tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488Tue, 06 Mar 2018 20:50:02 +0000critical reflectionteachingeducation systemwork-life balanceequitycurrent eventpovertypoliticscareer movestravelguatemalastudentsassessmentsightsconferringcurriculumsustainabilitytechnologyliteracyNBPTracehomesteadingfood justicegenderprescribed curriculumbullyingdata-based instructionadolecentsclassroom managementcommon coregardeninglesson plansreadingstestifying to the truth of teaching and livinghttp://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)Blogger175125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-2041858882933461921Thu, 24 Mar 2016 00:36:00 +00002016-03-23T18:36:00.909-06:00career movescritical reflectioncurrent event When I saw this, I was immediately overjoyed. And then furious and sad and disempowered. Here we have someone saying something that jives with everything I believe about the sanctity of all human life, the most essential need that we all have: to be loved, and the importance of teaching staff being reflective of student demographics. It resonates with the hopes and dreams that I had as a http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2016/03/this-is-why-i-support-bernie-sanders.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-5703650174118703561Wed, 23 Mar 2016 15:41:00 +00002016-03-23T09:41:09.493-06:00current eventequityrace Well done, student artist! Art should spark conversation. And this piece sure has. #blacklivesmatter Obviously not all police officers are white supremacists, but the number of young black men shot by police is staggering. Something is wrong and needs to be fixed. Including the passive voice I just used. Police officers are shooting a staggering number of young black men. #denver # http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2016/03/denver-student-artists-piece-sparks.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-6804614550949082817Fri, 18 Mar 2016 00:03:00 +00002016-03-17T18:03:57.225-06:00current eventMerrick = Merrick County near my hometown. Garland = Judy Garland. Over the Rainbow, anyone? All joking aside, this video of his acceptance speech is touching. He seems very honored. And he has a record for being a centrist, and taking power away from Citizens United, one of the worst decisions in the history of the United States. I am tentatively hopeful! http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2016/03/i-think-i-like-merrick-garland.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-8852817412030525620Tue, 16 Feb 2016 01:14:00 +00002016-02-15T18:14:59.716-07:00equity This guy spent 41 years covering education. Here are some of his reflections. "Q) And your biggest fear? A) I worry that schools will remain isolated from the larger society and be expected to solve problems for which they are not equipped. We need to stop blathering about the “achievement gap” while isolating children by race and economics. Community schools and the like are http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2016/02/john-merrow-supports-community-schools.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-2785902202370008685Fri, 12 Feb 2016 00:43:00 +00002016-02-11T17:43:28.815-07:00career movesI am so happy. I didn't know if I would every be this happy. I certainly haven't gotten to see my parents ever be this happy in their own lives, personally nor professionally. And yet, I have attained a space in which I feel successful, loved, and purposeful. To what do I owe this amazing gift? Was it the grueling hours of my first few years teaching? Everything now seems like pudding. Is ithttp://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2016/02/what-leads-to-teacher-happiness.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-3079718538481260396Tue, 26 Jan 2016 00:49:00 +00002016-02-11T17:49:29.040-07:00equitywork-life balance"Our most needy students need our best teachers, yet our highest need schools have the least experienced teachers, the most turnover and are becoming burnout factories for those who remain. All the existing structural incentives for effective educators push them toward work in suburban schools, where they’ll be better supported and the workload is sustainable. Nobody wants to talk about this." http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2016/02/white-people-won-care-about.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-6457447362495869698Mon, 18 Jan 2016 13:56:00 +00002016-01-18T06:56:51.235-07:00career movescritical reflectioneducation systemequitypovertysustainabilityteachingwork-life balanceI finally have the space to organize past units while also teaching full time. What miracle is this? I remember so many times bringing home good intentions of organizing my crumpled stash of handouts into a coherent file that I could use again the following year. But those intentions died under the burden of the more pressing issues of planning for the next day, grading, calling parents about http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2016/01/getting-organized-conclusions.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-157198016225210579Mon, 11 Jan 2016 23:33:00 +00002016-01-23T16:34:28.674-07:00career movesteachingI started teaching full time again. I was grateful to find a job within a week of our relocation to this remote place. It is a teaching job, of course. My experience is teaching. Teachers are in demand. Supply and demand. I signed up for part time. It was perfect. In the mornings, I could teach. In the afternoons I could explore other careers via volunteerism. I really wanted to get into http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2016/01/teaching-full-time-again.