I hate to return on such a foul note, but I'm angry and bitter and need some outside perspective to my situation.
TAKS scores came in on Monday and they were AWESOME! 94% of my students passed the 7th grade Math TAKS (97% if you don't include my inclusion students)... overall 7th grade had a 93% passing rate and a 36% commended rate. We raised our scores 5% from last year.. and that is with having 100 more students on our teams. So we are all on cloud 9 til yesterday. My principal calls in me and one of my other two teaching partners, T, and tells us she is moving us to 6th grade. Why? Because their commended scores were the lowest in the district and she wants us to move down and work with the other 6th grade teacher to raise them because our scores were so good as 7th grade teachers, we will know how to challenge the 6th graders to meet the commended standard. On paper it sounds reasonable right?
The problem is that the schedule was already ironed out (for the most part) and we were told that 7th grade math was not going to be changed... so we weren't worrying about it. In our school, there are a lot of strong personalities within departments and within grade levels, but me, T and K have NEVER had that problem. Not once. We all have similar teaching styles and personalities, we have this unspoken balance of who does what work and when, and we just get along. We just have this flow that is very unusual for a group of 3 people. Everyone pulls their weight, helps each other out, and we honestly like each other a lot. So now this cohesive group is being pulled apart for the sole reason of raising test scores.. forget the fact that we are being thrown with another teacher, a new adjustment for all 3 grade levels, and having to hire a new 8th grade teacher to fill in a hole. I'm sorry.. all of this to fix one thing? Where is the logic in that? I am angry because I was told one thing, and now am getting another. I am angry because I am having to move to a grade level where I do not like the curriculum, and really most of the people who work there. I am angry because she made this decision on a whim (2 days after TAKS scores were sent) without consulting our math coordinator or us. I'm angry because I am having to leave people that I absolutely LOVE to work with,.
Not only that, but we were basically told (by our AP who is leaving for a different school) that we are the ones getting the shaft because we all have very flexible personalities and don't wreak havoc on our other co-workers. So they chose to move us instead of having to deal with moving someone else who would put up a fuss. So basically if I'm a B at work, I get my way, but because I do my job and do it without whining that I get shafted. His response? "It's not fair but it's that way at any school." I'm sorry.. but I really find that hard to believe. If you have a principal that is good at his/her job, then that type of crap won't fly. None of this "I'm too afraid to shake things up because (insert reason here), so we'll pick on the ones who won't cause the problems."
I realize that I can only see one side to this situation, and I have no clue what goes into all the decisions that are made as an administrator, but this really seems low.
Now I'm afraid of next year. I am good at what I do. So if/when I do well this next year and raise the commended scores, she is going to want to keep me there but I do not want to teach 6th grade. Granted I may like certain parts of next year, and make friends with my new team members, but I am bitter now about being moved down and am probably going to resist any sort of pleasure from this change. The point is, I like the 7th grade curriculum better, I like the 7th grade students better and I like the 7th grade teachers better. Will she listen to me if I go in there and say that I'm glad to go down for a year and help raise commended scores, but when our numbers balloon back up to 1200 kids again in 2009 that I want to be put back into 7th grade? Probably not..
I am mad... and I'm going to be mad for a while. I've heard many different things from many different people, but they are involved in the same type of BS I am day to day working there... so if you can offer a fresh perspective that I can't see, please do. Just don't tell me it's a compliment that she is moving me. I've heard that too much and I don't view it as a compliment. She didn't do it because she thinks highly of my teaching abilities or cares about my feelings, she did it because she wants the TAKS scores to be higher.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Getting to know me!
So Mister tagged me to do a meme.. I'm very honored! It's my first one! :)
MEME:
1) What was I doing 10 years ago?
10 years ago I was starting my first year of high school in Richardson. I was a 14 year old sophomore who loved school (NERD!) and was also in marching band (GEEK!). I wasn't your mainstream idea of popular, but I had a lot of friends and enjoyed every minute of high school.
