Tomas Morrissey’s blog

The blog article, "High Expectations? Not so fast," from (http://garyrubinstein.teachfor.us/2009/08/30/high-expectations-not-so-fast/) argues that while its good for first year teachers to have high expectations, one must be realistic as well.  Specifically, the article argues that overly high standards can actually hurt students because they will constantly fail.  As a second year teacher, I agree with the post completely.  Yes, it is important to have high standards (and the article does not disagree with this), but if I have a classroom of students who are supposedly ready to be in Algebra II and they cannot graph a straight line, it will do no good to teach them the quadratic formula.  

Have real expectations, but don't expect to be a miracle worker.  A student who cannot read should not attempt to dive into Proust, it will just humiliate and discourage them.  Start with Green Eggs and Ham and work your way up.  However, when you do teach Green Eggs and Ham, ensure you have high expectations of the students work based of the book.

Is Mississippi a third world nation?

The Blog post, "Is Part of the United States in the Third World," (http://mapscroll.blogspot.com/2009/05/human-development-index-by-state.html) attempts to rank US states in line with the world nations in regards to their human development index (HDI) reading.  In the blog, a list is presented with rankings of nations by their HDI mixed in with nations.  Mississippi is listed at 76th, below Russia and Ecuador.  At first glance, this seems terrible, an American state, down below the home of Siberia and a South American non-powerhouse.  However, the blog is somewhat meaningless, and this is noted in the first paragraph of the post: "The US HDI is not at all comparable to the world HDI.."  What this says is that you cannot directly compare the US state HDI to other nations HDI.  This make the list irrelevant.  

A quick google search paints a more rosy picture for Mississippi.  Ecuador, with a normalized (ppp) GDP per capita of under $8k, is much poorer than Mississippi with a GDP (non normalized) of just under $27k, over three times greater than Ecuador's, and that non adjusted.  It seems silly to state that Mississippi is a third world nation.  Anyone who has been to a poor area of a third world country can easily attest to the abject poverty which makes Mississippi look good.  Kids go hungry in Mississippi and attend shoddy schools.  In third world nations, kids worry about starvation and school is a pipe dream.  By claiming that Mississippi is at the same level as a third world nation unfairly cheapens the term and shows the authors naivety of what a third world country truly is.  

Classroom management, or how to keep the class focused and working, was an area I struggled with my first year, especially during my first semester.  This year, my classroom management has been much improved  Part of the change stems from the fact that I no longer teach Freshmen, but I've also gotten better at being a manager of the class.  Detailed below are some changes I've made this year that have helped foster a more structured and effective learning environment:

    1.    Be Confident

As the teacher, you can win every argument.  Better yet though, as a teacher, you should never have to enter into an argument with a student.  If a student is doing something that is bothering you, warn them that they must modify their behavior, and if they don't, give them a consequence.  If you do this unflinchingly, you will limit students questioning your actions.  I gave out a detention last week because someone was tapping their pencil.  I warned them first, and then followed through.  The student was upset about this until one of his classmates turned and said something to the effect of you knew that would happen if continued your behavior.  

    2.    Stick to your guns

This ties into number one, once you have made a decision, it is set in stone.  If someone complains, tell them see me after class, if someone wont stop whining, give them another consequence.  If you take back a consequence it sets a standard that consequences are negotiable, and this will be a grand mistake.

    3.    Grade

I'm going to reach out on a limb and say that not all of your kids are passing your class, and furthermore, the "bad" kids are often making the low marks.  Just as important, your "good" kids are probably passing, and some may be doing quite well.  Grade.  If you grade papers and pass them back with some frequency, you are constantly letting the students with low mark know that they will fail if they continue to lack focus (the reason 75% of my kids fail), and you will be letting the top student know that their hard work is appreciated and has a positive effect on their grades.  Although it will depend student to student, most students want to pass your class.  Even the students who say they don't care still do some work for a reason, they would like to pass.  If you never grade you will give the impression that work done in class has little or no bearing on the student passing, and this will lead to the students doing less work and at a lower quality.  

