Joshua Smith's blog

Goodbye Mississippi

My Mississippi Teacher Corps (MTC) experience began before I got to Mississippi.  As I began to look into different alternative certification programs, I researched each area.  I began to get excited about different areas.  Then I began researching the programs themselves.  As I looked at each one, I realized there were a few top-notch programs and a few programs that would accept any viable candidate.  When I realized MTC’s competitive acceptance rate AND a free Masters I decided this would be my first choice.  Then I looked that the area.  I began to think yuck.  Why am I moving here when I could move to some exciting city.  Well I got the email for a phone interview.  I went into the phone interview relaxed and assuming I wouldn’t hear back.  Well I did.  I was in.  I accepted and cruised through the rest of my senior year.  When I found out I was in Holly Springs I began to look for an apartment.  The results that came up on different searches were sketchy at best.  I then began to look at surrounding towns.  Knowing that my fiancée needed to be near Oxford or Memphis to find a job, we chose Oxford.

            Now I am at the experience itself.  My MTC experience goes beyond MTC.  It is more of my Mississippi experience.  The experiences I want to touch on are my graduate work, my high school experience, my church experience, and my personal growth.

            The graduate work that is done with MTC is by no means rigorous.  Some of it is mind numbingly boring, some applicable, and much of it provided great discussion.  On a positive note, the discussions helped me understand how others view education and helped me define what I think education actually is.  On a negative note, I wish there was something more rigorous about the graduate work.  I wish we had to conduct some sort of research with our students or have an out-of-state professor would come and critique our teaching.  Overall the graduate work was good but has room to improve.

            My high school experience started out well.  My first year I learned a lot.  I started off and continued to manage my students well.  The area I grew the most was my instruction.  I learned how to use different teaching techniques to reach more students.  This also enabled me to interest my students.  As the year went on, I soon learned that although I enjoyed teaching Algebra 1 and Calculus, I would much rather teach Trigonometry and Pre-Calculus.  I found the applications most interesting.  I was able to get this across to my students and help them in their journey to understand this harder math.  My second year, I grew even more.  I focused on better differentiation and better questioning techniques.  As I began to improve in these areas, I was able to make my lessons much more effective.  Another tool I continued to use was contacting parents.  The more parents I got involved, the more success I seemed to have with my students.  I love calling parents in the middle of class.  Most of my trouble students’ parents are on speed dial.  As far as my relationship with my administration, it was an adventure.  My first year at Holly Springs, my relationship with them was great.  My first semester of my second year was great.  It began to go down hill quickly after I told them I wasn’t coming back.  Two events that stand out in my mind as driving me away from Holly Springs are those that transpired between me and the Curriculum Coordinator and the Assistant Superintendent.  I was amazed at the incompetence and lack of leadership I saw in the Curriculum Coordinator.  I don’t think I ever had a meeting with him where I thought he had something useful to say.  He should have stayed in the classroom.  It appears the only reason he holds the position he does is because his wife is the superintendent.  Now for the Assistant Superintendent…. After being called into a meeting to change the teacher handbook, I listened intently.  After reaching a few areas I thought could improve I voiced my opinion.  After sharing, I was immediately yelled at along with the other teacher from the high school.  I was told we were not to change policy at a meeting that was intended to change policy.  This frustrated me.  The only people she cared about there were her friends.  At that point, I knew this district would not grow past a certain point under the current district administration. 

            Another area of growth for me while in Mississippi was the church I attended.  While here I met many wonderful people.  Through the trials and good times I had as a teacher in Mississippi, I saw God's sovereign will for me played out.  He brought me here.  He gave me the strength for each day.  Without His help, I would have not accomplished the things I did at Holly Springs.  Also, During this time I was licensed into the ministry.  This church will also ordain me in the month of June or July.  This (for all intents and purposes) means that I will be a licensed Pastor.  I will be able to work in a church, conduct weddings, and oversee funerals.  This is an awesome and humbling honor God has bestowed upon me.

