Life is full of choices. Sometimes you make the right ones and things go well. Sometimes you make the wrong ones and they come back to haunt you. And sometimes you make calculated choices that you know are the right thing to do but realize there might be some negative repercussions at some point later on.
That happened to me. I chose to be a teacher advocate, chief negotiator for our education association and the grievance chair for a while. Each put me at odds with the administration or school board from time to time. I knew there was a chance that at a later time it might be used against me.
It was. At least I think it was. In the spring 1989 I applied for an elementary principal position in our district. I got an interview but did not make the final cut. I can’t say for sure that my history in the district kept me out but strongly suspect it was a big factor. About the same time I applied for a job as a shared curriculum coordinator for the Mediapolis and WACO school districts. I was offered and took that position at a significant salary increase.
I was hurt that after 18 years of very successful teaching in the district I couldn’t get the principal job but realized it was time to move on and see what the future held for me. I thought there was a chance I could return to Mt. Pleasant at some point in the future. I’ll tell more about that when I get into the 90s stories.
The more I thought about the new job the more excited about it I got. I was interested in curriculum and staff development and this would be an opportunity for me to test my skills.
I had several people come to me and tell me they thought I should have gotten the Mt. Pleasant job. I hadn’t resigned from my teaching position because I hadn’t received a contract for the new one. I could tell administrators in Mt. Pleasant were suddenly nicer to me and a bit nervous. I couldn’t figure out what was up but wrote about their untypical behavior in my journal.
In the middle of May my principal came to me and asked me when I was going to resign. He pressured me to do it that day. It made me uncomfortable. I said I wasn’t going to resign until I got the contract for the new job. He said the board was meeting the next day and the superintendent wanted me to resign.
I did not and can only speculate about what was going on but have some suspicions. One was that there was considerable unhappiness in some quarters about me not getting the principal job and if I resigned it took some of the pressure off the administration.
A few days later I got the contract, signed it, and resigned from my teaching position. I was happy and some were happy I was gone. I started attending events in both schools and began to work on the transition out of the classroom. After being there 18 years, leaving teaching was a big transition.
You are nothing if not a story. It is up to you how good that story is.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Sunday, February 22, 2009
80s48 Evaluator Training
Legislation in the late 1980s mandated that all administrators in Iowa take an evaluator training course. Part of the rational was that there were incompetent teachers in the system and administrators were not doing anything about it. The Department of Education along with the School Administrators of Iowa designed the course with help from some professors at Iowa State.
I took the course with about 30 others. Most of those in attendance were already principals or superintendents. An administrator from a nearby district came to the high school library and taught the class. It lasted several evenings and had required attendance.
I was amazed by the cavalier attitude of many of the participants and the contempt they seemed to have for teachers in general. It made me wonder why many of these people were in education.
The course focused on what had been determined to be the effective elements of teacher evaluation. We watched videos, read and took notes as the course progressed.
The first element of teacher evaluation is the pre-observation conference. It takes place prior to the teacher observation. It is an opportunity for the teacher to give the evaluator an overview of what they will be seeing, answer any questions and agree on a focus for the observation.
The second part is the actual observation. We learned different ways of gathering data. The most common one was scripting. That was writing down every thing the teacher said. Another one just focused on the questions the teacher asked. What kind of questions were they asking? Did the teacher wait for a response, etc. Other times the observer might focus on the pattern the teacher used in calling on students. Do they call on one side of the room more than the other? Front more than back? Males more than females?
The observation was followed by some time for the observer to gather their notes and write up a summary document of some type. Then there is the post-observation conference when the evaluator shares their observations and conclusions with the teacher. The teacher is given a chance to respond and then both sign off on the document.
We watched video after video of teachers and scripted their words. It was tiring but over time I got better at it and could abbreviate a lot. Each person develops his or her own code.
Some of the participants openly made fun of the teachers in the videos and by their comments it was clear to me that some of them didn’t know what good teaching was. They seemed to like only the ones who taught the way they did and, from what I could observe, they must not have been very good teachers themselves. When I thought of some of the teachers they supervised it became clear to me why such incompetence was allowed to exist in education. Bad teachers become bad administrators and don’t really know what good instruction is so they couldn’t possibly evaluate effectively.
I finished in the top two or three in the class and was invited to take the follow-up training to be an instructor for the course. I did it because I really wanted to influence the way administrators did teacher observation.
You are nothing if not a story. It is up to you how good that story is.
I took the course with about 30 others. Most of those in attendance were already principals or superintendents. An administrator from a nearby district came to the high school library and taught the class. It lasted several evenings and had required attendance.
I was amazed by the cavalier attitude of many of the participants and the contempt they seemed to have for teachers in general. It made me wonder why many of these people were in education.
The course focused on what had been determined to be the effective elements of teacher evaluation. We watched videos, read and took notes as the course progressed.
The first element of teacher evaluation is the pre-observation conference. It takes place prior to the teacher observation. It is an opportunity for the teacher to give the evaluator an overview of what they will be seeing, answer any questions and agree on a focus for the observation.
The second part is the actual observation. We learned different ways of gathering data. The most common one was scripting. That was writing down every thing the teacher said. Another one just focused on the questions the teacher asked. What kind of questions were they asking? Did the teacher wait for a response, etc. Other times the observer might focus on the pattern the teacher used in calling on students. Do they call on one side of the room more than the other? Front more than back? Males more than females?
The observation was followed by some time for the observer to gather their notes and write up a summary document of some type. Then there is the post-observation conference when the evaluator shares their observations and conclusions with the teacher. The teacher is given a chance to respond and then both sign off on the document.
We watched video after video of teachers and scripted their words. It was tiring but over time I got better at it and could abbreviate a lot. Each person develops his or her own code.
Some of the participants openly made fun of the teachers in the videos and by their comments it was clear to me that some of them didn’t know what good teaching was. They seemed to like only the ones who taught the way they did and, from what I could observe, they must not have been very good teachers themselves. When I thought of some of the teachers they supervised it became clear to me why such incompetence was allowed to exist in education. Bad teachers become bad administrators and don’t really know what good instruction is so they couldn’t possibly evaluate effectively.
I finished in the top two or three in the class and was invited to take the follow-up training to be an instructor for the course. I did it because I really wanted to influence the way administrators did teacher observation.
You are nothing if not a story. It is up to you how good that story is.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Testing
I have written before about my students and letter writing. My students would write 500-600 letters a year. I have written about how it gave them a reason to write and had response built right in. I also used the letters to teach the importance of spelling and punctuation. The fact that letters have a specific format was another opportunity to teach and reinforce that format over time. We even stressed the importance of getting the envelope address right so it would get to the intended audience.
I used a U.S. Postal Service booklet that included all the rules for letter writing and addressing envelopes. The Postal Services recommend that envelopes be addressed with all capitol letters and no punctuation. That was contrary to the textbooks we were familiar with but I figured that since they were the ones delivering the mail they probably knew what worked best for them. With each new letter we wrote I made sure the students followed the recommended practice. It works perfect for the mail but there is a problem with it.
At that time the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) items related to letter writing followed the textbook model and not the Postal Services recommended model. Once a year during test time it presented a problem and students who wrote more letters in a year than most peole in their entire lives didn’t do well on that part of the test.
At the parent “Back to School Night” in September I asked the parents whether they thought I should teach addressing an envelope the right way or the ITBS way. To my surprise many said I should teach it the ITBS way because they wanted their kids to do well on the test. I got a similar response when I asked teachers during inservice sessions I led on letter writing.
Right or wrong the tests were consistent with the published textbooks. That was a startling revelation for me. I wondered how many other things were wrong? I wrote letters to ITBS and textbook publishers pointing out the discrepancy between what the test and their materials said should be taught and what the Postal Service recommends. I proudly addressed my envelopes to them in all capitols and used no punctuation. I got no response from anyone.
Fearing I was doing my students a disservice I showed them the textbook model and told them that was the way it would be on the test but urged them to stick with the Postal Service model when actually writing letters. That may have been teaching to the test but I was convinced that we should be teaching students the right way no matter what was on the test.
The troubling thing for me in all of this is that the test is more powerful than the truth and even knowing that people choose to teach the “test way” rather than the right way. Unfortunately, I would like to say that times have changed but they really haven’t when it comes to the power of tests. The good news is that textbooks and the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills now use the U.S. Postal Service model.
I used a U.S. Postal Service booklet that included all the rules for letter writing and addressing envelopes. The Postal Services recommend that envelopes be addressed with all capitol letters and no punctuation. That was contrary to the textbooks we were familiar with but I figured that since they were the ones delivering the mail they probably knew what worked best for them. With each new letter we wrote I made sure the students followed the recommended practice. It works perfect for the mail but there is a problem with it.
At that time the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) items related to letter writing followed the textbook model and not the Postal Services recommended model. Once a year during test time it presented a problem and students who wrote more letters in a year than most peole in their entire lives didn’t do well on that part of the test.
At the parent “Back to School Night” in September I asked the parents whether they thought I should teach addressing an envelope the right way or the ITBS way. To my surprise many said I should teach it the ITBS way because they wanted their kids to do well on the test. I got a similar response when I asked teachers during inservice sessions I led on letter writing.
Right or wrong the tests were consistent with the published textbooks. That was a startling revelation for me. I wondered how many other things were wrong? I wrote letters to ITBS and textbook publishers pointing out the discrepancy between what the test and their materials said should be taught and what the Postal Service recommends. I proudly addressed my envelopes to them in all capitols and used no punctuation. I got no response from anyone.