"I should get one of those signs that says "One of these days I'm gonna get organezized"."
                                - Travis Bickle

Every two days I see in excess of 150 students and grade just as many papers.  In nearly every class I have some sort of handout, in my ACT prep class (we don't have a book) I may give out three handouts.  This constant stream of work creates a constant stream of papers going to me and back out to the students.  In order to manage this stream, I've had to hone my organizational skills.  Below are a few detailed points which have helped me become more organized:

    1.    Have a one class grading turnaround:

What this means is that if you turn in a quiz or test on Monday, the next time I see you (Wednesday) you will get the paper back with a grade on it.  This prevents a backlog of grading which will drive you mad and wreak havoc on your organizational system. 

    2.    Throw away papers you don't grade promptly: 

This point ties into the first.  If I don't grade it right away, its going to become an organizational problem, so I throw it away and give everyone a participation grade for doing the work (I do this very infrequently this year, in fact, only once so far).

    3.    Create electronic folders for every class:

Yeah, your computer will get messy as well.  Create a system of folders and subfolders to stay on top of your game.  To open todays lesson plan and resources (its an exam day!), I click on Murrah 2009, September AL 2, Twelve.  This is especially good to do your first year, because if you have the same preps next year, you're golden. 

    4.    Keep your classroom clean:

My roommates will attest that at times I am not the cleanest person.  While teaching I often become covered in expo marker.  However, my class is clean.  In the back there are trays of grading with no more than one assignment inside.  They will be passed back today to the students, and then the assignments will leave my class.  I don't have piles of paper stacked about.  If you get in the habit of putting everything in the proper place, you wont lose your handouts, your old exams, and so on.  Once again, this ties into grading things promptly. 

Overall, organization is important in many ways.  My largest piece of advice is don't let grading stack up.  Old papers will clutter your room, and not turning back papers promptly will lead to issues with classroom management, which is my next topic....

My first couple weeks last year were stressful and challenging.  I had a foggy idea of what I was supposed to be teaching (not that I don't know math, but that I was confused as to were in the material I should start my classes), and an even foggier idea of how I should go about teaching the material.  The students, who were predominately 9th graders, had lots of questions about the school, which put me on the defensive, because I shared many of their inquiries.  By the start of the third week, I had quickly realized that I would need to re-amp my classroom structure in half my classes, and re-check my teaching strategies in all my classes.  

This year, things have so far (knock on wood) gone swimmingly.  For the most part, all my classes are very well organized, everyone knows what they should be doing at all times, and I have all the answers to my students questions (even though some of those answers may be lies).  With the exception of one class, my ACT prep class, I feel that I have been very successful in teaching the material to the students thus far (the ACT prep class isn't bad,  it just involves the students doing lots of sample tests, which I hope will be beneficial).

This of course leads into what I would like to do better as a teacher this semester, which conveniently is in the blog below...

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Last year my classroom felt a lot like the Soviet Union.  Lots of things were broken, some of the work was meaningless, but to some extent, things got done (albeit in a dirty way).  This year, I have a new classroom, new classes, and a new perspective.  Chiefly, I'm trying to streamline the learning experience.  I'm focusing on value added ad-ons.  Efficiency is the new buzzword, and enhanced structure is the plan.  In order to facilitate this, I have moved to a standard day schedule:   first 15 min we have a quiz, then move into a lecture over the mechanics of the day, followed by independent book work, and wrapped up with group work.  The basic idea is that the most serious work comes first, and the class relaxes as it goes on (although never too much).

The goal this year is not to have a class that runs, but have a class that runs well.  By having a firm daily structure in place, along with doing a multitude of other things well (such as having a quick turnover on grading, nipping problems in the bud), I feel that I can achieve this goal, and upgrade my class from a reliable clunker to the latest and greatest.  

Well, when I saw the blog topic, "What three "teacher skills" do you want practice and improve upon this summer at the MTC Summer School?  What is one thing you do well as a teacher," I was somewhat offended.  It not only suggests that I have at least three areas that need improvement, it also states that there is only one thing that I do well as a teacher.  In the spirit of Sergie Leone, I am going to semi-buck the prompt and do a Il Buono, il Brutto, il Cattivo of my classroom:

The Good:

My one marketable skill as a teacher one have to be the ability to stay level headed.  A the teacher, you are the the leader of the classroom.  If the leader is calm, the class will (hopefully) follow suit.  On the other hand, I feel that if I was overly irritable or unsteady my classroom would deteriorate.   I have no real suggestions on how to stay clam, except that you must realize that the students will follow your behavioral example, and if you want them to be quiet and polite, do likewise (however, every now and then I would recommend raising your voice a bit or using some other method to assert dominance).

