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The Myth of the Super Teacher (VIDEO)

By Dan Brown

6/29/12

In less than twelve minutes, National Board Certified Teacher and author Roxanna Elden with humor and candor distills the crucible facing new teachers and their students. I’ve embedded the video below; it’s an extremely worthwhile watch.

Within the TED-style talk, Elden mentions her book See Me After Class, which I’ve read and can attest is a must-have for any new and prospective teachers. She facetiously refers to it as “Hard Liquor for the Teacher’s Soul.”

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Could One Unit Taught in High School End the Achievement Gap?

By Dan Brown

6/27/12

I’m reading Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns by Clayton Christensen, Michael Horn, and Curtis Johnson. The book envisions a future for education dominated by personalized, computer-based learning. I have issues with some of their conclusions— especially since much of their thesis rests on an unquestioning acceptance of Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences— but midway through the book I was thunderstruck. They may have hit on the best shortcut to closing the achievement gap I’ve heard of.

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What to Say When Someone Asks, “Should I Do an Alternative Certification Program?”

By Dan Brown

6/26/12

I’ve been asked a handful of times recently if I recommend for someone to enter teaching through alternative certification program. It’s a tricky question.

I’ve been through both of the main induction models into teaching. First I joined the New York City Teaching Fellows alternative certification program and endured a chaotic rookie experience in the Bronx; later I earned a master’s degree at Teachers College, Columbia University in a program based on taking time on learning the craft.

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Teachers Can Do Harm

By Dan Brown

6/18/12

I spent time over the weekend with a recent graduate from an Ivy League university. He’s a brilliant, articulate, cosmopolitan guy who I am confident will rise to the top of his field (international relations). We started to talk about teaching— particularly Teach For America (TFA), which several of his peers were joining— and I started to get upset.

“Isn’t it a good idea to get the top people in there?” he asked, echoing a compelling talking point.

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Going Too Easy on Our Charges: Teachers and Doctors’ “Affective Errors”

By Dan Brown

5/31/12

Agroopman

Teachers make an uncountable number of decisions. Many of those decisions relate to how hard to push our students and how much leeway to grant those that don’t conform to expectations.

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Can Teachers Be Like Doctors?

By Dan Brown

5/30/12

The teaching profession is in the early stages of a massive overhaul, and many advocates are looking to the medical profession for a model of how to improve the quality and respect for teachers.

It’s been just over a century since the Flexner Report revolutionized and dramatically improved the training of doctors. Here is a Wikipedia summary of its legacy:

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The Best Idea in Education: Developing Families Center in Washington, D.C.

By Dan Brown

5/27/12

The longer I work with 11th and 12th graders (this is my 5th year), the clearer it becomes to me that education really begins when a child is in the womb-- or even before. Lost time is rarely made up.

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Policymakers Walking in Teachers’ Shoes: A Brilliant, Replicable Idea

By Dan Brown

5/16/12

Last week, 50 employees— mostly senior staff— of the U.S. Department of Education spent their Wednesday shadowing teachers in D.C.-area schools. “ED Goes Back to School” is the first program that I know of in which senior policymakers systematically spend quality one-on-one time in teachers’ shoes. I think it’s brilliant; this type of program can and should be replicated in states and districts across the country.

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How To Extinguish the Excitement and Joy of Learning… in One Easy Lesson

By Dan Brown

4/25/12

The following post was written by an extra-special guest blogger and thirty-four-year veteran teacher: my mom, Marcia Brown.

Co-teaching Shakespeare to second-graders stands out as the highlight of my thirty-four-year career as a public school reading specialist. For the five years before I retired in 2005, I supported teachers and students in our study of the Bard, a journey that led us to intriguing discoveries daily.  So when a former colleague (let’s call her Olivia) asked if I would help her develop a second-grade Shakespeare curriculum in her new school, I responded with an emphatic “Yes!”

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"Prep Rally" Viral Video: From Missouri with Test Prep Tips

By Dan Brown

4/20/12

Ever been to a “prep” rally? It will be hard to top the one at Jennings High School in Jennings, Missouri where earlier this month teachers pumped up their students to take the EOC (End of Course) tests with a hip hop video.

The 4 minutes of rapping educators has gone viral. Check it out:

What do you think: is this brilliant and motivating? Sad misallocation of energy and resources? Harmless fun? Superficial noise? Teachers authentically connecting with students? Something else? 

Your comments are welcome.

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