Let's Talk Common Core

There's a lot of outrage now these days about education, and a lot of it seems to stem from a hatred of Common Core. From Jon Oliver to Kasich's decision to outlaw PARCC after just one year, there is a lot of unrest when it comes to this topic. People aren't happy, and I admit that they do have something to be unhappy about. However, I'd say the blame is misplaced. A lot of people think all of the problems in education stem from Common Core: the federal standards that many states have adopted. If you believe this, please, go read the standards yourself. From what I've gathered, Common Core has had a very positive impact on education, and teachers (most anyway) have welcomed it with open arms. I myself have accepted the standards. Then again, they're really the only standards I've had within my short career, but they're good.

"But, Jake," you might say. "What about that video that shows how dumb Common Core math is?" Well, of course it's going to look silly to us; we learned math using rote learning. For those of us not savvy with teacher talk, rote learning is equivalent to memorization which is considered the lowest form of learning nowadays. We learned early on that 8+5=13 because we used blocks (real learning), then learned by writing over and over again what x+5= (rote learning), then took timed tests that tested our ability to recall that information (recollection of rote learning). We've sort of evolved from that in education. Now we're looking at getting deeper with learning. Watch the video again. Did you see some deeper learning that was taking place? Notice how those second graders are not only learning different strategies for adding, but they're learning ALGEBRAIC CONCEPTS?! WHAT?! Yup, it's kind of cool once you break it down. Now there are some concerns with this: are second graders ready for this kind of thinking? Can they really understand what it is they're doing? Yeah, they actually are. Granted, it takes a while, but with a good teacher they can make it. Considering my father was taught algebra in elementary school, I think they're up for the challenge. The question is: do we have teachers who are up for the challenge?

It's the same way with English teachers. I think now more than ever the language arts field is calling for teachers who - dare I say it? - write along with their students. I myself write poetry at least once a week in order to keep my writing skills sharp (I'll share that on another post). Whenever I have students write journals, I write a journal entry along with them - it's great for getting discussions going. With the English Standards, writing has more of a presence in the class which is phenomenal for the teachers who are ready to dig down and teach from their own writer's toolbox.

"So, Jake" you ask, "where should we put the blame?" Just as I'd direct one of my students, take a look back at the sources I linked early on in the article, the ones about Jon Oliver and "King" Kasich. The problem doesn't lie with the standards, but rather in our attempts to interpret what we should be assessing and how to assess it. So, to be clear, the standards are okay: it's the assessments that I have a problem with. I'll have more to talk about on that tomorrow after my first day of examining student data though. We'll see how that goes first.

Taking Charge of the Curriculum

This past Sunday, I had an experience that was strangely similar to going down the massive hill of a roller coaster. Except it felt like I didn't have any of the safety harnesses on, and I was gripping on to the one bar of sanity right in front of me for dear life. All of this was because I was lost in the district's various class curriculums, and I had no idea what I was going to be doing for any of my classes the next day.

At first, I thought the district's plan was streamlined to the point where all I would have to do is go through the steps and plan some activities for the students in order to build some depths of knowledge. Planning shouldn't take very long I thought to myself. I'll just wait until Sunday. Then I noticed how many resources the curriculum called for. It got to the point where I was wasting time looking for books I didn't even know the school had, then wasting more time looking through the book for that one work sheet the district plan called for. Looking back, I was spending about 30 minutes of planning for just 10 minutes of class time. I'm not much of a math person, but that ratio didn't sit well with me.

My first response was to give up and chant "Woe is me" straight into the next morning. I eventually picked myself up though, took a little walk around the school, and I got in contact with the head of the English curriculum for the school district. It turns out she was making a trip out to my site within the next couple of days; and when she arrived, we talked a little bit about the curriculum, how she went about teaching it when she was still teaching, and some general pointers for me. What it really came down to though is shifting my thinking about what and how to plan. She told me that, in the end, I'm the professional. I work with the kids day in and day out. I know what they need to know. I'm the one who decides what gets taught from the district's curriculum. If there is a worksheet that I'm having difficulty finding, then forget about it. Often times there is a portion of the class book the students use that can be used to test student comprehension with what is going on in class. Before I knew it, the district's curriculum became less of a code that needed to be followed, and it became more of a guideline. As it turns out, that's what I needed to know.

