being a teacher – Page 146

Hello, my name is Pernille Ripp and I am blogger. Two years ago I would never have been able to introduce myself that way, it has only been a year and yet this journey has profoundly changed me, my teaching, and my world. And yet how does it feel to be out in the open? How does it really feel to be blogging with my real name, real thoughts, and real fears?

I decided to blog because my husband thought it would give me an outlet for all of my thoughts. I have always loved to write, poetry in particular, and I have pages upon pages filled with horrid teenage misery that hopefully no one will ever find. I have tried journals and seen them fail – who would want to read my thoughts after I die? What a selfish notion. And yet blogging for me is a journal in some way even though it didn’t start that way. Instead my blog came about as a way to digest all that was happening in my head, a reflection of my classroom and the things I had been taught in college unraveling. I wrote for myself, for my own clarity and then something happened; people responded. They shared their stories, their lives with me and trusted me with their words and sometimes even asked for advice. From me! A fourth year teacher who is an infant among the great teachers. Encouraged by their thoughts, I kept on writing about whatever I had to change. I figured if I made it public it would be more binding to me, it would become more urgent because the world was watching. And again people responded, some kindly, some not so much and I found myself debating, articulating, and always reflecting upon my actions and my words.

I have never considered a pseudonym, not that there is anything wrong with that but for me it just didn’t even cross my mind. Mostly because I thought no one would read my blog anyway and I am honest to a fault and therefore wanted to represent me in the online world. I never considered hiding my blog from people I worked with or others that meet me in the “real world.” After all, I have nothing to hide and I am not ashamed of admitting that I still have a lot to learn. As a teacher there has, of course, been conflict. Some people do not appreciate me writing and think I should know my place. Some people think my ideas are too out there and do not like what I propose for my classroom. Some people think I am addressing them even though I only reflect upon my own choices and education as a whole. And so the battles happen between my blogging and people who may take offense. There have been days where I have cried, and days where I have rejoiced. Once a parent emailed me a comment on a piece I had written. Baffled I told her I did not know she read my blog. She responded that she had a for awhile and admired my thoughts. I shouldn’t be surprised; all sorts of people read it, and yet here was someone who’s child was directly affected by my teaching style saying that what I did was a good thing. Humbling. So I write as if I am telling a story to the head of my district, I choose what I write about it and try to remain positive. The world does not need anymore reminders of just how awful it can be but it does need reminders of all that we can change if we believe in it. The change starts with me, with my real name, and real life details.

So I blog with my heart and my mind knowing full well that I cannot please everyone. I know that some people who cross my path may not agree with my ideas, and I am at peace with that. My blogging has shaped a new facet of my identity, one that is rooted in reform and thinking about the needs of the children versus my own needs as a teacher. This writing in the open has brought sorrows yes, but it has also brought so much joy to my life. I now enter my classroom with passion, knowing that this is the kind of room I would have loved to have been a student in. I am becoming the kind of teacher that makes my mother proud. Blogging did that for me.

Stop the Tear Downs

July 25, 2011 Pernille Schmidt Ripp

Education and particularly teachers are under a harsh lens right now. Everywhere you turn headlines scream out new nasty discoveries about bad teachers, horrible programs, and how schools are failing. As a teacher, it is hard to not drown in all the negativity. Yet as most of the teachers I have encountered, we choose not to drown, and instead we focus on our students, on our lives and continue to do what we do beast; teach, knowing that this too will end and at some point sanity must be introduced back into the conversation, right?

Yet as the rhetoric gets more cutthroat and the divide grows, this mentality of us versus them has formed and cemented itself into too many educational debates. No longer are teachers united, rather it becomes veterans versus new, tech users vs non-tech users, always a split, always two sides, never just one united front. And we teachers buy into it as well. If one teacher is heralded for doing something good, other teachers get upset because then they must be doing something wrong. If a school is highlighted as working well, then other schools within the district must be performing poorly. Rather than view success of one as success for all, it becomes just that; success for one and failure for everyone else.

This epidemic of negativity must stop. We are tearing each other apart, trying to climb to the top, vying for the same spotlight. But that is not what teaching is about, we teach our students that we are only as strong as the weakest performance, and that we must celebrate everyone. And yet, somewhere that message is lost. The public may want us split, because then it is easier to create “reform” and yet now is the time we must band together. We must relearn to celebrate successes and not be afraid to share them. It is time for people to speak up when something incredible happens in their classroom or in their school, and it is time for everyone else to celebrate it, not tear it down. This isn’t me versus you, it’s all of us together.

being a teacher, choices

I Choose

July 21, 2011 Pernille Schmidt Ripp

The failing of the American teacher. The crisis of our educational systems. Headlines blare, people believe, and yet we can still make choices.

