The Most Valuable Lesson I’ve Learned in Education

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As my first semester working in a high school is coming to a close, I wanted to take some time to reflect on a few things. As I prepare to embark on a new chapter next semester, (student teaching… woah.) I can’t begin to express how fortunate I am to have had this experience as an educational intervention specialist. I have been able to be in a classroom, working side by side with teachers and students, and I’ve also been able to work one on one with students. 

It feels like my first day was just yesterday, even though it was really about four months ago. And in only four short months, I have seen my students grow in ways I could not have imagined. 

  • I have witnessed the effects of “senioritis” from the teacher side. And it is not pretty. 
  • I have also seen all of the seniors in my class overcome their “senioritis” and pass English. They will all graduate next week. 
  • I have been able to share in the college decision making process with one of my students, who applied to nineteen colleges and got accepted to ten. She will be attending a reputable private University in the fall on a scholarship. 
  • I have seen all of the students in my freshmen writing class raise their grades by two letters since I have started working with them individually. Each of them will pass with a C or above. 
  • I have seen one of my one-on-one students take her learning into her own hands and raise her grade in her English I class from a D- to a B-. 
  • I have seen freshman boys act out Romeo & Juliet with Barbie dolls and action figures.
  • I have been attacked by geese. 
  • I have been told by one student that she never could have graduated without me. She never would have passed English without me, and she never would have found her way to college with out me. She thanked me by putting a “Thank You” slide at the end of her final presentation. 
  • I have been told by my seniors that they wished I would have been there all year long, that they wish they could take me to college with them to help them with their writing, and that they wish they could stay another year to be in my class. 
  • I was told by one teacher that a student would never be able to pass her class, because he had a 29%. He is now passing with a C-. 
  • I have realized that I am the “mother” for over 30 children, and I apparently gave birth to them before I even hit puberty. 
  • I have learned that the term “teacher” is far too broad for the job we really do: Teacher, counselor, advisor, parental figure, therapist, Life Coach, Editor, Finder of Lost Papers, Emergency specialist, cheerleader, issuer of reality checks, Shakespeare translator and magicians are just some of the hats we wear. 

To my fellow new educators out there, let this be a lesson to you all. Do not listen to people when they say that education does not provide any lasting rewards. Do not listen to your friends when they tell you that you’re crazy for even wanting to be involved in education. Do not listen when people say that the future of our nation is failing. I have seen it with my own eyes. They are not failing, they just need an extra boost now and then. 

To the older educators, who might be tired of their profession and are anxiously awaiting a better economy so they can retire: I know it can be frustrating, and I know that giving up on students seems like the easy thing to do. But please, read this and remember what it was like when you first became an educator. Know that even though students might not voice their appreciation for you right now, they will come to appreciate your guidance as they grow. 

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week to all. Summer is almost here!

Learning Management Softwares

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Course Sites by Blackboard

Pros:

  • Free
  • Blackboard is an interface most students are familiar with, which makes it easy to use and does not require students to step out of their comfort zone.
  • Much like blackboard, you can instant message within Course Site, which makes it easy for students to collaborate. 
  • Mobile applications are available

Cons

  • Coursework Sites are independent from Universities or schools, so instructors can pick or choose if they want to utilize it. (This can easily be a pro or a con)
  • 500 MB of data can be stored, some instructors may require more than that.
  • Parents and guardians can not be invited to CourseSites.The first two cons aren’t really cons; however, the last one is a biggie for me. Especially since I intend on teaching high school, I think it is important that parents have easy access to their child’s grades. While some students may be happy to offer up proof of their grades, other students might be hesitant to show their parents, or attempt to hide them. Parents having access to see what their student is doing in class, and more importantly, how they are doing, will help keep everyone happy. 

Edmodo
Pros

  • The first thing I noticed when I went to this website: the log in options. “I am a Teacher” “I am a Student” “I am a Parent”
  • Free!
  • Edmodo can be used “in bulk” which means schools and school districts can use it across the board.

Cons

  • I did not like that I had to watch videos on how to use it… I would rather read.
  • I also did not like that I had to search for everything, there was no easy access FAQ page, at least not one that I could see. This ABOUT page was the closest I got, but again, I had to watch a video.

From what I have seen, Edmodo looks great. I really like the idea that you can add apps to your edmodo site for student use; however, a lot of this looks like it would be great for a younger student demographic. And there is nothing wrong with that, but I would like something more mature for my classroom. 

Collaborize
Pros

  • As with the other two, this software is free to use!
  • The website claims you can launch your own site in FIVE MINUTES! (I love things that don’t take a lot of time.)
  • App support (only from the iTunes store)
  • The guided discussion options would be great to incorporate into an English class.

Cons

  • FAQ page did not address if parents could access my website as well.

I really liked what I saw on the Collaborize website. It looks mature and more importantly, Collaborize looks easy to use. A lot of options (like those that come with Course Sites) can be overwhelming for both teachers and students. 

I could easily see myself using an LMS in my classroom, especially if one is not already provided by my future school district. In the school district I am working with now, we use Infinite Campus, but that merely provides a place for students to check their grades. Some teachers use “Moodle” for online activities, but I really like the idea of extending the classroom beyond school hours. It offers a lot of benefits, particularly the fact that I can reach the student who does not want to participate in class. Perhaps by offering online discussions, that student will be more inclined to participate. 

