Musings from a Not-So-Master Teacher

measuring the twigs while the tree dies

2010-03-18T20:00:00Z

While sitting in a PLC Audit meeting, a teacher sits their quietly for forty minutes. It's common in a group of mostly white males to unintentionally censor and African-American woman. Call it white noise. Sometimes a screaming injustice just sounds like Read More......(read more)

musings on spring

2010-03-18T03:29:00Z

I made the mistake this evening of asking Joel if he was making dirt. "I'm making dust," he tells me. "Dirt is made from things that die and from poop and from rocks when they die." I was struck by the efortlessness of dirt and flowers and orange trees. Read More......(read more)

ice and dogma

2010-03-18T03:06:00Z

Christy and I visited Sonic the other night (the fastfood joint and not the hedgehog) and I ordered a forty four ounce of soda. I thought it would be soda, but instead it was a large bucket of ice with just enough soda in between the cracks. There sips Read More......(read more)

homonyms

2010-03-17T12:10:00Z

As the kids work on their budgets, a boy calls me over, "Mr. Spencer, cell can mean a prison cell and it can mean a cell on a spreadsheet and it can mean a cell phone, right?" "Right." "So, is that a homonym or a homophone? I think it's a homophone and Read More......(read more)

who should be part of the plan?

2010-03-17T02:56:00Z

Minutes after the grant guy leaves, Ms. Jackson pulls me aside in the hallway. "Hey, I took a look at your proposal and I'm impressed." "Thanks," I answer awkwardly. "I corrected the grammar and punctuation - and with a pencil nonetheless." "I'm impressed. Read More......(read more)

I'm still the teacher

2010-03-16T13:02:00Z

Teaching is one of the few professions left without an Orwellian euphemism. We aren't Cognitive Development Specialists or Core Curricular Instructional Achievement Specialists. Alan, a guy I know in that cyber-vapor kind of way tells me that some people Read More......(read more)

miscommunication on the idea of story

2010-03-16T03:36:00Z

Sometimes people say, "tell your story," and that's not what they want to hear. What they want is, "tell us a bulleted point list of your accomplishments." What they mean is more "tell us your resume" than "tell us your narrative, rife with conflict, Read More......(read more)

from differentiating to empowering

2010-03-15T18:02:00Z

Someone recently asked me about a section in my book Teaching Unmasked where I argue that less instruction is sometimes better. I mentioned that the goal should be to move from differentiation to empowerment. Today's lesson demonstrates a little bit of Read More......(read more)

yes origami is cool, but it's not why I have paper

2010-03-15T13:12:00Z

Awhile back, I attended the PIE Conference (Pencils Integrated Education) for the second year in a row. I'm not against conferences. They provide a platform for connecting and motivating - though not necessarily for training (which is how they market Read More......(read more)

a few more conversations with my sons

2010-03-14T22:11:00Z

Joel says, "I want my compass to talk." "It's impossible." "But you said it tells you where to go, daddy." "What I meant is that you can read it." "But I need it to talk to me in case I'm lost in the forest." "Joel, if you're ever in the forest, you know Read More......(read more)

my new book is available

2010-03-13T14:33:00Z

Order on Amazon.com: $4.99 My new book Teaching Unmasked is available in the following formats right now: As a free eBook (you can download the PDF file) On Kindle for $1.00 In Print for $4.99 On a blog (within the next few days) As a free audio book Read More......(read more)

the perils of being a moderate

2010-03-12T17:20:00Z

My left-wing progressive friends feel disenchanted with Obama. The slogans of hope and change have run dry and they're confused by a president who has failed to pass health care reform, continues to pursue war and has bailed-out large corporations rather Read More......(read more)

guest blogger Bruce W. on pay-for-performance

2010-03-11T16:55:00Z

by Bruce W. (aka Bat Dude) Historians debate the emergence of superheroes as a dominant force for social justice. Some argue that the original superheroes were the saints (think folks on candles and not football players). The capes were originally monastic Read More......(read more)

Drive - book review - part one

2010-03-10T16:13:00Z

I'm currently on Chapter Four of Daniel Pink's book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us . I've been participating in a book study group with the Nerdfighteria Misfits. Here are my thoughts thus far: Somewhere in my freshmen year of college, Read More......(read more)

turning thirty

2010-03-10T12:44:00Z

If I was a verb tense, I'd be a past progressive, present imperfect and yearning for a future perfect. I'm thirty today. It feels like a milestone, but I'll celebrate it quietly. I'll probably splurge a little and go to Starbucks and then spend the day Read More......(read more)