I've now taken charge of the curriculum. It's no longer the district's curriculum, but rather it is what I decide to teach. Of course, I still look at it to sort of lead me the way, but that's all it is doing. I can't depend on a virtual plan made by someone else to blaze the path in front of me. I have to blaze my own path.

Sorry for the Delay on Pictures!

Busy, busy, busy, busy. That's pretty much been me ever since I landed in Eek. Of course, I will definitely be posting some pictures and videos of where I'm staying at and my school. If all goes well with planning, I should have something for all of you tomorrow. Thanks for reading so far though, and thanks for the patience!

Being a Team Player

I graduated with a degree in Integrated Language arts, which means I'm qualified to teach 7-12 language arts. I don't have much experience with teaching anything else except using firearms, rules for board games, and writing poetry. Then, this conversation took place about four days ago:

Principal: Hey Jake, I have the schedules done for the High School.

Me: Oh! Cool! What courses do you have for me?

Principal: Well, you'll be teaching Physical Education, British Literature, Language Arts II, Health I, and two US History courses. 

Me: Wow. That's quite the day.

Principal: Yup. You okay with it?

Me: Yup. Challenge accepted.

Was I surprised by the fact that I'd be teaching and prepping for five different courses? Yeah, a little. However, it was pointed out to me very early on in the hiring process that I would be teaching other courses besides my English courses. So, I can't blame my principal at all, and I actually don't want to. I'm actually surprised that he already has that much trust in my ability despite the fact I just met him last week.

Of course, there were many ways I could have reacted to our conversation. I could've said, "ABSOLUTELY NOT! ARE YOU INSANE?" or I could have grumbled on about how I'm not much of a health kind of guy and how I would rather not teach anything but my English courses. That's not how it works though, not here at least. We are short a high school teacher, and these kids need the courses my principal gave me in order to graduate. Why would I deny them that? Sure, it'll be hard work, but I didn't get into the teaching business because it's easy.

At our staff meeting, my principal talked about choosing our attitudes. The comment brought me back to the fact that, as teachers, we have personas for teaching. In a way, teachers are actors and actresses. No matter how we feel when we wake up in the morning, no matter how much we dread the day, and no matter how much we want the day to be over with, we put on a smile and we teach. This is why I figured out early on that the people who have a background in some form of theatre - like myself and some of my peers - will become very strong teachers in a shorter amount of time. Sometimes, you really do have to fake it to make it; you just can't let anyone know that you're faking it.

In short, we all struggle. Or as the teachers here at Eek would say, we all have a fabulous struggle. You can choose to grumble on about how hard that struggle is, and how much you don't want to do it. I get it. It's easy to take that route. But we eventually have to do the work, so why not do it with a smile on your face and a look in your eyes that says "get out of the way"?

EDIT: I found out today that I'm also teaching Introduction to Culinary Arts. My attitude? It's still positive. I even have my first lesson planned out already! 

Not Yet

I'm fortunate to have many friends that care about education. Yes, I even have friends who are outside the field who care about it deeply, and they should. We all should. However, it became very clear to me that I had very different ideas than the people who are outside the field of education. For a time, I didn't have a good way of debating against what they were saying; I just assumed that it was more of a matter of opinion. It never sat right with me though, and when something doesn't sit right with me it sort of claws at the insides of my brain until a solution comes forward. Well, I found my rebuttal today.

The question was whether people should be given an education that was more tailored to their interests and skills - sort of like what's done at the college level - or do we keep the education system established as a more general font of knowledge. We all can understand the concept that everyone is usually good at something, that people are usually analytically minded or creatively minded. So why teach analytical subjects like calculus or physics to creative minded people? Why teach art appreciation or literature studies to someone who is more analytically minded? My friends would suggest that we need to find out what students are good at and interested in, and then design curriculums around that. That sounds nice, but what we are really teaching with this model is that, so long as you think you aren't good at something, you don't have to try or succeed at it. 

Now, I've created a bit of a strawman argument in that last paragraph. I'm sure people are shaking their heads and saying, "But Jake, that's not what I meant," and I believe them. Really, I do. But you still can't escape the fact that, when you vouch for an education system that only focuses on your natural abilities and interests, you not only take away the one thing necessary for a republic to function (which is a general education by the way), but you create a fixed mindset.

