Comments on: Playing the Grade Game http://ransomtech.edublogs.org/2008/09/29/playing-the-grade-game/ A quest for learning, unlearning and relearning... Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:39:18 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.2 hourly 1 By: Stephen Ransom http://ransomtech.edublogs.org/2008/09/29/playing-the-grade-game/comment-page-1/#comment-139 Stephen Ransom Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:57:38 +0000 http://ransomtech.edublogs.org/?p=163#comment-139 Thanks so much for personalizing my comments with your own experiences. As a teacher-to-be, I think you are actually one step ahead in some cases... because you have identified areas of weakness. This is the first step to doing something about them. Too many teachers are a little to oblivious to what they don't know, or think that what they don't know does not matter. In all content areas, one simply cannot be the most effective when one does not know the breadth and depth of concepts upon which those content areas are built. To teach early American history, it requires a much greater understanding of European history. To teach multiplication, it takes a deeply conceptual understanding of number concepts, place value, operational rules,... The bottom line is that teachers must know (and understand) a great deal more than what one finds in the Teacher's Edition manual... But, often this knowledge becomes crystalized when you have to teach it for the first time. As the adage goes, you learn best what you have to in turn teach to someone else. So, as you prepare for a teaching profession, don't stop identifying areas of weakness or areas weak in knowledge. There is ample opportunity to continue in professional growth as an in-service teacher. Go to professional local/state/national conferences. Network. Share. There are the teachers who continue to learn, challenge themselves, and in turn better meet the needs of their students. And, don't go to these conferences so that you can skip out on most of the sessions to shop. I say this partly in jest and half seriously, as I have known teachers whose primary motivation to attend conferences was to get out of teaching and have a good time... not learn, present, network... those things that are indicative of a true professional. So, the burden remains largely on you... but it is not one you cannot carry. Don't isolate yourself as many teachers do. Don't be afraid to take risks. Continue self-evaluation and reflection. Keep learning. Be a professional in all that it entails. You CAN be a truly GREAT teacher :-) Thanks so much for personalizing my comments with your own experiences. As a teacher-to-be, I think you are actually one step ahead in some cases… because you have identified areas of weakness. This is the first step to doing something about them. Too many teachers are a little to oblivious to what they don’t know, or think that what they don’t know does not matter. In all content areas, one simply cannot be the most effective when one does not know the breadth and depth of concepts upon which those content areas are built. To teach early American history, it requires a much greater understanding of European history. To teach multiplication, it takes a deeply conceptual understanding of number concepts, place value, operational rules,…
The bottom line is that teachers must know (and understand) a great deal more than what one finds in the Teacher’s Edition manual… But, often this knowledge becomes crystalized when you have to teach it for the first time. As the adage goes, you learn best what you have to in turn teach to someone else. So, as you prepare for a teaching profession, don’t stop identifying areas of weakness or areas weak in knowledge. There is ample opportunity to continue in professional growth as an in-service teacher. Go to professional local/state/national conferences. Network. Share. There are the teachers who continue to learn, challenge themselves, and in turn better meet the needs of their students. And, don’t go to these conferences so that you can skip out on most of the sessions to shop. I say this partly in jest and half seriously, as I have known teachers whose primary motivation to attend conferences was to get out of teaching and have a good time… not learn, present, network… those things that are indicative of a true professional.
So, the burden remains largely on you… but it is not one you cannot carry. Don’t isolate yourself as many teachers do. Don’t be afraid to take risks. Continue self-evaluation and reflection. Keep learning. Be a professional in all that it entails. You CAN be a truly GREAT teacher :-)

