THERE IS NOTHING WRONG HERE

When I received the flier about this symposium I was not sure I could go, but I am glad I did. I have been looking forward to this for 2 weeks. I have learned so much since the MassCUE Conference in November I wanted to touch base again with some of the same presenters from November. I have been reading Will Richardson’s book from cover to cover and was able to get get him to sign it. He has so much energy and want to spread the edtech message to everyone. I was able to reinforce many of the concepts Will introduced in November.
I was also able to get more out of Paul Colombo’s podcasting workshop, now that I know more about what he is doing and I am doing. The Digital Kids workshop was very informative also. Producing and publishing instructional digital videos is not diffcult and many students could do it.

The conversations around the table at lunch are always interesting. Comments about the lack of technology integration teacher training at the college level is an issue that not many people are addressing. It is assumed that a 21 year old new teacher will be tech savy, but that is not true. They may have a blog and a MySpace, but that does not mean they can use tech tools effectively in the classroom. More work to be done.

I have been thinking about how to integrate some of the ideas I have from the Symposium into the curriculum at Career Tech. I guess I need to find out what they do now. My feeling is not much other than use computers for word processing and graphics.

If you do not read The Sun you have to. The Sun is a non-profit, ad-free monthly magazine that publishes an eclectic mix of personal essays, fiction, interviews, poetry, and photographs. Once you start reading The Sun you will wonder how you ever got along without it. It is one of the few publications that features black & white photographs.

A special feature that is always intriguing is Readers Write. Every month is a different theme, February’s is Help. The few paragraphs that the readers write tell so much about the lives of people.

To get a taste of The Sun click here for a link to Thick a short story by Akhim Yuseff Cabey.

Sy Safransky, the Founder and Editor of The Sun, has to be supported because he refuses to sell ad space, even under difficult financial circumstances. The Sun is a gem, get it, read it, pass it on.

It seems obvious that you teach the curriculum. Or, in many schools, you teacher to the state required tests. What the students need to learn does not seem to be an option. But, what they need to learn is the problem I face everyday. If they could they would, but they don’t seem to be able to. Even in my small structured classroom of 6-8 students teaching the curriculum or to the test is difficult. I have to remind myself everyday that the young bodies and minds I see everyday would rather be in a regular ed classroom and not in a sped room.

The state department of education, in its infinite wisdom, has raised the passing score on the MCAS from 220 to 240. The students in my classroom struggled to get a 220, a 240 will be out of reach for many students. They are still struggling with reading comprehension and vocabulary at middle school. I have to reteach the same basic math skills every year to the same students. Then there is still science and history they will face on the MCAS in 10th grade.

So should I keep teaching the curriculum or teach to the test? I have decided neither. If I follow the curriculum the students will not really learn any skills or add to their knowledge base. If I teach to the test they will not be learning any real skills or add to their knowledge base. So teaching skills and adding to their knowledge base is what I will do.

These skill are the obvious ones like math fraction skills and vocabulary development. But, other more important ones are: following directions, finishing a task, asking for help, using a model to solve a problem, generalizing a skill, finding useful information. Most of the students in my class will attend our vocational school and what is really important is that they lean how to learn.

I never thought I would be reading an article in American Enterprise Institutes’s website, but there I was agreeing with Charles Murphy. Would a liberal think tank write three articles about the role of intelligence in education and society? I think not. Murphy’s thesis is “Today’s simple truth: Half of all children are below average in intelligence. We do not live in Lake Wobegon.”

I work with the children who, for many different reasons, are constantly running into their limits of academic achievement. They are constantly told that if they try just a little harder they to can achieve academic success. Academic success for many students is an 8th grade education, much less passing the state mandated test for graduation. Murphy does not suggest we give up on these children, but that we are realistic and use the limited resources to better meet students and societies needs.