Thursday, December 19, 2013

25 (more) thoughts on teaching and learning...

1). The relationships among the adults in your school have a significant impact on student learning & student achievement.

2). Educators are responsible for their own professional development. You can't & shouldn't rely on someone else for YOUR growth.

3). The simple idea that somebody encourages and believes in you can be hugely empowering. Be that somebody today.

4). A teacher not being attentive to the emotional status of the students in class is approaching educational malpractice.

5). Use your professional educator language with your students; in time, they will too...be a vocal & visible advocate for teaching.

6). When the butt goes numb the brain goes dumb... get your students up and moving in your class!

7). We need to stop giving our new and less experienced educators our most at-risk & challenging students; these kids need our veterans.

8). You need to have intentionality with everything you do; plan with purpose & act with confidence. Avoid reacting out of necessity.

9). The purpose of education is so that younger generations surpass us rather than match us.

10). Our future depends on the individuals who break from the conventional practices.

11). During your plan period, take a few moments to visit other classes where your students are; see them learn in a different setting.

12). When did it become unacceptable to say 'I don't know' and 'I'm not sure.' If we want to prepare kids for life, these statements are normal.

13). If you have to yell & be obnoxiously loud in your class to keep your students awake, maybe you should change the things you are saying first.

14). Every kid needs that one adult in the building who connects with them... are you that one adult for at least one kid?

15). When we refuse to accept an assignment late and give a zero instead, we undermine our content and say it has no value.

16). Your classroom walls are merely a suggestion, not a limitation on learning.

17). Whoever does the editing does the learning... stop giving students the answers and let them own the learning process.

18). In class, make students use the names of other students & do lots of peer critiquing; good things happen when kids know each other.

19). When teachers only teach how they learn best, they are forgetting about how their students learn best.

20). Schools should not be a constant reminder of student deficits; we need to allow students to taste & experience success.

21). If a kid never does any of the work you assign but does wonderfully well on your assessments, then it's time to evaluate the work you assign.

22). Just because something is mathematically easy to calculate doesn't mean it's pedagogically correct.

23). Grades are communication... not compensation.

24). As educators we need to let students go beyond our level of comfort... just because we don't know, doesn't mean students can't.

25). Homework is practice of what has already been learned, not for learning content for the very first time.

Also, feel free to check out the first 20 thoughts on teaching and learning via Rick Wormeli.

I want to give credit to Rick Wormeli (@rickwormeli) for these thoughts and comments above. I was fortunate to attend a recent event in which he engaged the entire audience and shared many thought-provoking comments. If you ever get the opportunity to see Rick Wormeli, I highly recommend doing so.