As teachers and parents, we want our teenagers to try new things, challenge themselves and learn resilience from failure. We don’t want them to obsess about grades, suffer anxiety or give up when a task is too hard. But how do any of these goals fit with the insanely competitive culture around college applications? Are…
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I have been teaching high school for 26 years, and I cannot tolerate bored, disengaged teenagers. I've spent my entire career developing student engagement strategies that work and abandoning lessons that don't work. As a result, my students frequently comment that they are "never bored" in my class. I'm proud of that -- and of my students' outstanding performance.
I'll use this blog to talk about engagement strategies as well as other issues facing teachers, students and everyone who cares about education today. I hope you find it interesting.
You can’t spread your wings on a multiple choice test
One of the best parts of teaching is watching your students surpass what you’ve taught them. It’s like running next to your 4-year-old holding onto the bike, then finally letting go and watching them ride off, confidently, alone. We usually don’t experience this in a traditional classroom, when students are just listening, reading and repeating…
Read MoreThe power of assertiveness
When I was a high school senior, my Presbyterian church youth group took a “college caravan” trip to Michigan. As soon as we had all piled into the “Rev-mobile” – yes, we called it that – our youth pastor Jay Groat announced it would be an “assertiveness training” weekend. You want to change seats? No…
Read MoreEven a great lecture isn’t good enough
What’s one thing you could do tomorrow that would definitely engage more students? That’s easy. Inject your lesson with more opportunities to participate. It sounds too simple to be true — how could asking a question, giving a formative quiz, or allowing five minutes to think/pair/share really make any difference? And doesn’t everyone already do…
Read MoreIdeals or reality: What should civics teach?
I learned last week — from this funny but scathing commentary in our local City Pages — that Minnesota may soon require high school students to pass a “citizenship test” in order to get a diploma. According to the article, students would take a test similar to the naturalization test, which 97 percent of immigrants…
Read MoreFlip that sub plan
5-6 class periods, 25-35 students per class, 2-3 different preps, 5 days a week. That’s the typical schedule for an American high school teacher, and as I have noted before, it doesn’t allow much time for professional development, reflection, or even creative preparation, let alone absence. Just staying on the treadmill – keeping up with…
Read MoreNew teachers need real feedback
There’s always a lot of talk about teacher evaluation, but not so much about feedback, which is the heart of our enterprise. What is the point of evaluation if not to provide meaningful information about an individual’s strengths, weaknesses and growth? Unless you just want a reason to fire someone. We would never assign students a…
Read MoreCompetition is powerful, so use it with care
Nearly 30 years ago, Alfie Kohn made his case against competition. “It’s always unnecessary and inappropriate at school, at play and at home,” he wrote, citing studies that show children learn better when they work together. Kohn argued that competition makes children anxious and humiliates the losers, with no clear benefit to the winners. In…
Read MoreToo exhausted for creativity?
I don’t know anyone who became a teacher so that they could lecture from a script or PowerPoint, grade multiple-choice tests or subject themselves and their students to a series of rote lessons. And yet, we too often default to these boredom-inducing strategies under the pressure of our daily workload. (Worse yet, that is exactly…
Read MoreIs giving up ever the right answer?
A parent recently spoke to me about concerns for her child, who is a student in my class. This student is struggling with the course content, despite completing all assignments, studying countless hours and seeking out lots of one-on-one help from me. Sounds like an ideal student, right? But the mom is deeply worried that…
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MARTHA RUSH 