Naturally I thought - This is my platform for Work Your Proper Duty Day! YES!
So here's my essay. (And for the record, I can't take any credit whatsoever for the referenced youtube video. But I'm proud to be associated with the colleagues who are responsible!)
Impacts
of Teaching Practices - Heather Reynolds 1-5-16 Work Your Proper Duty Day
I’ll start with a list of top 5 techniques I use
that impact my teaching practices. I’ll
conclude with some ideas on how I believe every teacher can directly impact their
teaching effectiveness and unlock their greatest strengths.
1.
Narrate Correct Behaviors. The day
I started using this technique, the climate changed in my room. It shut down almost all opportunities for a
student to argue with the teacher.
Example: Jack is up out of his
seat without permission. The teacher
narrates the desired behavior: “Jack IS
going directly to his seat.” 9 times out
of 10, Jack proceeds directly to his seat.
That other 1 out of 10 times, Jack’s situation is quickly resolved with
the teacher commenting, “I’m agreeing with you”, followed by Jack owning up to
his word and completing the desired action.
2. Do What I Say I’m Going To Do. I strive to never ever waver from my classroom
management plan. No amount of arguing,
deflecting, or crying will sway me from remaining true to my previously
prescribed steps. The result: students follow directions the first
time. In the event a student doesn’t
follow directions, they revealed themselves as having CHOSEN to be a problem
and it’s not a matter of miscommunication or confusion. This clarification is so important when
moving forward past the issue.
3. Types
of Praise. I subscribe to the
philosophy of drawing attention to hard work and effort, not talent and intelligence. In fact, there is a book entitled “Talent is
Overrated” by Geoff Colvin, which elaborates on the concept that 10 years or
10,000 hours of deliberate practice is what separates world-class performers
from everybody else. This reminds me of
the Growth Mindset model.
4. Give the option to go above and beyond. If you want students to shoot for the moon,
you need to show them what’s beyond the ceiling. I’m usually prepared with activities on hand for
those students ready to extend their learning or help others. My rubrics always have a category entitled “Exemplary”
or “Exceeds”.
5. Frequent Self-Reflection. I never enter a lesson without
a plan, and I rarely exit a lesson without reflecting on how that plan
went. Aside from teacher reflection,
frequent opportunities are offered for the students to reflect on their own
learning, and also for them to give feedback on their experience. My ultimate goal: To be their Learning Facilitator. They are capable of teaching themselves and
teaching others. I like to step back and
let them do all the work!
In
Conclusion. This final
idea, I call: Work Your Proper Duty Day. Last spring, I was diagnosed with cancer. Totally random, no genetic predisposition,
under the age of 35, no risk factors to speak of. For the first time in my teaching career, I
was forced to put my needs first. My one
and only task for 9 months: Stay Alive. I reflected on the previous 8 years of pouring
my time and heart into my teaching career.
I remember a time when my calendar looked like a pen had exploded all
over it. My personal time was dominated
by work. My summers were spent curriculum
mapping (which I enjoy more than the average person). On the weekend, I would spend a 6+hour lesson
planning session just to be prepared for the coming week. I would stay at work
past 6pm most days organizing, copying, documenting, collaborating, prepping, communicating,
labeling, etc. Back to not having any known cancer risk
factors, I now believe I actually did have one big risk factor: STRESS. Repeated, unending, year-after-year stress.
The politicians these days are giving education less
but demanding more. All of the
teachers who love their students and [Inspiring
Excellence] work harder, longer, faster, higher, and louder.
If [Every
Grownup] worked our proper duty day, putting 100% into teaching [Every Child] during our contracted work
hours, do you realize how quickly it would become obvious how LITTLE we have
been given to achieve [our hope and dream
for every child we see]? Not only
are teachers teaching, but we are, and with pride, filling the role of ALL THE
THINGS: counseling, police enforcing, IT
support, fashion consulting, paperwork, entertaining, volunteering, nursing,
advising, managing, mediating, fundraising, etc.
This approach is allowing our politicians to
think that this is the bar. And we
wonder why there's a health epidemic in our country?
After my cancer treatments ended, and my
schedule and energy returned to normalcy, I decided to continue a different
form of “treatment”. Start on time/Leave
on time. Be more active. Frequent yoga classes. Take my dogs for walks. Read more books, FOR FUN. Spend more time with my family. Sleep more.
Eat better. It’s amazing how
prioritizing eliminated tasks from my self-imposed to-do list that were unnecessary
and not at all essential to the mission. I found that I am (working less but) TEACHING
BETTER and MORE EFFICIENTLY. I am fulfilling my own needs, and more able to
meet the needs of my students, with a clear head and focused purpose. (And
improved health!!!! #cancerfree)
The politicians aren't yet giving
education more resources because my Work Your Proper Duty Day campaign has
about 2 followers. But maybe after today, I'll get the opportunity to gain some
more. [Every Grown-up. Every Child.
Every Day…. in KCK…. We do BELIEVE.] [Fade Music…]
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