Springfield Job Openings

Hi all,

Just heard about these openings!

The Springfield Public Schools has a number of immediate openings in the following areas:

ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL--ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE, SPECIAL EDUCATION, MATH, ENGLISH, INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY, LIBRARY SCIENCE, PHYSICS, HIGH SCHOOL VOCATIONAL TEACHERS AND AUTISM SPECIALIST

Please visit the website at springfieldpublicschools.com to view postings and to apply. 

Homework

There seems to be an eternal back and forth about homework in education. As a teacher, I thought it necessary. As an administrator, I have had my doubts. As a parent, I can see how sometimes it is excessive.

At my current school, Goodrich Academy, we have no homework. As a public, alternative high school part of our job is to make sure that we do not duplicate the reasons why students struggle in more traditional settings. So many of our students have never done homework, and they find that they cannot succeed in their regular schools because of this. This means that my staff has to work hard to get the teaching and learning done in class without a lot of wasted time. Not a bad philosophy, but I bet they often wish they could throw an occasional homework assignment the students' way.

On the other end, I see my children come home with homework every day. Most of the time it seems measured and reasonable. However, every once in a while they might have 30+ problems in math or 30+ vocabulary words to look up and use. I kind of do not get that because I really do not think that 30 questions of any kind done quickly will have better results than 10 questions done well.

I also wonder, sometimes, how much of the work done at home is in place of learning that should be done in the classroom. I can see doing math problems that further what was actually taught and learned in class. I can see finishing a writing assignment that was started and checked on by the teacher in class. I can see the need to get important reading done so that the ELA, Science or Social Studies class is not a reading only class. But, I have concerns about how homework is assigned and assessed.

Here are some of my general ideas:

1. Reading is appropriate for homework as long as it is meaningful, and of reasonable length.
2. Math and science problems should be furthering what was done in class and only enough to reinforce. A big concern I have is when a student does something the wrong way 30 times. How long will it take to undo that?
3. If it is important enough to do for homework, it should be important enough for a teacher to assess in some way. This could mean a short quiz on the reading. It could mean a class discussion where everyone must participate. It could mean correcting the work the students did. It is frustrating for me to see teachers walk around a classroom, glance at homework and then assign a check, check plus or check minus to work that a student was supposed to spend 45 minutes on. Why should the student care enough to do the work well if the teacher does not assess it well? What is the message that this sends about homework?
4. Homework should not be a significant part of a student's grade. A student who is intelligent enough to pay attention in class, do well in all assessments, and be a contributor to the class should not be doomed by the fact that they do not do homework assignments. They should be accountable, yes, but a good grade should not be contingent upon this. From what I have seen, it is often the case that homework becomes a matter of compliance for  a teacher and they are upset when a student sees no value in it. Learning is not about compliance. It is about learning.
5. Homework should never be given for the sake of giving homework. If an assignment furthers the learning done in class, then it is fine. If it is busy work, then it is a waste of everyone's time.
6. Homework should rarely be given on a weekend and never over a vacation. We all value our time off. As educators we need to recognize that students appreciate it when we also value their time off. Sure, we will be correcting work over weekends and vacations (because we plan it that way so we do have time), but that does not mean we have to make our students "suffer" as well. Sometimes, there is a need to get a major paper done. Sometimes we want students to stay current in what was taught just before the vacation. However, be sure that this is the case.
7. Unless it is research or project based, a student should never be expected to learn something the first time as part of their homework.

Your thoughts? A younger me would definitely disagreed with this.

Why I Refuse to "Teach For America"

I’ve always felt strongly that teaching is my calling. As I embark upon my final year here on the Hill, I feel overwhelmed by the multitude of possibilities that await me upon my graduation in May. Rewind to my first year at Holy Cross, I was (and am) a student who was very passionate about becoming involved the field of Education and excited to leave my mark. Teaching, for me, has always been the end goal. Teaching is not a stepping stone into the “real world,” nor is it something I’m willing to “try out” for a number of years after graduating only to later throw away. That’s why, when my eager peers are excited to inform me that they’re applying to Teach for America, I will always have a hard time smiling and biting my tongue.