            As I look to the past and the future, I will always see MTC as a crucial growing point in my life.  The experiences I had here will dictate how I see education and the achievement gap as a whole.  When I think of teaching, I will always think of the teachers I met and students I interacted with.  One thing I may never get over is how behind this state is as a whole.  When I think of the schools I attended in New Jersey, and the ones I am interview at in Texas, I am astounded at Mississippi’s ineptitude.  Their lack of understanding how students should learn and what learning looks like is appalling.  Instead of pushing students to not only meet state expectations but also exceed them, they lower their standards so more of them can go to college.  Instead of offering more and more IB and AP programs, many schools are content with good state test scores.  Instead of trying to recruit teachers that are not only good but will stay a while, schools rely on alternative certification programs to fill their positions. How do you intend to grow as a school if your teachers have very little experience.  Many schools look mainly at the high school.  They don’t see them turning out top-notch students so they blame the high school.  The problem lies and starts in the younger years.  Students are never taught how to read.  Students are given shortcuts and just passed.  Instead of being motivated and forced to learn, students are just coddled.  Schools don’t require parent involvement.  What makes it worse is the incompetency of the court systems.  Instead of taking students who have continual truancy violations and giving them the appropriate measures.  Also, students who break the law need a correctional facility where they will be dealt with accordingly.

            As I look at all this what is there for me to learn?  What does Mississippi need to do to correct their educational failures?  Well I wish I had the solution.  All I can do is offer a few viable ideas.  Mississippi needs to raise the salary of teachers and offer incentives to get great teachers who are not someone’s neighbor who doesn’t have any business teaching.  Mississippi needs correctional facilities for students and more severe consequences for parents who do not follow truancy laws.  Mississippi also needs to follow some other state for assessment standards.  Finally, Mississippi needs IB and AP programs that are alive and well.  These will help students grow academically and better prepare them for life outside of high school.

            Overall, MTC has helped me understand what it is to be a teacher in a failing school.  Mississippi has helped me learn what-not-to-be as an educator or administrator.

 

Reactions to Blogs

As I look over the blog posts I have made over the past two years, I have many reactions.  I find it interesting that many of the things I said through these posts I still believe.  I think it is neat to see the progression I was able to have in my instruction.  From reflecting on teaching strategies and questioning strategies, I was able to further my thinking on this.  This is something I am still trying to improve on daily.  Another thing that I think is consistent are my thoughts on homework.  The more I teach, the more important I think homework is.  As students get into higher-level math, they will have to know how to do homework in order to truly understand the problems they have to master.  Unfortunately many students are not taught the importance of learning and self-discovery.  This should be given more of an emphasis in educational circles.  It blows my mind that educators do not see the importance of self-discovery and homework.

            Another thing I notice about my posts is my progression in managing.  AS a teacher, I came in my first year and was lights out in managing.  The only problem is that I was not fostering an environment where my students learned how to enjoy their learning process.  Now I have been able to learn how to set expectations, maintain structure, and have a positive, fun learning environment.  When you come into my classroom, you will ALWAYS see students working hard.  Many times they will be in groups designated based on their level of understanding.  They students will not only be working but laughing as they learn.  Students are not afraid to ask questions.  I am thankful that my class has fostered an environment where students are able to ask questions no matter how trivial.  Instead of making fun of other kids, the higher-level students have been able to take advantage of peer tutoring.  These opportunities have enabled my students to engage material at a higher level.

            A final thing I see in my blog posts is my general energy level.  When I read the blog post, I find it amusing to see how interesting or how dull they are based on the time of the year or what was going on in my life at that time.   Circumstances also have defined how in depth the posts are.  It is fun looking back the good and bad times and seeing how far I have grown as a teacher over these two years.

Letters to First Years

Dear incoming Mississippi Teacher Corps Class,

 

Firstly, I want to congratulate you for being selected into this program.  This experience you are about to undertake is one that will open your eyes to many things you never could have imagined.  Right now, be excited!  It is an amazing feeling knowing that you have a job lined up for the next two year.  It is not only a job but truly a hard yet rewarding calling.

Secondly, I want to encourage you to start planning now.  By planning, I don’t mean content.  Once you get to Mississippi, your summer will fly by.  Think of things that interest you and will interest your students.  Research the area you are going to be in and try to foresee cultural differences as well as potential issues.  If you can begin to think through some differences now, it will help you once you are here.   I’d also encourage you to begin to think of what type of classroom you wish to cultivate.  Whatever this is, begin to think how you will make students realize that you are the teacher and they are but students. 

