Wednesday, July 27, 2016
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
An intense teacher
Patrick Kelly, 8th grade U.S. teacher and social studies teacher at a Entrada Middle school, a distinguished California Public school, is more talked about, more loathed , and more beloved than any other teacher at the school. Why? Liz got her first glimpse at the fall parent information night.
It was one of those nights parents with multiple children dread because, with four children, I had to get to 17 different teachers’ classes, many simultaneously, defying laws of physics. My daughter in the 8th grade said to me, “Here’s my class schedule. Get to as many classes as you can, but be sure to make it to Mr. Kelly’s social studies class. And do not answer your cell phone. And do not be late. Mom, did you hear me about not being late?” I left my house a few minutes early, but still found myself running the last couple blocks and cutting across the school’s athletic field so I wouldn’t be late. Still panting, I entered the classroom somewhat terrified but intrigued. I found a seat in a classroom with other parents who were also conspicuously on time and sans cell phone. After the standard 12-minute segment with Mr. Kelly, I left enchanted with 8th grade social studies, ready to quit my job and go back to middle school to learn U.S. history.
Why does he affect students and parents alike in such powerful ways?
I begins with his classroom environment. He makes it clear that you are there to work hard, to think, and to learn. One student said, “In his class, he doesn’t tolerate laziness. You’re always working, thinking things over, and seeing your mistakes so you can learn from them.” Mr. Kelly’s expectations for students’ learning are both clear and extremely high. One student said, “He believes that with high expectations come high results. He demands our best. He makes it clear that if we put in our hardest effort, we will succeed.” Another said, “He doesn’t hide anything from us and lets us know what to improve on. He demands that we work to the best of our ability.”
Mr. Kelly creates an environment where students can speak out but where they are required to think and perform at their finest. It won’t surprise you that 95% of students in his class in 2012 scored a
Some years ago I conducted a study involving 163 middle schools (Whitaker, 1997). I identified four schools with “more effective principals” and four school with “less effective “ principals. Each group of four schools included an urban school, a suburban, a small town school, and a rural school.
On-site visits and interviews with teachers and principals revealed three key differences between the more effective and less effective principals. One critical difference was that effective principals viewed themselves as responsible for all aspects of their school. Though these principals regularly involved staff, parents and others in decision making, they believed it was their responsibility to make their school the best it could be.
Many people believe that great teachers have high expectations for students, But, what is the variable? The variable is not what teachers expect of students; many teachers of all skill levels have high expectations for students but even higher expectations for themselves. Poor teachers have high expectations for students but much lower expectations for themselves. Not only that: they have unrealistic high expectations for everyone else as well. They expect the principal to be perfect, every parent to be flawless, and every one of their peers to hold them in incredibly high regard.
The same key point applies to accepting responsibility. Accepting responsibility is an essential difference between more effective and less effective teachers, principals, and parents. Principals must help all teachers take responsibility for their performance in the classroom. Success in any profession starts with a focus on self. After all, we are the one variable that we can most easily and most productively influence.
A principal started each school year with this quote “You don’t have t like the students; you simply just have to act as if you can like them.” The reason is simple: if you don’t act as if you like them, then it doesn’t matter how much you like them. And if you act as if you like them, then whether you like them at all becomes irrelevant.
Effective principals understand that one of a teacher’s most important tasks is to model appropriate behavior. With all the challenges we face in school, and sometimes at home, being nice to others may seem trivial, but if our classroom and school can have that as a foundation, many of the other challenges become less daunting. Principals who consistently model their expectations for how people should be treated to give their schools a valuable gift.
All too often we hear “Raise those test scores!” from central office. It reminds me of a track coach who says “Run faster!” If we want our athletes to run faster, we need to teach them how: same applies to raising test scores. I f we want to increase student achievement test scores, it is seen in all the small things that occur along the way: how we respond to behavior, teacher made test, hallway presence, classroom questions, etc. Teach like this was February or March preparing for state standardized testing.
End each meeting on a positive note. At the end of each email, give a challenge to teachers to help a student they normally wouldn’t,
Leadership challenge: give a teacher a snack, gift, pencil, sticker, eraser for any mistakes they made during their lesson, encouragement for grad school, note with a saying
No one likes to be told what to do; many people’s instinct is to do the opposite. If we want people to do better, we must teach them how. During my first year as a classroom teacher, a colleague
From the Desk of Dr. Stinson
Featured Resource(s) for Teachers
From the Desk of Dr. Stinson
Featured Resources for Teachers
What is a Flipped Classroom Infographic PlusThe Educator Guide to Flipped Classroom
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