Here's a small example. My principal first said that our evaluations included that we must have a learning objective written on the board. Then we had to ensure we had an essential question on the board every day. Now we must have a learning goal on the board every day. What the difference is between a learning goal and objective I can't tell you. And how these strategies are supposed to reinsure the administration that my students are learning - I couldn't tell you either. However, it's really just a drop in the bucket of the strategies or best practices that are thrown in our face every month.
After being in this game for quite a while, we tried to remember as many initiatives, strategies, standards that were presented or implemented in PD - we were asked to implement/consider these just over the last 5 years. To name a few:
- Writing across the curriculum
- Reading to learn
- writing to learn
- learning how to learn
- leading to learn
- Data driven Instruction
- Experiential Learning
- Project Based Learning
- Brain-Based Learning
- Standards Driven Instruction
- No More Excuses
- Learning Walks
- Socratic Seminar
- RAFT
- Learning Objecitves
- Essential Questions
- AVID strategies
- UBD
- Curriculum Mapping
- Differentiation
- ACT
- WorkKeys
- Illinois State Standards
- College Readiness Standards
- College Board Pre-AP alignment
- Common Core Standards
Now, individually these are all very good when used effectively and for their purpose. In fact many of them we have had great success. However, we are asked to implement the standards, master the strategies, or adapt our plans to fit the latest, hottest trend so often - and there is rarely an assessment as to the effectiveness or continued support for departments. No time to master anything.
No time to see whether or not they are working - we can't see the results because we are to busy trying to please our principal (who is busy trying to please the board), keep our jobs, get those scores up, make sure the kids have eaten, talk to Billy about why it's wrong to hit, counsel Lupe on the dangers of joining the gang, evaluate our data while getting new data, helping Jenny's mom find aid so her electricity doesn't get cut off, make 5 different modifications for a quiz because in one class there are non-english speakers, autism, LD, CD, design a better assessment to meet the needs to 15 different reading stanines, trying to talk a kid down after the AP calls him a loser, losing the forest for the tree, etc. etc. etc.
No time to see whether or not they are working - we can't see the results because we are to busy trying to please our principal (who is busy trying to please the board), keep our jobs, get those scores up, make sure the kids have eaten, talk to Billy about why it's wrong to hit, counsel Lupe on the dangers of joining the gang, evaluate our data while getting new data, helping Jenny's mom find aid so her electricity doesn't get cut off, make 5 different modifications for a quiz because in one class there are non-english speakers, autism, LD, CD, design a better assessment to meet the needs to 15 different reading stanines, trying to talk a kid down after the AP calls him a loser, losing the forest for the tree, etc. etc. etc.
Is anyone else tired?
It is about that time in the cycle where we are going to have to begin to look at data, watch and wait to see ACT and PSAE scores, get yelled at, and wait for the next initiative. At least Sping break comes first.
ReplyDeleteSounds right. We were asked to give our best guess as to how our students would score this Spring as well. No pressure, just a guess. What if I guess too low, do I not have expectations for my students? What if I guess too high, and they miss? Does that make me a bad teacher? Catch-22 all over.
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