Posted by Malik on December 7, 2009
After reading this article provided by my principal today, I decided to go ahead and do a little reflecting. I figured she forwarded this article to us because this style of teaching is vital in maintaining academic engagement in high-poverty schools.
I definately agree that a warm demander must enforce respect in the classroom and insist students to complete the academic tasks. But… what is warm demander? One who displays personal warmth while maintaining an instructonal style that demands achievement.
To become a warm demander, one must:
- build relationships deliberately
- learn about students’ cultures
- communicate an expectation of success
I really found it interesting that the article pin-pointed the issue of highly disengaged middle school students. These student shared that they were simply bored with the curriculum. Warm demanders must reach out to these students to make content relevant and rigorous to defeat boredom. Check out the article for yourself and discover some additional information to assist you and your students towards the pursuit of academic excellence.
Posted in Educators, Teaching | Tagged: classroom, classroom_management, classroom_mgmt, Education, Teaching | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Malik on March 28, 2009
This week as I started watching the beginning of the fourth season of The Wire, I can’t help but to reflect on…
1. My first year of teaching in Baltimore City with real chalkboards and san air conditioning & technology (including calculators).
2. I remember back in 2002 when Mayor O’ Reilly kicked off the Baltimore Believe campaign to lift the spirits of the citizens.
Funny as we go into battle training mode for high-stakes testing, we need to BELIEVE that our students can and will achieve. Also, first year teachers at this time are probably making career decisions based on their experiences from the past eight months. They too must continue to BELIEVE in themselves that they also are important in their craft in making valuable contributions to our children; and are valued for what they do.
Posted in Education, Educators, High-Stakes, Teaching | Tagged: baltimore, believe, Education, Teaching | 2 Comments »
Posted by Malik on March 12, 2009
Dorothy Calloway
The above 75 year old math educator (yes, still in the classroom!!!) has truly inspired me. I stumbled upon an article in my NCAE newsletter that spotlighted her accolades and perseverance in the classroom as a fellow front-line veteran soldier for over 50 years!
From the reading, I took note of the following….
- She informally assess her students by their actions by watching their pencils, papers, and expressions. Also, she knows her limits.
- When she deals with troublesome students, she calls on a higher authority… no not the principal or superintendant, or even Obama. Dorothy calls their name before the Lord and ask Him to help her – and you know that God delivers! This is what I need to do… she seeks divine intervention with the students End-of-Grade tests. She starts asking at the beginning of the school year!
- Dorothy believes keeps it old school. No electronics, that includes the overhead or even computers. The chalkboard is king – Away with dry erase markers & boards, new text books, and calculators. Straight OG, son!
Ms. Calloway…. thank you for your many years of dedication to the craft and may the Lord continue to give you
strength to mold minds and futures.
Posted in Education, Educators, Math | Tagged: educator, Educators, Math, veteran, veterans | Leave a Comment »
