With A Brooklyn Accent:
With A Brooklyn Accent Go BATs All Week
Life of a Bronx Teacher
Worst year ever. Low morale, attack observations, endless Danielson rubrics. common Core standards every meeting, Talent coaches, Pre post post and midline test only for VAM ratings, making teachers have to teach every second, fearing that god forbid a class just relaxes and we show a piece of humanity. Hatred of teachers from the reformers, media and worst of all, average people. I mean hatred of
Don't Blame the Public Schools : A Bronx Tale
In the 1950's and 1960's, Factories started closing and moving South, taking tens of thousands of jobs Bronx residents depended on with them:The public schools stayed open.In the 1960's and 1970's, landlords started burning their buildings leaving parts of the Bronx looking as if it had suffered aerial bombardmentThe public schools stayed open.In the 1980's and 1990's, the crack epidemic hit the B
FEB 26
When You Are Looking for American Heroes- Don't Forget the Coaches!!
Those of you who know me know how proud I am of my grand daughter Avery's accomplishments as a runner. At age 10, she is now one of the top middle distance runners her age in the nation, and loves the feeling of confidence this gives her as well as all the great new friends she has made in her track team- the Prospect Park Youth Running Club. But none of this would have been possible without th
FEB 21
When I Talk About Prison and Prison Education: It's Personal
Some of you may be wondering why I am defending a Prison Education initiative offered by a Governor whose other Education policies I despise. I can give you a detailed political explanation for my position, and ask you to read Michelle Alexander's "The New Jim Crow" but in truth, the reasons why this issue is so important to me are as much personal as political, rooted in a few powerful
What Testing is Doing to Special Needs Students: An NYC Teacher's Lament
I teach high school economics. Due to our absurd scheduling policy anyone can end up in this class, anyone from freshmen to seniors. Before I begin to tell the plight of my students it would be pertinent to mention that I am dual certified in social studies and special education, and I'm finally teaching what I am certified to teach. Out of all my IEPs a whopping 60% are out of compliance, and th