Founded in 1990, Teach for America guarantees recent graduates an opportunity to do just that: briefly encounter the teaching profession within the context of a high need institution only to leave it behind two years later. A nonprofit organization which seeks to “enlist, develop, and mobilize as many as possible of our nation’s most promising future leaders to grow and strengthen the movement for educational equity and excellence,” TFA undermines the value of an intensive undergraduate Teacher Education Program. Teach for America’s “intensive summer training program” takes participants through the very basics of what it means to be a teacher. Although it is undeniable that the diverse nature of the corps itself, which is constituted by graduates holding degrees in a myriad of disciplines, may very well bring new perspectives to schools that are in need of resources, I refuse to believe that we are doing the schools in which we place them much justice.

The fact that these highly undertrained “teachers” are being placed in extraordinarily high need schools that desperately need experienced veteran educators is a travesty. Daniel Katz, Director of Secondary Education and Secondary Special Education Teacher Preparation at Seton Hall University, articulates that, because his students “all intend to stay classroom teachers,” pursuing an opportunity with TFA upon receiving their undergraduate degree is a waste. “This isn’t something they suddenly decided to do,” Katz continues. “This isn’t a means for them to ‘give back’ on their way to something else. This is a career they have been thinking about since they were much younger and to which they have dedicated their entire time in college to entering.”

If our ultimate goal is to benefit our students and provide them with a quality education, why, then, would we place individuals with little to absolutely no experience who are often simply looking for something to do after college graduation in schools that are desperate for resources? This denigrates our profession and leaves our students in need of teachers who are inspired to commit their lives to teaching. I myself am one of those individuals. Teaching, for me, has always been the end goal. Teaching is not, by any means, a step along way; it is profession to which I will dedicate the rest my life and remain passionate about so long as I live.

Immediate Middle School Spanish & French Long Term Sub Position - Grafton Middle

Hi all,

I just learned of an immediate opening for a Spanish and French long term sub position at Grafton Middle School. There is an emphasis on the need for French because some of the other teachers can cover the Spanish sections.

If you know of anyone who might be interested, the contact info is:

Emily Loughlin (Spanish Teacher @ Grafton Middle) - loughline@grafton.k12.ma.us
Roseanne Kurposka (Principal @ Grafton Middle) - kurposkar@grafton.k12.ma.us

And the job posting can be found at:

https://www.schoolspring.com/job.cfm?jid=2717138

Let me know if you have any questions (mcashman@holycross.edu). Spread the word!

MB

What can we take out of this election that will be valuable to our students?

Cassandra Kobelski commented over the weekend on a recent post about one of the debates. I think she makes some really good points, and you should read her comment.

Anyway, I think we can make some valuable points with students that a lot of what this election has turned out to be is because of the fact that discourse in this country tends to be very limited. Students are not exposed to a lot of different views in k-12 or in college settings. There is a fear in k-12 of being accused of promoting any particular viewpoint. And, colleges do tend to ask speakers to come in who represent views they already have. Often, when colleges invite speakers with different views, there are protests until the speaker's invitation in revoked. This is all wrong.

There needs to be honest and open discussion of all views so that students can make up their own minds about issues, based on knowledge rather than mere opinion. This is difficult and requires a lot of planning on the part of a teacher/professor, but it sure would be worth it to have discussions based on the merits of any viewpoint rather than avoiding those conversations. This is also true with many of the ballot initiatives out there. I am no fan of legalizing marijuana or bringing in more charter schools, but I have researched both sides of each argument in preparing myself to vote. Are we doing enough of this in classrooms? Are we really looking at the real concerns of all sides in the presidential election and considering what each side really does want and why? If we do not, we cannot hope to heal this country afterward.

A real thought for me is that the whole process has gone a bit haywire. We have too many career politicians who are tied to their parties over the constituents. Something is wrong with that. Why do we have term limits for executives in government but not legislators? Are career legislators a good thing or a bad thing in a democracy? That would be a real interesting topic in a classroom. 

If You Could Make a School

Yesterday, we hosted a visiting team from a district that is in the process of reorganizing itself. Now the reasons for this are not great, as the district is in state receivership and has to do this in order to be allowed to continue to function. However, the people we met with yesterday have the opportunity to totally re-imagine what secondary education will look like in their city. They have three schools to work with: a high school, a technical high school, and an alternative high school. The redesign includes all three.

What would you do if you had the chance to redesign a district with that many schools? What would the end design look like? How different would you make the whole thing than business as usual?

Oh, you also have access to a community college and a four year college as well as local business and industry.

So scary yet so exciting at the same time.