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I have come to a frightening conclusion.
I am the decisive element in the classroom.
It is my personal approach that creates the climate.
It is my daily mood that makes the weather.
As a teacher I possess a tremendous power to make a child’s life miserable or joyous.
I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration.
I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal.
In all situations it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated, and a child humanized or dehumanized.

–Haim Ginott

Yes, teachers possess a tremendous power to make students’  lives miserable or joyous.  Teachers are a decisive element in the classroom in many ways. Ginott focuses on the effect a teacher can have on the emotional well being of students.  But, teachers can affect more than students’ emotional well being.   A recent study found teachers are a decisive factor in students’ potential lifetime earnings .

Researchers Raj Chetty and John N. Friedman of Harvard University and Jonah E. Rockoff of Columbia University  have concluded poor teachers significantly reduce students’  life time earnings. Replacing poor teachers with average teachers  can boost a single classroom’s life time earnings by approximately $266, 000.  A poor teacher teaching for ten years can reduce the  life time earnings of his or her classes by approximately $2.5 million. I find that statistic remarkable.

You can access Chetty, Friedman, and Rockoff ‘s paper ” The Long-Term Impacts of Teachers : Teacher Value-Added and Student Outcomes in Adulthood”  here.

Poor teachers dramatically reduce students’ life-time earnings originally appeared on Teachers At Risk on February 1, 2012.

I’ve been recognized as somewhat of an authority on teaching academically at-risk kids. I’ve had a couple of articles from my blog published in a teachers preservice text. ASCD reviewed my blog as a blog worth reading. I’ve had boards of education ask me if they could use my articles in teacher workshops. I’ve facilitated workshops for teachers based on articles I’ve written. I’ve been interviewed on radio by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in syndication and I’ve been quoted in newspaper articles based on articles from my blog.

I started to and continue to write Teachers at Risk because I want to share what I’ve learned about teaching academically at-risk high school students for over 25 years and to provide a form for discussion about current topics in education. I’m pleased to say a vibrant learning community has developed around the articles and discussions in Teachers at Risk. In the past year, Teachers at Risk has had almost 200 000 visitors from over 100 countries. Who would have thought a blog about teaching academically at-risk kids  would generate that much interest. It’s so exciting.

I’d like to ask a favour of readers as I compile articles for my ebook The Best of Teachers at Risk. I’d appreciate your feedback to help me craft the most useful  ebook I can from the almost 500 articles I’ve written.  I’d like to know what topics and resources you’d be interested in seeing in the Best of Teachers at Risk. I’m really excited about doing this. I think I’m even going to get an artist to create a snazzy cover for The Best of Teachers at Risk.

Oh yes, I’d also like to know how much to charge for the ebook. I have no idea. I’m an educator and not a business person. How much would you be willing to pay for The Best of Teachers at Risk- $5, $10, $?. Would you like the option of getting The Best of Teachers at Risk in regular book  form as well? All is possible.

I value your input. Thank you so much.

Advice for ebook initiative- The Best of Teachers at Risk originally appeared on Teachers At Risk on January 18, 2012.

I’m going to limit the resolutions to just three because I’m not all that ambitious today.  It is New Year’s Eve after all. Besides, no one wants to be overwhelmed with next steps- at least that’s what my students tell me.

Since I’m not a 21^st century principal,  I thought I’d better do a bit of research to see what 21^st century  school leaders believe the essential traits of successful school leaders are. Of course as a teacher I have my own ideas (actually, lots of ideas) , but I don’t want my ideas  to prejudice what I say here so I think it best if I go to the horse’s mouth and ask 21st century school leaders what they consider to be the essential characteristics of  successful 21st century school leaders.

Education World has gone to the horses mouth.  It surveyed principals regarding what they considered to be the most important leadership traits for 21st century school leaders.  The principals in the survey maintained  the three most important characteristics for 21st century school leaders are having

• Vision and a Plan;
• Credibility and  trust;
• Visibility, communication  and walk-around management.

Let me quote:

Vision

If you don’t know where you are going, it makes no difference what path you take,” said Helene Dykes, principal at Marian Bergeson Elementary School, in Laguna Niguel, California. “Without a clear vision, you have no way to prioritize what is most essential. A clear vision allows you to focus energy on the most important things to do.”

Credibility

“If credibility and trust are not established, nothing the principal sets out to do can be achieved,” added principal Betty Luckett, of Oakes Elementary School, in Okemah, Oklahoma. “As a principal, trust and credibility are the foundation for my goals and objectives. It is also the fuel for my vision.”

