Quote of the Day - September 7, 2010

I was delighted to see that Combustible But Awesome, one of my favorite biology students, is taking Forensic Science with me this year. At the end of class, she approached me...

Combustible But Awesome: Miss, you know how I am. I really want to be good this year. But those girls behind me keep talking while you're talking, and I can't stand it. I held it in all day today, but I don't know if I can last. They're pissing me off! I'm gonna explode! Make them stop, miss, please!

The Blog Is Back... And So Is School

Hi everyone! Welcome back! I took an unannounced summer vacation from blogging. I apologize for that; I'll try to do better in the future.

Anyhow, I am back in the front of the classroom and ready to begin blogging again. Already, I am very excited for this year to get underway. I remember my first day of school last year -- how jittery and awkward I was. My students knew that I was new immediately. I thought they were oh so perceptive, but I realize now how easy it was to see through my scripted lines and unfamiliarity with the school.

Fast forward one year. I was much less prepared for the first day of school, which was yesterday, in the sense that I had not planned out every minute of every period. However, I knew what I wanted to say and what points I wanted to emphasize. I was much more relaxed and genuinely content to meet my new students. The result? With few exceptions, my kids were well-behaved and excited to learn. Several of them explicitly stated that they were looking forward to my class.

I'm looking forward to teaching them.

What a difference a year makes.

To Charter or Not To Charter?

I haven't touched on the pros and cons of charter schools (yet), but I am having a lively debate about charters with one of my best friends over at her blog, The Education Buzz. Come join the discussion!

Another Reason to Push for Post-Secondary Education

I spend a significant amount of time in the classroom waxing poetic about my Brown experiences, in hopes of encouraging more of my students, particularly my sophomores, to think about college. The dilemma I face is not surprising -- While college matriculation was a given where I attended high school, a majority of the students I teach are resistant. This is logical -- Their parents (and most other adults in their lives) are unlikely to have attended college, so it is a giant unknown for them. I grew up accustomed to a certain lifestyle (which I knew was made possibly by my parents' college education), and so have my students. Luckily, many of the students who make it to senior year have adopted a pro-college stance. Still, there is a lot of work to do.

Why? For a lot of reasons, of course. Yet another compelling argument showed up in my Google Reader this morning, from an Economix post entitled "Do You Earn More Than Your Parents Did?" The post discusses a Bureau of Labor Statistics report, in which it was found that men today earn less than equally educated men in 1979, with the exception of the most highly educated men. Women today earn more than equally educated women in 1979, with the exception of the least educated women. This report confirms what we already know -- that, in the past 30 years, the earnings potential for the most educated has risen, while that for the leasat educated has dropped.

The report touches me in two ways:

First, health care is a great example of a booming field in which available jobs require specialized, post-secondary training, if not a college degree. I have SO MANY students who want to work in health care, as physicians, nurses, paramedics, or simply anywhere near a hospital. But very few of them have the drive to pursue their dream after high school. They are, for the most part, bright enough and personable enough to do the job. So what's holding them back? And what can I do to help?

Second, women have definitely benefited more than men in the present economic climate. One reason is that women made significantly less than men in 1979, and the income gap has since narrowed substantially. On the other hand, many fields that have traditionally attracted women, including health care, are still doing well. There are many, many frames for this discussion, but I think it is same to say that women have been more fortunate than men over the past few years. As such, it was especially troubling for me to attend Blueberry High School's graduation ceremony less than a month ago and see that two-thirds of the graduating class was female.

A Perversion in Philadelphia

As I've blogged over the eight months, I've tried to stay away from the political and focus on my experiences with my students.

However, I do have strong feelings about what goes on in my school district, particularly about the (IMHO) mishandling of low-performing schools. A Good Day Teaching writes passionately about the situation at West Philadelphia High School. If you teach in Philly or are simply interested in the behind-the-scenes dealings of an urban district, please read her thoughts.

Note: Her post is very slanted. For basic coverage of the most recent incident involving West, check out The Notebook or The Inquirer.

Our Lives, Our Fortunes, and Our Sacred Honor

From Sunday night, on the Parkway...

Hope everyone is enjoying their July so far!

We Mutually Pledge to Each Other...

I took a hiatus from blogging for about two weeks while I went on a road trip with two of my best friends. I'm back now, ready to tell some stories, share some thoughts from the past year.

In the meantime, in honor of our nation's 234th birthday, I thought I'd share this photo, from The Washington Note.

Happy 4th of July!!