Super Teacher's Job is Never Done!

Super Teacher's Job is Never Done!
Photo courtesy of DiscoveryEducation.com

Teaching is the profession that teaches all the other professions. ~ Author Unknown

My goal is to reveal one teacher's humble journey of self-reflection, critical analysis, and endless questioning about my craft of teaching and learning alongside my middle school students.

"The dream begins with a teacher who believes in you, who tugs and pushes and leads you to the next plateau, sometimes poking you with a sharp stick called 'truth'." ~ Dan Rather



Friday, August 31, 2012

Teaching Socratic Seminars to Students

I love this article, especially its discussion about the 3 skills to teach students early on in the school year: "From week one, I began to set expectations about three major skills: active listening, academic discussion, and collaborative teamwork. I also worked to create a climate in which it was safe for students to speak their minds—where it's okay to take risks (and sometimes fail)."

Check it out: http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2012/08/22/tln_ely_socratic.html?print=1.

I also love the idea of student-generated rubrics.

We can definitely bring these ideas up at future PDCs if there is energy around them. Let me know what you think!

Hope you had a great fourth day! Happy almost Friday!

Article below:

Making the Leap to Socratic Seminars

Over the past few years, I've attended summer workshop after summer workshop that touted the merits of Socratic seminars. The discussions revolved around open-ended questions facilitated by not teachers, as I'd previously understood such seminars—but students. Perhaps it is appropriate that I often left these workshops with more questions than answers.
I just couldn't picture how this would work in my 6th grade English/language arts classroom. How would I guide my students to discuss topics in a civil way and connect their ideas to their academic learning? How would I ensure each student was engaged? How would I assess students? What if no one had anything to say?
But this past year, I pushed aside my own desire for control and gave more agency to my students. It was risky, especially when facing high-stakes testing and a new evaluation system. But my students were more engaged in learning than ever. And I knew that I didn't need to worry about the evaluation rubric if my students could sustain this kind of growth.

Listen, Discuss, Collaborate

Let's face it—most middle school students don't walk into our classrooms in August ready and able to participate in a Socratic seminar … or any type of academic discussion. But here's how I got them ready.
From week one, I began to set expectations about three major skills: active listening, academic discussion, and collaborative teamwork. I also worked to create a climate in which it was safe for students to speak their minds—where it's okay to take risks (and sometimes fail).
The first thing we talked about was active listening. Students need to understand that a discussion involves constant feedback and participation from all involved—and that even a listener's body language can affect the tone and focus of the discussion. I solicited and recorded students' ideas about what active listening is, creating a sort of "how-to" poster as they discussed.
During the first week, I built in lots of discussion activities in pairs, small groups, and whole-class arrangements. Students got to know one another, built a sense of community, and practiced their active-listening skills.
One of our first activities was "What's My Lie?" Students wrote three statements about themselves—two true statements and one that was a lie. I did the same, then modeled the activity: I shared my statements with a student volunteer, who then guessed which statement was a lie and explained why. I confirmed or shared the correct answers.
Next, students mingled and performed the same activity, changing partners when prompted. I reminded students about active listening and encouraged them to thank their partners in the activity.
During the early weeks of the school year, our activities were very structured, gradually becoming less so. Students learned to initiate questions or engage in discourse without my dictating the order of responses.
Early on, I introduced strategies for responding to others in a civil way that sustains the discussion: "I agree, Bobby, but I would also add ... " or "I disagree, Sally, because the text says ... " or "That reminds me of the article/text/novel that ... "
As last year got going, I realized that my new role was to facilitate learning rather than deliver it. As I moved from table to table, I modeled active listening and academic discussion for my students while at the same time getting to know them and assessing their learning.

