Stories from School: Practice meets Policy

WCAP, Part 2

I like technology. Some say I adore it. But I do have limits. I am not bound by technology simply because something has a circuit board. For example, I have not found a decent calendar program that can display the many nuances that my monthly schedule takes. For this, I use paper. I make notes on paper, too. I gave up my PDA years ago after it failed to be as effective as paper. My PDA came close, but I knew it was not a match. I think knowing when to use a tool (and when not to) is crucial to efficiency. 

This Dog Won't Hunt

By Tom

I know a guy who hunts. I have never hunted, but I have a basic understanding of how it works: you shoot an animal, you take it home and you eat it. This guy wanted to use dogs to hunt. Apparently, they bring the dead animals to you, making the task of hunting even easier. My friend got two dogs and tried to train them to help him hunt. He couldn't. So he brought them to a dog trainer and offered a lot of money to have his dogs trained. After a few days, the trainer called my friend and told him to come and get one of the dogs. "I can't teach it," he said, "it's not smart enough."

Every pay-for-performance scheme I've ever explored (including the corpse of HB 1410) relies to some degree on student performance as an indication of teacher performance. That's why I will always oppose these schemes. Teaching is more than increasing test scores. Way, way more. Test scores are a great tool, when used correctly, but they are not the point.

 

What I Don't Like About You

By Tom

We need to talk, Mr. HB 1440/SB 5444. That's right, you; the bill that's poised to completely reshape education in Washington State. I've got several problems to discuss.

First of all, I don't like your compensation system. Mostly because you decided to stop encouraging teachers to pursue advanced degrees. Teachers value education. That's why they're teachers, for crying out loud. And to have you tell them that just because there's no data proving that a teacher with a master's degree performs better in the classroom is an ironic slap in the face. Because they all know that there's a million things that good teachers do everyday for which there will never be any data. Things that you learn about in graduate school.

Put simply, people want smart teachers; and you get smart by going to school. That's the very premise of an education system. Did you forget that?

Reductions for Induction: New Teachers Take to the Hill

By Guest Blogger John

“I was really hoping to be able to meet with Senator Roach—we were ready!”  Kristy said, disappointed after getting a chance to advocate for new teacher support with her two other legislators, Reps. Christopher Hurst and Dan Roach, but finding Sen. Pam Roach out for the day with a health issue. 

In the Governor’s proposed budget, support for new teachers through the Teacher Assistance Program (TAP) would be eliminated for the first time in more than 20 years…..

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I, for one, will miss the WASL.

The other day I was interviewed for a profile in our school newspaper. I tried to answer most of the questions from a perspective more professional than personal, and the stumper was this: “If you could have one wish, what would it be?” After an evening of pondering, I realized my answer was so simple that I was surprised it didn’t jump to my mind immediately. I would wish that every student have a desire to learn that matches my desire to teach them.

As an English teacher at a low-income high school, I know that in some cases, I am the only provider of inspiration to achieve beyond the minimum requirements; many of my kids have grown up with little or no intrinsic motivation to be high achievers in school. How does this relate to WASL? When my tenth graders heard that the WASL was going to vanish, I heard questions that astounded, confounded, and frustrated me. One young man asked, “Does that mean we don’t have to write any more essays?” The question itself drew a cheer from his peers. The fact is, the WASL provides a measurable and achievable extrinsic motivation that many of my students need.