Posts tagged teaching
It’s Not Supposed to Be Easy
0by Justin Baeder
posted in Books & Resources, Quotes
I’ve worked my butt off to build a class that is outrageously engaging, fun, educationally sound, and dearly loved by students. It wasn’t easy when I started, it wasn’t easy last week, and it won’t be easy next week either. It’s not supposed to be easy—it’s supposed to be worth it. You can build something incredible if you put the effort in on the front end, and then keep putting the effort in until you turn the lights off and close your door for the last time. But it won’t be “easy.”
—Dave Burgess (@burgessdave), Teach Like a PIRATE: Increase Student Engagement, Boost Your Creativity, and Transform Your Life as an Educator
I saw Dave’s amazing Teach Like a PIRATE presentation at ASCD. It must not have been easy for him to deliver such an amazing presentation…but it was worth it! I just finished Dave’s book last week, and it’s truly impressive.
If you are looking for a book to read together as a staff, or for a gift to show appreciation for how hard teachers work, I highly recommend Teach Like a PIRATE.
Teaching Quality Is About Practice
2by Justin Baeder
posted in Quotes
In this op-ed in a recent issue of Ed Week, former superintendent Joseph Wise points out that accountability should not just focus on the what, but the how, of teaching. I could write five or ten posts on Wise’s various points in the article, but here’s what I think is at the core of his argument: Teaching is a practice, so the improvement of teaching must focus on practice.
Wise writes:
Historically, intense focus on the what of teaching has led us away from a healthy balance of all that drives true academic achievement. How we teach, how we challenge, how we redirect, and how we engage students is of no less importance than the what we profess to teach. Ironically, over the years, we actually have learned much and documented much about best practices in teaching. Substantial and expert research reveals that we already have explored and analyzed much about the how of teaching; we simply haven’t acknowledged its pivotal effect on academic achievement in the way we support and coach teachers.
Another great quote:
Accountability, at its essence, is not a goal; it is the acceptance of responsibility for all that we do in our classrooms, day in and day out. Accountability, when embraced for what it is, turns out to be not some sort of punitive “gotcha”; instead, it is what drives commitment to continuous examination, reflection, and improvement.
Joseph Wise, We Must Shift From Teacher Quality to Teaching Quality (Ed Week)