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Author Archives: Mr. Bigler
Being Appreciatable
Evidently, today was National Teacher Appreciation Day, and this week (May 1-7) is National Teacher Appreciation Week. This means we get to wade through an ocean of “teachers are overworked and underappreciated” articles and posts on social media. This post … Continue reading
Those Who Can, Do; Those Who Can Teach, Teach
Recently, a friend trotted out the old adage, “Those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach.” This quote bothers me. I understand the frustration behind it, but my experience suggests otherwise. +1-1
Would you please light me on fire?
In kindergarten and elementary school, birthdays are a big deal. However, sometime between elementary school and high school, birthday celebrations become relegated to families and friends outside the classroom. +50
Taking the Power Play Out of Self-Esteem
I’ve posted about student self-esteem several times. In two posts, Self Esteem from October 2011 and Self-Esteem Starts With Esteem from November 2013, I described students who continually put themselves down, and how I would insist that they say to me, “Mr. Bigler, I’m … Continue reading
“It’s Not That Bad”
When a normally conscientious student lets the end of the quarter arrive with a failing (or barely passing) average because of missing work, it doesn’t take a lot of insight to realize that something is wrong. I had two such students … Continue reading
Time Commitments
In 2007 when I taught in Belmont (one of the wealthier suburbs of Boston), I observed that a significant number of my students expressed stress about their time commitments. I devised a survey +4-1
Raison d’Être
One of my now former students graduated on Friday. Just before graduation, she handed one of the nicest letters I’ve ever received. I am reproducing parts of her letter here, with some identifying information removed. +6-3
The First AP Physics 1 Exam
This is a self-centered post, for which I ask my readers’ indulgence. This has been my first year teaching AP Physics, and the first year of the new AP Physics 1 exam. (For those not familiar with the change, effective last … Continue reading
Avoiding Failure by Never Trying
Each year, as students sink farther and farther into the abyss of test-driven curriculum and low-level thinking, I have to work harder and harder to teach them high-level thinking skills. This year, my students and I seem to be approaching … Continue reading
The Aftermath of Standardized Test Prep
When potential students ask whether (high school) physics is hard, I tell them, “Imagine a year of algebra word problems, in which you have to understand a situation in order to figure out which equation to apply and how to … Continue reading