]]> By: aerogirl83 http://ransomtech.edublogs.org/2008/09/29/playing-the-grade-game/comment-page-1/#comment-138 aerogirl83 Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:39:27 +0000 http://ransomtech.edublogs.org/?p=163#comment-138 Dr. Ransom, First off let me say that I really enjoyed reading your blog post. This really hit home for me. I am one true mathematical and reading disaster; in fact I personally think I am one educational disaster. I think a lot of that comes from the difficulty I had as a child in school and not knowing how to learn almost any and every subject, but that’s beside the point. I agree with you about how college students today have a lack of learning skills and have to take remedial courses just to make them prepared. Back when I was in school (high school) which wasn’t really that long ago, but still long enough, I was never taught the proper ways to study or how to read well. I was definitely a struggling learner and student. I still am to this day, and I think it is a direct result of how I was taught in school and also the fact that I have dyslexia. In school I do not remember being taught the skills on how to study. I pretty much got through high school without studying for one test, or rarely studying at all; but that was mainly because I despised studying because I did not know how or how to do well. So in high school, I passed but could have done a lot better had I been given the proper skills. When my time came to go to college, I picked a community college and there was not really a shock so much. I kept my “study” habits, or lack of, the same. I didn’t study for one test and pretty much did ok. Then when I went to a regular college it was a culture shock. WOW I actually had to study to pass, and even worse I actually had to READ!! Because of my dyslexia and other things, I despised reading. To this day I still hate it. I really think that my reading level is that of a high school student and not where it should be. I really think that it’s because of the teachers and educators that I had in elementary school and even middle and high school, not taking the time to pay attention to my needs. I did have 2 years of reading classes but that just wasn’t enough for me. I most likely would have done a lot better had I kept up with those, and who knows I probably would find reading somewhat enjoyable.  I also found your point about how some of your students who are majoring in Elementary Ed., an eye opener, because they do not know how to do the math or reading. YES, I unfortunately am one of those statistics/ students. I am scared to death that I will be a horrible teacher and that I will be a horrible math teacher. I am terrible at math. Actually once I get the process I’m quite good, but that is why I choose to teach elementary school. I want to make sure I know, can understand, and teach what I am teaching. It’s a scary thought that I may not know exactly all the math or even all the things that I will be teaching my students. I just pray and keep praying that God blesses me with the knowledge and understanding to teach the students the math and that I myself can understand it and that I will be a great teacher. I’ve been told ever since I was younger that I would make and amazing teacher, but I am still scared that I will send students like me into the world without teaching them the proper skills or even worse, teaching them wrong. I do agree that it is a sad thing that we have to have remedial courses in college, but I also do not think that it is a bad thing though. I think for those of us who actually need it is a great source of educational help. I wish I had taken advantage of my remedial opportunities in college because now I am paying the price, but I think that it is a great opportunity for the students who need it. Let’s just hope they can use it and take advantage of it, and hey… it is ok to hope.  Dr. Ransom,

First off let me say that I really enjoyed reading your blog post. This really hit home for me. I am one true mathematical and reading disaster; in fact I personally think I am one educational disaster. I think a lot of that comes from the difficulty I had as a child in school and not knowing how to learn almost any and every subject, but that’s beside the point. I agree with you about how college students today have a lack of learning skills and have to take remedial courses just to make them prepared. Back when I was in school (high school) which wasn’t really that long ago, but still long enough, I was never taught the proper ways to study or how to read well. I was definitely a struggling learner and student. I still am to this day, and I think it is a direct result of how I was taught in school and also the fact that I have dyslexia. In school I do not remember being taught the skills on how to study. I pretty much got through high school without studying for one test, or rarely studying at all; but that was mainly because I despised studying because I did not know how or how to do well. So in high school, I passed but could have done a lot better had I been given the proper skills. When my time came to go to college, I picked a community college and there was not really a shock so much. I kept my “study” habits, or lack of, the same. I didn’t study for one test and pretty much did ok. Then when I went to a regular college it was a culture shock. WOW I actually had to study to pass, and even worse I actually had to READ!! Because of my dyslexia and other things, I despised reading. To this day I still hate it. I really think that my reading level is that of a high school student and not where it should be. I really think that it’s because of the teachers and educators that I had in elementary school and even middle and high school, not taking the time to pay attention to my needs. I did have 2 years of reading classes but that just wasn’t enough for me. I most likely would have done a lot better had I kept up with those, and who knows I probably would find reading somewhat enjoyable.  I also found your point about how some of your students who are majoring in Elementary Ed., an eye opener, because they do not know how to do the math or reading. YES, I unfortunately am one of those statistics/ students. I am scared to death that I will be a horrible teacher and that I will be a horrible math teacher. I am terrible at math. Actually once I get the process I’m quite good, but that is why I choose to teach elementary school. I want to make sure I know, can understand, and teach what I am teaching. It’s a scary thought that I may not know exactly all the math or even all the things that I will be teaching my students. I just pray and keep praying that God blesses me with the knowledge and understanding to teach the students the math and that I myself can understand it and that I will be a great teacher. I’ve been told ever since I was younger that I would make and amazing teacher, but I am still scared that I will send students like me into the world without teaching them the proper skills or even worse, teaching them wrong. I do agree that it is a sad thing that we have to have remedial courses in college, but I also do not think that it is a bad thing though. I think for those of us who actually need it is a great source of educational help. I wish I had taken advantage of my remedial opportunities in college because now I am paying the price, but I think that it is a great opportunity for the students who need it. Let’s just hope they can use it and take advantage of it, and hey… it is ok to hope. 

]]>