Search results matching tags 'teacher' and 'student'

Teacher Appreciation:From the Mouths of Babes!

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 22:55:01 GMT

Some of my students wrote a letter for the state department’s Teacher Appreciation Day contest. After reading the letters, it gave me some insight as to what my students appreciate about me. I chose to use the letters as an informal evaluation tool to see what I am doing right,(or wrong). I found some of the [...]

Classroom Discipline 101

Anonymous — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 14:25:18 GMT

A teacher in my school with 18 years of experience has an interesting technique to “enforce” discipline management in her class. Every incoming student has hand-outs on their desk which they must address immediately. No down time, no idle chitchatting before the lesson actually starts and transgressors of this rule are called to order without delay. I have seen other instructors do things differently and suffer the consequences: They sit down at their desk while students are still incoming or they write instructions on the white board with their back turned to the class. Granted, these are high school youngsters who should know how to behave; but a teacher who is not ready to keep them busy from the get go will see their class fall into chaos with frightening speed, especially if the group exceeds 25 teens. It is always much more difficult to recover discipline than to start right away in an orderly fashion.

Without a clear sense of what is expected of them, writing the topics for the whole week on the board is a good way of doing this, juvenile students will inevitably fall into a conversation regarding the merits of the latest musical trend, powder their nose, literally, check their smart phone for messages, exchange jokes accompanied with loud laughter, throw pieces of paper across the room, and generally make a lot of noise that requires strong intervention by the harried teacher. Total time lost: 20 minutes!

Keeping these teens on task is no mean feat; aside from establishing clear rules of conduct and keeping them busy all the time, other personal factors intervene to make the teacher a successful professional: a strong voice, a commanding presence derived from a high self-esteem, greeting students by name as they enter, a well-prepared lesson plan, varied activities for the class, walking around to make sure everybody is on task, words of encouragement to the struggling ones, and, most important, a seating chart. To facilitate learning every student’s name, a fundamental requirement to keep discipline, it is convenient at the beginning of the year to sit them alphabetically; it makes memorizing names much easier. Once this is accomplished, change the order by mixing nerds with slow learners, thus hoping they will work well together.

Caricature of ancient school discipline

We cannot as teachers rule by fear, at any level; we must earn their respect by being courteous with them, no matter what the provocation. I made the mistake once of yelling at a student who was being disrespectful; I wrote him up and sent him to detention. I then called the parents and discovered that the kid was in a foster home and had been diagnosed with emotional disturbance. Feeling quite stupid, the next day I apologized to him and he did the same. I should have known better than to think that it was personal; it never is. Some of these troubled teens will lash out at authority as a reflex action, as they have been abused so often by the same authority figures. Keeping calm and poised is the best way to deal with injurious epithets from a distraught youngster. Whenever possible, include some light humor and kids will see the teacher as a “cool” guy or lady. It will make the classroom a lot easier to deal with. But we must be careful not to give the impression that we are their buddies; that would erode our authority and lead to dangerous consequences.

Transition Challenge

Anonymous — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 17:10:13 GMT

One of our most important tasks as a special education teacher in a public school is to prepare and conduct an ARD (Acceptance, Dismissal, and Review) meeting. This is where all the crucial information about the student is discussed, approved, or rejected. The attendees are the parents, usually only the mother can be present, a representative for the district, the classroom teacher for that student, a teacher for the career chosen by the teen, and the folder teacher who prepares and presents the material. The ARD will receive the student in high school, follow his/her progress every year, and meet for the last step, graduation. Few parents really understand and take advantage of that meeting to make sure that their son or daughter is receiving all the benefits of special education, a sort of safety net for disabled children.

Dealing with Parents

Image via Wikipedia

It is therefore most important to clearly explain all facets of the program; sometimes parents will make impossible demands, as they fail to understand their child’s academic limitations. They may believe that college is the only option for a student who reads at the fourth grade level. They may ask for difficult classes that guarantee failure for the youngster and that he or she does not have to take. Indeed, in many cases, a special curriculum is established simply because the student cannot successfully follow the regular one. A common exigency by emotional parents of special education students is to give them a different classroom teacher because they simply don’t like the current one. They have also demanded a change in folder teacher (special education), the person charged with following the progress of the student and report regularly to the parents. I have witnessed female colleagues in tears after talking to a parent on the phone; some young special education teachers quit after a few months, unable to handle the enormous stress caused by some students and parents.

