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March 28, 2006
Ding, dong
So my principal is now cooling his heels at the regional office, hopefully never to return. Thank you, Mr./Ms. Attorney General for showing what tons of formal complaints, news articles, and general mayhem couldn't: the man was a liar, hated teachers and shouldn't be involved in education.
Of course, this comes at the cost of my blog being discovered by some teachers at my school. Stupid Google. Welcome, and, well, crap! I have always been careful to not mention my school number/names of students/names of people. I forgot to delete the data from the article, as I didn't want to plagiarize. As a math coach, I'm supposed to somehow model some form of responsibility and all those other adult things like responsibility and mature behavior.
So now that you're here, you might as well know, in case you didn't, I'm a 'mo, a geek, and you can see what I looked like as a teenager, check out my very cute Canadian boyfriend, or even be thoroughly impressed by my Halloween costumes.
Please don't advertise this site at the school. I always love increased readership, but being a gay teacher in a middle school is a tough line to walk. Also, you might end up learning a bit more than you want to know. Remember that one really stinky professional development day? I was farting. LOTS.
You can't say you weren't warned.
Posted by G at 06:19 PM | Comments (12) | TrackBack
March 20, 2006
Sing hosannah to zod
I no longer have ANY reason to rent a car and drive to NJ. Except 6 Flags.
Posted by G at 06:15 PM | Comments (11) | TrackBack
March 19, 2006
Seven blocks
Ask a teacher working in a tough school how they cope, and you'll get one of four answers:
A) Alcohol. Lots of alcohol.
B) Exercise. Yoga. Meditation. And lots of alcohol.
C) Denial and burnout. And lots of alcohol.
D) Get involved in something at the school (still lots of alcohol, of course).
Six months ago, my regional boss asked me to spearhead a new program. We pulled students from eight local schools including mine. The students were low-level yet recommended by their teachers. At my school, they were the students who took notes in their classes even as desks were being thrown. They still weren't passing the math exams, but not for lack of effort. We would take them to City College, treat them like college kids, and really focus on making them THINK. Two afternoons a week plus every Saturday, two teachers for every class, high school tutors, and seriously fun conceptual math= hopeful gains in learning.
The interest level was low. City College? Where's that? What's that? What would a college want with us?
City College is only seven blocks from my school, across the street from the local playing field, but it might have been in Europe as far as my kids were concerned. It was not a part of their world, and it certainly wasn't a part of their future. At my school, the junior high graduation is the big one, because the majority of kids drop out before their senior year of high school.
The first day of the classes was a huge hit, but only for ten students from my school. But the next day, I was flooded with requests from kids to join the program. It burgeoned into me herding a giant pile of kids up the hill seven blocks, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. It was draining, but I loved it. I took in about ten kids who were major behavior problems in my school.
You could see the changes as soon as the kids entered the college. I would catch kids arguing about whether they would go to Columbia or City College, or maybe somewhere warm. They not only improved in the program, they improved in their classes. Teachers were wanting to join the program, see the program. Kids were doing good critical thinking with math. I was able to remember why I did the whole teaching job.
The kids want to know if the program can continue. The kids want to know if they could take classes at City College. The kids want to keep learning. The kids break my heart every day.
We're working on extending the program. We're working on finding grants. I'm still at work because of these kids.
Posted by G at 09:29 AM | Comments (9) | TrackBack
March 18, 2006
Exports
Is it just me, or is EVERYTHING Canadian good? Maybe all of the evil that spews from Canada is focused into Celine Dion, or the border crossing prevents evil Canada from entering.
The US definitely doesn't have the same program, as we send our dumbest and most annoying overseas. Ever see an American tourist, or zod forbid, an American high school group in Europe? Terrifying.
Posted by G at 07:34 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
March 16, 2006
Testing problems?
With my head down in the trenches, I had no idea that the state was having troubles too.
My school was chock full of fun during the test. It is so sad to see kids absolutely break down because of test anxiety. So many kids fear math and are too immature to have a coping mechanism, so they deal with it by trashing the room, attacking other kids, or snapping calculators in half. We had to suspend so many kids during the test. The saddest/funniest was a kid who had to be removed from the room for screaming obscenities at the teacher and one other student. Once outside the room, they ran away from the security guards and spent the rest of the day running around the building, screaming and cursing. Middle school kids can be really tiny and really fast.
