What is our role as educators?

This question comes up many times in many different forms in every school around the world.  Surprisingly enough, the answer varies from region to region, school to school, and sometimes even educator to educator.  We are all, hopefully, in education because we want to make a positive difference in others' lives in one way or another.  This may look different for each of us, but at the root of it, we are all looking to achieve the same goal.

Yes, as a mathematics teacher I want my students to remember and be able to apply the Pythagorean Theorem, know all of the characteristics and applications of quadratics and how to use the Chain Rule to find the derivative of a function.  In a perfect world, my students would learn this, show their learning on some high stakes assessment, and go on to study mathematics at university.  In reality, I am happy to know that my students remember my name and horrible dad jokes after they leave my class.  Don't get me wrong, mathematics is important and vital to many careers but getting an "A" in mathematics, or any subject for that matter, is no determination of success and happiness in life.

Making a connection with our students on a level that is not content based is so much more meaningful.   Showing them that someone outside of their family is in their corner to pick them up no matter how many times they struggle or fall down is what they will remember.  Students carry around so much pressure to "do better" or "get an A" on every assessment that they cannot stop and value what surrounds them everyday.  As teachers, we get wrapped up in this pressure as well.  We constantly refer to highest marks possible on a test or in a course.  We only put comments on report cards for those students achieving below a certain level.  What about those students that are doing their best but are not getting those highest marks?  What are we indirectly telling them?  Why do we pull students from free time to sit and do homework that they were not able to do in the first place?  Not to mention that the homework assignment was not collected and feedback was not given, but just because they didn't do the assignment more value was put on the action and not the result.  What does this tell the students?  Nothing positive.

We as educators have to constantly evaluate ourselves and our positions and how these directly, or indirectly, effect our students.  We forget that in many cases, we spend more time per day/week with our students than their parents.  We are responsible for many of their actions, their beliefs, their choices but sadly this does not get acknowledged  most of the time by many of us.  Some teachers complain about duties, running clubs, being an advisor/mentor, doing pretty much anything outside of teaching.  Why?  This is what is important to our students.  This is the time they will remember 5, 10, 30 years from now.  Being that caring adult that is in their corner to build them up, pick them up when they fall, be their advocate, give them feedback (both positive and critical) on their performances, and maybe teach them a little content along the way.  This is why we are educators.  This is why we get up in the morning and come to work everyday. This is our role as educators.

Last Three Days

As I sit here at my desk with three days left of school, I had yet another pondering..."Why?"

Why do we have a schedule to see all eight blocks in one day?  Why do we have an entire day dedicated to an assembly and yearbook distribution?  Why do teachers have the same last day as students?  Why am I writing this blog?  While I don't have clear answers for all of these questions, and several more that are buzzing around in my head, I will offer some thoughts about each...at least from the desk of a High School Math Teacher.

To see all eight blocks.  This gives our students the opportunity to see each of their classmates and teachers one last time together as a unit to get some closure on the school year.  Meeting after taking the final exam (which has been graded and put into the almighty grade book) also gives an opportunity for students and teachers to discuss feelings about the final exam, which in turn also leads to questions about their final grade.

Day for assembly and Yearbook.  Being that we are an International School, we are a transient population.  We move a lot.  New people are here every year.  This closing ceremony is, again, a way to give closure to students, teachers and administrators.  Sometimes we laugh.  Sometimes we cry.  Sometimes we wonder "WHY?"  In the end, we all get to finish out the year together and that is important.

The same last day.  This is fairly common in International Schools so it is probably not even on many other people's radar, except mine.  Having teachers and students end on the same day is nothing less than chaotic.  Chaotic for the kids, chaotic for the teachers, chaotic for the parents.  This is simply because it is a mad race to try to get everything accomplished.  Is this what we have taught our students all year, rush like a demon to get your work done?  I hope not.  I think taking even one extra day after the kids leave for summer break would a huge relief to many teachers.  It would also allow teachers to concentrate on what is important on that last day, the kids not the paperwork.  The last day with your students should be special for both you and them so why ruin that by mixing in administrative paperwork and checkout processes with tears of joy, gifts, celebrations and all the happy memories of the school year?

As I am finishing this post, my students have started to come in my room.  It is at this point that I have realized that kids have an amazing way of seeing & feeling things as well as an uncanny way of summing things up with excellent viewpoints.  For example, I just heard this being said from one student to another "Want to tell me what the point of this is?  No one's going to be here."  This statement was not said in a nasty tone, it was actually said with honesty.  She was looking for an answer from her classmate.  They sat their books down, turned and walked back out of class to discuss many other things in the three minutes they had left before class.  They didn't have any idea that I could hear them talking, but I found it very interesting that they were discussing the same things I am writing about.  Think about how they will remember the last day of school.  Not as a time of closure.  Not as a time of getting resolution on an exam question.  Not as enjoying a celebration of another year of learning.  They will remember this day as "Why...", or maybe not.

