Pernille Ripp

It seems more and more initiatives are coming out proclaiming that all kids need to code. Tech companies like Google are joining forces with other influencers to ask for money so that all students will have the opportunity to learn computer science. Coding is the new black in our schools it seems, the one thing that school districts tout is keeping them innovative and cutting edge, Well isn’t that just nice…

But here’s the thing; not every kid wants to be a computer scientist. Not every kid wants to work with a computer. Not every kid wants to stare at a screen, nor do something with technology. Did we forget that in our eagerness to jump on the coding wagon?

What about the kid that wants to play music? Or the kid who wants to be an artist? How about those who want to be chefs? Or clothing designers? Or even just readers or writers? Where is the outcry for funding for all of those classes that are being cut and slashed across our public school system? Where are all of the companies urging congress to make sure that every child has access to a full-time librarian in their schools? That every child can take an art class? That every child can play an instrument? Will that not make the biggest difference to some of our children?

So while coding may be great for some kids, may be the one thing that keeps them coming to school, that offers them a future they never realized they could have, it will never be that for every kid. It will never fulfill the dreams of every child. I wish that reading, playing music, creating, or anything else that seems to be so often on the chopping block was just as worthy as coding. Perhaps then people would start to notice just how many programs are being cut. Just how many opportunities our children no longer have. So as Rafranz Davis pointed out; yes, all students should have the opportunity to code, but they certainly should also have the opportunity for all of the other classess too.

If you like what you read here, consider reading my book Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students. Also, if you are wondering where I will be in the coming year or would like to have me speak, please see this page.

being a student, being a teacher, end of year, student choice, student driven, Student Engagement

It Is Time to Remove the Scaffolds

April 27, 2016 Pernille Ripp

I think we have 25 or so days left of school. I may be wrong, I haven’t been counting. I don’t like to count down, I want to savor every moment, embrace every opportunity, teach until the last minute. I owe it to the kids. Yet with the inevitable end of year in sight, I feel the urge to release my students. To maybe even push them away a little as they need to stand on their own. To let go a little more, to have them try the exploration by themselves first and not rely so much on me. Because in 25 days or so, I won’t be there anymore. I won’t be there when they write, or when they discuss, or when they book shop. I won’t be there to support, to help, to push. So they need to find their own way; after all, fostering independent learners is one of our major goals in education.

Yet it seems we have created a paradox. Within our own eagerness to be the best teacher we can be, to provide everything for every child, I think we forget to let students go a little as well. We create so many scaffolds in our classrooms in an effort to help students learn more and then forget to remove them, wondering why students come to next year’s teachers seemingly ill prepared to be independent. And I am not alone in these thoughts as I am reminded of Bob Probst speaking at NCTE about how we teach kids in early years that NF stands for “Not fake” and then never correct that notion. Or Donalyn Miller, who wrote an incredibly wonderful book about creating wild readers; readers that would read outside of our classrooms, after they left us. It seems in our passion for teaching, we may be creating kids who lose sight of what education really is about and instead rely on our systems to pass from class to class.

So right now, as we slip toward the end, I think of all the ways my students must be released. To make sure that they know that the signposts that we find because of Notice and Note are not the point of reading, but are meant to deepen their experience. That a MEL-Con paragraph is not the task at hand, but instead just a way to remember that if you present any evidence when you write, you must analyze and explain it. That they must look inward to discover who they are as a reader so that they can select books using their own methods that do not revolve around what the teacher book-talked. And the list goes on.