Thirdly, I encourage you to develop a mentality of discipline now.  One of the largest challenges that faces a first year teacher is managing their classroom.  Many first year teachers come in with the mindset that everything is going to be ok or that the students will like you or that if you become friends with the students, your room will be great.  I hate to burst your idealistic bubble but this far from reality.  Students don’t want or need more friends.  You should not want teenage friends.  They are to look at you firstly as a teacher and secondly as a role model.  They are watching you.  They need to see a leader and someone in control.  They are surrounded by weak-minded people all the time.  They want to see those who are strong and able to function successfully.  They want you to lead and control them.  Althoguh they act like they don’t, they will soon realize you are a great teacher.  They may still test you, but when they struggle or want a recommendation, they will come to you.  At the end of the day, start by learning how to manage and control your room.  AFTER you do this, then begin to practice different teaching strategies.  With an unmanaged classroom, all strategies fail.  With management, anything is possible.

 

Again, congratulations and welcome.

 

To join or not?

Joining the Mississippi Teacher Corps has many benefits. These benefits include, but are not limited to, a free Master’s Degree, a free computer, time invested in the lives of students, relationships built with students and parents, and learning more about who you are as a person.

            The Master’s Degree and computer are really just perks to what is, in many ways a life changing experience.  The children that we have the privilege of interacting with on a daily basis come from hard backgrounds.  Many of them have had few teachers that genuinely care about them.  The little things you do and say can have a large impact on their lives.  Joining MTC is a great opportunity to learn about the educational gap that exists in America.  It helps you understand first hand what is going wrong in schools and some things that can be done to change it.  At the end of the day, success is not measured by how far your school moves but rather how far the students in your classroom grow.  MTC offers great training to prepare you to jump this hurdle.  It is a very rewarding experience that changes your perspective on education, and the flaws therein.

            Why should you not join?  Don’t join if you are lazy.  This program asks you to work.  You have to be willing to work hard in and outside the classroom.  Don’t join if you are looking for a 40hr/week job.  You will be working many more hours if your classroom is going to succeed.  Don’t join if you are looking for recognition.  Firstly, that is a terrible reason to enter education.  Secondly, teaching is a thankless job.  You will not be recognized or rewarded for a job well done.   Don’t join if you don’t care about students’ growth.  Students need to know that you care enough to teach them what they need to know.  If you only care about a job, teaching is not for you.  Don’t join if you see yourself as a savior or hero for the students.  Students don’t need another arrogant person telling them they will change their lives.  Students need someone willing to spend time really getting to know them and caring enough to relate to them on their level.  They have become good at writing off people who are in it for glory and not building up students. 

            At the end of the day, make sure you are going into teaching for the right reasons.  If you do this, you will love it.  If you don’t, it will be the worst two years of your life and you will probably quit.

 

Portfolios

            After looking through many of the portfolio’s from past year’s class there were a few things that stood out.  Portfolios should be clear and easy to follow, not only on the home page but also throughout.  Those portfolios that allowed the reader to readily go the page they were interested in and find the information needed were especially helpful.  Some of the portfolios had colors that did not go well.  Some pages were hard to read and therefore tedious.  Blogs such as Aaron’s, Ken’s, Amani’s, etc., were easy to follow. Each had a different tone to the blog, but each was clear and easy to follow. 

            I think that these portfolios should be simple and clear.  Some of them were overly colored and too decorative.  This makes it hard to read.  Simple is good.  A reader does not care as much about color and contrast as they do about content.  Another thing that I noticed was that I definitely preferred portfolios that had pictures rather than a lot of video.  Video is good if you have a lot of time to sit down and interact with the content.  Pictures are great because they give you a clear overview in much less time.  Those blogs that had a lot of video seemed to lose some of the value.

            Another thing that makes a good portfolio is having chronological thoughts contrasted.  In other words, it is helpful to explain where you were in your thinking and where you are now.  The better portfolios clearly broke down how teachers had progressed in classroom management, curriculum development, and teaching as a whole.  This showed real thought.  Those that took time to do this really brought something extra to their portfolios.   When you read about the successes and failures of teachers, you begin to understand how they have grown.  You can take this and apply it to your own classroom to some extent. 

            A final thing that makes a good portfolio is the ability to apply outside thoughts and quotes to different parts of it.  Taking quotes from others, whether teachers or past philosophers, helps the reader to see that education is not a thing of the present, but something of all three times, past, present, and future.  Understanding that educational problems are not something new is vital in attempting to see education grow.  It is great to hear what people of the past have thought being used by those in the present.  In continues that discourse that is education.

