I read the news regularly and work diligently at having a solid give-and-take, reciprocal relationship with my students, but these 9 growing gaps in education have been quite a learning lesson for me. Our atypical 2020 school year (with hybrid/online learning and mask-wearing) has most certainly highlighted in ways I cannot ignore. 1. THE HAVE […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Opinion: Why Are You Worried About Socialism In My Class? What about Fascism?
By Thomas Courtney Donald Trump Jr. believes I’m poisoning my students’ minds with far-left radical ideals. In fact, he’s called my colleagues and I losers as if we purvey socialism like vodka, deodorant, and steaks. I even think a few of my more conservative relatives have their suspicions of me working as a deep state […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
I’m a Teacher and I’m Counting down the Days until my School Shuts Down
I want to start this article with a confession: I’m counting down the days till when my school finally shuts down. No seriously, every morning as I sit at my desk in my classroom, I immediately check off another day on my calendar signifying another day that has passed in which I’ve physically been teaching […]
Posted inTeacher Self Care
Don’t Read the Comments: Digital Teacher Self Care
Everyone knows you don’t read the comments on Twitter. An adorable video of a dog skateboarding can instantly turn sour when unleashed on the internet. Facebook lets users publish a staggering amount of misinformation, which is especially frightening in a contentious election season. And every teacher knows that, like Yelp reviews, students only evaluate in […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Teachers Must Be Better Leaders! Less Planning and More Testing!
It’s three weeks into virtual teaching, and I’m already tired of the first unit on Economic Theory. Being a few days behind coupled with the fact that the next unit on Personal Finance is far more exciting and interesting, I’m just going to give the unit 1 test on Economic Theory this week. In the […]
Posted inOpinion
In Defense of Not Always Being Engaging: A Teacher’s Perspective
Teachers are constantly told today to “be engaging!” That incredibly vague buzzword is laced with pressure and expectations that many teachers find overwhelming. We are shown videos of the perfect teacher giving the perfect lesson – you know the type: there’s an expressive and passionate overdressed educator floating around the room, the kids are wide-eyed […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Opinion: The Self-Indulgence of Blaming Others…Even in Education
You can tell a great deal about a person by listening to—or, in our era of online posting, reading—their thoughts about who is to blame for troubles in the world. We all have troubles to process, after all, both real and perceived, and the temptation to find a scapegoat for every imperfection we see is […]
Posted inSocial Justice
Principals: Check on Your Black Staff. We Are Not Ok.
September 23, 2020. This date remains etched in the minds of the Black community. This is the date that the killers of Breonna Taylor were not charged for murdering her in her home. Eerily, September 23, 1955, is also the day Emmitt Till’s murderers were acquitted of his torturous death. As I walked into my […]