Guest blog by Jennifer Buckley

HS Special Education Teacher

Guilford County Schools

I tried to think of when I witnessed the six virtues in my school because I wanted to write about a specific event. Then I realized my colleagues demonstrate the virtues all the time.

We had a faculty meeting last week about test scores, changes to teacher tenure, and the new teacher contracts. I looked around and saw frustration and defeat on the faces of my colleagues. They work hard to provide students with the knowledge and skill needed to be successful; but year after year they get stepped on by the elected officials who are supposed to represent them. Teachers aren’t acknowledged for what they do. Instead, they are penalized as they participate in a flawed system in which they have no say.

Still, day after day these teachers come back to do their best with students. They come back to teach them, nurture them, discipline them, and love them. If that is not strength and courage, what is? Many stay after school, create imaginative lessons, plan curriculum and encourage students on a daily basis. They think and solve problems on the fly, they have to learn how to deal with all kinds of people, being sensitive to a variety of issues and problems. Is that not imagination?

Teachers give of themselves all the time. They buy supplies, food, and clothes for students. The time that it takes to help students, go to meetings, and serve on committees is another act of generosity.

Times are tough for educators right now. There are many reasons they are tempted to leave the profession, but they stay.  The six virtues are represented everyday by the teachers with whom I work.

Guest blog by Ryan Chandler

Social Studies Teacher

Jesse C. Carson HS, Rowan-Salisbury Schools, NC

Many adults believe high school students are self-absorbed and care only about themselves. I had a recent experience that shows the other side of adolescence. My story is about student generosity.

At the beginning of November, the mother of one of my students was hospitalized. Not long afterward, she passed away.

Once students heard about the mother’s passing, they told me they wanted to do something for their classmate. I thought it was a wonderful idea.

What happened the next few days blew my mind. I could not have been more proud of this class. For several days they took up collections. They even asked students from their other classes to contribute.

I was amazed at how generous the students were, and I know their classmate appreciated it. This also brought my class closer together as they shared their concern for the well-being of another student. It showed me that high schoolers care about others, too.

Guest blog by Mike Weddington

Music Teacher, Wilkes County, NC

Although there are many situations in which the six virtues make things better, a recent one stands out to me. Last year I taught a fourth grade boy who lost his father. I will call him John.

John was likable and didn’t get into trouble, but after the death of his father he became angry and stopped caring about school. He started to bully classmates. He challenged authority, and he was hard to deal with in the classroom. My confrontations with him usually ended in arguments about every little thing. He refused to do what I asked, so I dug in my heels and insisted that he meet classroom behavioral expectations, the same as other students. I felt it was my duty.

This year is different. John has a compassionate classroom teacher whose caring nature has made a big difference. This year is also different because my interactions with John have been positive, too. I decided to be humble and realize that John may not be able to follow all my behavior rules. I decided to channel his aggression and outbursts into something positive. I adjusted my rigid expectations and connected with him on his level.

I began by not immediately shutting him down when he began his classroom outbursts.  Rather I engaged him in a positive way and joked with him, whenever I could.  He quickly realized that I cared about him and things are better between us this year. It was humbling to realize that I needed to connect on his level and respect him before he would reciprocate with respect for me.

John is much more pleasant to be around and his challenges are good natured, instead of bitter and angry. When I give him attention in a non-confrontational way, the entire class is more productive. I have not changed my expectations for him. I have altered the way I deal with him. Humility, instead of pride, makes a positive difference in educational situations.

Guest blog by James Bell

Business & Technology Teacher

Mitchell High School, Mitchell County, NC

Teachers try to present information and knowledge in a meaningful way. Incorporating the six virtues adds “flesh and blood” to what is otherwise “bare-bones” learning that lacks the desired impact.

As a rookie teacher I taught business and computers to middle-schoolers. This was challenging because we had few computers and not enough space for the ones we had. Later in the year I was also assigned to teach a beginning computers class at both K-8 schools (now closed).

One of these schools was trying to develop better relationships with parents, so teachers brainstormed ideas and came up with having a “Computer Night.” We invited parents, grandparents and other community members to attend a program in which students would demonstrate their computer skills and teach basic technology lessons to adults in our rural community.

Our goals were to (1) develop deeper understanding of computer technology, (2) increase parent and community involvement, and (3) inform community members about their schools.  Preparation for Computer Night focused on preparing students to be courteous, humble and confident in their demonstrations.

