tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77475881830677939732024-03-19T13:41:56.542-04:00lunchbyteblogmusings from me to you. education, local government, technology, and life as i see it here in newton, nc.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger89125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-42467196217066404842021-05-18T15:21:00.001-04:002021-05-19T08:33:45.860-04:00<p>Community is an important idea to many of us. We all live in communities of some kind and we interact within sub-communities of our community as a whole. Maybe you live in a city, have a church community that you belong to, and also have a work group that is also part of your community experience.</p><p>We are social animals and we often seek interaction with others. These days our communities may be physical groups or virtual groups. You're reading this on a social media platform and that is also a way that you interact with others.</p><p>Regardless, lately I've been reminded of the importance of community. As our world has changed over the past year or so each of us has reacted in different ways. Each of us has dealt with the pandemic based on our belief systems, our station in life, our family and friends, and other considerations. And for some of us, maybe all of us, there was no blueprint for how to move forward in this strange new world.</p><p>I say all of this because, as we move closer to normal, I'm noticing some things.</p><p>And it flies in the face of some of the things that people would have us to believe. </p><p>I'm starting to see people realize again that we, humanity, share common goals.</p><p>I know what you're thinking. You're thinking "How in the world can he believe that now?"</p><p>We've been through divisive political times here in our country. There's escalating tensions between countries of the world, both major and minor. There's lingering, doubts, fear, and distrust everywhere.</p><p>But I still see it.</p><p>And I still feel it.</p><p>And maybe I'm wrong.</p><p>But a friend reminded me lately of what it felt like after 9/11. And I agree with him. </p><p>First of all, it's hard to believe that was 20 years ago. But I remember the feeling of community that emerged after 9/11. For a brief instant, this country came together. No matter where you were, it seemed like people were a little nicer to each other. That we paused a little longer to check on people. That we donated, we volunteered, and we cared a little more. Even if it was briefly.</p><p>I feel that way now. </p><p>We are coming out of a year that many of us never saw coming. And quite frankly, that very few of us were prepared for.</p><p>I've noticed a sense of relief with people as many begin to emerge physically, mentally, and socially from the shadows and begin to reacclimate themselves to the light.</p><p>And I've noticed that we are caring about each other a little more. </p><p>This has been a rough year.</p><p>But we are coming out on the other side a little closer and a little stronger.</p><p>Over the past month or so, I've seen people in my community of Newton really reaching out to support others. </p><p>Many businesses both new and old in the city have held fundraisers for non-profit entities seeking to help people (and animals) that have suffered through this year. </p><p>Leading the way are many bars, breweries, and restaurants. One could argue that those who were hit hardest by the pandemic are those also leading the charge to help people. </p><p>Other local groups have come together to help friends who have had health issues. Small groups have come together to clean, to beautify, to plant, to somehow, in someway make things better for others.</p><p>And this has all happened despite our differing political beliefs, our different views on religion, or any other things that people might use to define and/or divide us.</p><p>In the end, we are all part of one big human community, and we can put our arms around each other and lift each other up. I hope if we have learned anything from this pandemic it is that life can change in an instant and that we are all in this together.</p><p>Let's take care of each other.</p><p>Y'all have a great day.</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-53612124846946268312021-03-18T07:23:00.000-04:002021-03-18T07:23:18.385-04:00The Cost of Taking Care of (your) Business<p>Tuesday night at the regularly scheduled meeting of the Newton, NC city council we had a presentation given to council by our Public Works director Dusty Wentz. Mr. Wentz outlined the operations of the Wastewater Treatment Plant(WTP). He had several maps and diagrams showing the ins and outs of the Wastewater Treatment Plant. He later made several other presentations that involved budget ordinance amendments and approvals of money for the WTP. </p><p>It was an interesting night that showed that many of our tax dollars go to places where the general public may not see evidence of the monies being spent. In the past 5 years the city has spent $959,352 on 17 projects at the WTP. We approved another half a million in dollars last night. All of this is to keep the WTP up and running and in compliance with both state and federal regulations. </p><p>There's nothing exciting about spending these dollars. They don't really cause people to exclaim in admiration about the great job the city is doing. Most people will never know. They just want their toilets to flush when they push the handle. But these things have to be done. And these are the kinds of projects that are approved at many meetings. </p><p>Sometimes we get to approve projects that the public sees. Things like the Downtown Streetscape Revitalization project are nice. People look at the work we've done downtown and feel a sense of pride. But even with that project, most of the money spent was underground. Almost 70% of the cost was in updating failing infrastructure that most people will never see. We have many places around the city where this is the case.</p><p>This city staff and this council is working hard to update and upgrade many aspects of our city. But we didn't get to this place overnight and it isn't going to be solved overnight either. I'm sure we'll have growing pains along the way. But I know that we are building on our brilliant legacy and heading toward a bright future.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-52318307133466327542015-12-01T14:03:00.001-05:002015-12-01T14:03:26.602-05:00Discovery High School<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wander the halls of Discovery High School at Newton Conover on any given day and you will immediately see that this is not a traditional high school. Students might be sitting in the hall working on laptops, or writing on a “chalk-talk” board where students respond to open-ended questions, or they might be filming videos for a class project. If you happen to venture outside, the students might be sitting and eating at outdoor tables, or working in the school greenhouse. You might have passed one or two students on your way in, blowing leaves or tidying up the memorial garden. Students might be in the media center, working on online classes, or in the creativity room painting, or filming in front of a green screen. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">These students do not fit the stereotype of a surly teenager, though they are certainly teenagers. They are polite. They answer questions from visitors. They continue about their business. Teachers move in and out of these places purposefully interacting with these students. The teachers ask questions, call the students by name, and might challenge student thinking. Other teachers might be lecturing in classrooms or helping students working on projects. A visitor might recognize semblances of their own experience in high school, but there are also major differences.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And that’s just the way they want it at Discovery High School.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Discovery was started as a “redesigned” high school within the framework of the New Schools Project in NC. Initially funded by money from Gates grants to New Schools, Discovery is now funded entirely by Newton Conover City Schools. DHS is a public magnet school and is seen as an alternative to the traditional high schools in the area. Students from the area must apply to attend, and Discovery staff interviews every student who applies.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Currently, there are 196 students who attend Discovery High School. School officials would like to get that number to about 250 students total and to stay around that number for the foreseeable future. The idea is that a small school is more like a family. Students and teachers know each other well and thus, relationships are formed. A certain level of trust between teachers and students lends to a more fluid and open environment. Students are often self motivated and allowed to incorporate their own interests into their school projects.