Category Archives: Philosophy

“Fair” Means “Everyone Gets What They Need”

One of the signs I have posted at the front of my classroom states “Fair” means “Everyone gets what they need,” not “Everyone gets exactly the same.” I frequently have occasion to point & refer to that particular sign. +8-2

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Extensions

I give extensions rather freely. My students know that they need to ask at least two days in advance (longer for major assignments), and they need to have an acceptable reason, and provide supporting documentation (which I follow up on). … Continue reading

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Credit Instead of Extra Credit

I’ve had great success with allowing unlimited re-tests (until the end of the grading period), with a maximum re-test grade of 90%. +50

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Discipline

I was reading the book Writing New England: an Anthology from the Puritans to the Present ed. Andrew Delbanco, pub. Harvard University Press, and ran across an excerpt from The Headmaster, by John McPhee. The essay describes Dr. Frank Boyden, … Continue reading

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“What’s My Favorite Part Of Teaching?”

This is a cross-posting of something I said in a forum on RateMyTeachers.com. The question was: heyy my name is Talia and I’m 15, I attend St.marys secondary. A question that alot of my friends asked is why would teachers … Continue reading

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Teacher’s Favorite Sentence

I think the sentence I like hearing most from my students is “Wow, that’s really easy!” +2-2

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