I cannot count the number of times I have heard “now is the time to reimagine education!” in the last six months. While the majority of people who voice this sentiment are referring to better delivery of online instruction or disrupting our current teaching practices, I think we are missing the crux of our problems […]
COVID
Smile for the Camera: Adjusting to the New “Normal” in a COVID-19 Classroom
This year, teaching is lonely. Like many other districts across the country, we are teaching and learning online for the foreseeable future. I desperately want to be back in person with my students, but our national leadership is more concerned with political gain than American life. Wearing a mask is a political statement, cases aren’t […]
Poker and Passion: An Education to Live For
“So, floating and bluffing are pretty much the same thing.” My ears perked up in surprise that my wife was eavesdropping on world-renown poker player, Phil Ivey. She continued, “You float to bluff and bluff to float. Isn’t he talking in circles?” Although dumbfounded that my wife was listening while I watched Phil Ivey’s MasterClass, […]
It’s A Done Deal… I Quit My Teaching Job Two Weeks Before School Started
Well – it’s a done deal. Two weeks before the school year began I turned in my resignation to my school district after agonizing all summer awaiting news on how or what our protocols would be in reopening the schools this Fall. I heard the news; I presented my letter. In my head, I had […]
Betsy Devos Need to Spend More Time In Real Schools with Real Teachers
Secretary of Education Betsy Devos needs to know more about real schools and real teachers. Hell, just real people would be good. In calling for enforcement of standardized testing policies in public schools, during a public health crisis, she once again reveals a lack of connection to the lived reality of the victims of […]
Here’s To Our First Year As Teachers During COVID-19
Guest Writer: Callie LaBarbera On Friday at 11:30 a.m. I stared at my cellphone willing the alert that our Governor was live to pop up on my screen. In NYS, I was not alone in doing this. Parents and teachers alike sat with bated breath waiting to hear if the Governor would give us the […]
Teaching In A Mask: Preparing for Fall 2020
I’ve been thinking about wearing a mask lately. With that, I’ve been thinking about back to school. It’s that time of year for teachers when we’re all thinking even more about the upcoming school year. Rereading our curriculum, getting our classrooms ready…it’s very exciting. But this year, things are different. School districts have begun to […]
Children Left Behind: Virtual Learning Isn’t the Culprit
Every day there is news about a district extending their remote learning, a company keeping their workers at home for another few months, and more calls for life to start going back to normal despite the bleak situation we find ourselves in. It is understandable to miss “normal” – going shopping could hardly be considered […]