Visibility

“An effective administrator must be visible,” said John Grady, principal at Fairgrounds Junior High School, in Nashua, New Hampshire. “Students, staff, and parents need to see the administrator in the classrooms, in the corridors, at lunches, at bus duty, and at extracurricular activities. If this is accomplished, the administrator will know his or her constituents, be aware of what is taking place in the building, and send the message to all that he or she is concerned.”

“High visibility is also a natural expression of interest and concern,” argued principal Marie Kostick.

 

Given what the principals in the Education World survey told me regarding the most important characteristics of successful  21st century school leaders,  I suggest  a 21^st century principal  make the following resolutions.

1. In the coming year, I shall have a vision for the school that I shall  share with all teachers, parents and students.

2. In the coming year, I shall set the standard by telling the truth and being up- front  with all  teachers, parents and students .

3. In the coming year, I shall get out of my office and be seen all over the school and make it a point to engage in two way communication with all teachers, parents and students.

OK,  if you are a 21st century school leader and has

• a vision and a plan that you share with all teachers, parents, and students;
• established credibility and trust with all teachers, parents and students;
• made yourself visible to all in and out of classrooms and engage in authentic two-way conversations

congratulations.  Your resolution can be to continue to

• have a vision for the school that I shall  share with all teachers, parents and students;
• set the standard by telling the truth and being up- front  with all  teachers, parents and students
• get out of your  office and be seen all over the school and make it a point to engage in two way communication with all teachers, parents and students.

I’ve just thought of a New Year’s a resolution for 21st century school leaders based on a trait not mentioned in the Education World survey of characteristics of  successful 21st century school leaders:

In the coming year, I shall  walk  several miles  in a classroom teacher’s shoes.

Resource

Education World

A teacher’s New Year’s resolutions for 21st century school principals originally appeared on Teachers At Risk on December 31, 2011.

Today while surfing the net,  I found a list of things that I want to adopt as personal goals for the coming year. I’m  cool with the fact Anonymous  created the list. I don’t have a compelling need to create my own list given this one is perfect!

 

A few friends who understand me and remain my friends;

A work to do which has real value,

without which the world would be the poorer;

An understanding heart;

A sense of humor;

Time for quiet, silent meditation;

The patience to wait for the coming of these things,

With the wisdom to recognize them when they come (anonymous).

Notice these goals do not include the goals of reducing the time it takes me to return students’ work, or creating  more meaningful report card comments or even going for a walk at lunch time at least three times a week. No my resolutions this year are more spiritual ones.

I’d be delighted if you’d share some of your new year’s resolutions. Is there something else I could add to  my list of resolutions to help me improve myself or my life circumstances?  There’s still time. Even though the due date for new year’s resolutions is usually January 1st,   Policy 14 will  allow resolutions to be submitted after this date. I think the absolute deadline for new years resolutions for 2012 would be December 31, 2012- of course, there are always exceptions. We could recover the resolutions in January 2013 <sarcasm>.

Happy New Year.

My new year’s resolutions originally appeared on Teachers At Risk on December 30, 2011.

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Stress is contagious. We have come to understand the effects of second-hand smoke, and now we are beginning to understand the effects of second-hand stress.

When students come to school  anxious, frazzled, or tense, stressed if you will, teachers pick up subconscious signals from students’  facial expressions, gestures, or even students’ nervous sweat. These subconscious signals can elevate teachers’  levels of stress.

The subconscious signals teachers’ pick up affect the autonomic nervous system, the very primitive part of the brain. The autonomic nervous system

houses mirror neurons, which are brain cells with the unique ability to map the actions of others onto our pathway of motor nerves. Mirror neurons fire automatically when an action is carried out, but also when the same action is observed (emphasis added). If you watch someone furrow their brow, the neurons required to furrow our own brow activate, although your facial expression does not change” (emphasis added).

Teachers simply observing students’  negative responses to stress, negative moods or   negative mental states  can result in a subconscious transfer of the stress, the negative moods or the  negative mental states from students to teachers.  In short, students’ second-hand stress caused by negative moods and negative mental states can transfer to teachers to negatively affect teachers.

This theory of second-hand stress  helps me make sense of my own recent  experience in the classroom and why I ended up on medical leave for significant stress. I didn’t realize that just observing students who were experiencing stress, negative moods, or negative mental states could make me experience their stress, negative moods or negative mental states as if it were my own.  But,  it makes sense when I think about how I felt  with .  I felt more and more stressed when my students came to class stressed, in negative moods and in negative mental states and not prepared to  take responsibility for their own learning or be respectful of one another or me.   I just kept wondering why I felt so stressed when I loved teaching and loved working with teenagers.  It was all very confusing.

