Month: May 2016

Yes, Drake. This Drake.

Continued from Is Consistently Crazy Good Enough? post.

Part III, of III: I am eager to know what personal milestones and struggles await me next year, whatever they may be. In the midst of them, I always want to be the educator that our students desire, and I feel certain I can accomplish this by being a consistent personality who can relate both myself and my instruction to our students.

Two weeks ago, the President of our school, an Augustinian priest, asked me if I had listened to Drake’s new songs. Wait. What? Did I mishear that? Drake? Continue reading Yes, Drake. This Drake.

Is Consistently Crazy Good Enough?

Continued from Reflections on a Sleepless Year and Being the Educator Our Students Need post.

Consistency is the first of the two essential components of student engagement. Seems simple enough, and for some teachers, it is. The classroom is a haven where all of their outside problems wait at the door. Their moods are unaffected by parking tickets or root canal work. For others however, it is very difficult, sometimes impossible, not to bring their personal struggles into the classroom, and these difficulties manifest as unpredictable moods. Happy on Monday, inflexible on Tuesday, bitingly sarcastic on Wednesday. . . I get it. It is hard. I wrestle with this, and I assume many educators and administrators do too. Sometimes I wonder if consistently crazy is good enough. The inability to not bring personal challenges into the classroom however, creates a disconcerting inconsistency for students. Continue reading Is Consistently Crazy Good Enough?

Reflections on a Sleepless Year and Being the Educator Our Students Need

The end of the academic year is quickly approaching, and with that comes the desire to reflect on the past year. Cliché, perhaps, but where did the time go? This past year was full of important moments, stressful situations, and unexpected events— and that was just in my personal life. The birth of a second child, the maturation of a toddler, major home renovations, and career shifts for my spouse filled this year with excitement and, honestly, a lot of stress. Add to that, sleepless nights courtesy of a newborn or a sick toddler, and well, you know. Dragging. Continue reading Reflections on a Sleepless Year and Being the Educator Our Students Need

Unlocking New Value In Classroom Observations

“Innovation is the change that unlocks new value.” – Jamie Notter

The classroom is a sacred space. Like most educators and administrators, I believe this wholeheartedly. Unfortunately, this mentality can lead to the classroom being a closed sacred space. Just as one might feel like an outsider in a church of a different denomination, or like an alien landing in a strange, new world, classroom observations often have had a similar feel for me. I am the administrator, the interloper, in someone else’s sacred space. I have done many observations and too often, it’s the same dynamic: I am in the back of the room, the teacher is on display, the teacher is curious and/or worried about what I am thinking, and we close the cycle with a perfunctory follow-up meeting.

No one won in this experience, and I was certain there was a better way. Continue reading Unlocking New Value In Classroom Observations

Hooked

Our English Department talks often about how to get our students to read— not read more, just read. Read. Something. Anything. I can easily empathize . . . with the students. As a teenager who struggled to find any joy in reading, I understand. Yet, as anyone who loves reading knows, it only takes one book to get you hooked.

Find a book written on a subject you love. Hooked.

Find a genre you love. Hooked.

Find an author who speaks to you. Hooked. Continue reading Hooked