2) What are 5 things on my to-do list for today (not in any particular order):
1. Finish this blog post.
2. Grade some make-up work.
3. Watch Grey's Anatomy and Lost!
4. Repaint my toenails.
5. Call my love interest :)
3) Snacks I enjoy:
Cashews/Almonds/Nuts of any kind, chips and salsa, string cheese, apples and peanut butter, popcorn
4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
1. Bribe the current president to do away with NCLB and allow education to be regulated by state mandates chosen by TEACHERS, not politicians.
2. Travel with my ENTIRE family around the world.
3. I have no idea.. I clip coupons and only buy things on sale, I can't even fathom having that much money!
5) Three of my bad habits:
1. My Carmex use, I use the stuff like it's heroin. I haven't gone a day without it since 2000.
2. Cracking my knuckles.
3. Not washing my hands as much as I should. I know, ew.
6) 5 places I have lived:
1. Richardson, TX
2. Waco, TX
3. Brisbane, Australia
4. Frisco, TX
5. --------
7) 5 jobs I have had:
1. Math Teacher! :)
2. Hollywood Video Customer Sales Rep
3. Daycare Teacher (my current diaper count is probably 20000+)
4. Cashier at CiCi's Pizza
5. Kennel Cleaner at a boarding facility (my mom wouldn't drive me home one day because she said I smelled so bad. Texas summer heat and dog shit don't mix)
So I know you all have been just as busy as I have lately. TAKS is over as of yesterday, but now it's on to our last units of the year in order to prepare them for next year! I swear every student practiced their whining today when they found out that we were actually working and that they had homework. As much as they deserve a day off, we just don't have time! Our field trip is next week, which should be fun as long as it doesn't rain. Which it is supposed to. Great. My social life turned on an upswing in the last 2 weeks, but lack of communication since then has me a bit worried. I'm hoping for the best, but have been burned in the past.
MEME:
1) What was I doing 10 years ago?
10 years ago I was starting my first year of high school in Richardson. I was a 14 year old sophomore who loved school (NERD!) and was also in marching band (GEEK!). I wasn't your mainstream idea of popular, but I had a lot of friends and enjoyed every minute of high school.
2) What are 5 things on my to-do list for today (not in any particular order):
1. Finish this blog post.
2. Grade some make-up work.
3. Watch Grey's Anatomy and Lost!
4. Repaint my toenails.
5. Call my love interest :)
3) Snacks I enjoy:
Cashews/Almonds/Nuts of any kind, chips and salsa, string cheese, apples and peanut butter, popcorn
4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
1. Bribe the current president to do away with NCLB and allow education to be regulated by state mandates chosen by TEACHERS, not politicians.
2. Travel with my ENTIRE family around the world.
3. I have no idea.. I clip coupons and only buy things on sale, I can't even fathom having that much money!
5) Three of my bad habits:
1. My Carmex use, I use the stuff like it's heroin. I haven't gone a day without it since 2000.
2. Cracking my knuckles.
3. Not washing my hands as much as I should. I know, ew.
6) 5 places I have lived:
1. Richardson, TX
2. Waco, TX
3. Brisbane, Australia
4. Frisco, TX
5. --------
7) 5 jobs I have had:
1. Math Teacher! :)
2. Hollywood Video Customer Sales Rep
3. Daycare Teacher (my current diaper count is probably 20000+)
4. Cashier at CiCi's Pizza
5. Kennel Cleaner at a boarding facility (my mom wouldn't drive me home one day because she said I smelled so bad. Texas summer heat and dog shit don't mix)
So I know you all have been just as busy as I have lately. TAKS is over as of yesterday, but now it's on to our last units of the year in order to prepare them for next year! I swear every student practiced their whining today when they found out that we were actually working and that they had homework. As much as they deserve a day off, we just don't have time! Our field trip is next week, which should be fun as long as it doesn't rain. Which it is supposed to. Great. My social life turned on an upswing in the last 2 weeks, but lack of communication since then has me a bit worried. I'm hoping for the best, but have been burned in the past.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Severe Weather Testing Protocols
VIA the counselor and testing coordinator at my school. She's got a wonderful sense of humor!