Most of my students are academically at risk for one reason or another. Some of my students hate school for any number of reasons, usually boredom, but they still have to attend school until they are 18, so they come to school with a negative attitude.  Other students have very stressful relationships with parents and other adults in their lives and come to school in a negative mental state.   When I see the negative expressions and negative body language of  students in class, in the hallways, and in the cafeteria, my mirror neurons fire automatically to create and transfer the students stress, their negative moods and their negative mental states to me so I mirror their emotional and mental state.

So knowing about the dangers of second-hand stress, what are we going to do about it so teachers don’t end up burning-out?

Resource

Galea, M. (December 2011). Second-hand stress. Alive, Canada’s  Natural Health and Wellness Magazine, 39-41.

Students’ second-hand stress is contagious and can transfer to teachers originally appeared on Teachers At Risk on December 17, 2011.

I’ve been teaching high school students almost thirty years and still love teaching. I’ve chosen to teach high school students who are at-risk academically for most of my career because I felt I could make the most difference teaching academically at-risk students. When my students ask me from time to time, why I teach high school instead of university, I always tell them I teach high school because I love teaching teenagers. So what happened? Why did I crash and burn that Tuesday after school?

Why did I crash and burn? I think the following contributed to my burnout:

• students’ disruptive behaviour in class;
• students’ verbal abuse and threats of cyberbullying;
• students’ considerable, constant emotional demands;
• students’ special  needs and the expectation  to differentiate teaching and assessing and evaluating students’ work;
• heterogeneity in abilities of my students;
• conflicting demands made by my students, parents, and administration;
• ever increasing  paper work, reports, and report card comments ;
• new discipline policy for students regarding lates, incomplete or unsubmitted assignments that some students think the new policies absolve  them of the responsibility they have for their own learning.

Now, of course I know I also contributed to my burnout.  I’m just a teeny weeny bit type A personality.  I worked hard to do my best and  try to motivate my students to do their best, but despite my best efforts I couldn’t motivate many of my students to take more responsibility for their own learning. In desperation, I tried to ignore these troublesome, troubles and troubling students, but I couldn’t.  I felt it my job to get them to do their best, and I wouldn’t be doing my job if I ignored them. When I called home for support,  many of the parents were not surprised by their  kid’s behaviours and tried to be supportive but most said they didn’t know what to do. Sometimes when I called parents, some parents  didn’t return  any of my phone calls. I learned to call cellphones and not leave a message at home because the kids would just erase my message  before their parents got a chance to hear the message.

Anthony (not his real name) , one of my students,  skipped almost a third of my classes, repeatedly came late to class, and didn’t submit most of his work.  When I talked to Anthony about all this, he asked  “What is your problem?”. My problem I thought?

Another one of my students, Darren (not his real name) told me repeatedly he hated my classes and that I wasn’t any fun. I was giving the class too much work. I should be more like his teacher last year and let the class  watch movies on Fridays- in a math class?

Tom (not his real name) another student in my class had a hair trigger temper and would throw things around class.  Students were afraid of him; I was afraid of him. You just never knew what would set him off. He asked me one day as he came into  the classroom, what I would do if he refused to go to the office when I asked him to go to the office.   I told him I wasn’t even going to consider that question because I didn’t expect to have ask him to go  to the office.  I really try hard to start each day with a fresh slate. So, what happened yesterday does not affect today. I don’t usually send students to the office.  I try to deal with any issues myself in class. But on rare occasions, I feel I have to send students to the office. Later in class that day, Tom  chose to behave inappropriately, and  I asked him to go to the office. He refused. Two behaviour support teaching assistants came to escort him to the office , he wouldn’t go either. He refused despite everything. Then five minutes before class was over, he announced, “Now I am going”.  The learning environment was totally destroyed in that class and in future classes.   Students were either waiting to see what Tom was going to do and couldn’t focus on their  work, or after an incident  they were afraid and couldn’t focus on their work  or  they talked about the incident after it happened and couldn’t focus on school work.  I admit, I had a difficult time myself focusing.

Another student, I’ll call her Jenny, would skip classes, come late to class or sneak out of class when I was helping another student. One day I noticed Jenny was out of class and went into the hall to see if she was there.  I saw her and told her to come back to class.  Jenny just laughed and ran down the hall laughing more loudly as she opened the door and ran down stairs. I called home and left a message on her parent’s cell phone , but never heard back from the parent.

Other students have come to class high on some substance or another and have destroyed the learning environment as I dealt with the situation.

These are just some of the things that happened this semester in class. I don’t want to discuss any more hings that happened in class  because I find it too upsetting.