Next Step: Introducing Socratic Seminars

I now know you should never spring a Socratic seminar on students without introducing the concept. Period. For a seminar to be truly effective, I've found my students need to know what it is, why they're doing it, what's expected of them, and how they'll be graded. They need time to prepare.
Two or three days before our first seminar, I took an entire period to introduce what Socratic seminars are like—and why we would be doing them.
Students need to understand the roles of the seminars in my classroom—and their importance. A seminar can be a discussion of articles or a novel students have read, or they can be the culminating point of an entire unit. Seminars can help students with prewriting or serve as performance-based assessments.
It is also important for students to perceive seminar participation as an exciting privilege—a chance to be responsible for their own learning. I want them to see that I am interested in their insights. The more I stress the value of the activity, the more value students place on their personal performance.
I began the first introductory session by giving students background on who Socrates was and what "Socratic" means. I introduced Socrates as an ancient Greek philosopher and teacher who valued the power of asking questions, engaging in inquiry, and discussing rather than debating.
Then we talked about the seminar's structure. I've found an inner-outer circle most effective with my 6th graders. I arrange student desks in two concentric circles. During the seminar, the inner circle discusses while the outer circle observes and assesses their inner partners. Halfway through the seminar, the groups switch roles.
I explained the seminar responsibilities of students: to be prepared with their handouts and texts, to take part in discussion when in the inner circle, and to evaluate the discussion when in the outer circle.
My favorite part was explaining my role as teacher, which is to open a Diet Coke and relax. They laughed, but by the end of the year, they realized how accurate this description had been.
This year, this introductory lesson will be followed by a class session in which we watch and analyze a video clip of a Socratic seminar in action.

Deciding What Matters: Student-Generated Rubrics

I took another risk this past year as I committed to a student-centered classroom: I decided students should play a role in designing a rubric for seminar participation.
I had initiated this process at the start of the year, when I first asked students to identify the characteristics of an active listener. Continued reflection on the "how" of our classroom activities led students to become much more aware of my expectations—and their own.
The day after I introduced the basic concept of Socratic seminars, I asked students to consider how the seminars should be evaluated.
I distributed a template with categories (participation, quality of discussion, and behavior/attitude) and scoring columns (exemplary, proficient, and emerging). I left the contents of the rubric blank, and asked student groups to generate indicators for each of the possible scores for the categories.
I recorded student contributions and solicited revisions along the way, encouraging as much specificity as possible. And I found that, given the opportunity, my students set high expectations for themselves—in part because they were so excited and honored to be able to take part in the seminars.
The rubric-building activity helps students become even more aware of what's expected on seminar day. Just to make sure we were all on the same page, I posted the rubric to my class wiki, requiring students to review it for homework and "sign" their names on the wiki page.
Many teachers have practiced this kind of student-centered instruction. But it was revolutionary for me, a teacher who once felt more comfortable with a tightly scripted plan for each lesson.
Here's what my principal said after observing a Socratic seminar in my 6th grade ELA classroom: "The only thing that could have made it more impressive was if you had just turned around and left the room."
On that day, in that moment, I became obsolete and loved it. It was then that I knew I truly had a student-centered classroom—my students were motivated and engaged enough to learn from one another without me.

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Great PRB Tips to Start the Year Off Right!


Below is a great article regarding personal relationship building with students. It’s a quick read, with 5 fantastic tips that really work! I’ve used 2-3 of the strategies this past year.
Published Online: August 7, 2012
·         Five Practices for Building Positive Relationships With Students
By Kelley Clark
The objective is posted. The Do Now is ready to go. Your well-planned lesson is aligned with state standards, includes a variety of instructional methods, and offers opportunities for both summative and formative assessments.

What might still be missing? A strong positive relationship with your students, the kind of connection that makes them want to go above and beyond in your class. They have helped me develop positive relationships with my students:

1) Leave yourself reminders on your laptop.

I only see my doctor once a year, but every time I go in, he asks about each of my children by name. Of course, I know he checks my file before he walks into the room, but it still shows me he cares and makes me want to treat him with respect.