Severe Weather Testing Protocols
1. Should a severe weather situation occur during testing, please remain calm. To display any kind of anxiety would be a testing irregularity and must be reported.
2. Please do not look out the window to watch for approaching tornadoes. You must monitor the students at all times. To do otherwise would be a testing irregularity and must be reported.
3. Should students notice an approaching tornado and begin to cry, please make every effort to protect their testing materials from the flow of tears and sinus drainage.
4. Should a flying object come through your window during testing, please make every effort to ensure that it does not land on a testing booklet or an answer sheet. Please make sure to soften the landing of the flying object so that it will not disturb the students while testing.
5. Should shards of glass from a broken window come flying into the room, have the students use their bodies to shield their testing materials so that they will not be damaged. Have plenty of gauze on hand to ensure that no one accidentally bleeds on the answer documents. Damaged answer sheets will not scan properly.
6. Should gale force winds ensue, please have everyone stuff their test booklets and answer sheets into their shirts…being very careful not to bend them because bent answer documents will not scan properly.
7. If any student gets sucked into the vortex of the funnel cloud, please make sure they mark at least one answer before departing…and of course make sure they leave their answer sheets and test booklets behind. You will have to account for those.
8. Should a funnel cloud pick you, the test administrator, up and take you flying over the rainbow, you will still be required to account for all of your testing materials when you land so please take extra precautions. Remember, once you have checked them out, they should never leave your hands.
9. When rescue workers arrive to dig you out of the rubble, please make sure that they do not, at any time, look at or handle the testing materials. Once you have been treated for your injuries, you will still be responsible for checking your materials back in. Search dogs will not be allowed to sift through the rubble for lost tests…unless of course they have been through standardized test training.
10. Please do not pray should a severe weather situation arise. Your priority is to actively monitor the test and a student might mark in the wrong section if you are praying instead of monitoring. I'm sure God will put war, world hunger, crime, and the presidential primaries on hold until after testing is over. He knows how important this test is.
My good luck wishes go out to all 8th graders and their teachers on the math TAKS on Tuesday! Remember.. protect the tests at all costs!!!!!!
Severe Weather Testing Protocols
1. Should a severe weather situation occur during testing, please remain calm. To display any kind of anxiety would be a testing irregularity and must be reported.
2. Please do not look out the window to watch for approaching tornadoes. You must monitor the students at all times. To do otherwise would be a testing irregularity and must be reported.
3. Should students notice an approaching tornado and begin to cry, please make every effort to protect their testing materials from the flow of tears and sinus drainage.
4. Should a flying object come through your window during testing, please make every effort to ensure that it does not land on a testing booklet or an answer sheet. Please make sure to soften the landing of the flying object so that it will not disturb the students while testing.
5. Should shards of glass from a broken window come flying into the room, have the students use their bodies to shield their testing materials so that they will not be damaged. Have plenty of gauze on hand to ensure that no one accidentally bleeds on the answer documents. Damaged answer sheets will not scan properly.
6. Should gale force winds ensue, please have everyone stuff their test booklets and answer sheets into their shirts…being very careful not to bend them because bent answer documents will not scan properly.
7. If any student gets sucked into the vortex of the funnel cloud, please make sure they mark at least one answer before departing…and of course make sure they leave their answer sheets and test booklets behind. You will have to account for those.
8. Should a funnel cloud pick you, the test administrator, up and take you flying over the rainbow, you will still be required to account for all of your testing materials when you land so please take extra precautions. Remember, once you have checked them out, they should never leave your hands.
9. When rescue workers arrive to dig you out of the rubble, please make sure that they do not, at any time, look at or handle the testing materials. Once you have been treated for your injuries, you will still be responsible for checking your materials back in. Search dogs will not be allowed to sift through the rubble for lost tests…unless of course they have been through standardized test training.