I choose to be a teacher because it is the only choice that ever felt natural.

I choose to think of my students as family, not numbers, or just kids, but my own.

I choose to let parents in, not exclude their voice, as mine gets excluded sometimes.

I choose to not label students but think of them as individuals who have talents and needs specific to them.

I chose to give my students a voice, to let them know they matter, that their thoughts shape our classroom.

I choose to not be punitive, knowing that trust, respect and relationships will take me much further in this journey.

I choose to have a team because I know that I am powerful in the greatness of others.

I choose transparency and honesty above all so that others may think they can do it as well.

I choose to change when needed, bend when it makes sense, and believe at all times.

I choose to put connections first, to not forget about standards but make them work for me rather than become a dictation of my classroom.

I choose to not let labels break me, to not believe in the naysayers, to believe in our system even though it is flawed and fight for change from within.

I choose to let others evaluate because even among our critics we can find ways to grow.

I choose to not be the pebble, but let positivity run my days and smile, laugh and work to make this world a better place rather than one discarded.

What do you choose?

being a teacher, Decisions

Do Teachers Have the Right to Privacy?

July 17, 2011 Pernille Schmidt Ripp

I owe this post to the excellent comment left by Jennifer Diaz on my So You Want a Teacher Job. Thank you for bringing this up!

With an onslaught of teachers seemingly caught bashing their students on Facebook or being reprimanded by their school boards for sharing pictures of themselves drinking, I am starting to wonder whether we as teachers have the right to privacy? Now don’t get me wrong, I think everyone should be careful what they post publicly and bashing your students is just idiotic. But what about the more innocent pictures of you holding a drink? How about you actually drinking at a public venue? Or riding a motorcycle with no helmet (even if it is not breaking the law)? Or smoking, swearing or wearing lowcut clothing? Do teachers have a right to do this in public or is that considered morally corrupt as well?

I agree that as a teacher, we are instant role models for all children and that we must behave, dress and act accordingly. However, what about in our free time? Are we still expected to follow the same code of conduct outside of school walls as we do within? Should we as teachers live the life of a seemingly flawless adult and do anything that could be viewed as “bad” by children only within our own houses?And don’t get me wrong, I am not talking about anything crazy here. Just the act of having a beer at a bar or heaven forbid actually getting drunk. What about pictures of you showing off you new tattoo? Is that considered morally reprehensible?

As new teachers get ready to interview and ask for advice, I always tell them to check their privacy setting on Facebook and to Google themselves to make sure they like what they find. View it through the lens of an employer and make sure their path is clean. However, is it right for society to place teachers on a moral pedestal that no other professions, not even politicians, have to attain? I don’t have the answer but I would love to start the discussion. Are we as teacher allowed to have “a life” outside of school doing normal adult stuff that in any other profession no one would even think twice about? Are we indeed allowed to have a private life?

being a teacher, new teacher

The Things I Said – Cringeworthy Statements From a New Teacher

July 13, 2011 Pernille Schmidt Ripp

This summer the memories of my first year of teaching comes floating back and more specifically the insane things you would have heard me say. So had you been a fly on my wall, here are some of most cringe-worthy….

Put your name on the board!

One more check mark and we are calling your parents.

You will have to stay in for recess since you did not return your test.

I am sorry your mother did not sign it, you will lose a recess and bring it back tomorrow.

I do not think he deserves to be in the talent show since he does not do his homework.

What do you mean you didn’t have time? It was homework!

Sit in your chair and listen.

Wake up!

Put that chair down. Put that table down. DO NOT SLAM MY DOOR!

Stop sharpening that pencil.

Don’t you have your own school supplies?

Do you see these zeroes? That means you are failing 4th grade.

I am doing this for your own good.

The goal? Well for you to do this assignment.

Ah yes, the plight of a first year teacher. I barely recognize myself in them and yet I know who that person was because if I didn’t then I wouldn’t know who this teacher is today. We all have our journeys as teachers, mine took me far away from this, and for that I am thankful. Where does your journey lead you?

being a teacher