In lieu of faculty meetings this year, our staff has divided into smaller groups, a.k.a. Professional Learning Communities. The aim is to strike up open and honest dialogue among teachers in an effort to address the achievement gap we have in test scores. I'm one of my group's facilitators, although the PLC plan is spearheaded by one of our Assistant Principals. We meet monthly to decide which articles to discuss and what structure to follow; for this reason, I probably feel more connection to our objectives, even if I'd rather cross things off my to-do list at my desk than attend one more meeting.
Today, we focused on the whole child. Not too revolutionary, I realize. I happen to be a fan of the whole child. Funny, though--I guess it never occurred to me that the idea of acknowledging our young ones in all of their complexity is quite infuriating to some. I can be quite naive about some things.
We always begin our meetings with "identify stories". This time, we compared stories of when we were students and considered how our teachers could have better served us at that time. Several members of the group said with confidence that they didn't have any trouble in school--their needs were met. One of my colleagues said that any of his down-falls in school were his own responsibility.
"Well, my one problem was that I didn't do my homework, but that was my fault." He aced tests, so he saw no need to do the busy work.
"Obviously, you didn't see any purpose to the homework," I said. "What if your teachers recognized your potential and provided opportunities to go further in the curriculum?"
He didn't think he would have wanted to. He was happy to take the extra time to strengthen his talents in another area instead. He chose his own course in school without the help of teachers. What about the kids who aren't so self-directed? Sink or swim?
My own experience as a student was more stormy, and I floated around aimlessly for years. Aside from the occasional teacher who acknowledged that I had potential, there weren't adults in my school community to offer concrete guidance or support. Now in middle schools, teachers gather in team meetings to talk endlessly about student concerns. I can see my name coming up in my own school. My social studies teacher might comment, "Has anyone noticed that Leah hasn't done any homework this week?"
"True," the others would reply. "She seems lost in class, too. The only time I see her enjoying herself is when she's doodling in the margins."
"Let's see if we get her to open up and connect to school here. Maybe we can get her to join our art club. I'll talk to her tomorrow."
It took me a while, but eventually I became a huge fan of learning. Maturity played a major role in my improvement, but I think if I had a teacher looking out for me, maybe it wouldn't have taken quite so long.
The questions I'm left with today are: How much do our own experiences as students shape us as teachers? Can we expect others to change their attitudes about students if they never needed support along the way?
For me, it has impacted my teaching. I was the quiet, lost child. It took a school counselor to help me to see I had potential. I always start my first class with showing my students a visual map of my educational background. To see that I wasn't always a "perfect" student helps them relate to me and feel comfortable enough to approach me.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the plan your school has in place. However, I think at my school it would go about like it is at your school. I vote yes, our experiences as students shape how we are teachers. One interesting thing I've noticed this year is that students become their teachers. We have one teacher in her late 50's who yells a lot, is sickly, and spends teaching time putting out squabbles in class. This week as I've taught this group of kids ELA I've noticed that they act just like her. They aren't engaged anymore and act like being at school is killing them.
ReplyDeleteThanks for a very reflective post.
(My own experience as a student was more stormy, and I floated around aimlessly for years. Aside from the occasional teacher who acknowledged that I had potential, there weren't adults in my school community to offer concrete guidance or support. Now in middle schools, teachers gather in team meetings to talk endlessly about student concerns. I can see my name coming up in my own school. My social studies teacher might comment, "Has anyone noticed that Leah hasn't done any homework this week?")
ReplyDeleteThis paragraph rings true for many people that I have spoken to, especially about middle school. And for that reason, and many other-educationally sound and proven-reasons, we cannot sit back and hope that the students learn "in spite" of us. They need to be considered,challenged, and championed by teachers who may or may not have had the same educational experience.
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ReplyDeleteOops, let's try that again...my own educational experiences have definitely shaped me as a teacher. Hopefully, for the better of the students...
ReplyDeleteI am the kind of person who sometimes resists contact, because sometimes I think I need to work things through by myself. I think "when to back off" is something to consider discussing, as well. But overall, my impression is that I would have loved it if my children had had the kind of careful attention you give to your students. Kids seem to suffer a lot existentially (if they have that luxury, of course, meaning if they're not hungry or in a war zone) in adolescence, and it's nice if somebody takes care of them in addition to their parents.
ReplyDeleteYour writing is so clear that it is a pleasure to read.
Just out of curiosity, do you have any all staff meetings or just the PLC time? We are heading toward weekly PLC time at our school and I am wondering about how you communicate the details to the staff.
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