some advice from a student at Penn

I was at a conference Sunday at the University of Penn.  Sitting near to me was a student at Penn.  Realizing that one of my students was going to Penn, I asked her what advice she would give to Izzy.  She then told me I would give her the same advice I was giving any person entering college.  So I thought I would pass this along to all of you.

You are going to struggle at the start of college, just realize that most others are also struggling.  They might hide it better than you but they are struggling just like you.  That Universities have a lot of help, but you need to seek it out.  So if you are struggling academically go find the writing, tutoring labs and take advantage of them.  There are places to meet people if the struggle is social.

The key and she repeated it again, is that most people struggle.  Do not think you are the only one and get help before you go to far under.

cheating, and cheating

Today our school newspaper printed their annual story about cheating.  In my four years at Dulaney each year the newspaper prints a story about how cheating is increasing at Dulaney.  Each year this edition makes me so mad, for so many different reasons.  However, it has just occurred to me that cheating probably will not increase next year and if so not by much, as 99% of the seniors said they have cheated.

In full disclosure to the entire senior class, the questions probably need to be asked differently.  It would probably be better if they asked students if they have cheated this year?  Today a couple of students told me that they had stopped cheating this year but had to answer "yes" to the question that they had cheated once in their lifetime.

It bothers me that students cheat.  As a teacher I understand the pressure, the amount of other things that students do besides my class.  With this understanding I realize that sometimes students perform poorly on  a test, do not have an assignment done on time etc.  Those things happen, but that is no reason for the student to cheat.  If you are unprepared you need to take the consequence, and no one paper, quiz or test is really going to make a huge difference in your year.

As a school, this needs to be an issue that we discuss more often and openly with our students and faculty.  I hope (please respond honestly) that all students know that cheating is something that would really make me mad.  As stated above I can understand why you perform poorly, I have had one of my best students tell me that they just did not have the time to prepare properly.  However, cheating when you are asked not to is a violation of trust.  As we try to move to valued partners we need to trust each other.

When discussing just for a brief time today, I was also amazed at how many students believe that cheating is okay.  That some of the work is busy work, which makes it okay to cheat.  Or that some of the timelines are unfair or the teacher is bad.  What does any of this have to do with your own integrity?  With knowing what is right or wrong?

I hope that I am not a person who thinks that everything was better in the past.  A matter of fact I know that the students I teach are brighter than the students I went to school with.  However, it seems to me that back in the day (yes post Civil War) we at least felt bad when we did things that were wrong.

Okay, students turn now to explain your side of the story.  I hope you trust me enough to put your name to the response.  If not, just do not sign.  Most importantly, I would like to hear your views.  AS A VALUED PARTNER YOUR VIEWS ARE IMPORTANT.  I promise to read them with an open mind.

What is the purpose of spirit week

In the week vacation, I have read a lot of research that shows that what one thinks is common sense does not always work out.  For example when you take troubled youths to a prison, to try to scare them (program is called Scared Straight) and have prisoners tell horrible stories about prison.  What they have found out is that more people who go through this program commit crimes that at risk youths who do not use this program.

This type of research that goes against the grain made me think about spirit week.  What is the purpose of spirit week?  I would think to bring the community together, to feel a sense of belonging, and to have a greater appreciation for the school.

Now the question is does Spirit Week accomplish these goals?  I would appreciate your response to this question.  Do you feel better about our school after spirit week?  Does it reach the goals I stated above?  Are there goals besides the ones above that the week should be trying to accomplish.

reflections of my four years

I recently asked students to write a reflection on their growth during their four years at Dulaney.  Since I started Dulaney the same year that these students were Freshman I thought I could also do the activity.  I remember my first week at Dulaney, I gave my psych class of 18 (that size will never occur again) a quiz.  One student passed the quiz and the next day one person dropped the class.  A couple of days later, two students passed the second quiz.  I went to the Principal, and told him not to let anyone else drop the class, that someway I would make sure that everyone passed the AP exam.

Since the Principal brought me to Dulaney, he felt obligated to stand by me.  However, at the end of the second week a nice young lady came up at the end of the class to tell me that everyone wished that they had the other psychology teacher.  I thanked her for her honesty and took a deep breath.

It seems like such a long time ago, but during that time I realize what great support I had at a totally new school.  The other psych teacher was amazingly helpful and we built a synergy that would benefit all of our students.  I also started my journey which started with GRIT and has now brought me into the whole science of positive psychology.

As I continue to read, implement, and discuss character with my students and peers, I realized the change in myself.  What used to drive me crazy does not bother me at all.  Do I sometimes lose it, yes, it happened the week before we went on vacation.  However, instead of being mad for a month it took a week to realize that while I disagreed with the decision, it is not worth getting that upset about.

What I most appreciate during my four years at Dulaney is the type of students that I have had a chance to work with.  While on any given day 50% of my students are smarter than I am, what most impresses me is the type of people that they are.  They are not only intelligent but most importantly, thoughtful, kind, and caring individuals which have helped me grow as both a teacher and a person.

As I continue to struggle with how to make students feel like Valued Partners and how best to implement character into the curriculum, I know that I will get plenty of help from my students.  This years students have already given me a couple of ideas that will make next years AP economics better than ever.

So in looking back over the four years I think I have more GRIT and much more self control over my emotions.  I think I have been tested this year and truthfully besides the one outburst I have done a good job and keeping perspective.

Purpose of school

While there are many different reasons why education is not getting traction, one of the major obstacles in my opinion is defining the purpose of school.  If you asked 100 teachers you might get 50 different answers.  When this happens instead of building synergy you are getting opposing forces which bring progress to a slow grind.

So I thought I would open this discussion up for some debate.  What do you think the purpose of school should be?  What changes would we have to make to accomplish your purpose of schools.