The Bad:

Grading.  I hate grading.  However, grading is a valuable tool for classroom structure and for the students.  For the student, getting papers back not only shows them where they need improvement, but it also shows the students who do shoddy work that a poor effort is rewarded with a poor grade.  Next year I will be planned out for the year, so I should have more time to grade.

The Ugly:

Getting side-tracked.  I like teaching math, but I love talking about economics.  While the two subjects are similar, getting sidetracked for a half a class on an impromptu lesson over the international rise of food prices, or why oil is so expensive, may not be the best way to teach the quadratic formula.  Hmmmm...  I would recommend saving your off-beat lessons for days when you have to hold your class for five hours and have time to kill.

District Three

Introduction:

The basic idea of my school district is to create a district that is focused on either graduating students who will attend college, or preparing students for life without college.  After the 9th grade, there will be tracking for the students, with the graduation bound students going to a prep school, and the non-graduation bound students attending a tech school where they can gain skills to survive without a college degree.

The goal of the district will to some extend nurture the students will great potential, and provide a realistic education for those who struggle.  This stated, all students will be on the college track until 9th grade, and hopefully, most will stay on this track.  

Teachers will be paid based on performance, which will be based on a mixture of observations and entrance/exit exam scores.  In addition to performance based pay, all staff members are eligible for bonuses at the end of the year.  

Contracts will be reviewed and renewed by a education specialty board, dubbed the oversight committee.  Longer contracts will be offered to higher performing teachers.

Curriculum will be semi integrated until the 10th grade.  Students will need to pass yearly exit exams.  Schools will have study hall daily for students who struggle, the others will do sports, drama, or other activities.  

Details:

First an assumption for how many students per grade:

2000 students in k - 12 creates roughly 154 students per grade.

Basic Structure:

Five schools:

K - 6th grade (cumulating with exit exams) (two grade schools total)

Then

7th - 9th grade (cumulating with exit exams)

Then

Finishing School (10th - 12th grade ) or Tech Prep School (2 year trade school)

Buildings:

We can use the current school buildings, perhaps retrofitted for the 21st century (i.e., smart boards, wi-fi and so on).

Technology in the classroom will be used, but not overly encouraged.  For instance, students will not be allowed to use calculators until they reach the Algebra 1 level, and even then, teachers will be encouraged to avoid using calculators in the classroom.

All rooms will be equipped with a smart boards or an LCD projector, but teachers may use them at their own discretion.

Calendar:

The schools will all have slightly different schedules (more detail following), but the calendar year will be the same:

Three months on, one month off.

Term One:     Mid September to mid December, then a month off.

Term Two:    Mid January to Mid April, then a month off.

Term Three:    Mid May to Mid August, then a month off.

For k - 6th grade:

Set up - Standard set up until the fifth grade, then math will be segmented.

    Time:         8:00 am until 2:00 pm normal class
            2:00 until 3:00 - Students will report to different classrooms where they will                 either receive advanced work or remedial work, depending on how they are                 doing in class.

The last hour of class is reserved for advanced or remedial work, students needing help with reading will meet with the reading specialization teachers.  Reading will be approached as a mix of phonics and books, with the more advanced students doing 90% of their reading practice sans phonics.

Teachers will receive two 20 min breaks throughout the day where they will be relieved by the coverage teachers.  The coverage teachers will also serve as security and remediation.

When students reach the 5th grade, they will switch classes for Math, segmented into accelerated and regular.  Placement will be decided via an exam taken at the start of the year.  Those struggling with regular math will be assigned to a small class for focused remediation, with the same standards as regular math.

