Teacher's Diary

No Facebook for Teachers

Should teachers be allowed to communicate with their students via social networking sites?

According to the state of Missouri, the answer is no.

A friend recently forwarded me this blog post, which describes the new Missouri law banning teachers from being friends with current or former students on Facebook and other social networking sites. The law is part of a larger act that protects children from inappropriate conduct by their teachers.

I agree that precautions need to be taken when dealing with our youth. I myself have taught students for the past two years, many of whom I know have been physically, sexually or emotionally abused by their parents and guardians. I certainly would not want them to be exposed to more hardship and trauma from their teachers. However, I feel that banning social networking of all kinds with teachers can have negative effects. I have a separate Facebook account especially for my students, where I post messages about upcoming tests and field trips and answer students' questions about homework and the content of my class. Since I will be leaving my current school, I plan to keep in touch with my former students using Facebook.

However, I am extremely careful in how I use Facebook. I never go onto my students' pages or look at what they have written to other friends. I monitor any pictures or notes that have my name tagged in them so that I am sure nothing inappropriate is tied to my name. I do not use the account for anything personal. I feel that, used like this, Facebook is an extremely valuable tool for communicating with students. Most of them do not check their email regularly, but they are on Facebook constantly. Should I stop using something that is working for me simply because others worry that it could be inappropriate?

I took the precaution this year of letting my principal know that I was using the account and offering to give him my password so that he could check my activity at any time. I think as long as teachers are willing to be open about how they are using Facebook and keep their activity in regards to their students on a professional level, things should be fine.

But that's just my opinion. Please comment if you have ideas about how social media should or should not be used as a tool for learning.

My Big Decision

I have mentioned several times throughout the history of this blog a certain unhappiness with the school at which I am currently teaching. Back in the spring, I had a big decision to make, as I got a job offer at an after school program, where I would have been working with a similar population of students, but in a much different capacity. I turned that job down because I felt I wasn't ready to leave teaching just yet. And as much as I was beginning to dislike the climate at my school, I decided to stick it out for a third year - mostly because I didn't have the time or energy to search for another school, which could easily be just as bad or worse than my current one.

Then everything changed.

The end of the year was a series of negative events for me. The school hired a new AP who was rude and literally badmouthed me to other teachers, even though the parents and students of the school voted me Outstanding Teacher of the Year. I felt that my ideas were consistently ignored and that the school was taking a turn for the worst. Next year, the school will have its first graduation ceremony and it seems about 15 students will walk the stage unless something drastic is done. But the administration seems stalled.

At the same time as all this was happening, I got a message about a job opening for an Earth Science teacher at a fairly well-known charter school. I looked into the school and it seemed like a dream job. Not only has the school been around for almost twice as long as most charter schools, it takes its mission of college for all students very seriously, requiring every student to be admitted to at least one college before they can graduate from high school! The school has music, art and drama - classes I had found sorely lacking at my current school - and the classes are capped at 24 students.

I couldn't resist applying, but though it unlikely that I would get the job. I was wrong. After an intense interview process, I was offered the position. The previous Earth Science teacher was leaving to become the head of the science department at another charter school and the other science teachers I met were high-energy and dedicated.

There were some negatives. The work day and year are both longer than a typical public school (which is a positive for the students). The commute is slightly longer, the pay slightly lower and I would no longer be part of the union - but I had grown tired of the union's antics at my school anyway. Overall, the positives far outweighed the negatives.

I accepted the job.

I'm excited and nervous to be moving on. I will be the 'new' teacher again, despite having two years under my belt. At the same time, I think this school is going to be a great place for me to grow as a teacher and experience success. The community feel is great and parents are involved on every level of the school. The students I have met so far are polite and studious, though I'm sure they won't all be like that. Still, I am hopeful that a new, happier page in my teaching career is starting.

No Child...

Last night I had the pleasure of going to see the Off-Broadway one-woman comedy "No Child..." at the Barrow Street Theatre in Manhattan. Actress Nilaja Sun has won 21 awards for the play and I must say, she deserves every one. The performance was spectacular - Sun transforms herself from a janitor one second, to a new teacher at another, then to three different students and back. Each characterization is distinct and true to my own experience as a teacher. I identified with the new teacher and saw many of my own students in the caricatures she portrayed. The play touches on many of the issues faced by our school today.

Even for someone who does not work in education, I would recommend this play for the sheer inventiveness and the amazing ability of Nilaja Sun to create so many varied characters and make them recognizable. I truly enjoyed it!

School Politics

Over the weekend, I was talking to the director of the summer camp I used to attend, back in middle and high school, just catching up and telling her about my life these days. Inevitably, talk turned to the current state of education and the amount of bureaucracy surrounding the field. Everyone who works anywhere near education knows that, as much as we would like it just to be about the kids, a lot of political shenanigans affect what we do. At my school, the end of the year was full of tension because of these issues.

