Wow! I don't know exactly when TEA released TAKS ratings for the past school year, but I know that I looked at them less than an hour ago... and now I'll write what I think about them, in case anyone is wondering how a teacher feels.
I am excited to report that my campus was rated "Recognized"-- so way to go 3rd and 4th graders!!! I had only a small part in this, as a first-year, 2nd Grade teacher in the 2010-2011 school year. I tutored 3rd grade students twice a week in math; and words can't describe the joy I felt when one particular student shouted to me, coming in from 3rd grade's award ceremony, that he did well on his test. :-) I'm hopeful and expectant that the students I sent on to 3rd grade this year will continue to do well and show the state how prepared and knowledgable they are on the STAAR test.
As you know, my school is a charter school; in the middle-ish of the largest district's territory in our county. The neighborhood school just down the road was rated "Academically Unacceptable", which absolutely breaks my heart. Our student populations are just the same, really. They're all young--- a variety of "at-risk" and "performing", from nuclear families and broken families, wanting to be cared for and taught. Because my school is a charter, we're probably a little less lopsided with different demographics. (Being a charter allows us to accept students from anywhere in our region-- so we have many students from our neighborhood, and a handful from each part of town/suburbs.) To admit my naivety, I have yet to wrap my mind around how such a gap between two neighboring schools is possible. Surely the teachers at both schools invest equally in their classes and work toward success with great intentionality each day. But maybe not? I guess that's really the hard part for me to understand. The population of our schools are extremely similar... and surely adults wouldn't decide to be teachers if they didn't care. I can't imagine being a teacher without the passion that is in my heart for education, students and this neighborhood. So now, I'm grappling with the question: are we somehow denying children a quality education? My building has limited space, and can not accept everyone who applies. (Not to mention, students learn less effectively and richly in classrooms with 25-30 students, which is a reason why we cap our classes below 20 students.) And I truly have no idea what all goes on any day at the other school.... I wonder what their teachers are like; how they feel, what they do, what they're passionate about....
I have no conclusion to all of this... not even to what I, personally, think about all of it. But I'm thinking that this is probably the root of why I cry when I watch the documentary, Waiting for Superman.... and why I have to take a long walk by myself afterward (every time!) to process it and my place within all of this. Ohhh pubic school....
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
Holy Moly!
Sorry to anyone who ever reads my blog! I said in April that I would update more, and totally didn't! So sorry!
The end of the school year was crazy busy. My partner teacher had a baby, so I had to learn how to be more independent. :-) Luckily, I had her for almost 9 whole months, so 2nd grade survived under my leadership! The last month and a half certainly came with its challenges, which after all was said and done, made me a much stronger and more confident teacher-- but it was by no means easy! I'm not sure that I have ever been more humbled in my life, or more desperate for guidance and assistance-- nor have I been more thankful for administrative staff and co-workers!
Now, I have 2 weeks left until Staff Development resumes, and less than 3 weeks until an entirely new group of students steps across the threshold of my room. This will already look tremendously different from last year! This summer I have been working on making my room more aesthetically pleasing, and adding more posters that are specific to what students will consistently encounter, primarily in reading. I have also added a Word Wall to my room, which I'm not entirely sure how to use yet. :-) But today and tomorrow, I have been and will continue to learn about a writing "curriculum" of sorts, called "Writing with the Traits". Today was really great; I learned A LOT and was very inspired to plan for the new year. That's about the only thing I have left to do besides to write students' names on desks and such. I am also planning to do a little different schedule-style, if you can call it that. :-) I plan to have an hour, or hour and a half, or maybe 2 hours... or 3.... set aside for centers. My classroom will be baseball themed, so this will be called, "In the Batting Cages". The goal is to have students working in pairs or independently at stations where they will practice necessary and previously-learned skills in spelling, math, reading, writing, language arts, art, listening, and maybe somehow: music. While students are working without my assistance, I plan to have a small group of 2-5 students working with me on skills needing extra attention, whether the student(s) are struggling, excelling or just learning content. So it's kind of a big plan requiring lots of time.
And my sweet, dear, lovely friend, Amanda just got here... so I'm giving her my undivided attention and will finish this later.
The end of the school year was crazy busy. My partner teacher had a baby, so I had to learn how to be more independent. :-) Luckily, I had her for almost 9 whole months, so 2nd grade survived under my leadership! The last month and a half certainly came with its challenges, which after all was said and done, made me a much stronger and more confident teacher-- but it was by no means easy! I'm not sure that I have ever been more humbled in my life, or more desperate for guidance and assistance-- nor have I been more thankful for administrative staff and co-workers!
Now, I have 2 weeks left until Staff Development resumes, and less than 3 weeks until an entirely new group of students steps across the threshold of my room. This will already look tremendously different from last year! This summer I have been working on making my room more aesthetically pleasing, and adding more posters that are specific to what students will consistently encounter, primarily in reading. I have also added a Word Wall to my room, which I'm not entirely sure how to use yet. :-) But today and tomorrow, I have been and will continue to learn about a writing "curriculum" of sorts, called "Writing with the Traits". Today was really great; I learned A LOT and was very inspired to plan for the new year. That's about the only thing I have left to do besides to write students' names on desks and such. I am also planning to do a little different schedule-style, if you can call it that. :-) I plan to have an hour, or hour and a half, or maybe 2 hours... or 3.... set aside for centers. My classroom will be baseball themed, so this will be called, "In the Batting Cages". The goal is to have students working in pairs or independently at stations where they will practice necessary and previously-learned skills in spelling, math, reading, writing, language arts, art, listening, and maybe somehow: music. While students are working without my assistance, I plan to have a small group of 2-5 students working with me on skills needing extra attention, whether the student(s) are struggling, excelling or just learning content. So it's kind of a big plan requiring lots of time.
And my sweet, dear, lovely friend, Amanda just got here... so I'm giving her my undivided attention and will finish this later.
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