75 doesn't have the resources to support quite a large number of very needy student. And there is a greater number of kids that really do need mental health support and meds than you would ever think. To wit:. I have been slapped by 2 children under in my class , both under 10 years of age, about 15 times this week. I lost count of the name calling. My paras, have had triple that. One kid broke a window with his fist, twice.<br />
-One of these kid wAS dropped off to school by his dad. The student went off to breakfast, and I explained to the dad that the day about the hitting and hullabaloo,and that his 9 year son had called me every name in the book in Spanish and English and demanded I prove it by doing certain things to him...The kid found out I "snitched" on him to his dad, had an epic tantrum, which resulted in his dad telling me he was going to bring the student home for a bit to calm down and come back., What actually happened was that his dad called 911, and LEFT before the police / ambulance got there. Then , called the school later, demanding his son get a "better" teacher "She can';t control him and he don't get enough homework." Homework.<br />
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Remember... all this is with one hand. I don't meant o be a big complainer, but really - we can do special ed better than this.Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-55534647644148652242011-08-08T12:54:00.000-07:002011-08-08T12:54:17.580-07:00Why I teach<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;">First of all, a shout out to Matt Damon - I like them apples. It felt good to have a celeb defend us.</span><br />
<div>I think now that it's back to school time, we should respond to some of the criticism of the SOS march. Many wrote "Why I'm marching." Let's now write "Why I teach." Hopefully one of you more technically savvy people can create a special webpage for this and make it a big deal.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Why I teach:</div><div> I teach because I was called to it. I teach because the most important thing to me in my life is to be kind and generous and good to others, and this is the best way I know how.</div><div> I teach because I find at least one quality to love in each one of my students - and sometimes I really have to search- but I ALWAYS find something - and that makes me feel good about myself. I teach because once a student knows about that quality makes me love them, it changes who they are, and how they think about themselves.</div><div> I teach because kids are funny, smart, mad, sad, violent, incontinent (that happens in special ed sometimes) weird, sometimes violent, sometimes very troubled - but they are all fascinating and wonderful in some aspect...even though there are days, maybe even weeks, that I forget that.</div><div> I teach because the education of every child (or adult for that matter) is like the beginning of a puzzle for me to put together - I do the end pieces, the borders, and I marvel in watching them fill it in for themselves. I never know what the picture inside the borders will look like, and am usually thrilled when I see it.</div><div> I teach because of the many colleagues I have that feel the same way, and if I'm having trouble with the puzzle, they will help me. </div><div> I teach because teaching is a craft: parts knowledge, technique, part magic and illumination - but the mix a teacher uses for each child, for each period of the day - is all based in the gut. </div><div> I teach because the craft allows me to try new and different things from year to year, I don't stagnate. (Theoretically, that is)</div><div> I teach because of the child whose dream was to go to "Montealbec, Candada" and eat creme brulee got to eat creme brulee in my classroom at least - the ability to make a part of a dream come true is marvelous.</div><div> I teach because that child now knows its "Montreal, Quebec, Canada." </div><div> </div>Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-19878409289353168742011-07-27T13:20:00.000-07:002011-07-27T13:20:37.122-07:00Can I make a ground breaking suggestion?Please don't laugh at me, I'm only going into my 5th year....<br />
But I happened to read Mr. A's post on the whole Master / Turnaround Teacher offers that the DOE has put out and, I just don't get it.<br />
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Are there not already school and district based coaches? And mentor teachers? And lead teachers? And cooperating teachers for student teachers? And don't half of them end up assigned to areas they know nothing about? Does the DOE propose to eliminate these titles? Why add so many layers to an already convoluted system? Sounds like someone who hasn't been in a school for a while had an idea in a meeting.<br />