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Discovery is a project based, 1:1 laptop school. Students work individually, in pairs, or groups using the latest technologies to learn curriculum. They produce work and take tests just like at other schools. The pathways to learning just might be different.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In their less than 10 years in existence, Discovery has won many major accolades and awards. ASCD, PD360, and MTV have all filmed on campus to highlight DHS and the innovation taking place there. In 2008, Discovery won the Innovator Award from NC New Schools. DHS has presented at the Model Schools conference, and the NC New Schools conference. In 2015, they were named as a top 20 high school in NC by the Washington Post. US News and World Report put them in the top 30 high schools in NC. They recently became the only high school in NC to be named as an Exemplar School by the Partnership for 21st Century Learning. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With all of this recognition, Discovery still continues to strive for excellence. They continue to challenge tradition and examine assumptions. Discovery High School is an ever evolving entity and they are looking for creative, self-directed, hard-working students. Applications for next year have gone live on the DHS website and can be found </span><a href="http://dhs.newton-conover.org/apps/news/article/519996" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></div>
<span id="docs-internal-guid-0e84bde2-5eec-6dcc-d2e1-68cf6adcf663"><br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-89760953867923602262015-09-01T06:53:00.000-04:002015-09-01T06:53:18.799-04:00CommunityJust about every morning at Discovery High School I am in the hallway greeting students as they enter the building. Usually I refer to the day of the week and loudly proclaim something like "people of earth, I see you," or "people of the Discovery tribe, good morning!" I feel like it's important to let students know that we are happy that they are here. And I think that for some of them it helps to wake them up.<br />
I was thinking about this this morning because lately I have been considering the idea of community and what makes a strong community. As some people may know, I am currently in the middle of a campaign for city council. One of the things that people often ask me is "why did you decide to run?" It's a good question and it's one that I ask myself as well.<br />
"Why did I decide to run?"<br />
There are varying reasons that I will get into later and that might be better served in a different forum but for me the underlying idea is that I want to make my city better. I see things that need to be changed. I see work that needs to be done. I want to help make positive changes. I think I'm the right person to help make those changes. It boils down to the fact that this is a community that I care about.<br />
And there's that word again. Community.<br />
It has different meanings to different people. Here at school we have a community time where the entire school assembles and we share information, celebrate successes, recognize individuals who embody the spirit of Discovery, and feature the talents of our students. It's a fun time where we are all together and it helps us to build this "Discovery Tribe." It's shared by all of us and is important to us.<br />
But a community should also mean something bigger. Here at Discovery we bring many students from all over the area into our school. These students come from different feeder schools, different districts, and different counties in some situations. We throw them all together here and try to make something special.<br />
But one of the things I think we often overlook is the parents of these students. These parents come from disparate backgrounds as well. And we want them to be part of our community. Let me correct myself. We NEED them to be part of our community. We, as a school, can't be as successful as we want to be without the support of the parents.<br />
Parents have always been an integral part of a school, Sometimes it isn't as evident as it used to be but schools need parents in a big way. In a time when societal support is waning for public schools, and our own state government can't pass a budget to fund basic services, parents are the life-line to making schools better. Schools need to appeal to our parents more and we need to not be afraid to ask for help. Parents often ask what they can do to help. We need to ask them to help when we need them and they need to be prepared to step up when we do so.<br />
You see, this is central to the idea of a community. People depending on one another, holding each other accountable, and working together to make a better place. Parents, teachers, students. A school is a community and we are all in this together. Parents and students expect a lot from their school. And they are right to do so. But we are never stronger when we are all in this together. Supporting one another. Fighting the good fight. Striving to become more than the sum of our parts. Working to become the best school possible. The best community possible. And that's going to take all of us.<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-66186383356736383782015-03-23T08:35:00.000-04:002015-03-23T08:35:31.290-04:00and now for something completely different...I've said in the past that I might use this blog for things other than technology or teaching. So here we go.<br />
One from the archives:<br />
<br />
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">a moment in march
03/07/04<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">dabbed colors blur on the edge of
vision and<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">what cost is our sight worth?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">forgive me for the moment<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">surrendering to the melancholy<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">to fatigue, to often grim realities<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">etched in stone for history.<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">this night is hopeful<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">maybe because of lessons learned-<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">sometimes it’s in the breathing,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">still others, when it abruptly
stops...<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">do we perceive ourselves <o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">as those few lines in newsprint?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">or is this, “the stuff of life”<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">greater than that?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">are my dreams still real?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">are any of us where we <o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">imagined ourselves to be?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">open hearts are, sadly, more<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">in the realm of surgery<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">than something looked upon<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">with awe and understood<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">when we remember days of<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">“ill show you mine,” and how<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">as children, we were transparent-<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">love and anger, happy and sad<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">all from moment to moment<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">in lyrical necessity living,
breathing<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">existing on the edge of what we
were-<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">unborn, and commingling with what we
saw,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">what was heard, phrases uttered
carelessly,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">examples shown, learning to grow<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">in ways maddening and unexpected.<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">innocence slips silently<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">away in small bits<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">dreams die in collisions<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">with expectations of conformity.<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">sit right here young man and tell me
