topham's attic: it gets better: another message in purple

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

it gets better: another message in purple

I have that song in my head and it won't let go. And you know what? I don't want it to! I have not heard a song in a long time that so instantly just moved me and infected me. I think the last one was a song from Pfish which, if nothing else, tells you that my musical taste is all over the map.

Anyway...

I think it is wonderful and cool that those Broadway stars got together to record something to benefit the Trevor Project. Lots of celebrities (and random regular folks, including yours truly) have uploaded videos with their own personal "It gets better" messages for our LGBT youth. Some tell poignant stories; some are just personal statements from those who have been there and gotten through it, coming out on the other side to discover the truth behind the lyrics of the song. So thanks, Broadway kids: what a gift you've given us all!

Sadly for you all, we're reaching the end of a literature unit in both core classes, so for the moment at least, it gets really just a tad on the uglier side, actually. :-) Read on for specifics.

CW: Now you are basically fine. You have your collages (if you were in class today). Your job? Use every image and word on them to create a poem. (Nothing overwhelming or anything.) If you need to finish your collage at home, do not add anything to it. It is important that you limit yourself to the ten minutes of collecting images and words that we did in class. :-)

E3H: As to you guys: Well, I'd say that the discussions are definitely "getting better." 7th period was pretty tremendous today, and 1st seemed to start to wake up much more than usual. Nice! To reiterate the HW: review all sections dealing with the mythic ancestor. Go online and post (in the new section about the MA) your thoughts, ideas, and concerns about Asher's relationship to this figure who is so important to him and the story. I am expecting to see most of you there tonight, since no one was able to make new posts last night, and I assume that you all were simply unable to do so; therefore I am assuming that you can tonight. :-) Also: start considering topics for essays. I will post some from last year online.

E2CP: And finally, for the end game of Our Town, we have another little paragraph to write, this time about Simon Stimson's little diatribe at the end of the play. Julia Gibbs tells him that it's "not the whole truth" and he does not argue with her. What are we to make of this exchange in light of all that has happened with Emily and her 12th birthday? Try to bring that difficult memory into your response...

Notes to Parents

8/24/14

Hi, everyone, and welcome back to another (or your first) year at LFHS.

What you have heard is true. The English teacher has lost her ever-loving mind and is not going to be giving any grades at all in her classes this year. Not. One.

There will be no percentages, no numbers, no scores, no letters, no anything that will count toward anything that will end up being averaged for a final grade. But before you call in the men with the white coats, let me explain:

As I hope you have read in the doc your son or daughter (I have always hated the phrase "your student" when addressed to a parent) should have showed you, there is a wealth of research that indicates that grades--or the need to achieve them--are the single greatest thing that stand in the way of a great education. Studies show that the most influential thing a teacher can do to help a student grow academically is to allow him or her to self-grade. Most teachers would rather climb Mt. Everest dressed only in a swimsuit.

But the thing is: our academic system is severely broken. We say that our goal is to get our students to master Common Core Standards, and that is all well and good. But if that is truly the goal, then why do we care how long it takes them to master them? I'm serious. Think about it this way:

Try to remember back to when you were learning how to ride a bike. Oh, it was scary. You needed all kinds of support at first, lots of help from Daddy or Mommy. Then they let go and you were very, very wobbly. Probably you fell off, maybe several times. It took quite a while before you completely mastered the skill. But when you had...you had it down perfectly for the rest of your life.

Now imagine if you were being graded on that learning experience the way schools grade you. We would not score those first scaffolding attempts with Mommy and Daddy, but then...oh, you failed those quizzes when you fell off. And those wobbly rides? C's at best. Then a bunch of B's probably before you finally settled into 100% forever. But if we graded you right at that point, you'd probably average, oh, 83% or so. Why? You've mastered the skill perfectly. So why do you not get 100% if that is what we say we care about? Why on earth do we care about all those earlier times when you didn't have it down yet?

That will be what we go for here. Students will know what the goals are. They will understand what an "A" student looks like. And they will know when they have mastered an objective. Those who do so earlier than others will become tutors to those who have not yet done it: everyone gains from this and the newly learned skills, instead of being quickly forgotten as things studied for a test usually are, will continue being applied as masters tutor their classmates.

That is an awful lot to imagine will happen because I don't give grades this year, but what the heck: if you don't dream big, you never win big, right? The research is behind this, as is the school administration. I'm happy--well, actually I am excited--to pilot this concept at LFHS. As always, I'm glad to discuss this or anything else with you.

Karen

Feel free to email me any time at ktopham@lfschools.net.

topham's attic

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

it gets better: another message in purple

0 comments:

Important Links

Great Grammar (Etc.) Help from The Oatmeal

Vocab Lists

Portfolios!

Archive

Notes to Parents

Profile