Lower School Payroll
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Lower School Staff

Students 1076 total

100 teachers (10.75 students per teacher)
12 coverage teachers/support staff (six of which are math qualified)

Pay teachers on average 50,000 per year (30,000 - 70,000 depending on performance and experience)
Total:    $5,500,000 (extra in case bonus run high)

Pay 6 reading specialized teachers on avg. 25,000 per year (20,000 to 30,000 depending on experience)
Total: $150,000

Pay 6 math qualified coverage teachers same as teachers
Total: $250,000

Pay Principal a flat rate of 70,000, position subject to yearly review.
Total: $ 140,000

Pay VP a flat rate of 50,000 per year, position subject to yearly review.
Total: $100,000

Allot a remaining $2,800,000 for support staff (office, councilors, and janitorial, and another $250,000 for resources
Total: $2,150,000

GRAND TOTAL FOR K - 6:    9,220,000

For 7th through 9th grade we can have two two story buildings.  One is for math and science, the other for english and social studies.  They are connected by a central cafeteria and common area.

Set up - Five 65 minute blocks per day.  Same classes every day.

    1st:    8:15 - 9:20
    2nd:    9:25 - 10:30
    3rd:    10:35 - 11:40
    Eat:    11:45 - 12:20
    4th:    12:25 - 1:30
    5th:    1:35 - 2:40

Then mandatory after school activities from 2:50 until 4:00 (4:00 is minimum, student can stay longer if it's ok with their sponsor.  Sponsors who stay longer get paid more (hourly wage) until 6:00).  Each department must also have an open study hall during this time, this way students who are having trouble in their studies will be able to get extra help.  Students failing more than two classes, or getting under a 50% in one class, must go to study hall for their activity time.

    Options:    Sports
            Theater
            Labor or Detention    
    
Mandatory classes:    Math, English, Science, History, and Art

Middle School Payroll:
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462 students

40 teachers (prep every 5th block makes) student teacher ratio of 14.43 to one.

Pay teachers on average 50,000 per year (30,000 - 70,000 depending on performance and experience)
Total 2,500,000 (extra 500k for bonus run overs)

Pay three principals a total of 60K each

280K Total

Hire 8 janitors at avg. of 35,000 each

280K Total

Hire three counselors at 40k each

120k total

Hire 20 after-school directors at a rate of $10,000 each
$200,000 Total

Hire two security guards at 35000
70k total
$250,000 dollars for teacher supplies

$350,000 dollars for office personnel

$500,000 for after school activities

With incidentals 4,000,000 dollars Total for Middle School

10th through 12th grade:

Tech School:
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If the student fails to receive above a 50% or elects to enter trade school, they may enter trade school, provided they made under a 85% on their exam (students scoring over 85% must enter finishing school, unless the receive a wavier)

Same bell schedule as middle school, just starts at 8:35 and ends at 2:55. 

Periods 1 -2 are English and Math.

Then lunch at 11:00

Periods 3 -5 are tech prep, such as electrician, plumber, cosmetology, culinary and so on. 

After school they either do sports and such or can work/be an apprentice.  After school activities are optional.

Finishing School:
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Starts at 8:35

Periods 1 - 3 are classes

Then Lunch

Periods 4 and 5 are classes

65 min classes, just like middle school

Students will attended mandatory after school activities or study hall, just like middle school.

Laptop
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Every student entering High School, either finishing or prep, can "rent" a laptop at no cost.  If the student graduates, they may keep their laptop.  They will not be Macs.

Initial cost: $600,000

High School Payroll
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Upper school: Roughly 280 students (real ratio of one to 17.5)

Teachers

Pay teachers on average 50,000 per year (30,000 - 70,000 depending on performance and experience
Hire 26 teachers (some will be shared with the tech school for english and math)

$ 1,300,000 Total

We will hire four professors to teach lecture classes (each student must take one), teach advanced classes, and work with students on independent study projects

1 Principal (Pay 70k)

1 VP (pay 70k)

4 Janitors at 35k a year

3 Counselors at 45k per year
1 security guard at 35k per year

Shared office with tech school:

$350,000 dollars for teacher supplies and such

$550,000 dollars for office personnel

750,000 for after-school activities

About 2,250,000 Total

Tech Prep School (Two year Program)
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Roughly 150 students

6 standard teachers (shared with main school) and 10 vocational teachers
Pay teachers on average 50,000 per year (30,000 - 70,000 depending on performance and experience
500,000 dollars

2 VPs
120K

1 security guard
35k

2 Janitors
70k

2 Job placement personnel
100k

250,000 for supplies and materials

Roughly  1,100,000 total

Overview/School Board:

There will be a ten person team named the overview board that will monitor school performance and write curriculum frame works.  They will be each paid on average 150,000 dollars per year and will consist of 5 tenure positions and 5 biyearly review positions.