why you did that.<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">you don’t really think that way now
do you?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">it’s a stage he’s going through,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">it’s the medication talking,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">it’s a mid-life crisis,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">senility,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">he was just a little eccentric...<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">these cycles, these universes we<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">inhabit where does time go?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">how do we get there from here?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">can you show me the path?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">can you show me the way?<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">strings attached to one another,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">chaotic conclusions, levels of hell,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">planes of existence.<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">whatever it is, we are but a pea<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">in the soup, in the fog<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">catching fleeting glimpses of <o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">something other than here and now,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">once remembered and forgotten<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">lifetimes in beautiful streams of<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">suddenly coherent and cohesive space
and time.<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;"> </span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">and just like that<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">fading and lost,<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">gone, untouchable<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">and we can’t quite put<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">our finger on it-<o:p></o:p></span></address>
<address>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: JA;">out on the edge of vision.<o:p></o:p></span></address>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-44901111907554595372015-03-18T13:43:00.003-04:002015-03-18T13:43:57.771-04:00How often do you have to blog to be considered a blogger? If I haven't blogged in over a year am I still a blogger? Was I ever a blogger?<br />
A few friends have been after me to start writing again so I thought maybe we would take this old blog out for a ride. Knock the dirt off of the tires. See what happens.<br />
Today I want to talk about old habits. You know, they die hard. Just like our affinity for using the same old tools and the same old worksheets and the same old jokes. As humans we tend to gravitate toward the tried and true. But is it all so tried and true anymore? Just because something worked for students five years ago doesn't mean it's going to work today. Or maybe it will. I don't know.<br />
The point here is that we shouldn't be scared to try new things. New ways of delivering info, new ways of imparting knowledge. Just try it. You might like it. -Sam I am<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-42703034264320893762013-09-23T17:15:00.001-04:002013-09-23T17:15:44.738-04:00Road TripOnce of the things that I was trying to accomplish with my last post was to put forth the idea that, often, learning takes place outside the walls of the traditional classroom. In fact, I would argue that in the history of the world a very small percentage of learning has taken place inside a classroom. Real knowledge comes from real experience and one of the things that we are horrible at manufacturing in schools is reality. Most of the time, the things that students are supposed to be doing and learning have little obvious connection with the reality of the world outside the confines of the school. Our reaction to this is the push for PBL.<br />
PBL seeks to make learning relevant. Projects aren't treated as isolated bits of knowledge for students to learn. The projects should be integrated within the framework of the curriculum and should include as many real world experiences as possible. The audience should be bigger than the teacher and the project should include opportunities for students to engage in practicing 21st century skills.<br />
Today my students began to investigate Lewis and Clark through the PBS website and Ken Burns' documentary. I always talk about Lewis and Clark embarking on the greatest of road trips. We will try to expand this idea tomorrow by launching a project on the Great American Road Trip. Students will examine why people "take to the road." What kinds of things push people to move, to explore? <br />
Students will partner up and look at specific instances in US History when Americans moved about and what were the motivations for this movement? The students will then design a museum exhibit based around the idea of a road trip and will seek to display the reasons why Americans have taken to the road in the past. The exhibits will be set up in an area where people from outside the school can see them and give feedback. I look forward to seeing what the students come up with.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-52895158181774664192013-09-17T17:11:00.000-04:002013-09-17T17:11:19.100-04:00Redesign = rethinkingWow. It's been almost a year since I last posted on this site. Seems like school begins to happen and I lose track of time and space. Every year it happens and then I turn around and I have gone months and months without posting. I won't vow to change that this year. I've been around the block long enough to know all the cliches that go with resolutions and vows. I won't beat a... oh, never mind.<br />
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I do have something on my mind though. It's been bugging me for a few days and being that I do have a soap box of sorts, I think I'll stand on it for a minute.<br />
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Last Friday, our school took the whole school on a field trip to the park. Yep, the entire school. To the park. And? It was awesome. Easily the best day of the year so far.<br />
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Why the park? Why the entire school? What did we hope to accomplish?<br />
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Let me try and explain.<br />
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Our school is what is known as a redesigned high school in NC. The General Assembly of NC refers to us as a Cooperative and Innovative high school. What that really means is that we are charged with redesigning high school as we know it. We are trying to be innovative. Trying to throw out some of the old that may not work as well as it once did. Questioning why we do things. RETHINKING assumptions.<br />
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Our school also pulls students from 3 different school districts across our county. We serve as a magnet school of sorts. Once students choose to attend here, students from different feeder schools are suddenly thrown into classes with people they have never met; people they may have little in common with. As a school, we hope to take all of these varied personalities and mold them into the best people they can be.<br />
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So we took them to the park, for a day of team building, away from the walls that are too small even for a small school. Away from the rooms that are too small for the amount of students that have to be packed into them. Away from 3 weeks worth of classes, subjects, books, and teachers preaching the gospel of standards and curriculum, and into the great outdoors.<br />
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The planning that went into this undertaking was gargantuan. Things like buses, subs, schedules, approvals, permission slips, parent signatures, etc... all had to be worked out. And it was hard. Seemingly there was a never ending litany of hoops to jump through and obstacles to avoid. But in the end, we made it happen. And it was so worth it.<br />