Carol Dweck does a much better job explaining growth mindset and fixed mindset, but I can tell you that you want students to have a growth mindset, that they can become better at anything they put their minds to with enough practice and effort. When I tell students that I appreciate their effort on something or I recognize that did try really hard, I'm creating a growth mindset. I want to encourage the idea that my students can do anything they put their minds to because I know they can. On the other hand, when a student does well on a test and a teacher tells them, "Wow! You're so smart!" and then the next test rolls around and the student fails it, what message does that convey to the student? That they weren't smart enough to pass that test. See the difference?

So let's go over it again (a lesson wrap up if you will, hehehe). A growth mindset is when you encourage the idea in students that they can do anything. Good effort is what you praise rather than whether the student succeeded or not. A fixed mindset though praises the innate abilities of your students - like their intelligence - which will eventually backfire into making the student think they aren't really all that smart when really they are. A general education - one that encourages students to attempt learning and grow in areas where they otherwise wouldn't be good in - is the type of education system that will win me over every time due to its importance for creating educated citizens of a republic, and creating a population that believes they can do anything they can put their minds to.

What I'm Doing

School starts on the 13th. I've just arrived in my village, my classroom has yet to be cleaned up and arranged, the smartboard still needs hooked up, and I'm pretty sure I have all of my textbooks and supporting materials. The question is: What in the world am I teaching? I know that I'm teaching a 9th grade, 10th grade, and British literature courses, but what are the particular passages I'm supposed to teach? What skills should I be focusing on?

Luckily, I was able to learn how to access the district's curriculum maps during my time at the inservice. I’m excited to say that I’m in love with my curriculum or at least how it is set up. As my site administrator told me: the curriculum is set up the way it is so I can have more time making the lessons fun rather than worrying at four o’clock in the morning wondering what I'm going to teach. For someone who has stayed up until four o’clock in the morning finishing up lesson plans, I just about cried when I saw that everything was already planned from August to May. All I have to worry about was the execution of the content and lessons, and differentiation of instruction. It’s still a bit of work, but now I don’t have to figure out if I want to teach the ellipsis first or the colon. The curriculum isn’t necessarily a script though; there is wiggle room for me in case I feel there is a better story or better way of going about teaching the skill for the day.

When my site administrator was telling me this, I remembered a huge revelation I had in one of my education classes. Language Arts education is moving from a content-based education and is moving towards a skills-based education. That is, I don’t really care if you’ve read To Kill a Mockingbird, but rather I care if you are able to explicate the themes from the novel, from other novels, and other genres of literature. This isn’t to say that reading To Kill a Mockingbird isn’t important. It is an important American novel (although stay away from Go Set a Watchman). However, being able to say that you’ve read To Kill a Mockingbird doesn’t really do anything for you in the long run except make you sound like some kind of literary snob. Being able to apply different skills for analyzing literature, applying writing and speaking skills, and applying reading skills are important for everything you read.

Of course, I’m not doing any sort of literary analysis while reading Game of Thrones. I think I’d much rather suck on a bucket of dried seal flipper (which tastes like fish flavored jawbreakers in case you’ve never had it). But we write every day. We talk every day.  We listen every day, although maybe not as much. These are skills that I teach, and I can teach them by using any good novel, poem, short story, novella, flash fiction, script, play, prose poem, or graphic novel. But then there’s the topic of teaching the different genres, but I think I’ll save that for another post in the future.

In short, I'm not worried. I'm not in a panic. I'm not even sweating bullets yet. I'm enjoying my time in the village, and also enjoying putting my class together. We'll see how I feel come Wednesday though.

Drinking From the Fire Hose

I’ve had several of my peers from Kent tell me they’ve learned more from their districts’ in-service days than they have in their entire college career. I’m not sure if I can say the same, but I've certainly learned a lot. For two days, each of the new educators of the Lower Kuskokwim school district came together and learned a little about the culture and what it meant to teach for the district. We covered topics concerning the cultural practices of the different villages and teaching which included: Yuraq (you-hawk) which is a traditional dance of celebration and prayer, subsistence living, how to cut a salmon, what I may expect when I land in the village and begin interacting with the families, my curriculum, and how the district can support my teaching. Did I mention I learned how to cut a salmon? It’s been quite a bit of information to say the least, but it’s been a wonderful experience thus far.

