Month: October 2016

We have about 30 late starts this year. Today, our faculty met in the library because WASC is coming again this year for a three-year follow-up. WASC is the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and North High has always owned the highest marks from them. A committee comes to our school, stays for around a week, checks us out, and North puts on a good enough show to get a 6-yr exemption, which is a big deal.
We watched a Power Point with a Star Wars background. We also got to hear it read verbatim. Perhaps it was read for the teachers that were on their phones or grading papers. I’m not a judge here–these are merely facts.
We also broke into groups to read a paper that had eight things WASC will be looking for this year. There were ten groups of us, all looking at the same paper. We were supposed to look at it, understand it, and make a presentation that demonstrated this understanding. I was on one end of the table while two or three other teachers at the other end looked like they had it covered. Still, I did read the paper on what WASC wanted from us and felt I understood it. After 18 years at the same school, I am someone not new to WASC, which is a required process and not that scary.
Sadly, we were informed that time had run out on us and that the ten groups would not be able to do a presentation on the exact same eight points. After one or two presentations on the exact same eight points, I would guess many professional educators would have understood, but we were slated to have each group present to faculty. That would have been 10 raps, or pictures, or songs, or skits, if time had allowed.
We were done a little after 8:20, 23 minutes before the first bell would ring. Our meeting lasted around 30 minutes. We watched a Power Point, went to tables where one side had a hard time hearing the other(at least I had a hard time), and looked at eight concerns and questions for us and WASC. I’m not sure why we had to get into groups, or why anyone would want to hear the same presentation 10 times over, but that is not my job to decide.
Luckily, next Monday and Tuesday are student-free days. We’ll have ALL DAY to get things done. And then we’ll have around 25 more late starts.

Tell me, Dr. Freud,

is it normal for me to dream about teaching? Not only do I have to teach daily, then do homework, then plan, then grade papers, lather, rinse, repeat, I actually get to spend some of my nights dreaming about my students. I know–it sounds very tawdry, yet I’m just starting out with the age-old “hook.” When you’re down in it, trying to get your students to work, behave, learn, think, grow, whatever . . . it takes up a lot of time and energy. And, reality starts to work its way into dreamland. Ah, the beauty of teaching, or something along those lines.
The good–
sometimes the dreams aren’t so bad. They will feature a lesson that went well, or specific students who are amazing. Hey, lessons go well and students are awesome, so there.
The bad–
most of the dreams are bad. They are the reminder of the everyday failure, of the lessons that didn’t work (what? after 18 years I just don’t use the myriad of lessons that slayed?), or of the anxiety that comes in knowing that my efforts are not good enough for some. I’ll be out on the football field and we’ll be playing kickball–which starts out with promise and something I want to do–but we’ll only have one ball, kids will kick it somewhere, others will go get it, and my thought of bringing kids together to talk literature and/or philosophy and/or the human condition gets lost with me looking for the person looking for the ball while others huddle in groups and talk of sub-pop culture that ends up as a Youtube tutorial on cheer hair or disposable music.
It’s awful, I don’t like it, but at least I don’t have these dreams during summer.
Day 19 tomorrow. We’re going to forget about my 6th period not being quiet today because I was trying to teach them more Greek tragedy. If only Aristotle could have seen it. This is my catharsis, for they are young and do not know what they do.

As a teacher, you better have a short memory.