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A beautiful day with students outside. They did team building activities, played soccer, went for walks, gave awards to each other, took pictures, recited monologues, played guitar, and blogged about their experiences. When it was all over they cleaned up after themselves, thanked us for making it happen, and enjoyed the ride back to campus. As we unloaded the buses, I watched students from different grades and different walks of life hug each other. A few gave high fives. All had smiles on their faces.<br />
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The smiles and the hugs and the high fives, they made it all worthwhile. For one day, actually for half a day, we had taken them out of school where the SCHOOLING takes place. We had put them in a different environment and LEARNING took place. And that's why redesign = rethinking. That's why all the trouble was worth it. And why I hope we do it again soon. No matter how hard it was to make it happen.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-6565526531716875572012-10-01T11:10:00.000-04:002012-10-01T11:10:56.694-04:00students grading teachers (man bites dog)This morning I found this article in my reader:<br />
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<a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/10/why-kids-should-grade-teachers/309088/3/?single_page=true">http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/10/why-kids-should-grade-teachers/309088/3/?single_page=true</a><br />
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I agree with the article. I have publicly espoused this view for many years. I said as much more than 20 years ago, almost 25 now, when I interviewed for the NC Teaching Fellows Scholarship as a young and naive high school senior. If you want to know what's happening in a classroom, ask the students. They know.<br />
Students are captive audiences day in and day out. They know the inner workings of a school or a classroom intimately. We should ask for, and value, their feedback.<br />
We haven't quite hit on a good way to evaluate teachers. States want to use test scores to say how effective teachers are. This is a cheap way to evaluate teachers which is why state legislatures often like this method. However, a test score will never show how a teacher changes a student's life. A test score will never show that a teacher takes a kid home on some days, stays after school to talk to a student about their life, or cares about the student as a human being. Tests only show a tiny amount about teachers and should only compare student growth across time using data from the same students.<br />
<b id="internal-source-marker_0.05395506927743554" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Accountability should be measured in many ways. All stake-holders should have a say. I have never believed that standardized tests tell the whole story with regard to teaching. I do believe that they can be part of the picture. Peer, parent, student, and supervisory observations and reviews should all be part of an accountability model for educators. Teachers that perform poorly in this accountability model would receive additional help tailored to improve their performance in areas of concern. Some would say that this would become merely a popularity contest. I would counter that the “popularity” effect could be minimized. At any rate, a certain amount of public perception and satisfaction should be part of our jobs as teachers. </span><br /><span style="font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Peers should also be used in an accountability model. Teachers know what is going on in their schools. Peer reviews and observations should be part of any accountability model with regard to the teaching profession. Doctors do this when they have rounds. Doctors observe other doctors and comment on what they observe. The reasoning behind this is that both parties will become better professionals because of the experience.</span><br /><span style="font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I have always argued that students know better than anyone what is going on in the classroom. Student reviews should be part of a teacher accountability model. We do this at a university level but don’t often do this at elementary, middle, and secondary levels. We should. Again, statistical corrections could be made so that the effect of outlying data could be minimized. If we don’t trust the students, how can we expect them to trust us?</span></b>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-38457373512084410732012-09-28T10:33:00.000-04:002012-09-28T10:33:30.080-04:00I had this brief moment of reflection just a bit ago. I was thinking about the things that I had asked my students to do today and I realized that most of the things they were doing couldn't have been done in school even just a few years ago. Things are changing quickly and I hope I am able to stay on top of the wave of educational technological changes.<br />
As I write this, it's 10:20 in the morning and I'm in the middle of my freshman level World History class. There are students who are finishing yesterday's assignment: a video from PBS where Bill Moyers interviews Salman Rushdie. These students are thinking about radical religious views and how fringe elements in religions change the public perception of those religions. This follows up a #PBL project that we just finished where I asked students how religion causes people to hate.<br />
Other students have finished the video and are working through 2 assignments on the Sas Curriculum Pathways site. They are analyzing documents, watching and listening to online presentations, and emailing me their results. I posted the link to the assignments on our class edmodo page and their grades will be posted to our school engrade account in the next few days.<br />
While they were working on those assignments, I was posting grades and typing a test that my US history students will take on Monday. The test will be on engrade where I can automatically enter the grades with a click of a couple of buttons.<br />
The first period US History class worked through a study guide that I gave them for the test. They used my notes, which are online in power point form on the school website, and various internet sites to help them work through the study guide. They will continue to work on the study guide over the weekend and will text me or post to edmodo if they have questions. As the day goes on, I will tweet out several questions and answers for Monday's test as a reward to those students who have followed the class twitter account.<br />
Technology has certainly changed our world and is changing our classrooms. I'm just hoping my surfing skills will allow me to stay above water.<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-35598842947805265692012-09-24T19:11:00.001-04:002012-09-24T19:11:28.867-04:00 Today, my Honors US History students finished their 2nd true #PBL project. Their task was to design a museum exhibit around the idea of the "Great American Road Trip." In other words, they were to look at times that Americans had taken to the road. I gave them 15 topics to choose from and they spent about a week researching these topics, taking notes, writing quiz questions, and putting together museum exhibits about the topics of their choosing. They set up their exhibits today and I had people from the community, district office, parents, and other students come by and look at the exhibits and rate them with a rubric. Tomorrow the students will take student generated quizzes on the information that they deemed the most important about their projects.<br />
My takeaways from my 2nd #PBL project:<br />
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<ul>
<li>Involvement of "outsiders" is a must. Students have to know that it isn't just me looking at their projects. This makes the project more real.</li>
<li>Allowing others a chance to "grade" the project is also important. Students have to know that there is a level of work that most people expect. When I bust on them for doing work that isn't their best, they just think it's me giving them a hard time. When other people point out that the students didn't perform up to the level of their ability, students reconsider.</li>
<li>Giving the students voice and choice over their products was a good idea. They were able to be creative and got to focus on subjects that mattered to them.</li>
<li>I needed to give the students more time with the rubric. They didn't have enough time to adjust their exhibits to the demands of the rubric.</li>
<li>I need to communicate my thoughts about the project better. I realized at some point today that what I think an exhibit should look like is different than what they may think it should look like. No one was at fault and it didn't harm their grade, but I need to do a better job of having them visualize what the end product looks like.</li>