 

Findland vs. US

            For the US to be outdone by other countries in terms of education is unacceptable.  The United States should take its focus off some of the erroneous things that govern its mind and place it on the issue of education.  In a few years, when less than adequately education citizens are of age, what will happen to this great country?  Will it continue to grow or will it be brought down by poor decision and incompetence?  These are questions that faced Finland.  Their response was educational change.  They knew that just training people after high school would not work.  What was needed was globally elite high schools.  To get this, those teaching had themselves to be elite learners and teachers.  How can this happen?  It happens when they are trained to be the best.  They need not be the best in their subject area alone but also their ability to set up a curriculum and lesson. 

            The United States needs to take some pointers.  Educational training in our undergraduate universities is many times seen as an easy major.  Many enter this field because they don’t know what to go into.  This is a travesty.  Teachers should not begrudgingly enter this field.  Rather, they should enter it with a heart of passion.  They should be filled with desire, not only to teach but also to further their understanding of their specific content knowledge.

            To attract such people, the government must set up perks that would draw potential and extraordinary teachers.  As in Finland, these teacher candidates should be given free undergraduate and graduate training.  This would ensure that not only are they being given means but also a proper education.   Each of these programs should have to meet high standards.

            At the end of the day, the issue goes back to pride.   The United States views itself as an elite nation.  It does not seem to want to look around at what others are doing right.  Instead, it has been content to let people who have never been in the place of a teacher make many of the decisions about education.  The US should be taking notes from those countries that have been able to turn their systems around.  The US should stop caring about what others will think of them and start caring about the education of those who will one day be the leaders of this great country.  Only then will we once again be an elite educational country.

 

A typical day

A typical day starts out with me waking up around 5:00.  I make pick up clothes, pack my school bag, start my coffee, shower, start the car, cook my bagel, and am out the door by 6:00.  I arrive to school around 6:40.  Once at school, I set up my room.  I write my agenda and get my Promethean board up and running.  Twice a week, I report to morning duty.  The other three days, I usually grade, work on lesson plans, or call parents.  First through fourth period usually go smoothly.  Then I have fifth period planning from 11:30 until 1:10.  I use this time to eat lunch, grade, call parents, and prepare for my honors class sixth period.  Fifth period also includes departmental meetings, leadership meetings, and many other things.  After sixth and seventh period, I usually leave school around 3:20.  I am hope by 4:00.  When I get home, I usually tutor a student from Oxford, watch a little TV, or play a video game until 5:00.  At this point my wife gets home and I either cook dinner or help her cook dinner.  After dinner, I will relax, put a game one, work on school stuff for about 45 minutes and then hang out with my wife and puppies until 9.  Then I go to bed and repeat the next day.

 

This differed from the first half of last year.  The first half of last year was filled with much more stress.  At school I would usually be asking my principal or mentor many questions during planning.  I was constantly working.  I would get home and grade before dinner, and plan and grade after.  I would not get to bed until 1030 and I’d still be getting up at 5:00.  After the first semester, I realized I could not continue like this.  I had to make time for my wife and me.  This has made me a much happier person.  I still accomplish all my work.  I just prioritize and use my planning period much more effectively.  Now I can come home, relax, and prepare for the busy day the next day.  It has also allowed me to more effectively work with members of my department.

 

School is important, yes.  But more important is the time spent with family.  If you are married or engaged, that should come before teaching or any other school related activity.    Planning periods, if provided, are a wonderful means of getting what needs to get done accomplished.  

 

A pain free october - minus one

This October has been relatively pain-free.  There have been two negatives though.  The resigning of one colleague and the stress of another have been the only negatives so far this month.  My students have been hard at work.  They have applied themselves for the most part.  This has been a great change and taken away any stress.  The main two things I want to address in this blog is the response I had during report cards and parent conferences as well as generic district frustrations.  

During the conferences surround report cards, we are required to stay one day from two til six.  In the past, this has been frustrating.  Few parents showed up and none of the parents I really wanted to see showed up for the conferences.  I have not had more than fifteen or sixteen parents show up on a conference night.  This time, I had 40, give or take 2 or 3.  This was unreal.  I could not believe it.  Of these parents, almost all of the parents of the kids who usually cause problems showed up.  I was able to store many numbers in my phone, create some parent contracts, and re-explain my expectations for the class.  Parents responded quite will to this.  They were eager to give them their contact information and seemed to genuinely care about their child’s success.  I was very encouraged at these results.  It was nice to have parents caring for once.  I am looking forward to keeping these parents in the loop and bettering my relationship with them as well as their outlook on the school.

