The Wisdom of Melvin

Over the years I've had many inner city teenagers relay stories of teachers and administrators who discourage their dreams and encourage them to go to trade school because, "That's where you need to be."

I've always been frustrated by this. So, I try to take little opportunities to remind the kids that they have every capability they believe they have and should never let anyone tell them any different.

It was on one of these mini encouragement sessions that I began explaining to the kids that I am a college professor who teaches teachers. I stressed to them that the things they can do as a result of our technology class is more than most teachers. I went on to explain that because they were young and inquisitive they have endless potential in front of them and things we won't be able to teach them that they'll need to teach us.

I happened to mention that many of the teachers I teach resist technology. They refuse to even try. To which Melvin, so innocently replied with such wisdom that we should all heed:

"Miss Janet, if they don't want to learn then why do they want to be teachers?"

A future teacher making a difference now

Jessica Orogbu is one amazing person. She is currently a sophomore education major at Texas A & M-Commerce. Jessica began attending our University of Values (UV) summer program several years ago. After "aging out" of that program, she came back to volunteer. Her committed volunteering efforts eventually earned her a teacher position at UV. She enjoyed teaching so much that during her senior year she found a job working for a daycare. Though she was making much more money at the daycare, she loved the kids at UV. She took a pay cut during the summer to come back and work with us. She worked with us every summer until going off to college last year.

I tell Jessica all the time that she is my mentor. Jessica did all of her college entrance paperwork completely on her own. She would periodically call me to ask for advice on what to do next, but beyond that, she did all of the footwork. I am amazed by her willingness, her determination, and her leadership toward others. (She also made sure all of her friends got their college paperwork in on time).

Jessica is majoring in Education and is so excited to become a teacher. I am so excited to know that in about 3 more years some lucky kids will have an outstanding teacher leading them! Today I received this email from her that I had to share:

Hello Ms. Janet,

Hey I learned a new thing in Psych 300 that I think could be implemented into summer camp if it gets up and running again. As an afternoon class I was thinking a social skills class. Studies show that one hour of social skills training a week, dramatically improves the behavior of a child.(Psych 300....I love it) But it could go over things as simple as what to do if you see someone drop a $20 bill. Even more helpful teaching children to ask questions. As weird as it seems, She said a lot of children feel that asking questions are wrong. It has to do with as a child when they ask the "why" questions to their parent, the parent response which is usually, "Stop asking questions" or something to that nature, traumatises a child. The child then starts to think that asking questions is wrong. So when they are in school and don't ask questions they fall behind. Which again studies show that if a child falls behind for about one month, their TAKS score is found to be three times lower. I think this class could be good for camp as an afternoon class and it doesn't have to be boring. They can role play situations, watch films, and other exciting things. I guess it shows that the entire time she was talking about this, I was thinking about kids camp. lol. Well just wanted to tell you what was on my mind. I hope you have a great day. I will see you tomorrow and I will not be attending the TREK run but I will come to the banquet. I will call you probaly tonight or tomorrow.

Jessica

People like Jessica make me excited about the future and the possibilities our children possess. Keep her (and all of the other budding children) in your prayers.

Acceptance

Children are who they are.

They know what they know.

They bring what they bring.

Our job is not to wish that students knew more or knew differently. Our job is to turn each student’s knowledge and diversity of knowledge we encounter into a curricular strength rather than an instructional inconvenience.

We can do that only if we hold high expectations for all students, convey great respect for the knowledge and culture they bring to the classroom, and offer lots of support in helping them achieve those expectations.

~P. David Pearson, “Reclaiming the Center”

Parents don't send us their worst or least educated children and keep the others at home. They send us the best they've got. My experience is that parents send us (the educators) their children hoping and trusting that we will provide them with skills that will help them be "successful" in life. I don't hear of a lot of parents who intentionally try to sabotage their child's education. Everyone I know wants their child to be bright, smart, and successful. They expect the educators to do what they oftentimes can't. Sometimes they can't because they work too much. Sometimes they can't because they're addicted to drugs. Sometimes they can't because they don't have the education. It doesn't matter what the reason is. We owe the children (and the parents) the best we have to offer.

