February 3, 2010
September 9, 2009
Every year, I start off the school term with minimal expectations, if only to preserve my sanity and prevent heartache. Oh, I expect great things from all my students academically, but teaching is not only a skill; it’s an art. And art involves emotional investment, something I’ve learned long in my career not to put too much stock in.
That said, if their responses to the first Blog Assignment are any indication, the Class of 2011 may just join the ranks of classes that have not only left my professional heartstrings intact, they may also provide me with rollover sick days for next year’s batch. The current seniors know what I’m talking about. 
But don’t worry, 2010; I’m still thinking of attending your prom.
September 1, 2009
In all the confusion and first day madness, I may have forgotten to tell some Houses today, but please remember to have an SSR choice – either book or magazine – ready for the next class meeting. If you’re in East House, no worries since we won’t start SSR with you until Thursday – the benefits of seeing me last in the rotation!
August 31, 2009
Here’s to a productive, enriching and perhaps even exciting year in English!
May 14, 2009
So, Ericka, since you and perhaps Hilary are the only ones who read and ask for updates, here’s a thought that’s been percolating in my head and I wanted your opinion on it:
groupwork
I know it’s the I-Poly philosophy and without it, we’d just be like any other reegular high school – albeit on a parking lot – but these past two months have really made me rethink the concept, at least the way we handle it. Ms. Moore has been instrumental in this epiphany because she has encouraged me to look at something old with new eyes. And what I see sometimes ain’t all that pretty.
What do we (and I mean teachers and students both) do when a group is dysfunctional? When is it time to interfere? How long do we maintain this laissez-faire attitude before hitting the breaking point? And what is the breaking point? Are there warning signs? Should the teachers be more aware? Should the teachers care or let students fend for themselves? Is grade distribution really fair or does it promote psychological bullying? Should there be more check-ins and checkpoints and mini-meetings between teacher and groups? Should we allow students to pick their own groups? Who is more at fault in a dysfunctional group: the over-achieving perfectionist who does everything herself/himself ‘for the good of the grade’? Or is it the reclusive loner who is too afraid/intimidated/apathetic to speak up? Does groupwork work at I-Poly or does there have to be a serious paradigm shift in the way we – students and teachers – approach our philosophy?
Thoughts…comments…
April 4, 2009
This is really only for Hillary and Ericka because they made the effort to email me personally and ask for a blog update.
Hrm…so what to write? I’ve been feeling out of the loop ever since Ms. Moore took over my classes. Well, speaking of Ms. Moore, how about that for starters? Can anyone offer any constructive feedback for her to take away from her I-Poly experience? And let’s be fair and polite and consider our critiques as ones completely unrelated to me. That is, I know she has a different style of teaching and I know no one can ever talk as fast as I do, so let’s think of Ms Moore in a regular classroom. How wold she fare and can you give her any recommendations?
Other than that, the only thing I can alk about right now is Pet Society – wink! – and that’s not exactly school-related, is it?
February 5, 2009
a ‘P’ by any other name would smell as sweet…
Posted by mtsedwards under Uncategorized[20] Comments
First off, my apologies for being remiss in updating my blog. I guess there really hadn’t been much time or cause for reflection these last few weeks, but something happened this week that compels me to write.
So we finished Gawain project presentations and what started out as a debrief of the project ended up – for three Houses anyway – being a philosophical debate on what grades mean. Specifically, what does it mean to get a ‘P’. The general consensus is that, as long as you hit the points and meet the requirements, you should get the P, apparently regardless of quality. Although this doesn’t sit well with me, this is what’s expected and who am I to try to turn the tide, right?
But then I made the announcement that from now on, all projects in core would follow the aforementioned grading procedure and then the uproar ensued. Several people felt this was unfair – what about the kids who went above and beyond? Don’t they deserve the ‘AE’? Well, I thought, that’s valid point but I needed some clarification as to what ‘above and beyond’ actually meant. Unfortunately, in all 3 Houses, no one could convince me of a true conclusion.
There were many suggestions. ‘Above and beyond’ to some students means:
- I tried hard/put in a lot of effort.