The jury is still out in my books about the union. Yes, I think the union is a good thing for teachers - it protects us from principals who might fire us at will (and talking to my former private high school teachers, this is certainly not out of the question). Our union rep this year got involved in some pretty heavy and necessary battles with our administration and helped change things for the better - I personally will benefit next year by actually having the correct amount of seat time for my science class, while for the past two years I have had about 20 hours LESS than the minimum state requirement. Obviously, this was something the union should fix.

However, I also feel that the union throws its weight around unnecessarily sometimes. There were times this year that I actually rolled my eyes during union meetings as our rep went on and on about how we shouldn't have to stay a minute longer than required by the contract and that the mandatory staff pd set up by the school each week was a violation. And maybe those statements were true. I, however, can't help but wonder why we are wasting time and energy on these things. I know few teachers, at our school or others, who do not spend extra time at school to benefit their students. It's what we do.

In the end, all that happened was that our union rep antagonized the administration to such a degree that he started getting "unsatisfactory" ratings. He is leaving our school next year. Although I saw it coming, it still saddens me that a promising and dedicated teacher ended up losing his chance to work with these kids and actually make their situation better.

It has already been suggested that I become the union rep next year, but I'm not sure I'm willing to get involved in all the messy politics. Still, I do feel that we need a union rep who understands the powers of the union and can use them to make life better for both teachers and students (because in the end, our jobs as teachers are only as good as our students' lives). I hope that if I am put in the position of union rep that I do a better job of communicating with administration and create a better relationship between them and the teachers.

Summer Has Begun!

Sorry for the long hiatus! Any teachers out there know, however, what a hectic time the end of the year is and how much energy it drains from teachers. I went from the end of the year straight to a 3-day PD (more on that in a later post) so I had very little time to relax until this weekend, but then moving to a new apartment took over in the form of endless painting. No rest for the weary!

I would like to recap the end of the year, since there was a lot of news, both good and bad. Good news first - my Regents pass rate nearly doubled from last year! Although it is still nowhere close to the state average or where I would like it to be, it was a huge success, especially since I found it to be a very difficult test relative to the ones that have been given in recent years. I had a few heartbreaking 64s, but mostly my students either passes with flying colors or very clearly learned nothing from my class. I was proud of those who passed the test and have arranged for those who were relatively close to retake the test in August.

Another piece of good news is that I have one student attending Weather Camp next week! This is a great opportunity for her to learn about what causes weather events and the types of careers that go along with science. I am making an effort to get my students more involved in summer science programs because it keeps them learning over the summer and allows them to see more of the "fun" side of science outside the classroom. I really hope she enjoys it!

In terms of bad news, several teachers have decided to leave our school next year and I worry that our staff is going to be significantly worse, since I know we are having trouble finding people to hire. There has been a lot of negative politics surrounding the school, which I plan to write about in greater detail in another post, but it saddens me that bad leadership at the school is driving good teachers away, in turn leaving an already struggling school with even less. I have been struggling with this myself, since I feel very unappreciated where I am now but also don't want to abandon my students or the cause of helping in the worst schools. We'll see what happens.

To end on one last positive note, despite feeling generally unappreciated by the administration, I was voted Outstanding Teacher of the Year by the parents and students! I already put that one on my resume. I'm looking forward to having an even better year in 2011-2012.

Photo of the Week - Sunset from a Plane

There is something eerie about how the sun follows you as you fly from east coast to west. On my recent trip to Las Vegas, I experienced a seemingly endless evening until the sun finally set behind the endless clouds. It was a truly spectacular start to a great trip. It also seems fitting as the year comes to a close to remind ourselves of the cyclical nature of education. One year ends and another begins, just as the sun sets and rises again. Pretty soon it will be time to start reflecting and planning for the next batch of kids.

Second Try at the Earth Science Lab Practical

I wrote a post last year about preparing for the lab practical, which was as much for students and myself as it was for readers of this blog. This year, however, I felt I did a much better job with it.

Since I didn't grow up in New York myself, I was not familiar with the Regents examinations. Sure, I took a few practice tests just to get a feel for them, but I had no idea what a true monster they are. I also didn't know (and am still unsure) about what is an appropriate amount of prep to give students. All three labs on the practical are known and I gave students standard/general versions of them throughout the year during the corresponding units. However, last year, I found that students struggled with the timing (only 9 minutes per lab) and with even small changes from the labs I had given them. I didn't have much time to review the labs before the practical either.

This year, I strove to remedy those problems. I emphasized the lab practical from day one and helped students work on skills such as rounding and reading directions. While these skills seem basic, most of my students - even the strong ones - struggle with them and end up doing poorly on the exam. When May rolled around, however, I started getting nervous about the timing. Throughout the year, labs that I thought should take a single period ended up stretching for two or even three. How could I get my students ready for the test?

