Facts: Why They're Not Optional

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One of the first things that students are told to do when making an argument, whether in an essay or in a debate setting is to find facts to back them up and cite them.  English teachers everywhere are harping on the importance of finding text references, citing sources and making a VALID argument; one where the facts support your thesis.  If you have unsupported arguments in your essay, then you have lost credibility, not just where those arguments are used, but in your entire paper.  When there is no fact to back up an argument it cannot stand, therefore you have no argument.

This might seem like common sense to anyone in the education world, however, where are the teachers of today's political masterminds and campaign leaders?  Why do politicians feel they are above the rules of validity and fact?  The lack of factual, source cited arguments in this campaign have actually been nauseating. On a daily basis there are hundreds of television ads that are based in little to no fact.  How are the American people supposed to make a choice when they really have no idea who they're choosing or why?

In this regard, the president actually has the advantage.  He's had four years to do something and can be judged based on what he's done, attempted to do, and failed to do.  We don't need some fiery rhetoric (though the Republicans have supplied plenty) to know what has taken place the past four years.  So while the Obama campaign is no better than the Romney campaign in its use of facts, at least there is four years of undisputed evidence to use for or against him.

Or is there? If you believe what the Romney campaign would have you believe, Obama has actually not done anything in the past four years except destroy this country.  Some of these arguments are based in reality and are just a matter of opinion on what it means to "destroy" the country.  Others however, like Clint Eastwood's invisible chair speech are so far from reality its difficult to understand how anyone can support such a fact-less claim: "I know you were against the war in Iraq, and that’s okay. But you thought the war in Afghanistan was OK. You know, I mean — you thought that was something worth doing. We didn’t check with the Russians to see how did it — they did there for 10 years." (Read more: www.politico.com)  Blaming Obama for the war in Afghanistan? Interesting fact-less tactic for sure.

So while this election will likely be a close one, I encourage everyone to try and find the truth behind the candidates before they vote.  Either that, or decide how each party would do in the fictional world they have created and vote based on their ads that are also not based in reality. But don't let your students forget than an argument is only good if it has facts to support it.  And don't forget, BOTH sides have forgotten to back up their arguments, so while one might be more entertaining than the other, don't let your students believe that  only the "other" party is to blame.

-MB

For more facts visit:

Politifact.com - http://www.politifact.com/

FactCheck.org - http://factcheck.org/

The Art of the Special Ed Paraprofessional

Note: As I sat down to write this blog post I realized that I had to clarify the misnomer that is my blog title.  Currently, I am not working as a history teacher but as a special education paraprofessional in a high school while completing my Masters program.

Most people in the education world know (or think they know) what a paraprofessional is doing as they travel from class to class either exclusively with one student, or with a cohort of students who need additional assistance at school.  However, in one month of work I have learned a few things I didn't know that could make all the difference in being successful.

The first is that if you're working exclusively with one student as a 1:1 aide, your relationship with that student is essential for the success of that student.  They need to know that you care, that you're confident in their ability to achieve great things, and that they can trust you to help them when they need it.  I would go as far as to say trust is the most important part of being a 1:1.  The moment that the student believes you will do everything in your power to help them be successful, you're on your way to a smooth year.

But there's another piece that is equally important and also follows the principle of trust.  The relationships between the para and the classroom teachers are critical.  The teachers need to know and understand that you are there to help the child succeed within the parameters of the class.  You can provide additional assistance on classwork, help the student with strategies to study for an exam, and most important, keep the student on task and paying attention.  Para's should engage in regular conversation with teachers before or after class or the school day to make sure they're on the same page with the plan for success.  Get a rundown of the game-plan for a lesson so you will know when and where your student might need your help and you can prepare for it in advance.  Teacher's appreciate knowing that you care and that you're assisting the student, not simply doing the work for them.  Also, don't be a distraction in class.  While you're clearly not invisible, and most students aren't given extra help silently, it is best to be discreet and at the same time if you're able to help other students around you, it can't hurt to use the extra adult presence in the classroom to help maintain order and keep all students on task.

My job also gives me the opportunity to work in a classroom as an aide for a large contingent of students who have Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).  Communication between the teacher and para is even more critical in this environment because you're not tied to one student, but really to all of the students in the classroom.  In a high school classroom, you don't often see all of the students with IEPs hanging out in one corner screaming "we're over here and yes we need your assistance."  Instead, one of the great successes of inclusive education is that they're dispersed among their peers.  In this environment, the best tactics that I've observed/used are using almost a co-teaching method.  While your ultimate purpose is to be an additional support to those key students, you're also helping out with anyone who might have a question.  The teacher is up front, leads the lesson, gives instruction and begins to walk around while the students engage in the activity, the para then kicks into action and can help any and all students complete and achieve the daily goals.  Don't single out the students with special needs, they feel enough pressure as it is.

Again, creating a bond with each student so they feel your job is to help them succeed is the best way to achieve success as a paraprofessional.

-MB

P.S. If you're a general education teacher, don't hesitate to ask the para their opinion about differentiating the lesson, or adapting a project to meet the needs on the IEP.  Hopefully they have enough experience either with that specific student or in special ed in general to help create a successful plan.  Engage them to help create a positive atmosphere in the classroom, they'll appreciate it.