At the beginning of the year, we are so focused on the routines we must set up for our learning communities. On the expectations that we create along with the students. We start programs, curriculum, and set our journey up for the most success. It is therefore only right that toward the end we start to unravel the same routines, the procedures, the scaffolds, so that students can leave us better, bigger, and more independent. So the students can leave us and not look back when they go, knowing they are ready for the next challenge.

being a teacher

A Few Thoughts on Standardized Testing

April 26, 2016 Pernille Ripp

Across the United States, our testing season has begun. Walk into our classroom and you will see bare walls and desks in rows. Students engaged only with their computer. Utter silence only broken by nervous sighs as students either concentrate or give up. How many days of this depends on the age. And I get that this is supposed to measure how well I do as a teacher, I get that this is supposed to be able to compare my students with all those others taking the same test. I get that this is supposed to be objective because it is the same test for all of the kids. And yet, as a parent I fail to see the purpose of this test. As a parent I would not subject my own child to this. So as a teacher I thought I would share a few thoughts of why I question the test.

We won’t get the test results this school year. As we speak, I have no idea when the test results will actually be released for these students. So the tests does not help me teach these kids better, but perhaps it was never supposed to. Instead come fall the scores will be released and we will look at percentages. We will make decisions based not on children but on those percentages and hope that we made the right decision. We won’t know until the following year’s test.

We won’t learn much new information. There are few surprises when scores are released. They usually only happen when an otherwise capable child did terribly on the test, usually by choice.

Not all students care, even when they like the teacher. We assume that all students will take their time, do their best work, and actually care about the test itself, yet this can be pretty far from the truth. I have seen many students simply click through and answer all of the questions because they saw no value in the task. Their carelessness now determines my evaluation.

The test is not fair. We pride ourselves on how we teach all students by giving them the tools they need at that time to be successful, yet the test removes most of those tools. Even students with special education IEP’s are limited in their supports. How does that actually translate to a worthwhile test measure? If we wanted to know how all children would do with the same text and questions, I would not need a 4 day test to tell me that.

If we want to know how teachers are doing make it a community exploration. Look at results from throughout the year. Ask administrators who observe. Ask parents who experience their child’s frustrations or successes. Ask the very children that we teach. Are they learning? Are they growing? Are they more successful now than they were at the beginning of the year? Are they more developed as human beings?

For the next few days, learning will continue to be at a standstill in our classroom as I hope my students give the test their best effort, because they have grown. Because they have worked hard. Because they do know a lot. I am not sure the test will measure it, I can only hope, after all, I am not allowed to see the actual test that they take. But I do know that I wish there was a better measure for me to become a better teacher. That I hope that my knowledge of my students would be counted and measured as diligently as that of a test. Perhaps some day we will trust the teachers more. Perhaps some day we will realize that a test will never tell us the full story of a child, that our student’ experiences can never be reduced to that of a percentage. Until then, I will keep my fingers crossed.

being a teacher

The Emerging Age Bias

April 23, 2016 Pernille Ripp

Several years ago Edutopia asked me to write an article for them and I chose to write about the seeming dismissal of veteran teachers because of their age. Now, 5 years later, it is still happening, so I thought it would be fitting to re-post the article here.

“You know I was worried at first, because she was so old, but it turned out she was really good…” A friend and I are discussing her child’s teacher. Her words resonate with me because I have heard them a lot lately; she was so old…old… and I wonder since when did being a veteran teacher become a negative quality in America?

Rewind to my first year of teaching and how I wished to be a veteran, how I yearned for years of knowledge and experience that could really wow parents and engage the students at such a high level that they would love coming to school every day. Instead, I bumbled my way through, figuring out my style, using the students as test subjects to all my untried ideas and staring wistfully into veteran teachers’ classrooms. I envied their orderly, calm lessons, their seemingly endless project ideas and angles to reach every child. I could not wait to be a veteran.

The Case for Veteran Teachers

Now it appears a new trend has emerged; veteran teachers are no longer “experienced” — they are simply “old,” with every negative connotation of that word. The media and politicians portray these older teachers as stubborn and stuck in their ways. They are labeled static and washed out. The way to resuscitate America’s “failing” education is now to get rid of the veterans and pave way for the new teachers, those with boundless energy, passion and fresh ideas. It’s truly a case of out with the old and in with the new.