Ready or not...

I know there are good things that happen in the DISD (Dallas Independent School District). But when I see the outcomes of so many of the kids, I get frustrated. And when I hear stories like I talk about below, I understand that there are other contributing factors to their lack of education. We can't always blame the parents and the neighborhood environment.

A friend of mine just took a job with DISD. She was unofficially hired over a month ago to teach 6th grade Reading or Social Studies. After she was hired by the principal, she had to complete the paperwork in Human Resources to become official. Knowing they were on vacation during the week of July 10, she waited. The week they came back she called their office once a day, every day, to no avail. She never heard a human voice and never received a return phone call. She persevered. Hearing that DISD would be having a job fair and hearing that HR would be there in the flesh, she went. She finally was able to talk to them and set up an appointment to sign her paperwork. That was Saturday, July 22. New teacher orientation started Monday, July 24. Though she had finally broken through, she was still unable to attend the Monday orientation because her paperwork was not completed yet. She continued on this cycle and finally is now an official DISD teacher as of this week. When she was finally hired, she was told it actually wasn't Reading or Social Studies that she would be teaching, but Langauge Arts. Though her undergraduate degree focused on English, she was not prepared for their uncommunicated change of mind. However, she was already now on the path to teaching and she had already quite her job so she accepted the change of plans.

She received the text books for her class today...1 week and 1 day before 6th graders will be running into her classroom. She has yet to be given passwords, Scope and Sequence guidelines, a working computer in her classroom, etc.

I know another guy who was just hired to teach in Plano. He was hired back in the Spring. This summer parents (AND STUDENTS!) called him asking him when they could meet. The school had requested a reading list to send home with the kids for the summer vacation. Less than a month into the summer, the kids were calling him asking him if they could begin meeting and discussing the summer reading list. They had already completed the first book.

Do you ever wonder why our kids in the inner city (specifically, our kids in DISD) might not be able to read, write and comprehend well upon exiting high school? Ever wonder why so many in our South Dallas sector drop out or aren't prepared for college? My friend in DISD has not entered the easiest school to teach in. I have learned over the years that one of the easiest ways to win over kids is to let them know they mean enough to you to be prepared for them. The least DISD could've done is given her time and resources to prepare. Instead, she now has a week.

Maybe instead of trying to blame and then fix the kids, we should work harder on trying to fix the system and equip teachers with the resources, guidance, and time they need to make their classrooms work. Too often, the hope I experience comes from the individuals that persevere every day with no help from the systems around them.

Alternative Certification

Alternative Certification is something that we've resorted to in our education system because our public schools were losing teachers faster than we could replace them. So, we made it easier. Now, anyone wishing to be a teacher needs to go through a short program. In DISD, it's two-months. In other places, it's simply an online course that can be done in about a month. During that time (even before they have completed the short program), the person is placed in a full classroom of students...no educational background or experience with children necessary. DISD offers $39,150 to start. And that's only with a bachelor's degree and the basic 183 days of school (summers and holidays off). If you teach summer school or teach at a Learning Center, your pay increases. Not bad for someone who isn't degreed in the field they enter.

Am I against Alternative Certification (AC) teachers? Absolutely not. Some of my friends who are very intelligent and very good with kids have gone through the AC program. I'm sure they are wonderful in their classrooms.

However, after going through a masters and a doctoral program in Elementary Education, I realize how much there is to learn...about reading strategies, learning styles, discipline, cultural differences, parental involvement. There is so much research out there and so much to know! We're dealing with the same things now as they did back in the 1800's and don't even realize it because teacher's don't have to be educated in education!