 

My frustrations have been the tedious monotony that ensues from non-communication.  I have a meeting with one person and then when I attend another meeting with another person I am told the same exact thing.  Our development time is going over the lesson line and lesson plan.  We do this ad nausea.  It is frustrating.  If teachers are still struggling with this, why don’t they DIFFERENTIATE development instead of frustrate the few competent teachers that are in the school.  They also must think we are idiots when it comes to technology.  Today we were told how to put pictures in a document, how to upload lesson plans, which we have already been doing for a whole nine weeks.  This is aggravating.  I have papers to grade, parents to meet, sermons to prepare, a wife to spend time with, and blogs to write!  I need to have my time used as if it were valuable, not frivolously.  

 

Thoughts for August

In my free write this month, I want to discuss 2 things.  I that I have noticed among some of the new teachers at our school, not MTC teachers, and one thing that I am excited about for this year.

New teachers here, no names now (TFA – not all the TFA teachers but about 3 of the 5), need to stop trying to be friends with the kids.  The rooms on either side of me are loud.  And I don’t mean I can just hear sometimes.  I hear the kids constantly.  During lessons, independent practice, and testing.  Kids are loud.  My kids look at me like can we do that too?  It is very aggravating.  When I spoke with these teachers at the beginning of the year, they spoke of wanting to be friends and build relationships.  This is well and good, but not on day one.  Now the rooms are out of control and they are having hard times getting these kids back under control.  New teachers need to realize that first they need to set the tone and make examples of misbehaving students, and then they can build relationships.  Students like structure.  Once they see there is a reason behind the strictness, they are much more likely to go along with it and work.  ALSO, when another teacher puts a student out in the hall and you see it, don’t step you of your classroom to try to “motivate the child to act right.”  Let the teacher who put the kid out there deal with it.  It undermines the authority, creates more problems, and just shows students you don’t know what you are doing.  Very frustrating!

 

Ok now the good stuff.  My sixth period Honors Algebra class is unreal.  They work hard and are very competitive.  I have 14 sophomores and 14 freshmen.  They are all successful.  I really only need to show them one or two examples and they get it.  They are read to work.  After working, I can have them create their own problems, or try harder/challenge problems that my other students would have no idea how to solve.  They solve them.  I gave the baseline test where they were to take 3.5 hours to work on the test.  Other sections worked about an hour then tried to sleep and stop working.  Only 2 students in this honors section try to sleep.  The rest worked at least 3 if not 3.5 hours of the 3.5 hours.  It is great to teach students who not only love to learn, but are truly on their grade level!

1st Week Round 2

My second year of teaching has started off so much better than the first.  There is really no comparison.  Because I have been in the district for a year, the students know who I am and have already heard about what I expect.  Therefore, I have had minimal management issues.  Students have come in the room, worked hard, and then left.  It took two days to get my room to where it was two months into the year last year. 

            Another thing that was nice was that students came in knowing Mr. Warner and myself wanted to get them to succeed.  They had heard about the improvements from the previous year and knew if they do what we say, chances are they will pass the state test as well.  Most of the jokers are acting right so far and working hard.  I have only had one problem child but he has been bumped to alternative school since he was on a short leash up here anyway.

            Another great thing about this year is that we have implemented our first Honors Algebra 1 section.  I have thirty-one students in there.  A large class, yes, but a class that works from before the bell to after the bell.  The first real quiz I gave, my classes averaged a 60.4%.  This Honors section had a 93.2% average.  It is so much fun to teach.

            The main thing I improved was laying my procedures from day one.  I tried to emphasize these even more.  I spent less time on district rules and more time on classroom rules and procedures.  I also started content even on day 1.  This set the tone and I will definitely be doing this again in the future.  The only thing that did not go well was holding students.  I didn’t have a problem doing it.  They were quiet and worked.  The only problem was that I got bored and so did they.  Thankfully I had no management issues and it went fine.  It was just obnoxious.

            The main thing that brought me success was what I started off talking about.  It was the preconceived notions the kids came in with.  “This guy is like Mr. Estling.”  “Quiet or he’ll put you out.”  “Shhhh I wanna pass the state test.”  These comments were common and I was happy to have them.  When kids know what to expect they are ready to listen and work. What kids hate, are the classrooms where the rules change daily and the teacher has no control.  Unacceptable!!