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-3938730632709997621Sat, 14 Nov 2015 23:10:00 +00002016-01-23T16:23:41.471-07:00career movescritical reflectionteachingwork-life balanceI am ecstatic. What a hard-fought battle! The website tells me that I achieved certification. My heart cannot stop racing. I feel vindicated for all the time and money I have spent on this effort, time and money that could have been spent elsewhere. I am national board certified! Part of an elite crew. This title could help me get into an instructional coaching position. It could help me becomehttp://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/11/i-am-national-board-certified.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-871579871488586799Fri, 24 Jul 2015 02:51:00 +00002016-01-18T06:57:48.615-07:00classroom managementcritical reflectionNo-Nonsense Nurturing was the behavioral approach at the last public school at which I worked. I was there as a long-term part-time substitute teacher. No-Nonsense Nurturing was being utilized really well by a few select teachers. These teachers always made me nervous. In personal interactions they were warm and friendly. They were some of the most immediately friendly staff members. Now I wonderhttp://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/07/reflection-on-i-am-not-tom-brady.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-711809677461632572Thu, 21 May 2015 20:56:00 +00002015-05-21T14:56:39.251-06:00career movescritical reflectioneducation systemNBPTteachingI have put a lot of time and money into this #NBPTS effort. Today marks the end of an era. Over the last three years I have left a school at which I was seen as successful, birthed and began raising two babies, joined a new school from which I left angry and confused, took some time away from teaching, and joined yet another school as a technology teacher. It has been three years full of change. http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/05/test-finished.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-5027403761627199414Thu, 21 May 2015 11:24:00 +00002015-05-21T05:24:21.963-06:00critical reflectioneducation systemNBPTpovertyteachingwork-life balanceI am re-reading the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards for the English Language Arts (ELA) Adolescent Young Adult (AYA) certificate. Today I take two assessments to try to make up that 12-point difference and finally, year three, achieve certification. Reading the standards highlights my jaded-ness. "The accomplished teacher" is a phrase that starts sentence after sentence as thehttp://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-accomplished-teacher.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-721951345521620199Tue, 05 May 2015 21:17:00 +00002015-05-05T15:17:14.228-06:00equitytravelI enjoy this blog by someone living in the Dominican Republic. She has similar views to us in terms of human rights. She is very knowledgeable about the ways the Dominicanos are just and unjust, just as we Americans are just and unjust. Immigration debates rage in both countries. Here is a taste of one of her more artistic offerings. Money Laundering "...I am mindful that I have a national http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/05/offerings-from-another-dr-expat.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-6365873423152279021Tue, 21 Apr 2015 21:37:00 +00002015-04-21T15:37:04.775-06:00critical reflectionNBPTIn one month, I will have sealed the final fate on my National Board Certification gamble. I first applied for the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards Certification in my fourth year of teaching. I liked the idea of the ongoing professional learning. I liked the higher credential, and the possible higher earning potential. I liked the designation that showed that I was working hard http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/04/one-monthand-counting.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-7130936643720462123Mon, 16 Mar 2015 23:44:00 +00002016-02-11T17:45:10.608-07:00equityToday was a day that defied stereotypes. The most problemeatic kid was white, the child of a teacher. And the second most problematic chid was of privilege and of color. All the African American students followed directions, worked peacefully with others, and kept their voices low. It is good to notice and remember when the boxes that we have created are broke open. It is good to notice so thathttp://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/03/subbing-diaries-march-16.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-693214157110194535Sat, 14 Mar 2015 02:17:00 +00002016-02-11T17:19:31.302-07:00critical reflectionequity Subbing Diaries: March 13, 2015 I am sitting right now in a classroom in which a parent volunteer is leading an art class. This is how it works. Every Friday for the last hour of school, other people come in and teach classes like electives to the school’s students. Students mix up all over the school. It is a K-5 school in an affluent area. The parent volunteer has brought in her own art http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/03/subbing-diaries-parental-support.