When was the last time you chose a doctor who didn't have a medical degree, but decided mid-life that he/she wanted to practice medicine so they got online, looked at some of the self-diagnosing websites, then opened up their practice? What about lawyers? If you needed a lawyer, would you pick the one who has had no courtroom experience and no negotiation experience, but simply decided that the legal field paid well and was easy to get into? I would guess the answer would be no.

Then why do we do that to our children? Did we forget that education is what prepares those lawyers, doctors, dentists, teachers, business people? I've heard people say that teaching isn't rocket science. Try to teach a group of kids. In my mind, it ranks pretty close. Just like any other, more "credible" and "respected" field, if you're doing a good job, I guarantee you there is much more to teaching than punching a clock from 7:30-3:30 every day and getting a paycheck at the end of every month...IF you're doing a good job.

Expecting an A

Everyone wants an A. Especially in grad school.

The problem is not necessarily that everyone wants an A...it's that everyone expects an A when they don't necessarily earn an A.

It can be tough being a professor. It's like being a parent. Parents have to maintain a balance between being their child's friend and their disciplinarian. Though I'm not a parent, my understanding is that parents do this so that their child will have some healthy guidelines when they grow up. For the sake of our children, I wish more professors would grasp this concept.

The more we "give" out A's, the more our education system loses it's integrity (like we need any help doing that these days!). Giving A's doesn't do anyone any favors. If teachers aren't ready and equipped to teach our children, we need to ensure we help them get ready, not inflate their grades and make them think they are more prepared to teach than they really are.

Same for the children. We are setting them up for failure when we pat them on the back and tell them how good they are doing when their work is less than adequate.

Let's be honest with ourselves and with others. We aren't going to improve anything by letting people slide by.

370 Teachers Dismissed

Allow me to give my standing ovation for the Washington D.C. school system!

They have dismissed 370 teachers for failure to complete their certification as promised. Of course, because of their dramatic action, along with the usual retirements and such, they are now looking at trying to fill around 750 vacancies. Vacancies that could potentially (and probably will) leave some of their classrooms with permanent substitutes throughout the school year (I know that's possible and probable because I've seen it here in Dallas). So why am I so excited over this move?

I am hoping this move is about higher expectations for the teachers of our most precious commodities...the children...our future.

Here's the way I see it. The fact that they "dismissed" 370 teachers for not obtaining their certification shows that they are looking for certified (and hopefully, qualified) teachers. Though there may be quite a few certified teachers out there, they do not want to teach. Therefore, the burden is placed on the school to attract certified teachers into the teaching field.

Here's what I think could be good: Because the pool is so small, maybe they will have to increase teachers' salaries to attract more people. As word gets out that education is a valued field--demonstrated by the quality of educators they seek out and the amount of salary they offer--other people may be willing to choose education as a field of study. As the pool of educators increase, it creates competition. The employer no longer has to accept whatever he/she is given. They can ask for higher qualifications. For the potential educator, knowing that there are others who will be competing for the same job causes them to work harder and ensure they meet a higher standard of excellence.

Law firms don't take just anyone off the street because they have to. People who go into law know that it is a rigorous field with high expectations. They know they will have to compete for jobs against other lawyers. They know their degree, along with their abilities in the courtroom or at the negotiating table, will be what determines whether or not they get the job. Why do we not have these same expectations for the teachers of our future leaders?

It's going to take more than just Washington D.C. to change the face of teaching. It's going to take other cities as well. It's also going to take "we, the people." In order for dramatic change to occur, we must be willing to pay for the increases. We must be willing to seek out the good for all children...not just the children in our own child's school. Maybe if we sought out this change we could create a system where people wouldn't feel the need to spend thousands of dollars on private schools. Their money could then be put back into neighborhood schools where all children attended...together. Maybe it's a pipe dream. But my hope is that Washington D.C. is starting something that will get other cities and school districts thinking about expecting more from their teachers as well.