I’m just thinking  how much teaching has changed over the  years. I’m surprised I still like teaching, but right now I can’t even think about teaching.  That’s so sad.  I’ve been teaching for so many years and have loved it.  I’m a life long learner myself and keep on top of things by doing my own research on how to improve my teaching practice. I’ve had students who were at-risk academically and have graduated from high school come back and tell me how much  I  helped them while they were in school. I’ve even had students who didn’t graduate from high school tell me how much they appreciated what I tried to do for them.  And, now all I can do is cry when I think about it all.

I can’t believe after all these years of loving to teach I’ve crashed and burned and can’t do it anymore originally appeared on Teachers At Risk on December 8, 2011.

What to do? I thought the learning strategies class would the needs of students who are academically at risk  because it would teach them strategies that would make organizing, test taking, essay writing, reading and the other 3 r’s easier and then they could do their best. That doesn’t seem to be happening for many students. Why? Many students aren’t interested in the 3 r’s the school system wants them to learn. We need to change things for students  to make their school experience more meaningful to them. How?

I think the Strategic Actions and Innovations for Learning (SAIL) program might begin to meet the needs of many of the disengaged students I see. The program was initially designed for lower functioning special needs students but I see it working for students who have average intelligence but are disengaged from school. The SAIL program challenges kids in two ways- academically and professionally. Students are part of an intership that places them into different positions in school, local business and other spots in the community. I see it like similar to our existing co-op program but beginning in grade 9.

The SAIL program fosters a sense of higher achievement in the classroom using strategies similar to the ones I teach in the learning strategies class but the program also fosters a greater sense of community outside the classroom. I like the internship part linked to the academic part. Kids can work in the community and see the need to master the 3 r’s as well as other work habits. I think that when kids see they really do need to know certain things and need to have specific work habits, they will be more open to learning

It would be interesting to see some data on how the SAIL program works. Does anyone know more about the SAIL program? I hope it works as well in practice as it does in theory. The student success programs I’ve seen work better in theory than in practice.

Challenging academically at-risk high school students academically and professionally. originally appeared on Teachers At Risk on October 23, 2011.

• sent a message to a female student telling her how he dreamt of preforming oral sex on her;
• invited four female students to his room and they cuddled on his bed while on a field trip to England :
• invited a  female student to come over to “spoon”or cuddle  while his wife was away.

received a 30 day unpaid suspension from the Toronto District School Board and a transfer to Toronto’s Adult Education Centre while the Ontario College of Teachers completed its investigation.  The OCT suspended the teacher for 12 months and then advised him if he took a “boundary violation” course he could go back into the classroom.  Presumably, the teacher did take the “boundary violation course” because the OCT now says he is a member in “good standing” and can teach again. The Star could not determine if and where the teacher is teaching now.

I must confess, I don’t have much forgiveness in my heart when it comes to teachers who take advantage of their students in this way. Especially, when a teacher does it repeatedly.  I want to ask questions like

• Where is the teacher’s common sense?
• Why was the teacher hired in the first place?
• Where is the mutual respect teachers and students ought to have for one another?
• How can we be sure the violations don’t happen?

Donovan also tells us that the criminal back ground check that all teachers have to have  isn’t worth much.  In fact, these criminal background checks can give a false sense of security. He notes that all but one of the teachers who sexually assaulted, abused or exploited young students over the last ten years had clean records before they were convicted.  Sometimes teachers will give false information in order to hide a criminal record. Some of these teachers go on to  conduct themselves inappropriately and not respect  teacher/student boundaries. Even  Michael Salvatori , OCT’s registrar, maintains that relying on a criminal background check of teachers  isn’t enough to ensure that individuals are of good character.

What more can we do to make sure individuals are suitable to be teachers? In a report dated 2000, retired Judge Sydney L. Robins suggested that each school board needs to do a complete background check on individuals.  This background check needs to include a detailed interview with a  teacher before hiring.  What do you think the system should do to protect students from the criminal  actions of teachers?

You can read more on this topic here and  here at the Toronto Star.  I’d like to thank Kevin Donovan and the Toronto Star for making us aware of the deplorable situation.   Things need to change.

Update:
Canadians for Accountability Blog has taken the OCT to task for it’s lack of transparency. I encourage you to read the article. I wasn’t aware of the issues involved. The grassroots needs to get involved here. I’m going to ask how I can help bring about the requisite transparency.

Photo of stop sign thanks to doublegrande

Ontario College of Teachers and school boards need to do more to protect students from teachers’ criminal behaviour originally appeared on Teachers At Risk on October 2, 2011.