The positions up for review will be reviewed by both the tenured members and the community elected school board.  The school board will have relatively little to do with the school district, except to elect the members of the overview board and to be used as a community forum for discussions about the school district.  Board members will not be paid.  The principals of each school will have automatic seats on the board.

The board and oversight committee will have their own office, which will be connected (or at least in close proximity to) to the Finishing School.

Cost:    1.5 million

TOTAL COST OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT:   rounding up for incidentals (.9 million), 19 million
                                     plus health care and benefits, 23.75 million

Bonus System:

Up For Grabs are 4.25 million dollars in bonus money, which will be paid out to staff members who had great success, or coached a sport (more money to winning teams), or excellent work by any other member of the school.  The money will be given out by the council, who will also be eligible for bonus, but never more than 7.8% of the total pot.  Bonuses cannot exceed 35% of an employees base pay. This is to serve as an incentive to do good work.  Bonus amounts may be lessened if teachers over-perform and receive more than the 50k per year average.  Bonus money can also be used to keep good teachers at the school.  If incidentals are less then expected, those funds are dumped into the bonus account.

The left over money (2 million) will be split 50/50, with half going into an endowment fund, and the other million going towards scholarships for the graduating students.  The endowment will be a growing fund which can be used for rainy days, and as a slush fund as long as the total endowment does not decrease.

The scholarships will be given on a basis of achievement and need, and only will go to students who have been accepted into an accredited 4 year college. 

Curriculum:

Until high school, there will be a focus on having uniform curriculum. While accelerated classes will be available, no remedial classes will be offered.  if a student is having trouble, they will need to meet with an appropriate teacher during the after-school activity time.   If a student fails their grade exit exams, which are yearly,  they will remain in that grade until the second time around.  If they fail again the second time, they will be pushed through. 
 
All students will originally be on the same, somewhat advanced, track, but it is possible to start to fall off this track starting in the 7th grade. 

There will be key objectives that the students will have to know by the end of their school year.  Teachers can write their own final exams but they must be approved by the counsel.

Objectives will be created by the council and then be voted on by the teachers in that subject area (i.e. teachers will hold a sort of veto power).

Grades are based upon teachers input, but promotion to the next level is based on final exams.   It is possible to fail a class and move to the next year.

Reading and Writing Improvement:

Students in the lower schools identified with reading problems will have to meet with teachers after-school during alloted time for one - on -one reading.  The reading program will be a mixture of phonics and books.

During High School, all teachers must assign at least one 3 to five page papers.  English and History/social studies teachers must assign at least 3 such papers.

Grading Scale:

Based on the grading scale used by the fairest college of them all...

93 & up: 4.00
90 to 93: 3.66
87 to 90: 3.33
83 to 87: 3.00
80 to 83: 2.66
77 to 80: 2.33
73 to 77: 2.00
70 to 73: 1.66
67 to 70: 1.33
60 to 67: 1.00
0  to  60: Failing

Graduating:

In order for students to graduate from the two year tech prep, they must complete 2 years of training inside of a 2.5 year span with at least a "C" average.

To graduate from finishing school, the student must complete all three years within a four year time frame, and graduate with at least a "C" average. 

If students do not have the average necessary, they may use an additional half (tech) year or full (finishing) year to re-take classes.  If they fail to raise their grades in this time-span, they will be asked to leave.

Discipline

In the lower grades (below 9th), expulsion will be reserved only for extreme cases.
They will go through discipline rungs, the first one or two decided by the teacher, then detention, then office referral with all the usual options (saturday school, ISS, OSS).  

In the upper schools if it becomes overtly obvious that the student is worsening the learning environment, they will be given a warning, then a detention, and then a referral. 

In the lower schools, three referrals will lead to a suspension, after which the fourth referral we be another suspension, and upon the fifth referral, the student will be suspended for the term. 

In upper school, two referrals in a scholastic semester lead to a suspension, the third expulsion for the year.  Upon return, the student will have three strikes again, with the third leading to permanent expulsion.

Professional Development:

All PD will be optional.  If a teacher wants to attend a seminar, etc, they need to get it approved by the oversight committee, and it will come out of he bonus fund.