Not Just Anybody

It takes a special character to work in special education (pardon the pun), quite different from the teacher who faces a whole classroom of excited teens 5 or 6 times a day. Not only do we act as counselor, surrogate parent, confidant ( the art of keeping adolescent secrets), friend, and school supplies provider, but we also perform as “lawyers” when arguing with a regular teacher who failed to apply the modifications stated in the IEP (Individual Education Plan). As I tell all my new folder students fresh from middle school, “I am your best friend in high school. Come to me or look me up at any time if you have a serious problem.” If I suspect or know about abuse in the home, I am legally bound to report it immediately (I may lose my certificate if I don’t).

Having experience in life in other areas and a background in psychology in college make for an ideal combination to work in special education. Facing irate mothers and fathers in an ARD meeting takes nerves of steel and the necessary arguments to calm them down. I would establish a minimum age of 30 as a requirement to work in this difficult area. Too often have I witnessed young colleagues caving in to irrational demands by pushy parents. As a special education teacher, I am totally responsible for academic decisions made in the annual meeting which will impact the future of that challenged student. The transition from middle school is not easy, but the transition to real life is even more difficult. I must guide the teen to a happy landing, even I have to oppose the parents’ wishes.

The Road to Independence

Anonymous — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 14:52:12 GMT

My main concern when I receive a special education freshman from middle-school is to guide him/her toward occupational independence. After 4 years of high school, this student must have a clear idea of what path he is going to follow and my job is to make sure he has had all the information at his finger tips in order to decide. There are questionnaires, surveys, assessments, manual practice, pamphlets, state agencies, presentations by colleges and vocational schools, and all kinds of vocational supports in a public high school. Even if we do not offer a particular field, we can “bus” the student to the specialized institution where he will receive a thorough preparation. For example, we offer classes and practices focused on business, on personal care such as cosmetology, cooking for large groups (complete with a trained chef), auto mechanic, air-conditioning technician, woodwork, plumbing, electricity, construction, medical field (nurse, medical assistant), computer design and website construction, and quite a few other areas where the student should be able to find work more or less easily.

Working on a car

The X Factor

We all know or should know that not every student is bound for college and this is particularly true for challenged teens. They all possess however some marketable skill and our job is to discover which area will be more suitable for the young man or woman. I have seen Down Syndrome kids work in supermarkets, bagging the purchases. I have seen students with a very low level of intelligence find a job in a school cafeteria. Most of the special education students however enjoy an average level of intelligence which allows them to follow the vocation of their choice. The X Factor* is going to determine whether they’ll be successful or not, and that is true for all high school teenagers.

*X Factor: Also known as the Fighting Spirit, Motivation to Succeed, or “I Will Prevail”

The Wall

Alas! Some special education students, though I prefer to call them challenged students, have been so battered in their K-12 academic career that when they reach high school they have lost the desire to test their limits. Their self-esteem is so low that our main goal as special education teachers is to rebuild their confidence, a difficult task indeed. They usually erect an inner wall for self-protection; it may be aggressiveness, sullen withdrawal, I don’t care attitude, what’s-the-point, nobody-cares-about-me, don’t-bother-me, or even a twisted sense of humor during the class to make their peers laugh. They crave attention, they desperately want to be one-of-them, i.e. non-disabled peers, but their ability to trust others has been severely blunted. They become, in short, greatly at-risk students. Some will drop out; some will fall prey to unscrupulous peers who lead them to criminal activities; some teen girls will become mothers before they can care adequately for their children.

Willing Parents

As usual, the cooperation with parents is extremely important; some mothers become grandmothers against their will but they offer a safe haven for these unwanted and unexpected babies while their teen mother finishes high school. Others simply cannot or will not help. Broken families often make for broken spirits; on the other hand, I have seen mothers come to ARDs with three little kids hanging from their skirts or pants. They struggle to educate and feed their large family and still find time to cooperate with the school. Such stories of courage go unnoticed by the media, which is more interested in scandalous affairs involving sick celebrities. Yet the enormous sacrifice by these single mothers – they could have chosen the easy way through abortion, is not recognized.

The road to independence is indeed arduous for these challenged students; we can make it a little easier as special education teachers but we need more support from the school districts. We spend too much time doing paperwork when we could dedicate it to helping these struggling teens.

