Comments for Investigating Choice Time: Inquiry, Exploration, and Play

Comment on Once Upon A Time by Renee

Renee — Sun, 19 May 2013 01:09:11 +0000

Hi Tomasen
It all seems so obvious, doesn’t it? I’m going to look at a name study to see how this “covers” the common core standards. My hunch is that it will plus more!

Renee

Comment on Once Upon A Time by Tomasen

Tomasen — Sat, 18 May 2013 12:42:03 +0000

Nicely done!
THIS is what we need teachers to see more of…to take what many have done and to look at it from the standpoint of what they ARE doing instead of always from a deficit model. Somehow these standards have made people think that everything they are doing needs to be thrown out along with the bathwater!
Thanks for this!
Tomasen

Comment on SARAH’S RESPONSE by Amy Brook Snider

Amy Brook Snider — Sun, 05 May 2013 17:06:06 +0000

Dear Sarah:
I was extremely moved when I read Renee’s first posting about your reaction to your student’s sadness and stress. Imagine my surprise when I read your recent letter ascribing the cause of the problem to the inadequacy of teacher training. That has been my work for the past 30 plus years and while I can’t vouch for all the college preparatory programs in our country I also do not stand behind all the art teachers K-HS either.
What good does it do to cast blame upon each other?
Yes, there are weaknesses in the entire system of public education and the colleges and universities that prepare our teachers. But how we and the government address those weaknesses is the real question that you should be asking.
Best,
Amy Brook Snider, Professor
Art and Design Education, Pratt Institute

Comment on SARAH’S RESPONSE by Pam

Pam — Sun, 05 May 2013 12:25:52 +0000

Here’s my thoughts – It’s not just happening in the field of teaching but rather for many other jobs you could think of. I am from Singapore and although education is said to be “great” here it is sadly of no difference from what was being described as college education by Sarah. Everything is about standards, grades, results and more results. Nothing is practical, really. That is basically the frustration we often faced when we try to apply what we have learnt to an actual situation. They focus on teaching you what it will be in an “ideal” situation (which only happens once in a million years) and worst still they test and assess you based on those ideal situation. Theory states that we should be promoting divergent thinking, but are we being educated that way? Well, that’s the sad truth.

Comment on Common Sense by Judy

Judy — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 14:16:22 +0000

I was moved in particular by Bill’s comment regarding the joy of learning. I currently teach 10th graders with emotional disturbance and behavior disorders. They have not experienced much of the joy of learning in a typical day. These students frequently began being identified as troubled students in the very early grades. I have no doubt that this was due to the frustration they experienced with the way in which they were being taught. We often talk about this being a “which came first, the chicken or the egg?” situation in determining whether behavior problems brought about learning difficulties or if learning difficulties brought about behavior problems. It really is not important to determine which came first. If the Common Core as prescribed continues to drive teaching, we will see more “troubled students” in the future. Early childhood is definitely a crucial place to address this. Thanks for your efforts and good luck with your continued work.

Judy

Comment on Common Sense by Renee

Renee — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 01:21:40 +0000

Hello Melissa
I’m going to see Bill tomorrow evening and I’ll ask him about this. I know that when we put everything together, then this will have footnotes. We’re just all in a very preliminary stage of writing. I will, however, ask him if he can enter some of his sites on the blog.

Thank you for writing!
Renee

Comment on Common Sense by Melissa

Melissa — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 23:05:57 +0000

I think this is great and really enjoyed reading this post! Is there any way I could get a list of the references that Bill used for Common Sense and Common Core? Thanks!

Comment on Common Sense by Joanne Piazzi

Joanne Piazzi — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 11:51:47 +0000

This is excellent work! I so hope that they hear you. We need a whole lot more common sense in education, and many fewer talking heads destroying teachers and kids.

Comment on TEARS! by Renee

Renee — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 01:12:22 +0000

Paulette
That is such a sad story and I’m truly distressed to hear of the teacher’s treatment towards the child. I must say that in the ten years that I’ve been working as a literacy consultant, I’ve had the opportunity to visit many public schools in New York City. It’s very rare for me to hear or see a teacher mistreating a child. I do, however, think that the instructional demands on young children are a form of mistreatment, but that’s more the fault of the Department of Education. I also feel like the recent standardized tests that NYC children have been forced to take for three days last week and three days this week straddle child-abuse quite closely.

Perhaps, if you can deal with it, you should try to stay with your tutoring work. It sounds like the children really do need you!

Best wishes,
Renee

Comment on TEARS! by Paulette Vee

Paulette Vee — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 16:07:03 +0000

As I sit here and reply to ‘Tears’, my heart weeps and my hands shake. It is tough for me to type, but my small experience should be known. In the recent past, I was a Title 1 Tutor at a good, but data-driven school. I had the pleasure to work with three young boys in the second grade who were reading at a kindergarten grade level. Sadly, because second grade is not a “critical test year”, I was only allotted 15 minutes per day to meet with these boys. Our work with sight words naturally turned into a game, where the boys would compete against one another to see who could recite the word quickest. (Looking back, this was a big mistake on my part. It was not part of the plan, but just happened. I should have re-directed the boys.) One of my students, who is known to be highly distracted and sensitive started to cry and buried his head because he could not keep up with the other two boys. He, peacefully, stopped participating so I let him be. I did coach him a little and provided some “opportunities” to see the words ahead of his peers. Again, this was probably not a bright idea on my part either. It was a tough situation, and since we only get 15 minutes to work together, there was not much time for me to act! …. Fast forward, as we were leaving the media center to head back to the boys’ classrooms, another teacher (not the teacher to these boys) saw my “sensitive” student wiggling around a lot and not following my direction to walk quietly in the hallway. Before I knew what was happening, this teacher proceeded to yell at my student. I gently turned to this teacher and whispered how my student had just been crying, and that it is ok. (In other words, lay off him please!) Rather than respecting my wishes, in her stern “I’m a new teacher who thinks I know it all” voice, she said, “Well, he is a 2nd grader and shouldn’t cry!” … Without thinking, I yelled at this teacher in defense of my student. It was really more of a motherly instinct that came out of me, in defense of this child. I was horrified that this teacher could not recognize the very human need we ALL have, regardless of our age, to express our emotions. … This is one of the last experiences I had as an Educator. I will never forget it; It is one of many bad experiences that has led to my decision to leave the profession. This is typical of the treatment of our students in Georgia’s public schools.