Hearing the Voice of the Community

I mentioned I'm teaching a graduate class of 11 current or future teachers. 10 out of 11 of the teachers teach in predominantly African-American and Hispanic schools. The topic of my class the other night was Stereotyping. As I think through the agendas for each evening, I always think about the stories kids' and parents' have told me through the years. Many of their stories address underlying racism and assumptions that often affect their educational decisions in life. Their experiences are something people need to listen to and really hear--especially teachers who are teaching in these schools.

Because I've seen what happens in the schools I've been in--teachers cussing at kids, hitting kids, encouraging kids to go into the Army because they think that's all the kid will be able to do in life, etc.--I want people (especially teaches) to hear from the people on the receiving end. What are they thinking and feeling when all of this happens? Since I now have the opportunity to connect the voices of the community with the educators, I thought I would do just that. I asked Nazareth, Gary, Whitney, and Tiffany to speak to my class. I was a little hesitant simply because I didn't want to make the assumption that the teachers in my class don't already have quality relationships with their students. However, the result was amazing!

Nazareth, Gary, Whitney, and Tiffany expressed to the group of teachers that their worst experiences and their least favorite teachers were the ones that didn't do anything. They didn't make an effort to teach them and they didn't bother to expect anything from them. They told stories of teachers who didn't care if they skipped class, which they eagerly participated in, but they wished the teacher would've held them accountable and taught them something instead. Their words of advice to the teachers was, "Get to know your kids on a personal level. Ask about them." Build a relationship. Love us even when we're bad. Encourage us despite our attitudes. Help us be successful. Only one of the four had a parent who was willing to be involved in his daughter's education. The other three had parents who attended discipline meetings...mainly because that's the only time they were called...but did not get involved any other way. Despite the lack of parental involvement, the four continued to say, "Build a relationship with us! Our parents probably won't get involved. Talk to us!"

The teachers responded so positively! They listened intently to each of their stories and they asked questions. They seemed to genuinely want to understand the perspective of a student. They seemed a little surprised at how adamant the four speakers were about wanting expectations, encouragement, and relationships. After the speakers left, one of the teachers asked, "Can you bring in some parents, too?" I'm going to work to do that. Teachers need to hear from the students. They need to hear from the families. Hopefully, this class will lead the teachers to begin to get to know the families at their school instead of just relying on the people I bring in.

It always amazes me what can happen when you connect people. The teachers genuinely wanted to hear and understand the perspective of a student. The students (and families) want the teachers to hear them. But, for some reason, we don't work toward that end. We judge what we see and what we hear from others instead of getting to know the other side. The fact that we're different...racially, culturally, socioeconomically, where we live, where we work...should make us more, instead of less, eager to get to know each other. The benefits are more valuable than we realize.

Acknowledging society's contributors

I taught my first graduate class the other night. It was a Multicultural Education class. Though I would never want to teach a group of teachers reading strategies and classroom management techniques and such, I have always wanted to teach Multicultural Ed.

The class of 11 people was pretty diverse. Out of those 11, 4 are male (2 white, 1 Asian/Indian, 1 Hispanic) and 7 female (2 white, 5 African-American). Four of them teach elementary, 4-5 of them teach high school, and 2-3 are not teaching right now. 10 of the 11 have predominantly African-American and Hispanic students in their classes. The Asian man teaches Humanities in Plano and has an overwhelmingly white class. The diversity of the class is going to add to the richness of perspectives.

Last night as I gave them tasks and assignments that would introduce them to a number of different "unsung heroes" in our history, one of the African-American women made the comment, "I feel dumb." Another African-American woman made a comment that implied she blamed herself for not knowing more about the variety of cultures and names of the people in different cultures who have made major contributions to our society.

Did you know...