For the next few weeks, I'm one of the 8 people training everyone else in our region. We have over 42,000 tests to grade. I see lots of coffee during the day, beer at night.
Posted by G at 07:28 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
March 12, 2006
The weather
What an absolutely crazy sunny fantastic Saturday. It never dawns on me how desperately I crave sunny days until one finally rises over the horizon. I had a great breakfast with Sam and Frank, hung out with the boyfriend, and then went shopping in the afternoon with Curtis. The entire time my exposed skin was frantically synthesizing vitamin D.
And now a post that is just like this rainy day.
The weekends help since my school is imploding. Every day our building is swarming with cops and security, yet it just keeps getting worse. All of our teachers lock their doors so children won't swarm in and wreck the room. We've had teachers assaulted every week, we only had our fire drill plan given to us after 105 days in school, and our fire alarms are triggered 5-15 times a day. Kids regularly roam the halls, and our attendance rate rarely exceeds 80 percent. For our mandated state English exams, we were unable to meet the required 95 percent.
Our kids are not the problem. Our kids are identical to the students at any of the neighboring schools that are functioning at a much higher level than our school. Many of our kids enter our school at the correct grade level, but then slide precipitously downwards. Yes, we are the dumping ground for our region, forced because of our SURR status to accept any kids kicked out of other schools. However, my old school was under similar constraints yet managed to function better.
The difference? My old school had a slightly more experienced staff, and a better administrator. Of the 17 teachers of math in my school, only 3 have more than two years experience. Our principal comes from the prison system, has no real educational experience, is only semi-literate, lies constantly, and hates teachers. He and I have been fighting over funding the math department, over providing lunches to teachers when they are forced to train during their preps (I've had to spend $400 of my own money to buy them lunch), and coverages. He actually told me that teachers are overpaid, that they really don't do any work, and that they should be grateful that they get additional training, rather than greedily asking for lunch or extra pay.
Our school is so divided and demoralized, and the administration has lost track of any goals. They obsess over details like updated bulletin boards when students are ripping everything down, plus my principal is under that lunatic idea that the union is totally at fault in our school. We have a small number of bad teachers at our school, and the rest are inexperienced. This principal feels that threats and intimidation are the ways to manage the school, and it shows. Teachers come to me having nervous breakdowns because he is threatening them. He is opposed by every group, including his own office staff, the aides, and security.
I had a fun moment last week because I had a fight with this woman who works in my room. My school is under review because of math, and I've pretty much single-handedly fixed huge chunks of it. I don't think our students' understanding of math will improve this year, but I've set a lot of things in place to make next year better. However, this woman has accused me of not doing my job. In a normal school, I'm supposed to happily sit down with teachers on their free periods, then go into their rooms and teach lessons with them. In my school, I am the copy girl, the purchasing agent, the shipping receiver (I'm forced to move literally tons of boxes up three/four flights of stairs), and the test coordinator. My principal volunteered me to redo the schedule for all the teachers within the next three weeks, plus the region selected me as one of the five trainers for the math scoring.
What made me cranky about her accusation is that it is basically true, but also impossible to fulfill. When I walk into the building, I get busy and it doesn't stop until I leave. I do spend a lot of time with my teachers, helping them plan lessons, find materials, and organize their rooms. This woman in my room is one of THREE people entirely focused on the literacy program, while I am a team of one. She is also supposed to help on math, but as she said (and everyone knows I love this), "I don't do math."
So allow me to let you in on a little secret. I'm done. My resume is ready, I'm contacting high schools in the area that are higher performance schools, and I will leave. I won't leave my school in the lurch, but I also won't let it rule my life the way it has.
I don't know what the real answer is. I'm not happy with my decision. I question how my last year was spent. Everything I do in this school just vanishes into a black hole. Whether I leave or stay, the school will fall apart. This school will continue to not function, regardless of the region's involvement, the money thrown at it, or the heroic efforts of many teachers. The region will probably close down the school, phasing it out over the next few years.