Fearing I was doing my students a disservice I showed them the textbook model and told them that was the way it would be on the test but urged them to stick with the Postal Service model when actually writing letters. That may have been teaching to the test but I was convinced that we should be teaching students the right way no matter what was on the test.
The troubling thing for me in all of this is that the test is more powerful than the truth and even knowing that people choose to teach the “test way” rather than the right way. Unfortunately, I would like to say that times have changed but they really haven’t when it comes to the power of tests. The good news is that textbooks and the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills now use the U.S. Postal Service model.
Sunday, February 08, 2009
Challenge
Dick Shepardson, my advisor at the University of Iowa asked me to be part of a Southern Prairie AEA #15 teacher inservice day. It was to be held on August 29, 1986. He asked me to do two sessions on writing across the curriculum. One would be for the elementary and the other for secondary teachers. I agreed to do it and was excited about the opportunity.
The first part of the event was held at Ottumwa High School and teachers came from all of the districts in the AEA. My first session followed the keynote speaker session in the opening session. My session with the secondary teachers was held in a third floor classroom in the southwest corner of the building.
I arrived early, organized and reorganized my handouts, reviewed my notes over and over and waited. At last, teachers began to stream into the room. Seats in the back filled up and the teachers carried on a loud chatter. I waited awhile and then decided it was time to begin.
I started to welcome them to the session when a teacher named Jeff shouted out, “Who are you? What’s experience do you have? “ I was taken aback and didn’t know what to say. Gradually, I got my composure but things continued to go down hill. The teachers challenged every statement I made and didn’t even let me finish sentences. This went on for about 40 minutes and finally a teacher interrupted the disruptors and said they wanted to hear what I had to say. I did get to present for about 35 minutes and then I thanked them and ended the session.
Two or three of the participants came up afterward and told me how sorry they were about what had happened and apologized for the unprofessional behavior of the others. Still stunned I packed up my materials and headed for Evan’s Junior High for the elementary presentation. I felt like I had been beaten up and was exhausted!
The contrast between the morning session with the secondary teachers and the afternoon session with the elementary teachers couldn’t be over emphasized. The afternoon was a great session! It went so well and I was so buoyed by it that I forgot all about the morning session until I was well over half way home to Mt. Pleasant.
Postscript: Two years later I was the afternoon instructor for an Iowa Writing Project Institute held in the Ottumwa High School Library. Jeff, who said he thought he knew me from someplace, was in the class. I knew exactly where he had met me before but I didn’t tell him. He struggled in the class like many but came dramatically around after about two and a half weeks. He said he was changing the way he did everything. One of the last days it must of dawned on him where he had seen me before.
He came to me after lunch and he said, “Do you know who I am?”
I said, “Yes, you’re Jeff.”
And he said, “No, no! Do you know who I am?”
I said, “Yes Jeff, I know who you are. The inservice a couple years ago.”
His face went white and he said, “I’m so sorry!” He went on and apologized over and over.
I told him to forget about it. He had actually changed his practice and I couldn’t have ever hoped for anything better.
The first part of the event was held at Ottumwa High School and teachers came from all of the districts in the AEA. My first session followed the keynote speaker session in the opening session. My session with the secondary teachers was held in a third floor classroom in the southwest corner of the building.
I arrived early, organized and reorganized my handouts, reviewed my notes over and over and waited. At last, teachers began to stream into the room. Seats in the back filled up and the teachers carried on a loud chatter. I waited awhile and then decided it was time to begin.
I started to welcome them to the session when a teacher named Jeff shouted out, “Who are you? What’s experience do you have? “ I was taken aback and didn’t know what to say. Gradually, I got my composure but things continued to go down hill. The teachers challenged every statement I made and didn’t even let me finish sentences. This went on for about 40 minutes and finally a teacher interrupted the disruptors and said they wanted to hear what I had to say. I did get to present for about 35 minutes and then I thanked them and ended the session.
Two or three of the participants came up afterward and told me how sorry they were about what had happened and apologized for the unprofessional behavior of the others. Still stunned I packed up my materials and headed for Evan’s Junior High for the elementary presentation. I felt like I had been beaten up and was exhausted!
The contrast between the morning session with the secondary teachers and the afternoon session with the elementary teachers couldn’t be over emphasized. The afternoon was a great session! It went so well and I was so buoyed by it that I forgot all about the morning session until I was well over half way home to Mt. Pleasant.
Postscript: Two years later I was the afternoon instructor for an Iowa Writing Project Institute held in the Ottumwa High School Library. Jeff, who said he thought he knew me from someplace, was in the class. I knew exactly where he had met me before but I didn’t tell him. He struggled in the class like many but came dramatically around after about two and a half weeks. He said he was changing the way he did everything. One of the last days it must of dawned on him where he had seen me before.