Entitled or Not?

Anonymous — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 20:08:15 GMT

Teacher (Photo credit: tim ellis)

Some teachers and I were discussing the difference between today’s students and those 25 years ago. One colleague suggested that modern children (and their parents) feel a sense of entitlement that did not exist before. To place this statement into perspective, let’s go back to yesteryear when taking a note home from the teacher was often the equivalent of a good spanking or something similar. Parents did not question teachers, and students usually did what they were told by both. Authority, whether right or wrong, had the last word.

While I don’t condone physical punishment as the best method (I did use it on my kids a couple of times), I do condemn the other extreme, that is, let them do whatever they want. In the classroom, we have a deuce of a time, in high school at least, getting work done and discipline observed in most students. Is it due to lax controls on the part of school authorities or does it come from a home where rules are almost non-existent? Have we become a society fearful of enforcing discipline in our children or are modern parents simply too busy to instill the necessary values in the family?

The undisputable fact is that we, the teachers, cannot do what parents neglect or refuse to do with their children. Fundamental rules and values must emanate from the home, even if both mother and father are working. Once kids are in school, we are responsible for their well-being and we try to control their behavior by letting them know that society expects them to follow rules. But we are not priests, or saviors, or doctors, or miracle workers. Without the adequate support from mom or dad, our job becomes mission impossible. It becomes even worse when parents accuse us of not handling discipline with their children adequately. Sometimes, they are so blinded by their maternal love that the poor angel can do no wrong. “You simply do not understand my son”, says a distraught mother, when I show her proof that her precious child had skipped 20 classes. Why so many young parents act that way can only be blamed on their misunderstanding regarding the raising of children. We don’t require parent training in our modern society, but we do let them know that punishing is no longer acceptable. Our modern family values have evolved into a nefarious “laissez-faire” that creates little monsters who firmly believe that they are entitled to everything without working at it, without earning it.

“Give me” has become the new motto of so many students who come to school without adequate material and, of course, without homework. “I left it at home” is a common phrase we hear every working day of the week; unfortunately, it is not accompanied by a genuine expression of regret. These students believe firmly that teachers should accept their flimsy excuses and give them another chance. If they don’t, they simply shrug their shoulders and walk away, thinking that they’ll get the necessary help to pass, somehow. “Tomorrow” is a very distant concept that will take care of itself, somehow. “Planning ahead” is a foreign expression that may come in handy, somehow and some day. “I am responsible” is an unknown phrase for some modern teens.

Will our nation 30 years from now be run by the same adolescents whose values are limited to “I am entitled to”? Or is this a crazy vision by an older teacher who fails to recognize the new values? Luckily, I won’t be around to see the results.

Let Students Own, Not Rent! Making it “Our Classroom”

Anonymous — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 04:28:11 GMT

The other day, I don’t remember why, we moved our desks. Instead of 6 groups of four, we ended up in two groups of 10. At some point during the day, my students asked me to leave the tables in two groups of 10. I took their request lightly, and began to dismiss it. But they pleaded, [...]

“What the #@*%? Did You Just Hit Me?” When Students Hit Teachers!

Anonymous — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 14:02:05 GMT

And no, those four marks represent the word “H-E- Two sticks”, not the other word. Although I have to admit, I don’t know what word that teacher was thinking at that moment it happened. She was slapped. Slapped hard. By a first grader. Seriously? I remember 7th grade, George Gershwin JHS in East New York, [...]

Teachers need to get ready for back to school too!

Anonymous — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 11:33:56 GMT

I write a lot of posts about how to get students ready for school again when in fact teachers are as equally as important. Teachers are the one who do all the work. They need to get ready mentally and physically. Don’t forget that you are going to be waking up early as well. You have to prepare lesson plans, decorate your classroom, etc… Well I’m not saying you have to get ready in the middle of the summer well at least a week before.

Teachers the first thing you have to do is start by trying to sleep earlier , meaning if you usually stay till 3 am reduce it to let’s say 12?

A yoga class would be great to relax your mind and body before entering a new school year.

Laughter yoga sessions are available now in Beirut as well Click on the link for more info: Laughter Yoga Beirut

Get your personal supplies and a pencil case, I like to have my personal red and blue pen, eraser, white out, and an agenda notebook to keep track of important events and dates.

Well that’s pretty much what you have to a week before. I’ll be posting for first day of school preparations when I start school.

