Knowledge and Education 4/16/10 Revision

4/16/10

"...the professional never quite takes any problem as seriously as does the amateur. He has had [problems] before, and he will have them again."

http://www.pacifier.com/~mmead/cs162/professional.html


"The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet."

Aristotle

4/8/10

Gaining Ground in the
Middle Grades: Why
Some Schools Do Better

http://educatedguess.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/EdSource-middleschools022010.pdf


4/6/10

"One good schoolmaster is worth more than a hundred priests". Thomas Paine

"It is the duty of every cultured man or woman to read sympathetically the scriptures of the world. If we are to respect others' religions as we would have them respect our own, a friendly study of the world's religions is a sacred duty." -Mohandas K. Gandhi

3/21/10

At Compton school, teen tutors and adult students learn from each other
As part of a Compton Adult School tutoring program, adults trying to pass the California High School Exit Examination get an assist from Palos Verdes High students.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-exit-exam22-2010mar22,0,5838436.story?track=rss

3/3/10

I've discovered from the inside that teachers are given very little guidance on how to run their classrooms. In addition, the traditional method of teaching - assign reading, lecture, worksheet - is pretty ineffective.

Knowledge is very effectively modelled as a construction project (EDIT - thus the educational jargon "to scaffold instruction" ). Everything new is attached to something that was there before (which is why Standard American English only concepts cripple kids from other cultural backgrounds - you can't put the exact same building on vastly different terrain, but you can put a functioning house anywhere - just not the exact same house - but it's still just as good of a house). All new knowledge is "constructed" by the learner, not "placed into the container" by the teacher.

If I were going to teach Spanish, I'd do it by teaching one word at a time, choosing words that made sense to the students. For the black inner city kids I was working with, I might start by teaching them colors:

"Rojo" sounds like a rose a little bit - red.
"Blanco" sounds like something is "blank" - white.
"Negro" of course would be one word they'd never forget for cultural reasons.

Now they're personally invested.

Now use guided imagery -

A yellow armadillo for "amarillo".
A zoo full of blue animals for "azul".

Etc.

Then whenever a color is mentioned, they have to use the Spanish one for the rest of the semester.

Etc.

(First posted here:

http://www.playtheimmortalgame.com/board/showthread.php?threadid=127663&page=3)

3/20/10 - Secondary school classes are as a standard rule just under one hour long, though some schools have two hour classes which are equivalent to two one hour classes. The teacher needs to put time in preparation for each lesson. This includes preparing handouts and worksheets, photocopying enough of them for everyone, preparing whiteboard notes/powerpoints/transparencies/etc., detailed lesson plans (at least at first) and especially for science teachers plenty of supplies for demos, labs etc. In addition assignments need to be graded. There is a LOT of paper shuffling and organizing. Paperwork should be designed or chosen for ease of grading as well as effectiveness. Having students write is very important.

These hour lessons are generally broken up into 15 minute chunks. In the first, students generally start with some quiet work the teacher has prepared as attendance is taken (5 minutes). Then the teacher begins the "Into" part of the lesson to "hook" the students in. The second and third 15 minute chunks should be two activities, as students typically lose focus after 15 minutes (I think). This is known as the "Through" part. The last part is the "Beyond" part, in which the lesson is driven home and expanded on.

Time must be allotted to clean up and dismissal. 5 minutes is appropriate for this.

Clear rules with clear consequences seem like the best idea. Arbritrariness in discipline is a big no-no.

Whether homework is a good idea or not is uncertain. I have heard of studies that support both sides of the issue. However it is expected and a teacher who does not give homework will stand out and probably challenged in this decision.

ABC is a good acronym to assist in planning science lessons. It stands for Activity Before Concept. Trigger cognitive disequilibrium through the activity so they will be receptive to the Concept.

Teachers are professionals. We've all heard of different "classes" of society; upper, middle, lower. There are clear ways in which people communicate their class to others. Teachers are not allowed to be lower class even if that's what they are most familiar with (a little sign of the subtle advantages of being of middle or upper class from childhood hmm?). They are expected to dress and act like middle class professionals.

This means correct Standard American English with minimal or no slang. Professional clothes; for women, a professional suit or dress, not too sexually provocative;

INSERTED 6/6/10: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/06/04/2010-06-04_she_distracted_me_whenever_i_came_into_the_bank_says_male_fan.html

for men, dress shoes, dress socks, khakis or other slacks, a white T-shirt underneath a long sleeved button down collared shirt. A tie is a good idea. The professional is clean shaven and clean in scent. Too much cologne or perfume is inappropriate because it's distracting for the students and coworkers (whether in a pleasant or unpleasant way; it doesn't matter; a professional educator is there to educate, not distract).

However the professional should be pleasant to be around and cheerful. People have to spend a lot of time together at work, and it should be pleasant; so the employees should make efforts to be pleasant to be around. Showing anger, insecurity, etc. is a big no-no, even when others are doing things you find offensive, irritating or unpleasantly aggressive. Such characteristics are accepted without complaint when coming from a superior, and quietly talked to with the person in question otherwise.

Professionals never put anything down (that is, insult or negatively criticize) unless they are required to as part of their profession, in which case they are clear and efficient with plenty of evidence for their criticism. Complaining and criticizing past or present employers or colleagues is a no-no.

Employers of professionals want a person who can do their job. It's kind of like a strategy game in which you, as a leader, are offered different minions/crew specialists/officers/heroes/commanders/etc with different capabilities, and you get to choose the ones with the best stats (with the others being sent back to the unemployment office). You need your professionals to be efficient at doing their profession so your organization can function more efficiently. They should not be unpleasant or "too pleasant" to be around.

Polo shirts are paraprofessional clothing for the most part; teacher assistants for example. Professionals wear dress shirts.

Professionals comparmentalize their lives. They are good as "fronting" - putting up a false front. It is expected. It is not deceptive, it is required. Other aspects of your life do not belong on the job and should be kept separate.