<li>Students really need help to think through the process. Some of them didn't manage their time very well and so were doing some last minute tweaks. Projects should be ready to go when the deadline is reached.</li>
<li>My students are very creative and did an awesome job!</li>
</ul>
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Pics and other comments to follow as soon as I get them uploaded.</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-91526385229923570022012-09-05T14:04:00.001-04:002012-09-05T14:04:27.968-04:00Things I Want to Say to Other Teachers<b id="internal-source-marker_0.667060176609084" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I would say to teachers, don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid to think differently, don’t be afraid to try new things, don’t be afraid to fail; miserably. Pick yourself up and go at it again. It won’t always work the way we believe it will when we are planning it out. Our students have to know that as well. We learn from our mistakes.</span><br /><span style="font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I wonder if we interviewed the teachers that taught us, would they say that they were worried about the future? Would they say that things were changing fast? That they were worried about the ability of schools to keep up with a changing society? Would they say that they were worried about us taking care of them in their old age?</span><br /><span style="font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> And yet, here we are. In spite of ourselves. Giving it a go. We have become productive citizens. I believe that our students, today’s students will too. We have to believe in them. We have to treat them “as if” they are already the people that we know that they can be. Maybe, in doing so, we inspire them to be that person that they see inside of themselves.</span><br /><span style="font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> So, I would say to teachers, believe in your students. Believe in their abilities. Accept these students where they are, and push them to be better. Challenge them to be become the people we know that they can be.</span></b>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-44782712142212221522012-09-04T20:11:00.001-04:002012-09-04T20:11:29.961-04:00I've been doing some writing as of late, so I figure I might as well post some of my musings here. Feel free to agree or disagree. Comments are always welcome.<br />
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<b id="internal-source-marker_0.30623998609371483"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I tend to think of teachers in the same way that I think of doctors. Doctors treat patients who may or may not follow the advice of the doctors. Teachers are like that, we have very little control over our student’s lives while they are away from us. </span><br /><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Most people remember their teachers, both the good and the bad. We all had good teachers that molded us as human beings and made us want to be better. We all also had “bad” teachers. The difference is that we can go to other doctors for second opinions if we do not believe our doctors. Or we can switch doctors entirely. Students often do not get a choice as to what teacher they get. That’s why it’s imperative to have good teachers. Most people respect teachers, but also recall the bad teachers they had. To improve the teaching profession we need to have strong teacher support programs to help teachers who are having problems. The use of rounds and critical friends protocols could help all teachers improve their methods.</span><br /><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I try to model the use of rounds at my current school. My colleagues and I have committed ourselves to this. We observe each other and provide feedback to each other. I would encourage all teachers to take part in the rounds process. By observing others we often learn something about ourselves. I would also encourage teachers to share lessons with one another in a critical friends setting. Through the use of critical friends, educators might find help with the planning of lessons. This “extra set of eyes” on a lesson in the planning stage might be able to spot problems before they emerge. </span></b>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-69569466371406304262012-07-02T14:08:00.003-04:002012-07-02T14:08:50.559-04:00So, is it wrong that it's summertime and I don't want to post anything about school? To me, summer is a time to get away from all things school. It is a time to recharge our batteries, experience life on our own terms. It is a time to quit thinking about school and start thinking about our friends, and our families. It's a time to explore, to be the people we dream ourselves to be.<br />
I decided all of this while I was sitting here at my desk in the basement of the house. The last 3 days have been record setting days of the heat variety. I have done my best to avoid the hot parts of the day and have embraced water in whatever version it happens to present itself. Last night we even had some rain and I have to tell you that I danced in it for just a bit. All the gardens in our neck of the woods needed some rain. My spirit needed some rain. Hopefully there will be more rain this afternoon.<br />
But thinking of the rain and the local gardens reminded me that I had a bunch of work to do at the school garden. I have neglected it for the past week or so. I've only been over there to pick cucumbers or munch on some cherry tomatoes. But there is much work. The weeds have just about taken over.<br />
So I guess in this post I'm asking for your permission. Permission for another day of avoiding the garden. Permission for another day of avoiding school. Permission for not looking at all the notes I have written to myself. <br />
It seems I have lots to say and do but very little motivation to do these things. Sometimes we just need another day to play. Another day to enjoy summer vacation.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-15018661183019295192012-06-25T20:45:00.000-04:002012-06-25T20:45:42.661-04:00day 1<div>
Today, we had day 1 of our PBL training. It was the kind of staff development that makes you think. And that's a good thing. </div>
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I won't get into much of it here today because I'm waiting to see what the next two days will bring before I talk too much about it. I also won't get into much because my colleague @sraspanglish has beaten me to the proverbial punch with her great post on day 1 of our Buck Institute ( @biepbl) training. You can read her post here: <a href="http://sraspanglish.blogspot.com/2012/06/buck-institute-day-1-deliverable.html">http://sraspanglish.blogspot.com/2012/06/buck-institute-day-1-deliverable.html</a></div>
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She did a great job showing the cool kinds of #pbl training that we are receiving and the thinking processes involved.</div>
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I won't post my project here because, to be honest with you, it pales in comparison to the exciting project she has described. Also, because I can't seem to wrap my head around what I want the students to do.</div>
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I'm going to let this one stew for another night while I collect my thoughts. But a quick takeaway from today.</div>
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#1. The learning must be authentic. Which means, why do the students WANT to do the project? Have you hooked them with a great driving question? Does the driving question lead to more questions? Are they intrigued by the question? Are they intrigued by the product? There must be a real world application somewhere, somehow and the students must see it.</div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-15054130149140086012012-06-24T10:24:00.001-04:002012-06-24T10:25:25.258-04:00Again.Now that summer is here, I've been thinking about this blog more and more. I've been unhappy with it and its scope for quite sometime. So, I've decided to do something about it.
The tweaks are in the works. The blog will still be mostly about education, technology, and the happenings around our school. But, I will also post about other things from time to time. All work and no play makes me a dull boy. And might also make for a dull blog. So, I'm going to try and post more often and it might not always be about education or technology. I hope though, that it does make sense and causes people to think.