10. Please do not pray should a severe weather situation arise. Your priority is to actively monitor the test and a student might mark in the wrong section if you are praying instead of monitoring. I'm sure God will put war, world hunger, crime, and the presidential primaries on hold until after testing is over. He knows how important this test is.
My good luck wishes go out to all 8th graders and their teachers on the math TAKS on Tuesday! Remember.. protect the tests at all costs!!!!!!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Bar and Circle Graph Activity
So the beginning of the week has been a busy one! We started a group activity where students had to investigate the connections between a bar graph and a circle graph. At first they said that they had nothing in common except for the fact that both gave you information, but in different forms (whole numbers, percentages, etc). By the end, they were able to tell me how to take the bars in a bar graph to make a circle graph (and actually did this on their papers), as well as calculating the frequencies, percentages and central angles. Normally activity days have me totally frayed, but this one was great!!! :)
Monday, March 31, 2008
Drills? Psshhh!
Apparently we can't have normal Mondays at my school. About 10 minutes before the bell rings (for the end of the day) it starts POURING rain.. I have last period off so the secretary told me it might be a good idea for me to go get my stuff before it gets worse. Worse? I go outside and the tornado sirens are going off. Fantastic. I am soaked within 10 seconds, but I go get my stuff and run back inside. Intercom message to the school to release students who ride the bus so they can load early... I'm thinking to myself, do they not know the sirens are going off? 10 seconds later that message has been canceled and we are all now retreating to our tornado safe rooms. That's right... 390 students on our hallway.. 4 tornado safe rooms.
At first the kids are just sitting there because we've just been told to be in the room, so they are goofing around, angry that they are being held after the bell, then not a minute after the griping we get the message to "duck and cover". It sure was quiet then... I take over from the other teachers and explain to the students how to tuck their legs under them and put their hand on back of their heads, because at this point they were just all sitting against the wall. Now we've got kids crying, hugging each other, etc... and your normal adolescent boys who think it's a good idea to fart in the middle of the group. It was already dark outside, but I turned off the lights in case of any power surges and that made it even more eerie. The rain is still absolutely torrential, then all of a sudden it stops. For those of you not familiar with these types of storms, that is never a good thing. I'm under a desk trying to calm down one of my students, surrounded by 5 of my co-workers and we're all looking at each other like this is not going to be good. I keep getting text messages from my sister, who is at home watching the news and is like.. it's on its way right toward you guys! There is sheer marker on the screen right above where you are at(which means there is rotation in the clouds)! So we're all sitting there waiting for the "freight train" sound, but thankfully all we hear are the intermittent sniffles from some very frightened students.
The kids eventually get bored with being stuck in this uncomfortable position and start joking with each other.. then 15 minutes later they call on to release all the students, we walk out of our cave and it is sunny outside! Texas is crazy... I saw later on the news the funnel cloud that formed right near us. Had this happened just 10 minutes later we could have had mass chaos on our hands!!! As for the kids, aside from their goofing around when the fear wore off, they followed directions well and did exactly what they should have. Who needs drills? They'll do it right when they are afraid!!!!
At first the kids are just sitting there because we've just been told to be in the room, so they are goofing around, angry that they are being held after the bell, then not a minute after the griping we get the message to "duck and cover". It sure was quiet then... I take over from the other teachers and explain to the students how to tuck their legs under them and put their hand on back of their heads, because at this point they were just all sitting against the wall. Now we've got kids crying, hugging each other, etc... and your normal adolescent boys who think it's a good idea to fart in the middle of the group. It was already dark outside, but I turned off the lights in case of any power surges and that made it even more eerie. The rain is still absolutely torrential, then all of a sudden it stops. For those of you not familiar with these types of storms, that is never a good thing. I'm under a desk trying to calm down one of my students, surrounded by 5 of my co-workers and we're all looking at each other like this is not going to be good. I keep getting text messages from my sister, who is at home watching the news and is like.. it's on its way right toward you guys! There is sheer marker on the screen right above where you are at(which means there is rotation in the clouds)! So we're all sitting there waiting for the "freight train" sound, but thankfully all we hear are the intermittent sniffles from some very frightened students.