Shirley Chisholm, an African-American congresswoman ran for president in the 1970s

Sacajawea, a Native American who aided Lewis and Clark on their expedition

Charles Drew, an African-American man who founded the blood plasma and transfusions

Maria Tallchief, an Osage Indian who was a famous ballerina

Diego Rivera, a Mexican artist

Jose Marti, a Cuban poet

Seiji Ozawa, a famous Japanese-American orchestra conductor

Garrett Morgan, an African-American who invented the stop light

It's interesting to me that if we want to learn about cultures other than the mainstream, White culture, we feel like it's our own responsibility to do that. Yet, from a very young age we are fed a variety of information about White inventors, musicians, politicians, leaders, etc.

I think Stevie Wonder's song, "Black Man," describes it best:

"We pledge allegiance all our lives to the magic colors red, blue and white. But we all must be given the liberty that we defend. For with justice not for all men, history will repeat again. It's time we learned this world was made for all men."

I would add to his song...this world was not just made for all men, but by all men...and women! I think we would be much better off if we acknowledged that.

Frustration

We are failing our children.

1, 125 seniors in DISD will not graduate this year because they did not pass the TAKS test, even though many (maybe even most) of them met and passed the required courses set up by the school.

I know at least one of those 1,125. He had already sent out his graduation announcements and senior pictures and then was told he didn't pass the test. He is going to press on and work toward taking his last chance test again this summer. I'm proud of him for continuing. He could have easily decided to give up.

I am not arguing that students should graduate "just because." I have never been in favor of low-expectations for students. What I am arguing and advocating for is that our students are prepared BEFORE they get to their senior year!

I know, I know...I have teacher friends who will tell me that I can't put it all on the teachers. Parents have to be involved, too. Parents have to do some of the work at home--of encouraging children, of helping them with their homework, of visiting the school, etc. Though I whole-heartedly agree with that, I think we've got to face the reality that we're dealing with-especially in our inner-city schools.

Some of the parents I know don't have the skill levels themselves to help their kids with their homework. Some of the parents are absent or on drugs and the kids are raising themselves. Some of the parents go to the school when the school calls (unfortunately, the school usually only calls when their child is in trouble).

I haven't met a parent yet who doesn't want their child to be successful. Even drug addicted parents express a desire to see their kids succeed despite their own failures.

I wonder what would happen if the parents and the schools, maybe even the district, actually got together and communicated. What if schools and/or districts asked the parents what they needed and expected and then what if the school really listened to the parents? I have a feeling parents might have a whole lot to say. If they felt comfortable and if they felt like their statements were truly valued, I would guess that parents might be able to tell the schools some of the obstacles they and their children face on a daily basis:

• Transportation--buying groceries, taking kids to and from appointments
  during the school day, getting to school functions, visiting the school...all with public transportation (very time consuming!)
  
  
• Trying to work and be at home with a sick kid at the same time.
  
  
• Access to healthcare.
  
  
• Understanding homework assignments that don't give adequate instructions.
  
  
• Preparing their child for a future of technology when they can't afford it at home and the schools don't offer it.
  
  

Those are all from conversations that I've had with parents. I'm sure there are many more obstacles parents face...obstacles that could be worked with and solved...if we just asked.

I'm really not trying to offer excuses. I don't want under-prepared kids thinking that graduating from high school means they're prepared when they're not. That is happening a lot these days and it's unfair to the kids as much as it is to our society. But I do think instead of failing them and considering them drop-outs at the last minute, we should be doing something different before it gets to that point. It's not fair to pass a kid through school and tell him/her that they are doing well only to let them get to their senior year and they can't pass a basic skills test.

WE, the people, are failing our kids.

We fail them when we don't provide them with the resources to keep them up with the times.

We fail them when we tell them their parents should be more involved, but their parents aren't sure how.

We fail them when we lower our standards for teachers in order to have warm bodies in the classrooms.

We fail them when we send the least qualified and least experienced teachers to the schools that need the most help.

We can choose to write it off as "not my problem" or we can get involved and be advocates whether our children are in that situation or not.