- I did more (as in quantity-wise).
- My work was prettier/bigger/better than so-and-so’s work.
Okay, I guess I could buy those criteria, but how do I assess ‘trying hard’? How do I quantify ‘prettier’ or ‘better? What if the assignment was a paper or an essay and ‘bigger’ isn’t a factor? Does ‘AE’ mean that, in English class where we mostly write, if one kid writes 1500 words but another writes 2000, the 2000-word kid gets the ‘AE’? Again, this didn’t sit well with me and I became even more confused and frustrated.
So I suggested leaving the assessment up to the individual student. You can tell me how hard you work; you can determine the degree of effort you put into the assignment. And as long as you have valid points to support your assessment, then I award you with the grade you think you deserve. Fair, right? Because I’m not the one actually doing the assignment so I really shouldn’t be the judge of these intangible, nebulous things.
I thought I had the problem licked but then I got home and discussed my day with my very logical, everything-is-always-black-and-white husband and he adamantly told me I was wrong. He said I needed to set criteria and that I was the teacher and that it was my job to tell students what their grades were based on my criteria and my opinion. Very traditional school thinking, right? But valid? Maybe.
So here’s his solution: since we’re a presentation-based school and most projects require a public show at the end, why not come up with a quantifiable spreadsheet that shows you, the student, in black and white numbers what your grade ought to be. Like, say the project is worth 100 points. He said to come up with a number of criteria with a scale that, when totaled, equaled 100 points. It could look something like this:
- professionalism of presentation 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
- professionalism of product 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
- creativity and engagement for the audience 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
- accuracy and relevance to content 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
- evidence of effort 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
So it’s a scale of 1-20, 20 being the best, and since there are 5 criteria, 20×5=100. Then he says to have the whole class have the same spreadsheet for each presenter and have each student grade each presenter. I would then average the student scores and come up with a number. So say, in a class of 30, 29 kids are grading the presenter – using the above scale and criteria – and at the end, I would add up all the numbers from all 29 spreadsheets and divide by 29 to get an average. That average number represents 25% of the presenter’s final grade. I, being the teacher but using the same scale and criteria, would count for 65% of the final grade. Complicated math, I know, but my husband thinks like this. So he says this way, everyone knows what’s expected and can see, not only my opinion in 5 separate categories, but the opinion of 29 other people. He thinks this is the best way to grade.
However, he is not a product of I-Poly and can only see things in quantifiable numbers, so although I appreciate the logic and unarguability of his method, I still have my reservations.
I don’t have an answer to the grading debate and the jury is still out as to what procedure I will eventually adopt. I like self assessment, but what’s stopping kids from just giving themselves a ‘P’ and be done with it? If I adopt my husband’s way, does it acknowledge the ‘above and beyond’ factor that I-Poly is so proud of? Brandon L. from West House thinks this is just my sneaky way of making you all come up with a rubric and doing my work for me. But I disagree. I think, as a teacher, I always need to be aware of my methods and what’s fair and effective and right. Asking the opinions of my constituents is the only way I know to try to meet everyone’s needs and be fair.
So, I’m opening up the debate here on the blog. Thoughts? Questions? Concerns? I’m all ears…
December 8, 2008
| Greed: | Medium | |
| Gluttony: | High | |
| Wrath: | Very Low | |
| Sloth: | High | |
| Envy: | Medium | |
| Lust: | Medium | |
| Pride: | Medium |
The Seven Deadly Sins Quiz on 4degreez.com
I thought I’d get a higher score for pride. And when did I become so gluttonous? Heh. I may have to retake this quiz when I’m more awake and when the caffeine has kicked i…
November 20, 2008
Follow the link below and learn how you can do what you love best (if making videos is something you love best, that is) and earn extra credit AND perhaps some serious holiday spending cash.
November 16, 2008
YES, WE HAVE SCHOOL TOMORROW, even with the fires and Diamond Bar and Walnut High Schools cancelled. CalPoly is open so Ms. Martinez says we’re open too. Bright and early, people!