The kids eventually get bored with being stuck in this uncomfortable position and start joking with each other.. then 15 minutes later they call on to release all the students, we walk out of our cave and it is sunny outside! Texas is crazy... I saw later on the news the funnel cloud that formed right near us. Had this happened just 10 minutes later we could have had mass chaos on our hands!!! As for the kids, aside from their goofing around when the fear wore off, they followed directions well and did exactly what they should have. Who needs drills? They'll do it right when they are afraid!!!!
Monday, March 24, 2008
Was she crying?
I answered this question about 50 times today...
About 5 minutes into the start of the day, my principal comes on the intercom to announce that we have received our 8th grade TAKS reading scores. 99% passing and 75% commended... she was so excited! Of course the kids misread the excitement in her voice (because she was talking so fast it and uneven) as crying and as soon as she signed off they all had very confused looks on their faces. It's hard to explain to a bunch of 12 and 13 year olds why numbers like that are exciting to adults. I tried, but I don't think I got the message across to them. Most adults not in the education field probably wouldn't understand either. It's a kind of cult we have...
We have benchmark testing and analysis all this week. It's good in the sense that it gives me time to catch up on grading, but bad because I have to prep 15 different reteach activities, will eventually have to grade 125 analysis packets and have to deal with the less than subpar scores that are normally earned on these benchmarks (Last year the district average was around 35% passing, this year it's around 45%). I'm expecting even worse this time around because they just had 10 days off. Testing after a long holiday is just about the worst idea ever. Ugh.
I only have 27 more instructional days until TAKS, and I'm forced to give up 5 of those for benchmarks. The last 10 of those will be used for our "Olympic Games" (aka 2 week TAKS review)... so I really only have about 10-12 more days to finish out my curriculum. We haven't even started probability yet, but I'm not panicked. Nope... not me. Forget the fact that my kids came back to school today acting like a bunch of #$&%%)*@# and we really weren't very productive. It took about all of my energy not to yell at them or break down in tears. Here's hoping my kids won't be asking each other the question that I answered so many times today...
10 weeks til summer break....
About 5 minutes into the start of the day, my principal comes on the intercom to announce that we have received our 8th grade TAKS reading scores. 99% passing and 75% commended... she was so excited! Of course the kids misread the excitement in her voice (because she was talking so fast it and uneven) as crying and as soon as she signed off they all had very confused looks on their faces. It's hard to explain to a bunch of 12 and 13 year olds why numbers like that are exciting to adults. I tried, but I don't think I got the message across to them. Most adults not in the education field probably wouldn't understand either. It's a kind of cult we have...
We have benchmark testing and analysis all this week. It's good in the sense that it gives me time to catch up on grading, but bad because I have to prep 15 different reteach activities, will eventually have to grade 125 analysis packets and have to deal with the less than subpar scores that are normally earned on these benchmarks (Last year the district average was around 35% passing, this year it's around 45%). I'm expecting even worse this time around because they just had 10 days off. Testing after a long holiday is just about the worst idea ever. Ugh.
I only have 27 more instructional days until TAKS, and I'm forced to give up 5 of those for benchmarks. The last 10 of those will be used for our "Olympic Games" (aka 2 week TAKS review)... so I really only have about 10-12 more days to finish out my curriculum. We haven't even started probability yet, but I'm not panicked. Nope... not me. Forget the fact that my kids came back to school today acting like a bunch of #$&%%)*@# and we really weren't very productive. It took about all of my energy not to yell at them or break down in tears. Here's hoping my kids won't be asking each other the question that I answered so many times today...
10 weeks til summer break....
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