The culture here is amazing and diverse. The in-service days was opened by local dancers who came in and showed us Yuraq. Yuraq is a form of celebration and/or prayer through dancing. I can say it’s quite a bit of fun considering me and the other educators were invited to join in. The motions are all in the arms, shoulders, and head, and the women stand in the back while the men kneel in front. A drummer sits in the back and sings while beating a simple 4/4 rhythm. Each song tells a story that has a moral, and they range from songs about cranes and ravens to village elders speaking to young men. It’s a very freeing form of dance because, if you mess up, there is no pressure to correct yourself or make sure you don’t mess up again. People will laugh, but it’s a contagious laughter. If you aren’t good at laughing at yourself before you dance Yuraq then you certainly learn to by the end of the dance.

I also got to try some of the local dishes. I tried the baked salmon, fish stew (eyeballs, eggs, bones, and fins included), fish strips (sort of like a fish jerky), and seal. All were very good in their own ways. The baked salmon and fish strips reminded me of food I’d have back at home. The stew was delicious; it tasted like a any kind of chowder. You definitely had to get over the fact that it had a lot of eggs in it, and you had to be careful about the bones. The seal, although still good, was my least favorite because it tasted like eating a fishy tasting piece of leather. It’s supposed to be served with more oil on it than it had though, so I’ll chalk up my disappointment to that.

The last thing I’ll write about today are the expectations I’m supposed to have for living in the village. The more experienced staff said having a more reserved approach. Bush villagers are more quite and enjoy the silence of the day where as people from the lower 48 – like myself – are more prone to breaking that silence because we feel uncomfortable in it. Luckily, I have grown to have a better appreciation of silence ever since I started teaching. However, I was also told that the reserved attitudes of the villagers towards me will be temporary, that laughter is usually what fills the void after a while. I look forward to that very much.

Coping With Questions

It's about two hours until I have to board the first plane of four that will take me to Bethel, Alaska for my introduction to teaching there. Lots of thoughts are swimming through my head: What will the kids be like in Alaska? What will I be required to teach? Will I survive the depressing winter? Are chips and guacamole really worth $3.49 here at the airport? 

It's hard to determine when the questions will end. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've been asking questions, both profound and simple, since I learned to talk. My mother would tell you that, out of her three children, I was the worrier. So it's a wonder how I made it this far in life without most of my hair turning gray, or the need for some kind of medication for anxiety. How did I do it? How am I able to deal with all of these things at once while still being able to put my thoughts to words on a blog that, for once in my life, isn't required for a class I'm taking? The answer is pretty simple, and it's something that I think we all realize at one point or another: I've had a lot of help along the way.

One of the lessons I've learned in both my student teaching and education classes is that your friends and family are indispensable throughout life. I didn't keep in touch with a lot of my peers who graduated with me just because they're awesome and I love them all (that is a big part though), but also because I respect them as educators and can depend on them when I need them the most for advice and material. I've had wonderful professors along the way who've helped me with becoming a better Language Arts teacher as well. It's the same with my family. I have many family members who are great at what they do and can help me with just about anything, and they all love me and support me in what I'm doing.

Now it's pretty simple to say, just as the Beatles did, that we all need a little help from our friends from time to time. But really think about all the different things people do for you for a moment. C'mon, really think. They don't even have to be big favors. As my mother told me when I started dating, "It's the small things that really matter."

So before you go and thank whoever it is you thought of for whatever it is that they did, I'd like to take a moment to thank the people who've helped me along the way:

Mom and Dad: I can't even begin to describe or explain how thankful I am to have two wonderful parents who care for their children so much. You guys have been so supportive of me, and I hope that I continue to make you proud.

Mike and Angela: The amount of research you've done for me on Alaska is sure to put even the best of my research papers to shame. Thank you for your never-ending enthusiasm for my journey, and for providing me with a roof over my head during the summer. Oh, and sorry for the mess in the basement. 

Kent State INLA Class of 2015: You all continue to be models for me for being a great teacher and a great human being. Thank you all for your support and your dedication to improving education the world over.

My past teachers and professors: A lot of educators have told me that this job is worth doing so long as you reach at least one student, that you make a difference in at least one person's life. Well, I'm here to tell you you've done that. You all have inspired me to do what you do, and you all shaped me into the teacher I am. Thank you.

My friends and family: Thank you all for your immediate support in my decision. I will miss you all very much, and I hope to continue hearing from you all.

And thank you, reader, for taking the time to read my thoughts. Sometimes writers forget that it is the reader that we must depend on for our writing to mean something. I hope you will continue to visit and get to know me. Oh, and learn a few things along the way. After all, that is why I'm here.