I will move on to a school that isn't perfect. I don't like perfect schools, and I like a challenge. However, I also know when there is no saving a school. It is time to walk away.
Posted by G at 11:54 AM | Comments (17) | TrackBack
March 02, 2006
I was there
Paul's birthsong was "Reunited."
When I was born, the Jackson 5 song "I'll be there" was number one.
I was there!
Posted by G at 09:06 PM | Comments (16) | TrackBack
Terrific Texas! Woo!
I'm sick today, sore throat, no voice. As I'm eating my healthy yet boring oatmeal, I know the things I love Texas for:
Gravy. Liberal northerners cannot make gravy to save their lives. My stepmom actually gave me the basic recipe (butter, flour, and milk). I bought ten instant packets at the grocery store, but I might even attempt to make my own. Keep the fire extinguisher handy.
Giant statues of Sam Houston and other figures. In order for Texans to get their history at 70 mph, they place 80 foot tall statues to sternly remind Texans of their past AND to keep below the posted speed limit.
Weddings with nice people, beer, good cake, and pinatas. My friend's wife had a terrific dress, her bridesmaids were really funny, and there was only one git with bad jokes about being gay. I'm all about frosting on cakes at weddings, and they picked a unique fusion of TWO different frostings. They also wisely set up a pinata to allow the children to work through the sugar high, and nothing makes children cuter than the ritual sacrifice of an animal and then eating the sugary entrails.
Another fun thing about weddings in Texas:
Whenever you're from Texas universities, you have to learn the hand signs of the universities. Watch out for flying tortillas while you're at it.
Austin and Austinites. I have to say that if I were forced to live in Texas again, I would be okay, as long as the town was Austin. Austin is this lovely little gem in a sea of mediocrity. The only district to have rejected the anti-gay ballot, it also has ordinances against McMansions, works to increase public transportation, and also is the residence of Dagon Chris, Stacie from Texas Tech, and her cute friend Tim. Tim would be in these photos, but he didn't even bother to hug Stacie after lunch. FOR SHAME! Look how cute she is!
Dagon Chris is such a good guy, and he took me to the best of Austin. A deserted dance floor playing the "L Word" on all of its screens, plus a personal demonstration of mad-hot Texas dancing:
Being a fellow geek, he also showed me the tectonic patterns that created the hills of Austin:
As we were driving around, I shrieked upon discovering one of my best beer moments of the past. My old roommate Evan took me to this dive that is an Austin landmark. The owner lady is quite senile, telling me she needed to pee, and I thought I was going blind due to my first experience ever with lightning bugs. Plus the beer was really frosty good. The view of the valley is amazing:
Austin is the home of Whole Foods, and we went to the HQ of Whole Foods. It was huge, but I wasn't impressed until I approached this:
Once I waved goodbye to Austin, I drove AGAIN back to Dallas. Ernest took me to my fave mexican food restaurant, La Familia in Fort Worth. Fish tacos are so yummy, plus the new restaurant is really well done. Bonnie and Ernest also got me hooked on City of Heroes. I'm really thinking I should buy a PC, or pray for a Mac version. I didn't get to stay that much in Dallas, as I had to then drive to Lubbock. Five hours to drive there, three hours with my dad, stepmom, and new dog,
then driving back to Dallas. One day there to chill, then back to NYC.
Really, I wish I could have dinner in Texas once a week. I love the unhealthiest food in the unhealthiest portions. I also wish I could get sunsets like this:
Posted by G at 04:04 PM | Comments (12) | TrackBack
March 01, 2006
Happy BD, PC!
Jimbo pointed out on his blog that today was the 45th anniversary of Peace Corps.
I served in Uzbekistan, Jimbo served in Kazakhstan. For those in the know, "stan" means "land of." For those in the know, Glenn loosely means valley. When I was a kid, I read a biography of Kennedy and decided when I grew up, I wanted to join Peace Corps.
I've always wanted to have the PC logo tattooed on my ass.
Posted by G at 12:44 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack