Category: being a teacher

being a teacher, education reform, Student-centered

Pass the Blame

Pernille Ripp
In the education debate surrounding us a lot of blame gets passed around.  Employers blame colleges for not teaching students workable skills.  Colleges blame high schools for not preparing the students.  High school blames middle school for not setting them up to be hard workers.  Middle schools blame elementary for not setting the foundation right.  And elementary, they blame the parents for not being engaged or involved, for not setting high enough standards.

It is time we stop the blame game.  The time and energy consumed by it could be used to fix and change the system rather than just complain about it.  Our world will never be perfect and neither will our classrooms.  So let’s use that time, energy, and emotion put into playing the blame game and do something about it instead.

If you need someone to blame, blame me, I can take it.  And then move on and focus on what is most important factor here; the kids.

being a teacher, smartboards, technology

Technology Does Not Make the Classroom Succesful- the Teacher Does

Pernille Ripp
It appears that technology is sweeping the nation as the answer to the “broken” education system in America.  Everywhere you turn school districts are touting their Interactive Whiteboards, their iPads, their one to one systems and anything else tech related.  Since I am techie myself, most people assume that I think this is a good thing.  Well, you’re wrong.

I love technology and more specifically integrating it into my curriculum.  So my students blog to create writing portfolios, learn how to write for a specific audience, and document their learning.  We also journal every day in a notebook using that great tool; pencils.  My students create wordle’s on our computers to watch for main ideas or overused words.  We videotape science experiments so we can post them for parents to ask us questions.  We use computers to do our research.  We participate in the Global Read Aloud so that we can share a book with classrooms around the world.  We project videos that boost our understanding, and yes, we even have a SmartBoard.  But the thing is, this doesn’t mean anything if I don’t know how to properly use the technology and then pass that on to your students.

You can stick a SmartBoard on any classroom teacher’s wall and then claim that they are 21st century.  Well, guess what?  They are not.  Unless they know how to use the tools provided all you are doing is dressing up a dog and passing it as a circus horse.  The race to be more 21st century seems to be clouding the judgment of districts everywhere.  It is not about the tools, it is about the teachers.  So yes, some technology is phenomenal and does help student learning, but all tech is not created equally.  So it shouldn’t be judged equally.

So when test scores don’t rise even though a district is heavily tech integrated, people tend to blame the technology.  “See it isn’t working.”  And yet, the technology shouldn’t have been part of that equation really.  I don’t care how many computers you stick in a room, if a teacher is not facilitating them properly, or the wireless is awful, or they are outdated etc then they wont make a lick of difference.  The teacher is what will raise test scores, that is if we ever have enough time to actually teach in between all of the tests we have to give.

The truth is there is no simple answer to create a successful classroom.  You need to have a teacher that is invested, students who know that their teachers care about them and that they are in a safe environment.  You need administrators that actually trust their staff and engage them in discussion.  You need parents that are invested in the classroom as well.  And yes, computers make my classroom work better and I would say that classroom computers are a must-do investment.  But everything else? It’s nice, but not absolutely necessary.  So perhaps we should be investing in teachers, raise their salaries so they don’t have to work 2 jobs.  Stop cutting their benefits so they don’t have to look for a new job.  Rather than investing hundreds of thousands of dollars into technology that may or may not get used.

being a teacher, first day, new year

So What Do You Do on the First Day of School?

Pernille Ripp
Friday it happened. That wonderful, magical, nightmare inducing first day with the kids. It went fast, in fact, besides the occasional hunger pang from not having lunch until 12:30, I didn’t notice the passing of the day much. Just a blur and then done.

So what does a teacher do on their first day? We laughed a lot. We also spoke a lot. I led some discussions but the kids did most of the talking, sharing, and deciding. We discussed rules but not in a traditional sense with me setting them, rather we discussed what they already knew. What types of rules are helpful for a classroom? Why do teachers set rules? Do we need them posted or do we know them by heart?  In fact, I wrote a whole post on the rules discussion we missed.

But we also worked on clerical stuff like lunch magnets, popsicle sticks, pencil cup name tags and where in the world do you put your lunch box.  The kids asked questions, dispelled myths about their teacher – for some reason they say I am fun and I don’t know where they have that from.  They also tried to figure out what the 10 pictures below meant to their teacher.  They all thought I liked to collect china and liked to kick rocks.

