The World Has Changed...My First Keynote

Here is the first official keynote I have been privileged to give. It was for a local school district's professional development day and I had a blast! The angle of the camera wasn't great but I think the sound was solid. I hit three big topics; Student Motivation at 1:38, Technology at 26:11 and Challenging the Status Quo at 47:22.

If you pay attention you will notice a small error in my editing. The title on the top of the last section does read "Student Motivation" rather than "Status Quo" as it should. However, due to the nearly 21 hours of rendering the file, plus several hours of uploading and processing on youtube...I am going to let it ride. :)

As with anything I do, I would love feedback.

Concerns With Common Core

Yes, there are lots of negatives being tossed around about Common Core and its impact on education and our country in general. I am not going to address the millions of dollars that will be lined in a whole host of pockets…none of which will be educators. In addition, I won’t bother spending time on the notion that standards are good or bad or that these particular standards were largely written be non-educators. And finally, I am not going to worry about the fact that the movement of Common Core is more political than educational. So…here are my three concerns with the implementation of the Common Core standards as it pertains to the classroom teacher.

First, the new Common Core standards are in fact better than some state standards…my state included. They are broad in scope and do allow for individualization by local districts and communities. In fact, there are many higher-order thinking skills addressed, which is a positive sign. However, my first concern is that we will take these new skills and try to reduce them to a bubble sheet test yet again. In addition to that, we will take those tests and use them as a tool to get rid of teachers and condemn schools to failure. Will the new tests in fact reflect the higher level skills or be watered down to drill and skill?

Another potential pitfall of Common Core implementation is the overall setup of our schools, specifically putting kids into grade levels based on age. Within these new standards they have laid out learning progressions that explain how a child should progress along various learning pathways. To me this sounds great. A step by step process of learning is what kids should have. Yet, our system is not set up to handle this. If a student has not yet reached a particular “step” in a learning pathway by the end of the school year, they will still be pushed up to the next grade. This is the equivalent of putting a kid on a ten speed bike before they have mastered a tricycle just because they get older. Does this make sense?

The final concern I have is the overall training provided for new and existing teachers, especially in the sciences. As the new ELA standards come out they are being infused into other areas such as Science and Social Science. While I agree that literacy skills need to be used in these other core classes, who is training these teachers? Are science teachers being trained on how to teacher literacy skills in their classes? Will these teachers be held accountable for teaching these skills as part of their evaluations?

While I am an eternal skeptic by nature, I am trying to give Common Core the benefit of the doubt. Yet, I feel as though we are putting the cart before the horse and not really thinking these things through all the way. What is more concerning is the fact that much of the educational so called reform, Common Core included, is being pushed by non-educators and businesses that stand to make a large amount of money. 

Problems or Symptoms

Lots of topics are at the forefront of discussion in education these days. As I am continually reflecting on these things, I wonder if we might be chasing our tails with a few of them. Are we treating the problems or the symptoms?

I have been vocal about my disdain for homework and the negative impacts it has on students, teachers and families. However, if we are going to do anything about the issue of homework, don’t we first have to look at the overcrowding of curriculum in our classrooms? Can we solve the homework problem before we solve the curriculum problem? I honestly feel bad for teachers who have just an overwhelming amount of content they are being required to get through in the course of a school year. Our schools have made the decision that quantity of curriculum is more important that quality. Until we switch that, homework will remain a topic of discussion from the teacher’s lounge to the dinner table.

We also discuss the problem associated with lack of funding in our schools. Many people have lamented about programs being cut and resources drying up. Yet, if we spent our money better would that help? Rather than looking at getting more, should we first assess how we spend what we have? I know this is easier said than done but it is a starting point at least.

Another issue is about the blame that teachers seem to shoulder when students or schools are under performing. Is that fair, when the only ones that have actual power cause real change are the administrators? Yes, teachers have control in classroom but they have little power to change curriculum, policy, rules or funding. Teachers can’t get rid of bad teachers among their ranks. Administrators are able to do many of the things that will impact large scale change in a school. Why not focus more on creating instructional leaders within schools and give them the power to promote positive change in a building? Yes, teachers need to be held accountable, but so too should administrators. Teachers are often the product of their leader. Don’t underestimate the power of a bad administrator to run a school into the ground of a great one to push a building to new heights.

Social media is also getting hammered as a viable tool in schools. Most schools block its use and are quick to share numerous examples of the negatives of social media. There are many stories of students and teachers getting themselves into trouble through the use of a variety of social media outlets. Yet, we are missing the point when we block and push it away. First, if we don’t teach our kids how to use these tools…who will? Also, social media does not create the problems but rather it exposes them. Let’s not focus on blocking things that are part of our students’ lives, but instead help them learn how to use these tools responsibly. Let’s stop chasing our tails and blocking things before we understand them and educate our students on them.

Are we looking at the problems or the symptoms? If we continue to treat and address the symptoms, the problem will not go away. 

Schools Fail Boys

Before you read, understand that this might be offensive or considered sexist, but I feel a need to share some thoughts I have had recently in regards to boys in our schools. We are failing them. I base my argument on the basis that yes, I am a boy myself, as well as the fact that I grew up with two brothers and have two sons of my own. With that in mind, I feel as though I have a fair amount of experience with boys in schools.

The first area in which I feel we are failing our boy students is the lack of male teachers in the classrooms. This is more prevalent in the primary grades where a child may go through their entire elementary experience without a single male classroom teacher. While I am certainly not saying there is something wrong with female teachers, I do see the importance of a strong male role model in boy’s lives. This is especially true of boys that come from divorced homes where they live with their mothers. Again, I am not saying single mothers can’t raise boys well, but boys need a positive male figure in their lives. I see a fair share of boys that lack a male role model at home and it is obvious in the way they conduct themselves in a classroom and with peers. While this may be cliché, boys need that male figure to help them grow up and “be a man”.

Another place in which I see us falling short with boys is the overall structure of our schools. Boys are inherently rambunctious, active and often loud. Yet, we ask them to sit in nice rows, be quiet, keep their hands to themselves and stay out of the dirt. If they fail to do this, we discipline them and if that doesn’t work we label and medicate them…all for just being boys. How can we create more boy friendly learning environments that support and encourage those naturally boy-like characteristics?

My final concern for boys in our schools is our post-Columbine obsession with zero tolerance policies in schools. Yes, I fully support the need for safety in our schools and bullying should not have a place among our kids. We should do everything in our power as teachers and parents to ensure every child comes to school and feels safe. However, have we gone too far with the zero tolerance policies? As a child I spent many days shooting my brothers and various other objects with a variety of Nerf, BB or pretend guns. Personally, I probably told my buddies or brothers that I was going to “kill them” numerous times. It was something all the boys I know did and none of us grew up to commit heinous crimes or end up behind bars. Yet, if a kindergartner is overheard playing “gun games” on the playground, he will be in the principal’s office and his parents will have a meeting with the social worker. If you doubt that, don’t. This happened to someone close to me this fall. Again, I realize the need for all kids to feel safe and go to school feeling secure, but at what expense? Millions of boys across this country play shooting games, gun games, and pretend “killing” and will grow up to live happy and successful lives.

I don’t want to sound like I am making excuses for boys because I am not. However, it seems as though schools are setting up boys for failure from the moment they walk in until they either comply or get through to graduation.

For some additional thoughts on this subject I encourage you to take a look at this TED Talk from Ali Carr-Chellman.