If you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem.
Lately I've been feeling a part of the problem. Usually teachers can go to sleep at night and calm their money and time worries by thinking of all the good they are doing. All that progress towards making the world a better place and then NPR decides to do a report on the state of science education in the country. Dismal. To make science real, kids want it to be more fun and well, who the hell wouldn't want that?
I gave my Semester Exam today, well just two class periods, and dismal is the bright side. We have a screwed up exam schedule and bunches of kids that don't give a crap. Showing up to school and not even knowing what exam they are about to take... nice. I decided to let them have a "cheat sheet" with formulas, units, etc for physics and from both classes only 5 students had the where-with-all to bring it in and use it. We started it on Friday and they just had to finish over the weekend, or they could just bring what we did together, but no. Nothing. Then it dawned on me, that if you don't even care enough to see what exam you are about to take, why would you bring in a cheat sheet.
I decided to do a performance assessment for my kids on a modified diploma. This would enable them to show me their knowledge of the science process. I put together a lab idea, gave them the supplies and let them go for it. I sat back and listened, only interjecting for clarification. Remember I am teaching 9th grade. Obviously being on a modified diploma means you are below grade level, but while the kid was sharing his data, of 2.71 from reading the stopwatch, I asked him to clarify and said, 2.71 what? What unit are you measuring with. He said "distance". I cried inside.
Today I felt useless. Like my passion, energy, and excitement is being wasted on a group of people that don't have the ability, desire, I don't know, to be better, more awesome. If our system is broken, no I take the back, our system is broken and because our system is broken and I continue to work in it, I am contributing to the problem not the solution.
So what crazy, civil disobedience move do I need to make? What can I do to be a part of the solution?
Lately I've been feeling a part of the problem. Usually teachers can go to sleep at night and calm their money and time worries by thinking of all the good they are doing. All that progress towards making the world a better place and then NPR decides to do a report on the state of science education in the country. Dismal. To make science real, kids want it to be more fun and well, who the hell wouldn't want that?
I gave my Semester Exam today, well just two class periods, and dismal is the bright side. We have a screwed up exam schedule and bunches of kids that don't give a crap. Showing up to school and not even knowing what exam they are about to take... nice. I decided to let them have a "cheat sheet" with formulas, units, etc for physics and from both classes only 5 students had the where-with-all to bring it in and use it. We started it on Friday and they just had to finish over the weekend, or they could just bring what we did together, but no. Nothing. Then it dawned on me, that if you don't even care enough to see what exam you are about to take, why would you bring in a cheat sheet.
I decided to do a performance assessment for my kids on a modified diploma. This would enable them to show me their knowledge of the science process. I put together a lab idea, gave them the supplies and let them go for it. I sat back and listened, only interjecting for clarification. Remember I am teaching 9th grade. Obviously being on a modified diploma means you are below grade level, but while the kid was sharing his data, of 2.71 from reading the stopwatch, I asked him to clarify and said, 2.71 what? What unit are you measuring with. He said "distance". I cried inside.
Today I felt useless. Like my passion, energy, and excitement is being wasted on a group of people that don't have the ability, desire, I don't know, to be better, more awesome. If our system is broken, no I take the back, our system is broken and because our system is broken and I continue to work in it, I am contributing to the problem not the solution.
So what crazy, civil disobedience move do I need to make? What can I do to be a part of the solution?
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