ED Thoughts: Education Views and Support

Looking at this, and then state test specifications, and thinking about all the things that teachers need to do, and all the things that I want to do, and all the things that should already be in place in our schools can sometimes feel like the following:

It’s a good feeling because it means I’m still in the game and I want to win.  Our students deserve the best and we should always be looking to improve.

Recently the OEIB sent an email asking me for feedback.  Here were my thoughts.

My Response:

Q: The OEIB has had many discussions about incentives in education. One of the questions that has been asked is “What kinds of efforts help to incentivize teachers to be innovative and creative?” Will you please take a moment to answer this question?

A: This question operates on a false premise that teachers are not already working hard to be innovative and creative.  Perhaps a better questions would be, “What kinds of efforts woud help to incentivize the legislature into taking action to fully fund education?  Or, failing at that, funding education at the level it was 5 years ago?”

Q: What (if any) barriers are in the way of you being able to be innovative in your teaching?

A:   Three things, and all stem for not fully funding education.  

First, large class sizes make it harder to do innovative work. Innovative work requires the teacher to be much more hands on and it’s hard to do when there are many students who need help.

Second, a lack of technology. There are so many things that can be done to help individualize education and make it more relevant, but these steps require regular, and reliable computer access. I am so tired of treating the computer lab like it’s a special trip. Nowhere in business do we treat using a computer like it’s special. It’s the way we do business, unless you’re in a school. It’s hard to plan for big things, or routine things if you don’t know if the lab is going to be available on the days you need it, or when the one lab available to 250 students is block scheduled for Oregon OAKS testing.

Third, a lack of classroom assistants to help students get caught up. This applies to students in special education who could use more attention in the classroom and those students who fall behind for any number of reasons. It damages the progress of the whole class if we stop to get every student caught up. This is especially frustrating when a few sessions with a classroom assistant would help that student get caught up with the class.

As an aside: Simply reallocating money will not fix this problem.  Resources are so scarce that hoping that shifting money into different funds for different programs will not fix the problem.  Taking the approach that funding, “is what it is” would be like an ER doctor focusing on the breathing of a patient and ignoring the failing heart because there wasn’t enough equipment.  The OEIB needs to place pushing the legislature to actually fully invest in education as its number one priority.  Then and only then should the OEIB talk about investments.

I am the father to a wonderful one year old.  She is funny, smart, beautiful, a little crazy, and the love of my life.  The day before yesterday she was in our backyard for the first time and I turned to her and let her know that she was the reason why we had grass back there.  When we bought the house it was all weeds and leaves in the front and back, so I worked for a few months getting the yard ready for sod while also working with my mom and wife on a terracing project.  It took forever, but when everything was done, we had transformed the exterior of the house.

What I didn’t tell the tow head in the backyard was that she is the reason I’ve done everything in my life.  I remember being in middle school and wanting a stable source of income, in a job that I liked so I could support a family.  Of course, being the President of the United States is different than being a 6th grade teacher but that drive pushed me through school.  I also wanted to find someone who I could build a family with.  I met her at college as I worked toward my degree.  So everything I am has been in preparation for my little one.  I truly hope that I measure up to the goal I’ve been working towards for years.

So what does this have to do with a blog about education?  A few months ago I had a teacher in my building tell me that a girl in one of my classes told her during a lesson that, “Mr. ____ is like my second father.”  Now I hadn’t pulled some above and beyond, Freedom Writers, Ron Clark Story, Insert-teacher-in-Hollywood-movie-where-they-save-the-kid-from-a-bad-environment, move.  I had just taught her and treated her like every other student.  The kid has probably forgotten she said it, but for me it’s one of those things that I will never forget.

On Father’s Day we take time to recognize those men in our lives who raised us, or had some sort of influence on our lives.  We also give ourselves an attaboy if we’re doing a decent job at being a dad.  Although this applies to everyone I’m also putting special emphasis on teachers here because we spend hundreds of hours a year teaching children who are not our own.  Male teachers, and especially the rare breed at the 6th grade level and below, you may not receive a card but you too may be seen as “like” someone’s second dad.

You have the opportunity to be a good role model and helper for all of your students.  It’s a literally awesome (from the Oxford American Dictionary which has my favorite definition of the word: extremely impressive or daunting; inspiring great admiration, apprehension, or fear) responsibility and privilege.  So remember that.

Happy Father’s Day to the Biological, Non-Biological, and “kinda like” dads who influence us everyday.