But those working in education can see just how flawed this method of thinking is. Those of us who breathe education recognize what these veteran teachers really bring to us all — knowledge, expertise, methods that work, and a deep-seated passion for a job that has done little to reward them. We realize that by creating a bias against experience, we are all losers in the world of education. Now before I forget: yes, there are experienced teachers that do fulfill the stereotype, much like there are new teachers that do. However, the majority of experienced teachers do not.

Thanks in part to the rhetoric of the “reformers,” the anti-veteran bias seems to be taking root in society, too. Now when teachers are searching for work, the more years they have, the less likely it seems that they will get an interview. Some districts say tight budgets are to blame, which as a teacher in Wisconsin I can appreciate, and yet, you would think that a district would spend the bulk of its money on getting experienced teachers in front of our students. Instead, we see a stigma that says the more years of teaching you have, the less open to new ideas you must be. Parents eagerly tell us how they want that new young teacher because he or she will have something new to offer. Students hope for the young teacher because they are sure he or she will be more fun.

Our Most Valuable Asset

So what can we do? Youth is the ultimate desirability in America, and it is warping the educational world as well. Youth now seems to be the one trait that everyone agrees will save our schools. Get rid of tenure, and with it the more experienced teachers, which frees school districts to hire as many brand new teachers as they want. Brand new teachers that also happen to cost less. Brand new teachers that come off as confident and brimming with new initiatives. Brand new teachers that lack the foundation that only years of teaching can provide them with.

I think back now to what I put my students through my first year — and I shudder at the thought. There were the make-no-sense rules just to ensure control, tests upon tests because I thought that was the only way I could assess, and just a small stockpile of ideas to pull from. I had the confidence but lacked experience, and the only thing I knew that would make me a better teacher (besides more years) was turning to my mentors, veteran teachers that shared their knowledge and inventiveness. In those master teachers I saw everything that had drawn me to teaching: passion, dedication, innovation and an unstopping sense of urgency to reach all students.

That is what we’ll be removing from our educational system — experience; because in the view of society, old = bad. So when we dismiss and run out our master teachers, we drain our schools of one of their most valuable assets — knowledge. When we place teachers with experience at the bottom of our respect pole, we set students up to be every new teacher’s test subject over and over, throughout their years of schooling. Yes, new teachers bring new ideas to the table, but so do veteran teachers. How anyone can claim otherwise baffles me.

Thankfully, there are others in our profession who agree with me. Veteran teachers are joining social media such as Twitter to reach out to new teachers. They are blogging about their experience, thus creating a database of knowledge accessible to anyone in need. They are creating networks within their schools, ensuring that new teachers have someone to turn to. They are not being run out of education quietly, and we should all be grateful for that. We are only as strong as the weakest link in our schools, and our mentor teachers are doing everything they can to empower the people they work with. That power transfers to our students.

being a student, being a teacher, Personalized Learning, student choice

A Small Idea for More Choice in Our Curriculum

April 19, 2016 Pernille Ripp

It never fails; spring break hits and all of a sudden it seems there is very little time left of the school year. The students feel it as they grow more restless, eager to explore more, not as satisfied with the same old routine. We feel it as educators, too. We feel the sheer panic of not having done enough, not having taught enough, not being enough.

So I wanted to do a review of the standards we have covered. I wanted to give the students way more choice. While choice and student voice is huge component of what we do, it can sometimes feel lost in the background as we create projects together and try to dig deeper into our learning. So I wanted to facilitate more small group and I wanted to be able to meet the needs of more students. I wanted to be more for more of my kids as they really stretch their legs, and their minds.

