We've been all over the place this week. My family and I came to school last Saturday to see a very fine production of Sweeney Todd (high). We as teachers are under the gun to get the "failure rate" to drop, and I will naturally be a target because mine is pretty high up there (low). I'm finally getting the ducks in a row to do testing on the laptops (high). It's harder than it looks (low). I received unexpected and huge praise for a video I created in a grad class (high). It's progress report time, so I'm running around like crazy trying to get kids to get their homework in and to get it graded (low). I'm finally starting to feel confident in what I do, which is reducing my stress (high). My family is starting to really put pressure on me for spending too much time away from home (low). I made a couple of really good connections with students this week, which benefited me and I hope benefited them (high). I had one of my worst 9th hour class sessions ever this week, and I'm really just not sure how to reach these kids (low).
But then this: we were in class yesterday, and I was walking around helping students understand the review problems we were doing for Tueday's test. I started to explain a concept to a student who usually makes no effort to learn, with a bit of a heavy heart -- after all, I have been given no reason to believe my effort will pay off in this case. Suddenly, another student nearby chimes in, "But this is easy!" and starts to point out a detail to the first student. This student, only weeks before, had declared to me that "this is the first math test I've ever passed." I find it hard to believe, because although she struggles a bit with taking on new concepts, she is conscientious, attentive, and has a good work ethic. Still, she reports that she's only recently experiencing success. Anyway, she caught herself and asked my permission to teach her peer, which I gladly gave. She explained the concept perfectly as I observed.
This is a beautiful thing for two reasons: 1) I think student 1 is more likely to get the concept now because it came from a peer, and 2) the teaching student has now taken on the knowledge even more deeply because of her experience in teaching it. Both really needed the boost. As did I.
(high)
About Me
- Michael.Gier
- I have composed a remarkably concise description of myself, which 1,200 characters is too small to contain.
1 comment:
I loved reading about one of your newly successful students 'teaching' another student. This reinforces a concept I've taken to with math in the elementary schools, and really, more than just math. Marilyn Soucie (in a Math Leadership Cohort) said, and I quote this frequently to myself and others as it pertains, "Don't say what a student can say". It's so much more powerful and effective to have the words come from a student who more recently grasped whatever concept than to hear from the teacher repeat again. As teachers we try to rephrase, come from different directions, etc. to help students learn, yet many times I think it comes out like the adults from Charlie Brown's cartoons to the students. And the student may say exactly what we have said, yet has some magical effect on the others listening! Magic I believe in.
I empathize with your roller coaster of highs and lows.... been there, oh yeah, still riding. :)Enjoy the holiday break and the longer break yet to come.
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