When Computer Night arrived, the media center was packed. Students welcomed the adults and beamed as they demonstrated their skills.  Parents and community members were pleased with our efforts and eagerly went to the computers for hands-on learning.

We had only one problem — too many people showed up. We needed more pizza. The principal and several others headed to local pizza places and even went to the next town to get more pizza.

Computer Night was a memorable, meaningful night of learning. It was a great success because of faculty and student understanding, imagination, humility and generosity.

Guest blog by Loryn Morrison

Asst. Principal, Welcome Elementary School

Davidson County Schools, NC

I am a worrier. My husband often jokes with me, saying I am constantly waiting for the sky to fall. I try to prevent myself from worry by avoiding difficult situations. To clarify, though, I do not worry about everything. I worry about money.

My husband lost his job three years ago when we were eight months pregnant with our son. To say that I thought the sky had fallen would be an understatement. We have been recovering from financial hardship ever since, but money worries still haunt me.

While it is embarrassing to put these concerns into words, I am trying to be courageous so others can identify.  For the past year I have been using our hardship as an excuse to avoid giving to others who are less fortunate.

For the past five years, I was in a district leadership position for a rural school system. I worked in many schools, but was never part of their cultures. For example, students on free and reduced lunch were a number associated with Title I funding, rather than people struggling for proper nutrition. I believe I lost touch with the reality faced by many of our students.

This year, I am an assistant principal in a school with many free and reduced lunch participants. This school is teaching me about generosity and humility every day.

I believe in teaching the six virtues, but I have to model them before I can teach them. Specifically, I need to model generosity.

One of my responsibilities is to greet bus riders each morning. This has taught me about our students. Some don’t have gloves or cold weather coats. Some wear the same outfit every other day. When I pass the local food shelter on my way home, I sometimes see our parents in line.

I also met Kim (a pseudonym), when her mother enrolled her in kindergarten. Kim and her mother had just gotten an apartment after living in a homeless shelter. Each morning Kim came to school excited to learn.

In October, Kim’s mom was far along in a pregnancy, and Kim started being late for school. Each morning she would come in and just cry. Many thought she did not want to leave her mother.

In my old state of mind, I would have let someone else care about Kim’s situation, but my new state of mind said I should step forward. I found out Kim and her mother were living in their car. Her mother lost her job because she couldn’t stand for long hours (doctor’s orders). She couldn’t pay the rent, and Kim couldn’t ride the bus in the morning, which meant she missed breakfast.

Kim was crying because she was hungry. She was not eating dinner and now she was missing breakfast. Each morning, it became my mission to get Kim breakfast. Seeing Kim’s face when she got food in the morning showed me that my sky had never really fallen. Since meeting Kim, I have stopped avoiding situations that might cause me pain or worry.

I became an educator because I want students to love learning. I now realize children cannot love learning if their basic needs are not met. Children in our schools need to see that we care about their basic needs as well as their education. We need to model that caring, so others can see that our hearts are in it for all of them.

Our school now donates to the local food shelter on a regular basis. We have maximized our backpack program. And there is a large room where students can get clothes, if needed.

Last Tuesday a fourth grader saw that her classmate needed shoes. That night she gathered several pairs from her closet and brought them to school the next day. She asked the teacher if she could meet with her classmate privately. She and the other girl went into a quiet area during independent reading time. They probably did not read that day, but one girl got to go shoe shopping. The girl who donated the shoes told only her teacher, and the other girl has proper shoes because of her generosity. That is why I am in education.

Guest Blog by Tyler Kulp

7th Grade Teacher, Corriher-Lipe Middle School

Rowan-Salisbury Schools

Teachers impact students’ lives on a daily basis.  In this story, though, it was two middle school girls who impacted another student’s life.

We had a 7^th grade girl who was a pleasant, quiet student. She did her work and maintained an average GPA throughout the first quarter. She had a few friends, but teachers and students considered her a loner. Teachers thought she was one of those who might “slip through the cracks.”

One day she came to school looking like she hadn’t slept the night before. That week she was like a different student.  She did no homework. She started acting out in class. We saw a dramatic change in her, so several teachers referred her to the counselor.

Later in the week two girls asked me if something was wrong with this student. They decided they should reach out to her in friendship. Over the next few weeks, these girls included her in their circle of friends.

This helped her a lot and she got back on track. Her grades improved, and she started participating in class. In the spring, she made the track and field team.