He came to me after lunch and he said, “Do you know who I am?”
I said, “Yes, you’re Jeff.”
And he said, “No, no! Do you know who I am?”
I said, “Yes Jeff, I know who you are. The inservice a couple years ago.”
His face went white and he said, “I’m so sorry!” He went on and apologized over and over.
I told him to forget about it. He had actually changed his practice and I couldn’t have ever hoped for anything better.
Sunday, February 01, 2009
Decisions
Life has a way of working out. Maybe it’s just fate or maybe it’s making the right decisions at the right times. I have been very fortunate in many ways. I seemed to usually make the right decisions that placed me in a good position to advance in my profession.
Odds were against me graduating from college. As I have written before, I jumped from one major to another. As a business major I found the course work easy but boring. As a physical education major I was uninspired. Although I could have done the course work in English I lacked a lot of confidence in that area. Elementary education seemed to be the place I could make the biggest difference.
For years people asked me if I was either going to take classes and work up to being a high school teacher or become an administrator. I was a little offended and replied “no way” to both questions. I loved teaching and couldn’t see myself doing anything else.
I was offended that some people thought that you had to have more training to be a secondary teacher. My teaching license is k-9 so I could teach high school classes. I did teach junior and high school classes in Mt. Pleasant School District’s summer school program. Generally, secondary teachers are content area experts while elementary teachers are generalists with expertise in the delivery of instruction.
Since I didn’t have much respect for many of the administrators I worked with, I was offended that people would think I would want to be one of them. I did work with a few good ones and was grateful for the opportunity. Some weren’t good teachers in the first place and so it was pretty difficult for them to supervise and evaluate teachers.
As I continued to take classes however I began to entertain options. I wondered where all of the education would take me. I knew I could be happy being a fourth grade teacher the rest of my life. I can’t say increased pay wasn’t a factor because, of course, it was. I’ll explain more in a minute.
As I continued to take classes, I decided to take enough courses to get a principal’s license in case I ever wanted to be one. I deliberately avoided getting a degree in school administration and stuck with being a generalist with an emphasis on reading. I thought that perhaps I could be a curriculum coordinator somewhere.
So what caused me to change besides money? Well, one was opportunity. With an advanced degree comes opportunity. Second was family. I felt I my family had endured a lot getting me this far and I owed it to them to make more money.
Maybe the most compelling reason was my frustration with many of the administrators I worked with over the years. I was convinced that it didn’t have to be like that. Lastly, I felt I could have a larger influence on education as an administrator.
Do I regret becoming one? Yes, I miss teaching and relationships with kids, but still think it was the right thing to do. Maybe I’ll teach again?
Odds were against me graduating from college. As I have written before, I jumped from one major to another. As a business major I found the course work easy but boring. As a physical education major I was uninspired. Although I could have done the course work in English I lacked a lot of confidence in that area. Elementary education seemed to be the place I could make the biggest difference.
For years people asked me if I was either going to take classes and work up to being a high school teacher or become an administrator. I was a little offended and replied “no way” to both questions. I loved teaching and couldn’t see myself doing anything else.
I was offended that some people thought that you had to have more training to be a secondary teacher. My teaching license is k-9 so I could teach high school classes. I did teach junior and high school classes in Mt. Pleasant School District’s summer school program. Generally, secondary teachers are content area experts while elementary teachers are generalists with expertise in the delivery of instruction.
Since I didn’t have much respect for many of the administrators I worked with, I was offended that people would think I would want to be one of them. I did work with a few good ones and was grateful for the opportunity. Some weren’t good teachers in the first place and so it was pretty difficult for them to supervise and evaluate teachers.
As I continued to take classes however I began to entertain options. I wondered where all of the education would take me. I knew I could be happy being a fourth grade teacher the rest of my life. I can’t say increased pay wasn’t a factor because, of course, it was. I’ll explain more in a minute.
As I continued to take classes, I decided to take enough courses to get a principal’s license in case I ever wanted to be one. I deliberately avoided getting a degree in school administration and stuck with being a generalist with an emphasis on reading. I thought that perhaps I could be a curriculum coordinator somewhere.
So what caused me to change besides money? Well, one was opportunity. With an advanced degree comes opportunity. Second was family. I felt I my family had endured a lot getting me this far and I owed it to them to make more money.
Maybe the most compelling reason was my frustration with many of the administrators I worked with over the years. I was convinced that it didn’t have to be like that. Lastly, I felt I could have a larger influence on education as an administrator.
Do I regret becoming one? Yes, I miss teaching and relationships with kids, but still think it was the right thing to do. Maybe I’ll teach again?
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