So on a plane ride home from Texas, it finally fell into place. A short “Choose your adventure” type of paper where all of the students could choose whatever they needed for the 5 standards. (We actually have 7 but 2 of them will be explored in May). They didn’t have to get a bingo. They didn’t have to pick anything in particular. They just had to pick one from each standard after deciding what they needed the most. Every standard gets 2 days of work-time in class, students can change their minds to their needs, and the best part has been that the two incredible special education teachers that are also in our classroom in various hours are also teaching. Utilizing their knowledge and ideas is something I have really wanted to do for a long time, but had a hard time figuring out how to do. This has done just that.

My Standards Review - Google Docs.clipular

So how has it been? Kind of amazing actually. Students are more in tune with what they need and want. They are getting to work with others if they would like, they are coming up with some creative ideas when they want, or they are getting the support they feel they need. In fact, I asked a group of kids if this was helpful and they all gave me an enthusiastic yes! I have loved the smaller groups, the one-on-one teaching that I have been able to do, as well as seeing the success that they are experiencing.

While my mission as a teacher is to provide as much choice in learning as possible, in whichever area is needed, sometimes it is hard to wrap my head around personalizing learning more when I teach so many students. This small breakdown of skills and choices has helped us do just that and is making me think about every thing I teach. What other units can be made into something like this? Where else can we provide opportunities that fit the needs of students better? I hope this inspires you to maybe do something similar.

aha moment, Be the change, being a teacher, being me, mistakes, Student dreams

When We Are the Problem

April 16, 2016 Pernille Ripp

Sometimes we don't see ourselves fully until a child holds up a mirror @pernilleripp

I thought she just wasn’t a very strong reader. Not yet anyway. She seemed lost, perhaps a little quiet, and definitely not invested. In my head I was already planning for all of the interventions that I probably should try to make sure that this year was not a lost one.

As the year passed, her disinterest grew. I guess I wasn’t surprised., after all, when the tasks get harder some kids tend to disengage more. It didn’t help that she constantly seemed to be mad at me, we clashed over little things; cell phones, eye rolls, not reading. I wasn’t sure what to do.

Mid-year and all students fill out a survey. One question I always ask is, “How can Mrs. Ripp teach you better?” That night as I looked through all of their answers, hers hit me hardest….”I don’t think Mrs. Ripp really likes me so perhaps that could be something she changes.”

I sat there quiet, realizing all of the clues I had missed. That sometimes happens when we can’t see the forest for all of the trees, or the individual child for all of the students.

So the very next day, I pulled her aside, and I thanked her for her honesty. I apologized, told her that I did like her but that it probably had not seemed that way. The smile she gave me at the end was a furtive one, but it was a start, a promise of a new beginning. A promise I needed to make to be a better teacher for her.

That child is no longer behind in reading. She swallows books like a meal. She participates. She is engaged, always ready to learn, eager to share her ideas. She pulls others with her as she becomes stronger, more powerful in her thoughts, and I stand sometimes on the sidelines realizing what a fool I was. How much we can destroy without even knowing we have a part in the destruction.

I often speak of the things we do to make students hate reading, and yet, how often do we look at how we affect the kids? How we affect their relationship to whatever we teach because we may not be the best fit. We may be focused on them in a negative way and we may not even be aware of it.

Not every kid has the courage to tell their teachers how they feel. I am so grateful to my incredible 7th graders that they speak up, that they help me change. Because I try, we all do, but sometimes we don’t see ourselves fully until a child holds up a mirror.

That girl has a special place in my heart, she may not even know it. But every day I look at her and she reminds me that I need to be the best for all of them. I need to see the good in all of them. I need to see everything they can do. And I need to see myself and how I play into the equation. Sometimes we may not like what we see, but that should never stop us from looking.

If you are wondering why there seems to be a common thread to so many of my posts as of late, it is because I am working on two separate literacy books. While the task is daunting and intimidating, it is incredible to once again get to share the phenomenal words of my students as they push me to be a better teacher. Those books will be published in 2017 hopefully, so until then if you like what you read here, consider reading my book Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students. Also, if you are wondering where I will be in the coming year or would like to have me speak, please see this page.