Check back with us when you have the time.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-77685888837734554572012-03-19T10:28:00.002-04:002012-03-19T10:45:23.985-04:00beyond the textbookMy twitter stream has been filled most of the morning with the hashtag #beyondthetextbook and it has been an interesting conversation. I thought while I was thinking about it I would write a couple of short notes about the conversation.<br /><br />#1. I am all for losing the traditional textbook. As it stands now, most of my classes don't use the textbook very often. I don't think that US History has used their text at all this year. World History has done some work out of their book here and there. AP US has nightly reading assignments from their book but I could just as easily give them readings from somewhere else. But there are problems.<br />Internet access is absolutely critical to losing the text. In the classes that I teach that use the computer lab, I almost never refer to the book. But in the classes without access, the students use their book more. It would either be a text of some kind or internet access. If I ran off all the things that I wanted my students to read then my school might get angry and the way that I was using up paper resources for readings.<br /><br />#2. The biggest resistance would come from people who use the book quite a bit. Some of these might be veteran teachers but some might also be new teachers who are still learning content. It's nice when veteran teachers have been teaching the same thing for many years and have lots of resources. Unfortunately, most novice teachers don't have many resources. I wonder if we made veteran teachers teach a new subject if those teachers would so easily be able to get rid of the text.<br /><br />#3. Parents like to know that the students have textbooks. We would have to change the way that parents view education in order to get rid of all textbooks. Of course, this applies to everyone who has ever gone to school. Part of the problem with any ed reform is the fact that we have to convince stakeholders that the schools do, in fact, know what they are doing.<br /><br />Anyway, just a few quick thoughts. Maybe I'll come back to this later after I have more time to think on it.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-87240770752977991742012-01-30T09:55:00.004-05:002012-01-30T10:59:01.693-05:00brief thoughts on ipadsAs you may or may not know by now, our district has an ipad pilot program going on and my classroom (as well as several others) is a part of this program. The district began this pilot by asking teachers to apply for a classroom set of ipads. Several teachers at our school decided to apply together and we were chosen as one of three classrooms to receive a set of ipads.<br />Now, after a few months of using the ipads, I feel like I might have a bit of insight into the nuts and bolts of ipads in the classroom. So here are a quick few thoughts on the good, the bad, and the ugly of using ipads in a high school social studies classroom.<br /><br />We'll go in reverse order to end on a high note.<br /><br />The Ugly:<br />Ever had one of those days where nothing goes right? If you are planning on using ipads in the classroom then prepare for several of those days early on. There will just be times where the technology doesn't work the way that you think it is going to work. <br />We had days where only half of the ipads would connect to our school wifi. We had days where the students had entered less than desirable "phrases" into auto-correct. We had days where students had deleted the apps that we were planning on using. We've had days. Boy, have we. But now, we have solved most of those problems and those days happen a lot less often. We still have problems here and there but it isn't as ugly as it once was and we are still learning and tweaking what we are doing. The point is, we're learning along with the students and although we had some ugly days, we worked through them and now things are running much more smoothly.<br /><br />The Bad:<br />Ipads require a lot of upfront time and planning. Really, all lessons require planning and thought whether or not you are using ipads or books or paper and pencil. The thing that makes the ipads stand-out as really useful and cool for education is the amount of apps available. Of course, if you are going to use these apps, they have to be loaded on the ipads. Sometimes they have to be PURCHASED. This takes time. The district has done a great job of streamlining this process but it still takes a few days. So, if I want to use a PAID app next week in one of my classes, I've got to know that a week ahead of time and I have to plan accordingly. <br />If I want to use a free app, I still need to give myself time to load the app on the ipads. This usually takes me a little time and can't be a last minute thing. One of my colleagues just came in here with an idea and looked at the ipads to see if they had an app he could use tomorrow. They didn't. Neither of us has time in our schedule today to spend loading new apps. So he'll have to come up with another idea or wait until tomorrow when I have a planning period or he has lab time to look for an app and to download it and sync it to all the ipads.<br />Another time suck as far as the ipads go is actually finding and testing the apps. You have to spend some time looking at apps, reviewing apps, and playing around with them to see if they do what you want them to do. Some of this is fun. Some of it is not. It is all time consuming. It helps to find people you trust and ask them what they are using. For instance, there are all kinds of mind-mapping apps. Which one should I use. Which one has the most functionality? Should I pay for one or is there a free one that works? All of these questions have to be answered before you load the app on the ipad.<br /><br />The Good:<br />Instant Engagement. As soon as students touch the ipad, they are engaged. We did an oregon trail lesson and students didn't want to leave when the period was over. They begged to keep playing. They have never begged me to keep lecturing.<br />A variety of tools. This is an instance where the ipad is like a swiss army knife. There are so many different apps that are available. Want to take an easy survey? There's an app for that. Want students to look at maps of the world? There's an app for that. Want students to read a text and make their own flash cards? You guessed it. There's an app for that. There's an app for almost everything and students LIKE using these apps. The ipad is, without a doubt, a game changer.<br />Couple that with movies, books, presentations, etc... that students can view on the ipad and it quickly becomes apparent that this little tablet device is going to make the classroom of the future the classroom of the present pretty quickly.<br /><br />Let me know what you think.<br /><br />links are to our district ipad pilot page and to my colleague geoff crosson's blog where he is also talking about ipad lessons and other related educational type <br />things.<br /><br /><a href="http://ipadsinschool.blogspot.com/">http://ipadsinschool.blogspot.com/<br /></a><br /><a href="http://crossonedu.wordpress.com">http://crossonedu.wordpress.com</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-23359376682957558422012-01-12T12:08:00.002-05:002012-01-12T12:15:40.137-05:00Time fliesOne of my colleagues asked me about this blog a day or so ago. He wanted to know if I had moved it to another place. My response was "no, I've just been busy and haven't thought about it very much."<br />Time flies these days. It's hard for me to fathom that three months have passed since I last updated this blog. But I promise, posts are on the way. I've much to talk about but first I have to finish reading senior papers. That should be done soon and then I'll be back. I promise. Until then, keep on rocking in the free world...