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This might be a bigger deal in D75: I can't tell you how many times a coach or lead teacher has walked into a classroom of mine with only a smidgen of special ed experience and told me NOTHING that i didn't know already. As if I never tried a graphic organizer before! I've experienced behavior / classroom management coaches that refuse to observe the children - instead taking me through powerpoint presentations on how I feel about things like having a chair thrown at me. "Angry. Frustrated." "You have remarkable insight into yourself, Miss Rim, how did you learn that? " "Therapy." Colleagues of mine had coaches in their rooms to model lessons and outright refuse to teach after the first curse word.<br />
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So I'd like to make the groundbreaking suggestion that the DOE streamline these titles, but make the duties a little more specific. They could also make a cute little acronym and get good PR that way, say...M.O.M (Master or Mentor)....So a middle or high school who is very needy could have an school based ELA MOM or 2, A math MOM or 2, etc, etc and with elementary sites there could be a K-2 MOM, 3-5 MOM, etc. on site daily working with teachers and admin, helping to design AIS, assisting with classroom management, etc. For "less needy schools" maybe the MOM comes a few times a week.<br />
For D75, I'd see it as a bit more specified, the MOMs would have to specialize in either standardized assessment kids, or alternate assessment kids, with grade levels and such.<br />
Then I see these MOMs working at schools to select the right mentor / cooperating teachers and giving them support.<br />
And eliminate the whole "turnaround " word- come on - can you imagine getting one of these jobs, having the best of intentions and then being introduced as the turn around teacher? (although I have the feeling the way it's set up, most of those teachers will be arrogant douches just off their 2nd or 3rd year) If I may continue the lousy metaphor, these turnaround teachers will be treated like evil stepmothers by the existing staff.<br />
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Are you still laughing? That's OK, I know it's more complicated that what I've suggested, (especially the sea change that it would entail) but it's got to be more simple than this.<br />
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Wanna hear another joke? I'm going into my 5th year and will get my THIRD student teacher in the fall. That's right, folks. I've been a cooperating teacher since my 3rd year - most of the more veteran teachers where I work can't take it anymore, so the principal assigns some of them to me. Not that I suck at teaching - because I really believe in my bones that I don't- and I give my student teachers what I can, but it's a disservice to them getting such a newbie.<br />
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Let's all comment on the way other teachers mentor and model for each other!Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-13878283169864225202011-07-24T18:06:00.000-07:002011-07-24T18:06:26.758-07:00the obligatory E4E / Ruben Brosbe postBefore I get into it, I'd like to give Mr. A. Talk my sincere thanks for the plug he gave me. When I saw the title of his post, I screamed so loudly and with such joy that Mister Rim was suspected I won the lottery. And I actually called my mother. Mr. A's kind of my guru. Thanks, pal!<br />
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So to get on with it, a bit of disclosure for those who don't already know: I'm a newer teacher (going into my 5th year) and was a Teaching Fellow. And I am very sympathetic - no, EMPATHETIC- toward new teachers in alternate certification programs. I think for the most part, most of us want to do well, and the vocal group of E4E "Asshats" and "reformers" represent more of a minority than you really think. (Or I pray that's the case)<br />
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In fact I think I "liked" E4E on Facebook, before I knew what they were. But here's what's wrong with the whole thing, in no particular order:<br />
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Teaching is not an art, nor is it an assembly line. It's a CRAFT. Think about a craftsperson, say a carpenter....<br />
There's GOT to be a lot of technical know how - you get the specs, envision a finished product, find out how your client (s) feel about it, then tweak a bit, then there's measuring, proportions, sawing, sanding - ELBOW GREASE. Then on top of that you've got to think of the design - this is where your heart and soul and most importantly YOU GUT goes. Do the clients want a plain austere design, or something fancy with whimsy? Do they want something fancy with whimsy while you think that plain and austere is the way to go....Confused? Turn on any reality TV home make over show, and you'll get my drift.<br />
The former is something that can be taught to a teacher, lots of "strategies" out there - the latter comes from the gut, the picking and choosing of which strategy goes with the teacher and the kids. But no matter how good you're gut is, if you don't have the know how, the meat and potatoes - you're LOST. You can't ask the right questions if you don't even know what they are. Admit it, we got shafted with training and DEMAND you receive the guidance and mentorship you deserve.<br />