Don't Be Afraid to Learn From Your Students

We live in a digital world where things change rapidly and no one has the time to keep up. (especially not teachers)  Students today have grown up surrounded by technology and it is well known by now that they will always be one step ahead of the generation that came before.  This is old news, and by the standards of the digital age where news is old after 27 seconds (according to common AT&T ads), this is ancient news.

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So why even bother talking about it?  

As a tech savvy 90s child who grew up with a lot of technology, I find myself falling further and further behind in the race to comprehend the uses and abilities of today's technology.  I'm taking classes on the use of technology in schools and the curriculum for the class is outdated even before it's printed.  How are we, the educators, supposed to keep up with the latest trends and understand the technology that our students are using on a daily basis?  The answer is simple: let them teach us.

The effort is being made by older teachers to modify their lessons and incorporate technology into the classroom.  But many of these well-meaning teachers have spent the last 5 years or so developing amazing lessons and getting accustomed to technology that is now obsolete and needs to be updated again.  SMART Boards seem to have already been replaced in some ways by iPad and Apple TV technology.  Teachers can't possibly adapt and change their lessons to keep up with the demand for new and improved.

The better solution is to develop lessons that work using a variety of technologies and then let the students decide how they are going to best complete the assignment.  If the student has an iPhone or iPad and wants to make a movie using some app - let them.  If the student is not quite so up and coming and wants to use the seemingly outdated PowerPoint - go for it.  Or if the student wants to find a technology that came out somewhere in the middle like a Prezi presentation - why not.  The important part of the lesson is the content, not the method.  Giving students the freedom to be creative and use technology that you might not even know exists is a leap of faith, but it is one that will be rewarded time and again because you will learn new things from your students.

I like to think of myself as current, up to date on Facebook, Twitter, I've used an iPad, I have a smartphone, but it's also important to remember I can learn a thing or two from the students myself, they're the ones with the free time to learn it all.

-MB

The Importance of Letting Students Know You Care

image - www.frameworkinstitute.org 

When a student is struggling in class, every teacher hopes and expects that that student will come forward and ask for help, and many times they will.  However, if the student doesn't believe the teacher cares about their success, or even worse, would help them when they ask, then there is little chance that the student will say anything at all.

As teachers, we all care about the well-being and success of our students.  We would all like for each and every one of them to succeed and move on to bigger and better things.  Yet, we understand that some students will not succeed through no fault of their own unless we give them that extra boost to help them on their way.  A good teacher is available and willing to help any student who asks for it, a great teacher knows which student needs help and goes to them without being asked.

Life happens, it often gets in the way and it rarely proves to be an easy road to walk down.  Balanced adults can handle the curve-balls and still hit home-runs, but the average teenager is going to strike out a few times before they get on base.  Help them with their swing - show them the techniques that will enable them to succeed in your class.  If you were going to be a student in your own class how would YOU take notes?  How would YOU prepare for the test?  It's not cheating to provide the tools that they need to succeed.  Remember, just because they've already been in school for several years doesn't mean they've figured out which strategies work best for them.

School is about learning more than just the material in the curriculum.  School is about learning interpersonal relationships.  Its about learning respect and decency that is required of all human beings in society.  Its about  discovering that caring for someone else can be even more gratifying that simply caring about yourself.  Show your students you care, share in their successes and hold them up through their failures.  If they know you care, maybe (not always) they'll care a little more too and their drive to succeed will inspire the students around them to do the same.

-MB

NEXT WEEK: Don't Be Afraid to Learn from Your Students

Remembering that Our Parents' Childhoods are Today's History

With the passing of one of the greatest members of the greatest generation, it is easy to forget that the average high school student hasn't learned much about what happened in the years after World War II.  Neil Armstrong was a pioneer of the last frontier and was also a great example of humility and devotion to one's country and to personal ideals.  He is an icon that students should look up to, but one that many students have either never heard of, or only in passing.

If you're a teacher, and have been teaching since you graduated college in the 1980s then there are about 40 years that you would consider "present day" that the average student knows barely anything about.  If you've been teaching since the 90s you forget that students now have no idea what the First-Gulf War (Operation Desert Storm) was, only that George W. Bush "finished what his father started." If you've been teaching since 2000, you're about to find out that students have always lived in a post-9/11 world and believe that every act of violence can be linked to terrorism. So why is this important?

History classes have to add more and more information each year as the history of the world gets longer and longer.  It is impossible, even in a high school where four years of history are required to cover this wide range of information.  In many high schools U.S. History is covered in a two-year curriculum.  The history of the United States, which typically starts with some type of understanding of the groups that lived here already, and the first European settlers in the 17th Century.  That means history teachers are being asked to cover over 400 years of information in 360 days.  (I'm not a math person, but even I can see that you have to cover more than a years worth of information per day)

Recent history is the first to get cut out, simply because by the time you get there, you've run out of time to teach it.  What we're left with is a group of students who, despite having so much information at their fingertips in this technological age, don't know some of the great figures of history that are still living among us.  Neil Armstrong is NOT the guy who rides bikes and had cancer.  (Yes, I have actually heard people make that mistake!)

While it is becoming increasingly difficult to fit the copious amounts of information into such a limited time-frame, using tools such as "This Day in History" to start your class, or finding the birthdays of major figures of the past 50 years and having a 5 minute discussion on why they are important is critical to not letting the recent past be forgotten. It is our responsibility to take the legacy of our parents' generation and turn it into the lasting history that our grandchildren will continue to study.

-MB

In Honor of a Great American

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