I turned to my ever-trusty resource: the Oneonta ESPIRIT listserv. I asked other Earth Science teachers from across the state how they handle the timing, whether they practice it or not, and what the state regulations are.

Unlike usual, the listserv failed me completely.

Half of the responses I got said of course, help students practice (without giving them the exact test questions) and the other half said absolutely not, you will lose your job! Tough choice between helping my kids succeed and possibly losing my job. Whether right or wrong, I decided student achievement was more important than saving my own behind. I created a lab similar to that on the exam, with three sections. None of the questions were taken verbatim and students had to use their ESRT instead of being given the charts they needed. None of the rocks and minerals they had to identify were used on the actual test.

Even with this prep, some of my students complained on test day that they didn't know what to do, while others refused to believe that the practical would actually be taken into account in their final Regents score. In glancing over the tests, however, I was relieved to see that many of my students did quite well.

But at what cost? I feel that today, with the high pressure for teachers to get students to pass the state tests, there is greater and greater likelihood that teachers will start spoon-feeding students these labs. Teachers are so often asked to make professional judgments about how to follow regulations and it can be nerve-racking and overwhelming for a new teacher. The union and veteran teachers will tell us to protect ourselves at all costs, but we became teachers to promote student learning and achievement. When asked to make a choice between the two, teachers can become paralyzed or make poor choices. I still don't know if what I did was the right thing to do, but I don't think I broke any rules.

Only time will tell if this will come back to haunt me, but if it does, I will stand by my decision and my students' right to study for the lab practical.

The End of the World

My kids are all hyped up about the end of the world. Tomorrow, apparently, we will all die. I'm guessing Saturday school attendance is going to be particularly low in light of these far more pressing events - which to me actually might be the end of the world.

To be honest, I'm getting nervous about the upcoming Regents exams, especially now that the Board of Regents wants to make student pass rates part of teacher evaluation. While I don't necessarily disagree with them on the importance of having more standardized measures for evaluating teachers, I'm concerned that schools like mine will become places where no one wants to work. Why would I work somewhere where students are several grade levels behind if I know my evaluation depends upon them passing a test that may be too high level for them.

I love working with high-need kids. I like the challenge of having to fight through years of baggage to get that one moment of understanding. It is tough and sometimes heartbreaking, and I know that I will have a fairly low pass rate. I imagine it will be exponentially greater than last year, but that doesn't mean it will be close to 100%. I strive to give every student a chance to pass the Regents, but I'm also being honest with myself that some won't have the lab hours, some won't show up for the test, some will show up and give up half way through. And every time they miss Saturday school, my students are missing out on the opportunity to learn even more.

Sometimes I worry that I am getting jaded, but I think I'm just more realistic this year than I was last year. I know I taught better and I know more student are going to pass for sure. But how many, I still couldn't tell you. I'm hoping maybe 30%, maybe even close to 50%, but I am also preparing myself that that may not happen.

I'm still trying to convince myself that that won't be the end of the world.

Photo of the Week - Red Rock Canyon

Last weekend, I spent a wonderful whirlwind 2 days in Las Vegas. I went to Death Valley around this time last year, but I had actually never spent any time in Las Vegas itself. Of course, being the science nerd I am, I ended up going hiking in Red Rock Canyon (where I took the photo above) instead of wasting the days in the casinos - though I gave those a brief try too. I highly recommend this scenic state park for anyone out in the area. It was spectacular, great views and a great hike, plus a lovely drive through the canyon to get to the trailhead. The rocks show beautiful sedimentary layers that certainly tell the ancient story of these hills. Thanks to my boyfriend for using his skills to process the photo!

Inquiry Teaching - A New Thing?

My roommate forwarded me a New York Times article about how scientists are developing new techniques for teaching science that improve student understanding. I was intrigued, since I'm always looking for ways to improve my teaching.

In the study, researchers looked at two undergraduate freshman physics classes. The classes were huge - over 260 students, according to the article - and most of the instruction was delivered traditional lecture style. In one of the classes, however, researchers went in during the 12th week and did experiential learning with students, having them engage with the material and answering their questions as they came up. The results: their experimental group did much better on a final test than the group that got only lecture.

My question: ...and...?

Is it really a new discovery that kids learn better when allowed to interact with the material, rather than sitting through passive lectures? My school, a public high school in New York City, was founded on the principle of teaching via inquiry three years ago and it had many older schools to look to for guidance. I read the article, very confused about how scientists think this is remotely a new idea. I have been teaching for a grand total of almost 2 years and I could have told you exactly the same thing this article did.

Usually, the world of secondary school is far behind in terms of up-to-date pedagogy. Researchers are constantly developing new and better techniques for teaching our students, and then it takes 5 or 10 or 15 years for it to trickle down to the classrooms and actually benefit the kids. However, that is not the case here. Public schools are already using inquiry teaching and the Universities, it seems, are the ones who need to catch up.