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-32014615938109694982011-10-19T10:23:00.002-04:002011-10-19T10:36:53.311-04:00adventures in bloggingtoday, our APUSH students began blogging for the first time. i admit, their first blog post was a little constraining. i was asking them to answer an APUSH essay question. but i feel as if this situation was controlled enough to give them guidelines. we went over some general thoughts about blogging and then i turned them loose. so for 35 minutes they wrote about the political views of jefferson and hamilton and they tried to prove a point. then i stopped them. we moved on.<br />but i told them that they could revise as many times as they liked. i am going to "grade" the essay on what exists when i visit their blog. so they can go back and edit it all they want. i am also giving them "points" for having a peer and an adult comment on the essay. i figure they've got to develop an audience so why not begin to build that in with their first post?<br />i know that they won't be able to type their ap essays. i also know that they won't be able to revise over time. so, ap wise, i don't know that it is that authentic of an assignment. what i do know is that they will think about jefferson and hamilton a little more. they will think about their writing and revise it. they will discuss this writing with others. they will have comments about their writing that maybe offer suggestions and encouragement. and they will begin a journey into a public forum that will have a real audience.<br />so, here's hoping the journey is a pleasant one. i'll let you know.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-67079377386857490722011-09-20T20:18:00.005-04:002011-09-20T21:04:05.067-04:00How Waterworld and a good classroom are alike"I have to be honest. After 17 years of teaching, I can't tell you how to teach. I can't even really describe what is the best way to do something." These are the words I wanted to say to our student teacher (ST) the other day. But I didn't say them. I mean, I kind of said them. But not really. <br />And of course, we all know what good teaching looks like. We can tell who the "good" teachers are and who the "bad" teachers are can't we? We knew when we were in school. You remember then? "Man, this teacher is bad..." we thought to ourselves. District administrators think they know who is good. They have these neat reports to go on. They have TEST SCORES for crying out loud. Parents surely know. They can see reports and TEST SCORES online and in the paper. Sometimes parents even complain about their kids' teachers to other parents. Surely we all know what good teaching looks and sounds like.<br />But ST and I were having a conversation and she was asking me what I would do if I were going to teach such and such lesson. And I wanted to tell her that whatever I said would and should make little difference to her. Because I can't tell HER how to teach. Because she is different than I am. She is busy finding a voice and a rhythm in the classroom. I have one. For better or for worse. So when she asks me how I would do something I try to give her some suggestions based on my experience. But they are merely suggestions. And when she asks how she should approach something, I usually say "However you want. Do whatever you want." And then she looks at me like she wants to kill me. I get it. I get that a lot.<br />So I was thinking about it just a little bit ago, trying to come up with some words of wisdom for ST. And that's when it hit me. Kevin Costner.<br />And it began to make sense. It's scary sometimes the way my brain works.<br />You remember that movie that Costner made back in the nineties called Waterworld? Well, Waterworld and a good classroom lesson have a lot in common. And I can sum it up in one word. Fluidity.<br />You see, there was a lot of water in that movie. It was a fluid environment. Always changing.<br />And a good classroom lesson? Led by a good teacher? That also has fluidity. <br />I've seen a lot of teachers over the years. Those teachers used a variety of methods in a variety of lessons. And the best teachers and the best lessons flowed. There was learning going on and the students were often caught up in the moment. Learning sometimes in spite of themselves. The lesson wasn't forced. It was fluid. Constantly changing but with some kind of internal rhythm.<br />So I can't really tell ST how to teach. I can only describe what it feels like when you see it done. I can't say "this will work for you." Everyone has a different style and good teachers have figured their style out. They know when to shift gears. They know when to apply pressure. They know when to coast for a bit. And good teachers also know when to abandon ship and try something else. <br /> ST is doing a great job and I try to tell her and I try to help her when she needs help. But she has to figure out the fluidity of the lessons on her own. What works for me probably wouldn't work for her. So tomorrow I'm going to start calling her KC and she will continue to look at me like I'm crazy. But again, I'm used to that.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-88224074915233594182011-09-14T19:16:00.004-04:002011-09-14T19:56:04.066-04:00The Perils of Project Based LearningToday, the staff of our school was having one of our first PLC meetings of the year. We were running through the business at hand, discussing some of the things that we have needed to get together and discuss. It was during this meeting that one of our new teachers, a lateral entry teacher, asked an innocent enough question. She asked simply, "I've got projects coming up next week and I was wondering if you guys would help me out by grading them in your classes, too?" <br />Now let me state a couple of things about our school before I go any further. We think of ourselves as a project based school. Our students are constantly working on projects and problems of some kind. We were featured in an ASCD production based on PBLs! Secondly, we just finished a round of projects with the freshmen where all the teachers who taught freshmen spent part of their day grading freshmen projects. Thirdly, I work with an awesome bunch of people who will do anything to help kids become better students. And finally, we the teachers, have great autonomy at our school when it comes to curriculum and how we do things in our classes. But back to my story.<br />I watched the reactions of the rest of my colleagues in that office when our new teacher asked the question. I watched their reactions and I know what they were thinking. You see, I know, because I was thinking the same thing. I was thinking- "Why do I need to give up more time in my class? I can barely get through all I have to do now. Why would I want to spend another day on projects?" I watched those thoughts ripple across the office in the body language and facial expressions of the other teachers. I watched it, I thought it, and then I paused and thought about it.<br />Where did this feeling come from? Why was my immediate knee-jerk reaction to scream foul and begin to think about lost time? Well, I suspect that for each of us it might have been something different. For me, it was the years and years of trying to squeeze an impossible amount of US History into a ridiculously finite amount of classroom instruction time. Coupled with the fact that US History was a high-stakes End of Course testing area where the results would be splashed on webpages, newspapers, and government reports. Or maybe it is that belief that all of us have that our subject is so important that there is no way, under any circumstances, we would give up time away from our state curriculum. Or maybe it is the desire to protect our own projects and our own pacing. Maybe it's just the stress we feel to teach, to the best of our ability our subject matter day in and day out. Whatever it was. I felt it and I saw it. And then something funny happened.