In hindsight, I can see that these two girls changed the other girl’s life for the better. They understood that something could be wrong, and they showed courage and generosity by reaching out to her.  They have maintained the friendship, which continues to help this student with her social life and academic skills.

We teachers later found out that the girls’ family was going through turmoil the week that her behavior changed. It was an amazing act of understanding and imagination, as well as courage, for these two 7^th grade girls to befriend and help her in this transition.

Dear Teacher:

You believe your job is to apply what research has found to be “effective.” I believe your job is to appreciate your subject matter and students. We believe in different job descriptions for the same reason — your experiences taught you to believe in yours, my experiences taught me to believe in mine.

Professors of education taught both of us that teachers should be professionals who apply what research has found to be “effective.” The difference in our experiences comes before that. You were taught to embrace what is taught in school, I was taught to challenge it.

Even though you can’t describe a time when applying what was “effective” had the desired effect, you will continue to believe that is your job because that is what you were taught. When we believe things we can’t support with experience or reason, we “just believe” them, anyway.

In this case, though, the results are disastrous for the improvement of education. Because 99% of teachers “just believe” what is not true — that teaching is an applied social science — schools have not improved over the last 50 years. If you believe they have improved, describe how they are improved and describe the social science findings that were applied to achieve that improvement.

BTW — when you had classes with education professors, did they describe the research findings they were applying? Did you ever wonder why they didn’t?  Now you know why. I love irony.

From Christopher Tuft, Archdale Elementary School, Randolph County, NC

As I read The Six Virtues of the Educated Person, my mind kept returning to something a principal said when she hired me: “Teachers at this school educate children’s hearts and their minds.”  In other words, while good test scores were great and knowing your multiplication tables was important, it was all meaningless if students didn’t know how to use these skills in a way that contributed to society.

While I appreciated this as a teacher, it took on a whole new meaning when I became a parent.  My wife and I adopted our sons when they were 8 and 13 so they were already in school.  Of course I want them to know their multiplication tables, know how to read, and score well on tests; but what is more important is that they take what they learn and use it creatively to contribute to society.  I want them to be men of strong character who have the courage to choose ethical action.  I want them to be humble people who are generous with their time and money.

Most parents want this for their children, and most parents work on these virtues at home.  As a teacher I know learning is enhanced, when home and school work together.  Imagine the possibilities if home and school were working together to teach the six virtues.

I have nothing against technology. In fact I love it — XM radio, on-demand television, cell phones, laptop computers, YouTube clips, etc. Besides, here I am, blogging on the internet.

What I hate is that we never challenge the assumption that advanced technologies are a key to improving education. This blog challenges that assumption by asking teachers one question:

Which initiative is more likely to lead to an educated citizenry: the Mind/Shift “School of One” initiative, or modeling and teaching the six virtues of the educated person?
Continue reading →

Gates Foundation Crap

Last week’s big news came from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which is investing $335 million to overhaul the personnel departments of several big school systems. A large portion of the Gates’s investment will finance research by dozens of social scientists and thousands of teachers to develop a better system for evaluating classroom instruction.

Educators and researchers will analyze thousands of hours of videotaped lessons to identify attributes of good teaching and possible correlations between certain teaching practices and high student achievement, as measured by value-added scores, the New York Times reports. The effort aims not just to evaluate teachers on multiple measures of effectiveness (the NYT article lists value-added measures as a starting point), but also to help teachers improve by learning from talented colleagues.

Cut the Crap

Dear Bill,

I don’t need a single dollar, a single hour of videotape, or a single study of good teaching “to identify attributes of good teaching and possible correlations between certain teaching practices and high student achievement.”

All good teachers model and teach understanding, imagination, strong character, courage, humility and generosity. They always have and they always will. You don’t know this by now?

It’s a shame your Foundation has all this money and so little imagination about how to spend it. Your imagination was the key to making money, but it seems absent from your attempts to improve education. I love irony.

If you want to know what makes a good teacher, ask your wife. And then listen to her descriptions of how her best teachers modeled and taught imagination, courage, and humility, in addition to the understanding, strong character and generosity that others modeled and taught. Better yet, ask your children to describe their best teachers. Then maybe you won’t waste your money.

Americans believe philosophy is not useful, so it is difficult for you to see that a deep, useful definition of what it means to be educated holds the answer to all your questions about improving education. I  love irony.

Sincerely,
Casey Hurley, Educational Philosopher