Skip to main content

Do What You Are Good At.

Just recorded a vent session.  It is ironic that a person who dislikes change as much as I do is working in education.  One of the most frustrating things is watching people people move "up" from job to job without ever really mastering the tasks of their current job first.  

 No one seems to take the time to be come truly awesome at what they do before moving on to the next level or phase of their career.  The fault for this rapid rise approach to an education career does not rest fully on the individual.  District administrations tend to award a job well done with a promotion or move to another position, rather than offering incentive to stay where the person is the most effective.

 What if people were allowed to stay in a position long enough to master it and teach others who are just beginning the lessons and skills learned along the way?

Instead we have conversations that in simplified terms goes something like this...

 "you are an awesome teacher, you have almost 100% engagement from all students.  You have no classroom management problems and your lesson plans and vertical alignment are second to none.  You are truly one of the best teachers we have ever seen, so we would like it if you would leave the classroom and facilitate other teachers from our central office"

 in essence... "We are taking you away from what you excel at in order for you to do something else."

 Wouldn't it be better for the students if that amazing teacher to stayed in the classroom and demonstrated/modeled their skills through other modalities?   

 keeping a teacher like that in the classroom should be the real goal.  Allow others to learn from observation or other means.  It makes no sense removing a teacher from the classroom where they are effective.

 just some thoughts

 Chris 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Class Size Debate Is WRONG

There’s a huge controversy boiling across The teaching and education landscape right now. Some people are saying Betsy DeVos has rekindled the flame of "Larger Class Sizes and Fewer Teachers." Others are saying That it flies in the face of common sense. Smaller classes and more teachers is the way to go. But you know what?  This is not a new debate!   "While DeVos is under siege for her comment, she’s not the first secretary of education to suggest schools might be wiser to invest in stronger teachers rather than smaller classes. Arne Duncan, secretary of education for most of Obama’s tenure, argued, “We spent billions of dollars to reduce class size when we could instead give teachers higher salaries in exchange for larger classrooms, thereby attracting much more talented teachers.”  https://www.ajc.com/blog/get-schooled/betsy-devos-reignites-debate-whether-class-size-matters/VDHjWAD0HvkusJ666SJNxM/ They’re all wrong. Every. Single. Person. That...
Post a Comment
Read more

Subscribe, Watch and Comment

I am banking information videos so that I will be able to release one a week along with the daily Vlog entries I plan on doing.  This morning I videoed 15 new segments, including four parts of a new series focused on strategic goofing around with your students, "How to Be Cooler Than Your Students." Each installment will offer something you can do to deliberately make yourself more accessible to the students' minds and help them see you as the human being you are. I am gearing up for a busy year and I want to continue to bring quality information to you and other teachers.  Keep watching and commenting, please. The more viewers make comments, subscribe to the channel and watch entire videos the more easily the channel and videos will be found in search engines by other teachers.  Your participation helps others. Check out the current videos. Things That Work Enjoy the last few days of summer, and if you are already back at work, enjoy your year. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Long Time No Post

Well something had to give.  It was the blog. I'm back, but with no promises except one.  I will post good stuff here when I post.  With that being said. Here is a preview of topics to come in future videos about connecting students with the community in a meaningful way.   This is taken from a group of essays I wrote last year.  I hope you find it useful.  As teachers it is our job to ensure that education transcends the classroom. There are as many ways to connect students and the community as there are teachers to teach them. When done successfully the impact on students is powerful. In addition to, and through a subject's content Teachers should encourage and equip students to be their own educational advocate by being aware of and able to successfully navigate the educational landscape leading to their success.  Students who attend any class should learn the roles, function and purpose of administrators and counselors....
Post a Comment
Read more