<br />I thought to myself. Screw it. It's one day. We'll figure it out. And I watched as the other teachers began to do the same thing. My colleagues began to think about helping out too. You could see it again. Visibly. People who were quiet and tense became people who were not. They had all decided to help out. All this, of course, took place in just a few seconds. I don't even know if other people noticed. But I did. I noticed and spoke to me about many things but most importantly about the cool people I work with. We have all been programmed by time on task, end of course tests, ap tests, curriculum standards, pacing guides, etc... and for just a second all of that won. But then it didn't. Everyone started to talk about it and we all agreed that we could help out the new teacher. You know, the one who hadn't been programmed like we had. The lateral entry teacher. The one who asked an innocent question and expected nothing but her compatriots to help her out. And we will. Because projects are important to us. And today, maybe just for a second, we realized that and decided to take a stand for something other than quantitative testing.<br />And it just reinforced what I already know.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-82836357168089695712011-09-08T18:46:00.005-04:002011-09-09T08:38:31.941-04:00return to the world of blogging and how candy can save us alltry not to pass out from the shock. it's a blog update. of course, the passing out would require that someone was actually reading this blog at some point. i imagine you all eagerly checking lunchbyteblog every day, anxiously waiting another post. you must be forlorn by now. resigned to the fact that this blog has become something promised but never delivered upon. i follow in the footsteps of chinese democracy, duke nukem forever, and indiana jones and the crystal skull. hopefully though, this update won't suck as much as those bits of vaporware when they were finally and sadly released.<br />what makes the long hiatus all the more confusing is that, for the longest time, i have considered myself a writer. i spent time in college studying writing. i wrote for the college paper. i have, over the years, written thousands of poems and have written quite a few in the time spent away from this blog. but i have written nary an update.<br />that changes today. <br />for my "return to the world of blogging" post, i would like to talk about candy. yes, candy. you see there's a big ol' honkin bag of assorted candies in the office area of our school. i discovered it today. and there are things in this huge bag called 'sassy tarts' that look and taste suspiciously like sweet tarts. except they're not sweet. they're sassy.<br />so i discovered these sassy tarts during lunch and proceeded to make my way back into the office several times during the afternoon to eat a few more of these sassy tarts. they were sweet and i was sassy and all was right with the world. <br />until the end of the day.<br />that's when i went looking for another package of sassy tarts and found out that they had all disappeared. gone. there were none left. zero. zilch. none.<br />now i am absolutely sure that i didn't eat all of them. but there were none to be found when i wanted more. i was crestfallen and dumbfounded. what had happened to the sassy tarts? where did they all go?<br />and then it hit me. someone else was eating the sassy tarts. someone else had been captivated by them. someone else was eating the candy and they liked it. someone else kept coming back for more. maybe several someone elses.<br />so then i wandered back to my classroom and began to have a conversation with the student teacher that had been assigned to our school this semester. she was worried about classroom management and she was wondering how to deal with a particular us history class. we discussed several strategies and i ended the discussion by telling her she had to find out what worked for her. what worked for me may not work for her. she had to find a way to deal with distractions that was true to herself and her way of thinking. then i reminded her about what had happened during her lesson today.<br />during parts of the lesson, some guys were joking around and she had to admonish them several times. they weren't being mean or really disrespectful. they just weren't all together with her. to be honest, they weren't really engaged. but she got their attention and gave them the assignment and they got to work. and then they were quiet. i pointed this out to her during the lesson. they were working and suddenly engaged. and when they were engaged, they were concentrating and into it. they liked it.<br />and then it struck me that engagement and candy were the same thing. this is what the kids had wandered into the room to find. they wanted the metaphorical sassy tarts. sure, there was a big honkin' bag of candy (ways to teach) out there but they didn't want those other pieces of candy (instructional strategies). those pieces of candy had no appeal to these students. they had tried them all before. what appealed to those students at that moment was something new and novel. the student teacher had stumbled onto what was going to engage them and in that moment had solved her discipline problems for the rest of the day. and if she can learn from that moment, maybe she has begun to solve them for the rest of her time with us.<br />engagement equals candy. and students will keep coming back for more if we can only get them hooked in the first place.<br /><br />ps. the student teacher is doing a fine job. we all struggle at times with certain classes. she is learning how to "do" this teaching thing. so are we all.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-41239259428889094572011-03-12T21:20:00.002-05:002011-03-12T21:31:01.154-05:00updateI haven't written anything in a while so I thought I would give everyone a quick update. As usual, there is a lot happening. My school is in the middle of our recruitment period where we travel around to all the middle schools in the area and give our spiel to the 8th graders who are going to be making their decisions about what high school they would like to attend. This is uncharted territory for me and I'm trying to learn on the fly what appeals to the mind of an 8th grader. We are giving them an honest look at what goes on in our school and trying to help them make informed decisions. I try to make the presentation funny and I try to appeal to their sense of different. I think that we have a different school and that our kids stand out because they have unique ways of looking at the world. Those are the kinds of kids we are attracting and the kinds of kids we want to continue to attract. We want students that are going to try to make a difference in the world. I'll let you know how it goes...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7747588183067793973.post-6125997566566758812011-02-21T10:26:00.002-05:002011-02-21T11:14:09.516-05:00fundingwouldn't it be great if public schools had the funding that they needed? as i sit here writing, i'm working on several grant proposals and trying to dream up ways to raise money for our school. we are a public school in north carolina and, like in most states, our state is facing a huge budget deficit for next year. rather than address a tax code that hasn't been changed since the great depression, our legislature is currently considering cutting state employee pay. the future is not very bright for more funding for public schools.<br />so, we are looking for alternative sources for funding. in schools, a little bit can often go a long way and we already fund raise for quite a few of our programs. we also are constantly on the look-out for grants and other programs that can infuse a little bit of cash into our coffers. <br />as a new school (this is our 6th year of existence), we are always in need of money to help us with our ideas. we get excited when we get a new couch or some signs advertising our existence around here. so, i know i have talked about funding before, but i'm wondering how other schools raise money for their programs. where does the money come from?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0