Community Involvement:

Local community members will be encouraged to help out with after school activities, and if qualified, can even help with running the after school study hall.

Teacher Shortage:

Teacher opening will be advertised nationally at a cost of up to $100,000 per year, taken out of the bonus fund, with a emphasis on performance based pay and the possibilities of bonuses.  Hopefully more cash will draw more candidates, and thus more qualified candidates.  All hirings will go through the oversight committee.  Teachers can be fired after underperforming for four consecutive terms.

PR and Bond Campaign:

Floating a bond could be a major benefit for the school, especially for athletics.  My bond issue would be to float 2 million dollars to go towards building a soccer/football field with a track around it, complete with some shoddy wooden bleachers.  This would be good for the community also, since it will get the community behind the school, and the track/field will be useable by the community as well.

Another options would be to float a 4 million dollar bond to build a community aquatic center.  This would be supported by the community for the same reasons, i.e., they could use it as well.

lietome

Swine flu has been dominating headlines for the last week or so, with images of men walking around with surgical masks.  While this flu scare has not hit Mississippi yet, it will surely arrive soon.  As far as my classroom is concerned, when swine flu arrives, there will be no real changes.  Perhaps less students will come to school, which if anything will be a nice break during the last three weeks.  This is the only major problem that could occur from this flu scare: if enough students stay home, the school will become less productive.  Other than this problem though, I don't  foresee any major issues coming from the swine flu, except for the unlikely and pleasant possibility of school closure.  

While the NPR article "Supreme Court to Hear School Strip-Search Case, written by Nina Totenberg, has little to do with the curriculum and instruction of mathematics, it is still an interesting article nevertheless.   The questions that comes to mind in regards to the article is the legality of performing a search on a student.  Specifically, the case involves a student who had no previous discipline issues with the school.  "The school says the fact that Redding was an honors student who had never been in trouble before is not evidence of good conduct, but only evidence that she had never been caught" (from the article).  This mind set that the school seems to have, that if you have not had trouble its not because you keep a clean nose, but that you crafty enough to evade capture, is perhaps as alarming as the spontaneous strip search.

School administrators need to strive to keep an educational environment free of drugs and violence, but the situation described in the article seems to be an abuse of power.  Strip searching a minor, even if there is some probable cause (the school says that another student claimed that the student in question was holding prescription strength ibuprofen, which hardly seems to warrant a search considering that is the equivalent of two Advils), is a major oversight on the part of the administration.  Even if their actions are somehow ruled to be legal, it seems that a the strip search level their should be parental contact and police involvement.   Beyond prescribing to the law, schools also need to be worried about liability, and conducting such a search opens the school up to a bevy of liability issues.  Simply put, the administration at this school should have considered all the ramifications of their actions.

"Summer School: Unfulfilled Promise," highlights the rise of summer schools in American secondary education along with the lack of standards for these programs.  Addressing the former point, the increase in popularity of summer school, the article points to the pressure on school districts to simultaneously increase their retention rates and reduce social promotion.  In an effort to reduce both problems at once, summer school is an attractive option.  Instead of socially promoting a student, or failing the student and having them drop out, the student can attend summer school and theoretically receive the education they missed during the formal school year.  While summer school on paper appears to be an attractive remedy for social promotion, it is not without its flaws.  Most glaringly, there is a lack of standards and accountability for summer schools.  

The standards and accountability issue seems to be two fold: first, there is lack of formal structure across the board, so a summer school in Oregon can be run differently than one in Mississippi.  Secondly, there is a lack of criteria to determine a students successful completion of summer school.  This second issue was addressed in a 2002 article in the New York Times, entitled "Summer School Draws More Critics," and written by Abby Goodnough.  The article highlights that one failure of New York summer schools is that students may pass the class even if the fail their exit exams, due to classwork and attendance grades.  While this may happen as well in normal school, the idea behind summer school is to ensure that the students enrolled will be ready for the next year of class, and if these students are failing their exit exams and being passed anyways, this seems like social promotion again.  Ultimately, summer school must substitute for an entire year of an academic class, and most importantly, it must fill in the academic gaps that the student has missed.  If it is simply a hoop for the student to jump through before they are socially promoted, it is useless to the student and a waste of resources for the school district.