20 thoughts on teaching and learning

20 thoughts on teaching and learning... 1). If you allow re-do's & retakes for full credit, extra credit becomes obsolete & irrelevant... 2). An 'F' at the top of the paper means the kid is off the hook; an 'NTY' on the top means 'not there yet.' 3). How did you learn to teach & be an educator? You probably had some re-do's & retakes... why can't we allow this for kids in school? 4). A kid who says 'school sucks and just give me an F' should not be in charge of his/her educational decisions. 5). A D is a coward's F. The student failed, but you didn't have enough guts to tell him. 6). If you trust the validity of your test/assessment, you shouldn't have any problem with re-do's for full credit. 7). We have got to stop using grades & assessments as a 'so-called' motivator; we are destroying any true love of learning. 8). Kids can learn without grades... but they can't learn without descriptive feedback. 9). Sometimes being 'kind' is more important than being 'right.' When a kid needs 'kind,' give them kind... not right. 10). Next time a kid says the wrong answer, ask them to 'tell you more about it.' They will work through their error & not get defensive. 11). Knowing what you are learning is important; knowing where you are in relation to what you are learning is more important. 12). How quickly do you throw a life preserver when a student struggles? Don't let your impatience get in the way of allowing kids to struggle. 13). If we only give students 'pre-filtered' websites, then how in the world will they ever learn how to navigate the web? 14). Watching other teachers teach is hugely valuable. When observing, you think about your classroom, which causes self-reflection. 15). We need to focus on better ways of 'priming' students' brains before asking questions before any learning experience. 16). Please, let's stop taking kids out of P.E. and fine arts classes so they can double up on math or reading remediation classes. 17). Adjust the master schedule to support best practices; don't sacrifice best practices to support the master schedule. 18). Stop asking teachers to turn in their lesson plans to show their 'expertise.' Expertise can't be found in a lesson plan. 19). When teachers create 'curiosity' in their classrooms, kids start to wonder... when they wonder, they want to learn. 20). Teaching is not adversarial... it's not about 'getting' them before they 'get' you. It's us and we.

Here are 10 ways to be a great teacher: Posted: 17 Dec 2013 10:00 PM PST 10 - Great teachers pick and choose their battles. If everything is really important and a top priority, then nothing is really important or a top priority... 9 - Great teachers are rarely behind their desk and are rarely sitting down. Great teachers know that the real work gets done in the trenches, and the trenches are located out in the classroom alongside the students...   8 - Great teachers are not afraid to apologize and admit to their failure or mistakes. Great teachers understand the importance of taking risks in the classroom, and more importantly great teachers include students in making decisions about trying new things in the classroom... 7 - Great teachers are extremely reflective and take their job personally. When something doesn't go as planned or go as well as originally intended, great teachers take time to reflect and consider alternative ways of doing it better next time... 6 - Great teachers are excellent conversationalists. Great teachers can get a room full of students talking and discussing relatively easily. Great teachers are masters of leading discussions and asking questions that take students to a higher level of thinking and reflection... 5 - Great teachers can always justify and explain a decision they made or something they did that affects their students. Great teachers will never do something just because that's the way it has always been done... 4 - Great teachers don't care about how well they did or how hard they worked. Great teachers care about how much their students learn and how much their students grow. Great teachers are able to shift the focus off of them and keep the focus on their students... 3 - Great teachers expect and demand a lot from their colleagues. Great teachers want to be a part of something bigger than themselves, and they believe that through collaboration and teamwork we can all achieve more... 2 - Great teachers are always looking for ways to improve their craft and hone their skills. Great teachers are not interested in finding the next new shiny tool, they are interested in finding the next new shiny tool that will improve student learning and success... 1 - Great teachers will always value the relationships with their students over everything else. Great teachers know that when the students know you care and know you are there to help, there is nothing that can't be done or accomplished... What else makes someone a great teacher...?