And then we connected, we opened up and we just came together.  I shared how nervous I get before the first day of school. I shared how excited I was and how I couldn’t wait to learn with them.  I shared how we have one word that shows us as a class and that word is represent.  We live up to that word in whatever we do.

I challenged them in the Bloxes challenge, which if you haven’t tried this with your students, you should.  We spent time with the other 5th grade classrooms because we believe that we are on this grade level and that all of the kids are our kids.  And then the end of the day.  How to dismiss, how to remember everything, and already sad to say goodbye.  These kids snuck into my heart faster than I had thought possible and I am thankful for them.  I get to be a part of their life this year; what a gift.  One student said it best at the end of the day as I waved goodbye, “Thank you.”  And I wanted to say, “No, thank you.”

being a teacher, inspiration

Lie to Me A Little

Pernille Ripp
Note:  This post is not because I am down!  This post is written to all of those administrators and teachers that focus on the negative instead of the positive.  I choose to focus on the positive no matter what is happening in the world.  Therefore, if someone thinks the world is awful I am hoping they can “lie to me a little” and not share their negative world view.  I hope that clears everything up.

Dear Administrators,
Yes, I know the economy is dreadful. Yes, I know that teachers are under attack. Yes, I know that we facing a crisis, whether real or perceived. But could you? Would you? Just please, lie to me a little.

You see, I just started school and I want to believe. I want to believe that I make a difference. I want to believe that what I do matters. I want to believe that I inspire, that I push, that I challenge. I want to believe that I am changing the world.

So don’t just tell me your gloom and doom. Don’t just share the policies or the changes. Inspire me. Tell me you believe that this will be the best year ever. Tell me that you believe in us as teachers. Tell me that you believe that together we can make it happen. You don’t have to believe it, but tell me nonetheless.  Because I believe and so should you.

So if you need to just lie to me a little, I will take care of the rest.

being a teacher, power, word choice

A Lesson from "Awakened"

Pernille Ripp
Words.  Big, small, meaningful, meaningless, words.  Everywhere we go words bring power, attention, and direction and yet they are just words.  Words by themselves are powerless.  Words are just letters jumbled together in a recognizable pattern and yet words hurt, words incite, words sadden and uplift.  Words make us feel loved, respected, listened to.  Words make us doubt ourselves, as teachers, as human beings.  Words are power.

We give that power to words.  Angela Watson reminded me of that.  Words by themselves cannot hurt us, we allow them to.  We open up the possibility for anyone to criticize because of the strength we give their words.  If you remove the power from the words you will see that they are nothing without it.

Reclaim your words.

PS: If you want to experience this book for yourself, here’s your chance!

being a teacher, new year, promises

A Promise or Two for the New Year

Pernille Ripp
Every year, I make promises to myself of what the year ahead will look like.  Every year I promise to take better care of myself as I get all consumed by the lives of my students.  I promise to get more sleep, eat healthier, stress less, worry less, and smile, smile smile.

What I do has a profound effect on the students I teach and this year I get to teach the lives of more than 70 students since my teammates and I will be switching the kids up for math and reading.  I know that what I choose to do with myself will be translated into action in the classroom.  So kids, I promise to be there.  I promise to smile and laugh because I just can’t help it.  I promise to be fair.

I promise to take the time to listen to you and not jump to conclusions.  I promise to make you feel safe and welcome.  I promise to not punish and still reward you with time and togetherness when it fits.  To let you speak and not be the sage on the stage.  I promise to learn with you, from you, and not just to you.

I promise to change my mind when it makes sense and to admit when I am wrong.  To get my sleep so that I am not crabby and to feel good about myself.  I promise to care about you and your life outside of school, taking an interest and remembering what you tell me.  I promise to keep learning at school as much as possible because you deserve time off as well.

I promise to give you my time, fully and undivided, and I promise to treat you like my children, because that is what you are 8 hours of the day – mine.  I promise to treat you with respect and dignity and not dismiss you as just another id.  Your voice matters as does your opinion and every year you get wiser.

I make these promises today but know they may be changed, however, my devotion to my job and to my kids will not.  I have the best job in the world and no one can take that from me.  I promise to make this year the best one yet.