Always remember not to stress out too much, teachers you are in control of everything you are the ones in charge. Parents, students, and administrators are all counting on YOU, the teacher!

Break Through the First-Day Jitters

Anonymous — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 01:35:15 GMT

Follow @CoughlinLaura

I’m not talking about mine – although I know I’ll have them – I’m talking about the students’.

I teach in a 7^th and 8^th grade building, which means that 50% of the students are navigating the building for the first time on the first day of school, in addition to meeting a huge number of new people – adults and peers.

You Are Here by mag3737

Not only are they scared – they are scared to look scared (oh, to be an adolescent again). They do NOT know what they are doing, and they are NOT going to ask for help, so I use 3 basic rules to help make their day easier.

-Show Them Where They Are

-Show Them Where to Sit

-Show Them Who They’re Dealing With

Show Them Where They Are: If your building is like mine, your room number is written on a 1 inch by 1 inch tile and attached above your door – 3 feet above the average human head. Although that might seem well labeled to an adult traveling empty halls, it is virtually useless to a panic-stricken twelve year old who knows they have less than 60 seconds to find their next class or they will be LATE on the first day! Solution? I got 2 pieces of construction paper, marked one with a giant “Rm. 5” and the other with “Mrs. Coughlin, RW/WW” – huge, bright, and right at teenage eye level.

Show Them Where to Sit: Please do not make middle school students choose their own seats in your room on the first day. This may be the only time all year that they are begging you not to give them a choice. Think of the shy kid, the gawky kid, the new kid, grumpy kid. Think back on all the teenage social awkwardness that can be manifested in having to choose who to sit by (and who not to sit by).

This problem was solved for me last year by some brilliant advice I got from another teacher. Get 2 decks of cards. Tape 1 card from the first deck on each seat in your classroom. Pull the duplicates of all the cards you used out of the second deck and make yourself a pile. Before each new class begins, meet the students at the door, hand each a card, and tell him or her to find their card’s match and sit in that seat. No anxiety, to awkwardness, no questions, no-brainer. (Also no BFFs sitting next to each other and catching up on summer chit chat).

Show Them Who They’re Dealing With: Now that they’ve found the room and their seats, the next thing they are worried about is just how boring and mean the teacher is going to be. I like to get started on the first day by showing them a presentation about myself (check out this previous post). They will not remember any actual details (at Christmas I WILL have a student say, “Mrs. Coughlin, you have kids??”), but hopefully they will get the feeling that I am a human being who teaches because she loves it and wants everyone (including them) to have a good time doing what they love.

Once all this is accomplished, we will have survived the first-day jitters. Theirs and mine.

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Ready to Get Ready? Use Prezi.

Anonymous — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 19:04:18 GMT

At the end of this week, my summer break if half over. Hard to believe, I know, but I am starting to get myself back into school mode and make some plans.

One of the first things, actually THE first thing I like to have for my new students is some sort of “get to know me” activity. I don’t choose to make this a time to discuss classroom procedures or expectations; we’ll be working on that for the next couple of weeks. This presentation is their first introduction to me a human being, to let them know I am not a robot programmed to bore them to death or an evil alien sent to make them miserable for a year (remember, I’m dealing with 8th graders, their hopes for my coolness are high, but their expectations are LOW… I’m old you know).

I think most teachers give some sort of get-to-know-me introduction, and I’ve seen it done in a lot of great ways: posters, bulletin boards, and PowerPoint presentations to name a few, but I wanted to do something different this year. There is a great (free) presentation web site out there that is way cooler than PowerPoint and super easy to use. It’s called Prezi, and here is a very basic example of what it can do (you may have to click the title, depending on your browser):

.prezi-player { width: 550px; } .prezi-player-links { text-align: center; }

Back to School Introduction on Prezi

My Prezi is basic because I want to use it as a conversation starter, not an information delivery device, but you could use it for that purpose too. Also, in my real, non-blog version, I will have pictures of my family and pets, but that is for my students’ eyes only ☺

Another great thing about Prezi is that you don’t even have to make your own (although it’s fun); many Prezis are saved as public, which means you can use someone else’s presentation, or start where the creator left off and make changes to the original to make it work for yourself.

When you are ready to dip your toes back in to school preparations… maybe not for a few weeks yet… go play on the web site; there are Prezis over EVERY topic. Have fun!

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