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And if you can't do that, join the union - that's what its there for. You may not always agree with their decisions, but that's life. And if you join, get vocal. In my experience, the UFT, for all their flaws has always been very supportive of newer teachers, and also special ed teachers.<br />
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Tenure? Get over it. What it is now is not what it's supposed to be. Tenure is not a feather in your cap. It's the right to due process - so "they " can't fire you for, say being an unprepared TFA / Fellow who they just don't like. Tenure doesn't mean you're a great teacher. Tenure guarantees you have a chance at NOT being fired for some stupid thing - if a principal can't terminate you because you're a lousy teacher, theh the principal hasn't done their homework.<br />
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It's better to leave than be stubborn....My wise mommy, Mrs Rim, told me " If you haven't got your sea legs by the 3rd year, go....no shame."<br />
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And lastly - DID YOU LEARN NOTHING FROM YOUR ASSBACKWARDS TRAINING? All we learned was political crap - I wrote a 10 page paper on "pedagogy of the oppressed" my junior year4 as an undergrad, and a 3 page one as a NYCTF grad student. Ugh. If you are in the blogosphere your first few years teaching, stop bragging about all the cool shit you do (and you probably DO do cool shit sometimes) and start ASKING.<br />
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Newer teachers, especially those in special ed have an absolute obligation to ask more and tell less..<br />
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And as for the hipster beard, Ruben - I have a theory that people with facial hair are creating a shield between themselves and life.<br />
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*this is what I have to say. I don't plan on posting much more on this topic, unless something else interesting comes up - I think E4E will implode upon itself like the house in "Poltergeist" by....hmmmm .. March?<br />
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Stay tuned for more specific tales from the short bus....and Thanks a Zillion Mr. A Talk!Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-63339407070751424702011-07-21T13:08:00.000-07:002011-07-21T13:08:54.501-07:00How they have to spend their summer vacationI work in a D75 school, at an offsite in a class of alternate assessment kids. Almost all the students in D75 have a mandated 12 month year. I chose not to work this summer for two very good reasons: 1. I'm getting married and 2. I was feeling so burnt out that I was worried I'd snap and end up in The Post under some badly rhyming or punning headline: "Miss Rim, Filled to the Brim, Abuses Kids in the Gym"<div><br />
</div><div>But I truly adore my kids and my job, and I missed them, so I popped in for a visit. After being waylaid by various office people who wanted to give me the gossip, I was happy to catch them off guard, throw open the classroom door and yell, "You guys are tearing me apart!!!" (inside classroom joke, folks.) I got my fill of the hugs and cootchie - coos . (Yes, I do give my kids hugs sometimes. And I will continue to do so. So there.)</div><div><br />
</div><div>I asked about the "theme" for summer school and was told it was "Picturing America." OK, great. Most of my kids are really, really interested in maps and states and countries and other cultures. (One kid told me his dream was to go to "Montreal-bec" Canada and eat creme brulee - aside from the violence, I have a dream class) So I was excited for them. And a little bit envious, I was thinking of all kinds of cute things I would like to try with them with respect to that theme.</div><div><br />
</div><div>But apparently, this summertime theme for the school - which has many sites, is K-12 with students that run the gamut of classifications, was not modified for the younger student or AA kids. It was some group of paintings from some museum education course. Which would be fine, kind of - but each class got a painting and had to write about what it reminds them of - which is still fine, kind of - but my class got a painting of the 1st COntinental Congress. To write about.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Now I know all kinds of ways to do writing with my kids even if they can't hold pencils. So do my colleagues. But the 1st continental congress? Come on! The summer teacher in my class, who is a gem, but has very little experience with this population asked what I thought they should do. When I asked some of them what does this picture remind them of....well, the word remind is hard for them....so I asked what it looked like and they said "History." "Grandpa" "Dress" and my favorite, "Computer."</div><div><br />