Yes, I distributed my exams back to my students as expected by them and we discussed (very quickly) the results and I allowed them to ask questions.  Then I played my favorite beginning of summer song, Summertime by D.J. Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince.  And yes, I sang along.  This is hopefully how my students will remember their last day with me as I will remember the looks on their faces as they watch and listen to me sing along.  This was my answer to the "WHY" question.  What is yours?

How do we measure success?

This is a very hot topic in education lately, as it should be.  And one that is being bounced around in many of our heads right now at the end of another school year.  Is every student scoring an A on every assessment success?  Or getting an A as a final grade in every class success?

If so, we have big problems!  If everyone gets an A, then I have to ask...were they challenged?  It is widely known that we learn from our failures, so why push for everyone to have an A?  I am not saying I wan't all failures either, so don't misunderstand what I am saying.  I am just a little concerned with how easily educators become happy with their teaching because their students are all receiving "good grades."  Parents are part of this problem as well.  Many parents only measure success by seeing how many A's are on the report card.  How many of us have had a conference with a parent, or student, and the statement about always having A's in the past is said?  Just because they don't have that A right now does not mean they are not finding success.  Does it?  

Admin is not removed from this equation either.  Usually the measure of a "good teacher" is from the grades of their students.  This gets interpreted many times as all A's = great teacher and no A's = bad teacher.  Where is the logic behind this thinking?  While at the same time, written in the mission statement of these same schools is something about taking risks.  Well, if we want students to take risks then we should expect them to not find success every time.  THIS IS OK.  The success will be measured by how the student reacts to not being successful at their first, second, or maybe even their fifth attempt.  Continuing to work through an issue/problem until they find the solution or answer the question is learning.  Learning = Success.

However, schools make this much more difficult.  Schools want to have grades to show students, parents, board members, universities and in some cases, other schools.  Why?  To show how great of a school they have?  To compare one school to another?  So, the giving of grades is a competition to see which school is the top school putting out the top students?  I hope not.  Many great schools graduate many wonderfully successful students that did not receive a 4.0+ G.P.A.  Does this mean they are not great schools filled with amazing teachers and wildly successful students?  NO!  Not every student that graduates from an Ivy League school does so with a 4.0.  In fact, not every teacher (especially the one writing this blog) had a 4.0 G.P.A. all the way through school.  Are we not successful?

The issue with this question is that there is not a one-size-fits-all answer.  Therein lies the issue.  Schools (and many teachers as well) want to be flexible and diverse when it comes to their students, but not so much when it comes to grades.  Saying that a student has successfully met all of the minimum standards to 'pass' a course is not good enough.  We need to put a letter grade or a numerical value stamp on it for some reason.  Until this idea changes, we will continue to argue with each other about what determines success.

Here is a little something to ponder....if a student comes to you at the beginning of the school year with limited abilities (reading, writing, arithmetic, artistic ability, not being able to throw a ball, not knowing how to play a guitar, shy and never performed on stage, not being able to speak a particular language, etc.) and leave your class in June having not mastered the skill but having progressed significantly, is this not success?

What does really matter?

Being this is my first post on this blog, I am not sure how many will find it, read it, and respond to what I write, but that's ok.  

As we prepare to close out another great school year we rarely stop and think about what really matters.  We busy ourselves with writing that perfect final exam.  We use the phrase "you will see this again next year" or "I am getting you ready for next year" way too often...was what we were doing all year until now not getting our students ready?  We stress the importance of doing well on the exam, or final assessment, or last project of the year because...well...it's the last one of the year.  

We constantly tell ourselves, each other, and our students this is what we HAVE to do at the end of the school year.  Why?  If your only answer is "this is the way it is every year", you may need to rethink some things.  I may need to rethink some things.  As I sit here writing this post, I have realized this is my 31st end of school year process in my life, 18th as a teacher.  In these 31 years I have also realized that I have gone through the same, or at least a very similar, process in each of these 31 years.  Has education not changed in 30+ years?  Are we that set in our ways of "this is how we have always done it" as educators?  Surely we have new ways to measure student progress from September to June.  Right?

I don't have an answer for this right now, but I am definitely thinking twice about the exams I have written, proof read, copied and stored in my file cabinet waiting to be distributed in a week.  Am I really measuring what my students learned in my classes by giving one two hour exam?  And, yes I realize that the exam is only part of their grade, but if that is the case...why put so much emphasis on them?  Why give them at all?  Isn't it better to give a final grade based on how the students have performed progressively throughout the year?

So, what made me think about all of this today?  This article that I found on my feed this afternoon:  Reconsidering End of Year Grading for Student Mastery by Starr Sackstein.  If you are now pondering some things about your end of year, read the article.  It certainly has made me rethink some things I do as an educator.