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-8402318977136842159Mon, 23 Feb 2015 03:24:00 +00002015-02-22T20:24:34.425-07:00equitystudentsCheck out this post about American's response to other countries' tragedies. http://lacuadramagazine.com/the-surly-bartender/the-surly-bartender-chickenshit-americans/http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/02/lifeboat-americans-via-another-blog.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-1886251174220821623Sun, 08 Feb 2015 11:21:00 +00002015-02-08T04:21:51.412-07:00critical reflectioncurrent eventcurriculumeducation systemI am thrilled by the idea of time banks. Soon, my excitement will meet reality. How could this be utilized in the classroom? My favorite things about this: everyone's time is counted equally every service that sustains families counts as an hour I can interact in my community with people whom I might not otherwise know, while having small children http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/02/time-banks-great-for-life-and-maybe-in.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-1808214475829763146Fri, 16 Jan 2015 20:37:00 +00002015-01-16T13:37:22.996-07:00assessmentcommon corepoliticsI love this open letter to Obama because it delineates between the testing associated with the Common Core and the standards themselves. Parent to Obama: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2014/04/23/parent-to-obama-let-me-tell-you-about-the-common-core-test-malia-and-sasha-dont-have-to-take-but-eva-does/ Additionally, it addresses the issue that high power decision makers http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/01/testing-can-be-bad-common-core-is-not.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-5643404137933043373Wed, 14 Jan 2015 20:40:00 +00002015-01-14T13:40:13.735-07:00assessmentcareer movesThere is a lot to remember from grade school! Here are all the resources I have found thus far in relation to the content standards with which I, individually, was having a hard time remembering. Elementary Studying READING <!--[if !supportLists]-->1. <!--[endif]-->Understands the role of phonological awareness in literacy development – (http://www.readingrockets.org/helping/target/http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2015/01/studying-for-elementary-praxis-content.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-6635809261643955181Fri, 14 Nov 2014 23:13:00 +00002014-11-14T16:23:46.756-07:00politicsteaching"In the latest Gallup poll, 75 percent of American parents said they were satisfied with the quality of education their child was receiving in public schools. However, the latest Gallup pollshowed that only 14 percent of Americans approve of the way Congress is handling its job. Have you done a cover calling Congress Rotten Apples? Why no, you have not. " From Washington Post article excerpting http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2014/11/thank-you-nancy-f-chewning.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-7764406735956243851Sat, 01 Nov 2014 03:29:00 +00002016-02-11T17:26:29.204-07:00career movescritical reflectioncurrent eventequitywork-life balanceI resigned from my teaching post and my last day was March 25, 2014. I have since secured a non-teaching job. I am utterly grateful that everything has seemed to work out so well for me during this transition. I am also filled with angst about my changing identity and the reasons that I felt that I needed to and was actually able to leave teaching. Reasons I Left: Poor Fit While my new schoolhttp://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2014/06/i-resigned-trying-to-not-feel-guilty.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-6564765641814285309Sun, 26 Oct 2014 01:29:00 +00002014-10-25T19:29:51.285-06:00equitypovertyFor the regular folks like us out there, I think this means that we support neighborhood schools through volunteerism, donations, and opting into neighborhood schools instead of out. I think this means we use the privileges we have to mitigate the inequities that our neighbors face day in and day out. For schools, I think this means an entirely new way of thinking about school, grouping kids, http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2014/10/poverty-matters-harvard-says-so.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-5349197685002932549Tue, 09 Sep 2014 02:04:00 +00002014-09-08T20:04:10.274-06:00equityConcise and well said: "Bill Kurtz is CEO of DSST, a network of Denver charter schools focusing on science and technology. (Kathryn Scott Osler, Denver Post file)" "Re: “It’s time to give DSST schools their due,” Sept. 3 Vincent Carroll column. Vincent Carroll is right to congratulate the Denver School of Science Technology for the excellent work it does in propelling an economically diverse http://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2014/09/resources-do-matter-denver-post-letter.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6623817199789097488.post-1839378612978495133Thu, 14 Aug 2014 15:59:00 +00002014-08-14T09:59:31.577-06:00assessmentcritical reflectioncurrent eventstudentssustainabilityA friend whom I admire very much posted this article about nonviolent responses even in light of horrors like ISIS. Here is the link: http://sojo.net/blogs/2014/08/13/there-nonviolent-response-isis#.U-vEY-vDr0g.facebook I find parallels to urban teaching. Creating an environment in which people are safe and capable of self-sustaining and you won't have terrorist recruiting grounds. Create anhttp://testifyinteacher.blogspot.com/2014/08/nonviolent-responses-creating.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (GranolaGwen)0