Classroom Rigor-Just Another Day in the Trenches

As always in education, there are buzz words...and then there are BUZZ words! Academic rigor has been around for a while now, so I thought I'd gnaw on that for a while. I'm to be observed this week for ten minutes with the bulk of the administration walking through the building, entering and exiting my sixth grade classroom in groups of four for ten minutes at a clip. Sounds like the stuff of nightmares, right? I don't mind. (Although that may change after the fact!) When they're done, they reconstruct the lessons they've seen around the building. Boy, would I love that job! Imagine the mosaic: math, science, social studies (me), band and technology. 

Their number one coveted item: Rigor...with differentiation and engagement not far behind. I figure I'll give it a shot before the effects of the budget cuts when class sizes could soar to 28 or so.

So here's the plan: Kids will read and attempt to interpret (using all they've learned about China up to this point) the quality of life in China today, based on their own lives here of course. Using a variety of leveled readings and a previously viewed video (no...I'm not that nervy!), they'll compile a gallery related to topics such as everyday life, modern improvements, the environment, education...and China's place in the world today. What my kids want to know most about China today is the One Child Policy, a topic that is a bit R rated for my very naive students, and  a bit risky to handle under these circumstances. We'll gnaw on that one another day. 

Rigor to me is a deep desire to dig into the deepest and darkest recesses of a topic. No matter how challenging, kids will push forward. I know from our classroom work last week...laptops in tow, that this group of kids will rigorously follow a trail of websites to find meaningful information on their individually selected China topics. Often the problem in teaching with texts, though, is that the material has no portal, no way to drop down into that rabbit hole and tumble until you find the pay-dirt you're looking for! Isn't it about time we provide a laptop per kid in every school and skip these archaic texts for learning? Or perhaps Kindle could help us out...iPhones? Well, now that's a risk!

Arne Duncan talks about schools failing...scary that he uses that kind of sweeping rhetoric. Many more kids are going to college than ever before. Some schools are failing--most schools are struggling to survive in a world that is predominantly digital with only a few paltry laptop carts passed around once/twice a year. Schools need modern-day resources, but that's a discussion for another day.

I'll find the varied type of reading I'm looking for. I'll use my Mimio to demonstrate mark-ups on the screen. I'll move my kids around and then shuffle them back together just like I always do. And the hope-is that it'll all work out in the end. The 'seasoned crew' is covering this visit. Certainly none of our newer, pink-slipped partners would ever dare take the hit!

Who Wants to be a B-B-Billionaire?

Me!! That's who! Yesterday, the New York Times announced that

Arne Duncan (just call me 'Arne') will take the reins with mega dollars to dispense 'on the fly!' Well, no need to search very long, Mr. Duncan...darn..., I mean Arne! I'll help you. 

Here's the recipe: Jump-start Head Start. Early education is where it's at, I don't care what the prevailing thought might be. City kids are leagues behind their suburban peers, who are listening to baby Einstein and have Good Night Moon memorized before they utter their first word. Let's see if we can't do something about adding equality to our educational system. Next...how 'bout an initiative that will let Spot and I move around a bit. You know,  for the many of us who'd like to move between city and suburban schools. How 'bout more of a coaching model? Imagine this: Veteran teachers shift to co-teach with rookies in city classrooms. Even if the Republicans can not reach across the aisle...teachers will always help other teachers. Just give us a chance. And then...we have to watch out for our middle school and high school populations. It does not matter whether we're talkin' city or suburb. They're all at risk. Adolescents need validation...but they need programs that will help them to prove themselves responsible in our society. I'm not kidding...they need a rite of passage. Give them unpaid internships, place them in supervised after school programs that will allow them to give back. And give them credit for this real-life learning too. Now, sir, Spot and I have hardly mentioned technology and inquiry-based learning. WE need a think tank. A nation-wide clearing house for best practice...and then grant programs to bring EVERYONE up to speed. Let's do it, Arne. For Spot's sake...and for the future of us all. Bring back American ingenuity!

My dad, an Irish imigrant...and an eighth grade grad (He was far more brilliant than that, though, believe me.) always said, "It's all about education...period." We'll all be billionaires, if we do it right!