 

Bill Gates’ Classroom of the Future

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Bill Gates’ Classroom of the Future

These are all interesting thoughts; however, I think that “attending” an online lecture takes an extreme amount of self-discipline, something that most students do not develop until they have been forced to live in the “real world” for a while. I know that as a college student it was always tempting for me to skip my big “ology” lectures, and honestly, many times I did. I was able to read the book and take my own notes and pass effortlessly.

But then on the other hand, I knew students that needed to go to class, they needed to hear the words from the professor and see the words on the power point and have the ability to have questions answered in person. I understand that, and it seems like Bill Gates does as well.

Buying into an online lecture series class is sort of like purchasing an at-home work out DVD. For those that actually do the work-out: good for you. But then there are the other people (which would be the category I fit in). The people that might do the work out video for the first few days, but then after that, the couch is calling your name, right along with the other plans that you seem to be caught up in.

Do I think this could work in colleges? Absolutely, I do. Maybe even some high school students would excel in a program like this. However, have the option of a face to face course. Yes, most students will opt for the online lecture section, but just like Bill Gates recognizes: every student learns differently. Personalized education is extremely important, but it is also important to recognize that not every student has the self discipline to attend an online lecture series.

 

English with Ms. Marler

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Click here to be taken to my website: English with Ms. Marler

This assignment was so fun. At first, I was a bit overwhelmed with the amount I wanted to do and the amount I actually knew how to do. I used Google pages because of the name recognition. I feel that I am much more comfortable going to personal websites if I know the parent site it is associated, and the google name could present a level of comfort with my students and their families.

When I first started making it, I selected a “Classroom” theme, but I found that it was too detailed for what I could handle. There were a lot of buttons, and the creator of the theme did not provide clear instructions on how to delete things I did not need. I decided to make my own theme to suit my own needs.

I was extremely stressed out with how to present myself online! It was a lot like my old myspace page I had when I was in high school! What background should I use? What color scheme? What font? These are all things that were extremely important to me, because I wanted to appear professional, yet approachable.

I can see myself actually using a website in my classroom; however, as a former Tumblr user, I think that a tumblr site would be better suited for my personality. I like the idea that my students can follow me, and tumblr is part blog, part website, and part art collage! (I also feel that students might be more apt to look at a tumblr page.) I really like the idea of having a website, as it gives parents a visualization of what goes on in class every day, and it can also be a place for students to revisit after class. I would probably feed my twitter onto my website so that everything could be accessed in one place.

I particularly love the way the websites let me share videos, keep track of a class/school calendar, and allow me to outline reading assignments. I also like the fact that I can provide links to different pages.

A website will definitely be in my plans for my future classroom, and I would definitely like to learn a bit more about web design. My google site is extremely general; however, I am not familiar with the layout or set up of the domain. As stated previously, I would  be more inclined to utilize tumblr, which is a platform I am extremely experienced with.

English Degree? You Have Plenty of Options

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English Degree? You Have Plenty of Options

When I enrolled at the University of Missouri – Columbia, I originally enrolled as a Journalism student with a double major in English. Shortly after dropping out of all of my journalism classes (who has time for pretentious students and teachers, anyway?) I changed my major to elementary education. After being forced to take a class on recorders (and if I tested out of the class, the highest grade I was eligible to receive was a B. So I stuck it out and broke my recorder in half when it was all over), I came to my senses and fell back on my English major. It was the only thing that brought me solace, and I enjoyed my English classes a little too much. How many students get excited about an entire class that only focuses on Shakespeare?

We English majors are a special breed. We can over-analyze, examine, close-read and write our way out of a paper bag. The over analyzing does not only apply to literature, but to real life as well. No one is better at composing text messages and emails than an English major. Nobody knows how to read between the lines better than an English major. Sure, my undergraduate thesis on the Monstrosity and Promiscuity of Nabokov’s Lolita wouldn’t do me any good in a conference room. But, anybody who has read Lolita knows that it would have been a million times easier for me to compose a paper on Humbert Humbert instead. I spent hours (days, weeks!) holed up in the library looking for others who had the same thoughts as I had: Lolita was a seductress! She knew what she was doing! And, I think that shows incredible dedication. To be able to take words and compose a meaningful, well-written essay? That’s true talent.

Of course, when I became an English major, everyone asked me what I wanted to do. “What will you do? Become a teacher?” “No!” I’d respond, rattling off the things I wanted to do: “I want to work for a publishing house, I want to write a young adult novel! I can do anything I want!”

That was at the beginning. It took two classes: the one on Shaksepeare and another on African-American literature to make me realize I wanted to become a teacher. By the end of my undergraduate career, I was practically chomping at the bit to get into graduate school to become a teacher. It’s funny how a book (or two, or three, with a few plays thrown in) can change your life.

My Love Affair with Prezi

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Prezi… where have you been all my life? After sitting through countless powerpoints during my undergraduate experience, finding Prezi was legitimately a breath of fresh air. When I tweeted about my love for the online program, I got a few responses back mainly to the tune of “Prezi is so 2009″ from all of my marketing/PR/jschool friends from Mizzou. Prezi might be so 2009, but it is still extremely relevant and a great tool to use in education.

Here’s a prezi I made from a previous lesson plan outline on Hamlet (for some reason, I could not embed it!)

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