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Tag Archives: challenges
It’s Not About the Teacher
Yesterday I had prepared one of my favorite physics lessons: a lecture/discussion with demos that explains various aspects of music. My seniors (3/4 of my students) are heading into their final week of high school, and a class that’s about … Continue reading
Responding to Student Demands for Good Teaching
For the past week, social media has been buzzing with a 90-second video of Jeff Bliss, a Texas high school sophomore, giving his World History teacher a piece of his mind about the endless packets and worksheets, and what he feels … Continue reading
Playing “School” in School
When children play “school,” usually one child is the “teacher” and the others are the “students.” The “lesson” in these games is almost always based on low-level recall of facts or mastery of a one-step skill or process. The idea … Continue reading
Empowering Students to be the Adults in the Room
Most people have a mental image of what happens when a teacher is absent and a substitute teacher needs to cover the class. The typical mental image includes the substitute trying desperately to implement the teacher’s simple, iron-clad lesson plan … Continue reading
Lose 25 Points in 25 Seconds
When I give tests/exams to my physics students, the tests are usually comprised of problems that range from straightforward to a little challenging to very challenging. I let them use their notes, textbooks, old homework assignments, and anything else on … Continue reading
Motivating Through Fear
On Saturday morning I found myself in a classroom at a local charter school (grades 5-8), and the motivational sign on the classroom wall contained the following quote: Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must … Continue reading
The Devil You Know…
…is better than the devil you don’t. I just finished correcting the end-of-quarter exams for my honors physics students. While they did quite well and will be pleased with their grades, I did notice a trend that was noteworthy: several … Continue reading
The Vicious Cycle of Algorithmic Learning
It seems like the harder we work at teaching students to be good at math, the more problems they have, and the worse they become. We seem to be trapped in a vicious downward spiral. I believe that a lot … Continue reading
The Value of Experience
A lot of Americans are understandably dissatisfied with the state of our educational system. Some of the problems stem from unworkable and unenforceable laws that demand much more than they can fund. Others stem from a system that is entrenched … Continue reading
Practical Alternative to “Algebra for All”?
Anyone who has read my blog probably already knows my feelings about high-stakes tests. In a nutshell, I think the tests do more harm than good. I think the tests are emphasizing the wrong skills, and I think we’re teaching … Continue reading