</div><div>I kinda sat there agog for a minute - but being an AA teacher - you get kind of used to that (I swear AA teachers are probably THE most creative). So I finally told her what I my two top choices... I'd kinda sabotage it....After ass kissingly asking for some help /ideas / or resources (which likely wouldn't happen) I'd simply make BB with the paintng and their actual reactions: "grandpa" "computer" etc... OR, since I care about the kids, I'd pick another, more familiar picture out of the set (like the one of the White House, which I hear 11th graders got) and ask the kids what they know about that. They know Obama lives there, they know the George Washington lived there - even tho he didn't, they kinda get the president thing.</div><div><br />
</div><div>I am tenured, by the way.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Really, this is often the plight of the D75 teacher and their students. With this new observation rubric, and all the other edupeak hullabaloo coming down the line, which D75 schools are expected to follow to the letter - doing this kind of thing looks good "on paper." But I'd love, love, love to see someone show me what these expectations would look like with our kids.</div><div><br />
</div><div> Seriously - show me and I'll stop with the un - rigorous crap I do. "Computer!"</div><div><br />
</div><div>Coming up: The un-rigorous education D75 teachers provide.</div><div><br />
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</div>Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-55370025266031111992011-07-19T17:52:00.000-07:002011-07-19T17:52:16.317-07:00Thinking about becoming an alcoholic...but not quite there yet? Join NYCTF!Many of you obviously remember those signs on the trains....<br />
My first few years of teaching, through NYCTF, my "fellows" and I re wrote those signs...<br />
"What do you call a room full of sociopaths and psychotics? Your first period class. Join NYCTF"<br />
"Wanna learn how to duck chairs? Join NYCTF!"<br />
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So, some words on Fellows, TFAers, an the "alternate certification" thing:<br />
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Almost all of us have good intentions<br />
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Our training sucked. We got shafted. We literally know nothing. (Case in point: In June of my 2nd year I was asked for a kids AIS folder. I said "What's an AIS folder? What does AIS stand for?" ) We don't even know what questions to ask our first years. We also were fed all kinds of ego stuff - we were told we were "the cream of the crop" ad nauseum, so we think we know when we don't. Veteran or mentor teachers, or admins try to be sensitive to that...AND TELL US STUFF.<br />
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Many of us use it as a stepping stone to other things, that's unethical at best. If one teaches for a few years and decides it's not a good fit, that's one thing - but if you "get into" one of these programs for the prestige, or because you just graduated and dunno what to do with yourself - I suggest you pass. If you're 22 and wanna party - NOT the way to go.<br />
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For more veteran teachers, don't write one of us off immediately, for every Rueben Brosbe and E4E douche, there is another that really wants to be a good teacher - and we want your ideas, your support and sometimes your shoulder.Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9021545403302725467.post-12478993823570861842011-07-19T16:28:00.000-07:002011-07-19T16:56:08.257-07:00Miss Rim's tales from the short bus Once upon a time, there was a girl who was 5 (or so ) years out of college, working with developmentally disabled adults years out of college and searching.for something "more." Taking inspiration from her then colleagues and mother who was a teacher for 35 years, she applied to the New York City Teaching Fellows and was accepted to teach special ed.<br />
Whereupon, her mother replied, "Are you fucking CRAZY?"<br />
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And that's the end of the fairy tale.<br />
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In the interest of full disclosure, I was a Teaching Fellow. I now teach in D75 in an alternate assessment classroom, but did my first 2 years in a standardized class at a school for exclusively ED kids. I have highlights and lowlights, which are forthcoming.<br />
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My reading of the estimable Mr. A Talk has clinched my decision to write this blog. With all the hullabaloo out there, I think that the voice of special ed teachers, particularly in D75 needs to be heard. I will begin with a couple of readings about my specific experiences as a newer teacher in an alternate certification program...a "reflection" if you will...and then get a bit political....<br />
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Miss RImhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05130280849010652427noreply@blogger.com0