We need to do the same for our students. That's why I often have post-it memos stuck to my laptop with reminders, such as "ask Ari about her sister" or "check on Kristi’s tennis match." I wish I could say that I am capable of remembering everything without writing it down, but those days are gone!

Recently, I casually asked Brandon, one of my sophomore students, if his father was feeling better after his accident. On his way out of class, in typical high school boy fashion, Brandon gave me a nod and quietly said, "Thanks for remembering about my dad." No matter how many times I had told the class that I cared, that one simple gesture proved it to Brandon. If I had not followed up with Brandon about his dad's accident, I would have indirectly told him that I didn't care.

2) Never let the other students see you react inappropriately to a student's comment.

I'll never forget the moment when I realized that this was a critical part of forming a positive relationship with the students in my class.

Andrew, a junior who definitely marched to the beat of his own drum and had trouble fitting in, raised his hand to answer a question. His response was not only incorrect—it was something he should have known. The room became silent. Students began glancing around and grinning awkwardly. Every eye in that classroom was on me.

In that moment, I knew that I could not let my eyes veer even slightly from Andrew's, nor could I allow the merest hint of a smile to show. Yes, by looking at the other students with a smirk, a pitiful face, or a confused look, I could have "bonded" with the class. I could have been part of the group that "got it" and knew Andrew's answer was off. Instead, I looked only at Andrew, thanked him for answering, responded quickly, and moved on.

In a single moment, all 26 kids in that class learned three important things: 1) No matter how foolish your answer is, you will not be ridiculed in this class; 2) All of my students are equally important to me; and 3) While I want to have a close relationship with you, it will never be at the expense of another student.

3) Actually use the information you receive from a first-day student survey.

While this seems obvious, I must admit that I didn't always do it. I spent years developing what I think is a pretty great first day information sheet for my high school students. Certainly I would read and reread the surveys throughout the semester—but it was only last year that I found some concrete ways to use that information.

I now make a list of the hobbies, interests, and extra-curricular activities that they write about on their surveys. I also write down their responses to such questions as, "Do you prefer to work alone or with a partner?" and "Do you like doing math?"

As a reminder to myself (I've already established that I need reminders and post-it notes!), I keep all of this information on my desk throughout the semester so I remember to use it as I group students, plan lessons, or arrange seats.

Almost every semester, some brave student asks if I'm really going to read their responses. It's a fair question.

Think about it: What does it say to a student if she writes that she doesn't like sitting in the back or working with a partner, but I seat her in the back and assign partner work without so much as a comment?

4) Schedule "bonding" time.

Before you dismiss this one, hear me out. I must admit, I'm not a fan of using icebreakers or getting-to-know-you activities at the high school level. Students work hard in my class, and I need to make sure they are learning during every available minute. In addition, with 25 to 30 students in a class, it can be a challenge to find time to bond with each one who walks through my door.

I've realized that I can get to know students effectively while they are doing problem-solving activities or small-group work. There's really no need for extra activities.

For example, while small groups of students did practice work on functions last semester, I remember walking around the class very purposefully and connecting with certain students. I used that time as an opportunity to ask about their activities or lives outside of school.

If I notice that the dynamics are off in a particular class, I will schedule an activity that does not require much guidance from me just so that I can use the time to reconnect.

5) Finally, and most simply, learn your students' names immediately.

This has been, by far, the best first-day-of-school advice I've ever received. I know it may seem like a tired old saw, but this strategy is effective. I always know my kids' names by the time they leave my classroom on the first day. In their eyes, it's a very impressive feat to learn so many names in 90 minutes. I just have to make sure they never find out that I have access to their photos and names before they ever enter the room!

If you're like me, you may sometimes get so caught up in the act of teaching that you forget the heartof teaching. Many teacher-preparation programs for secondary teachers tend to focus on content knowledge, which is obviously critical. But, in the process of mastering what I'm teaching, I don't ever want to forget whom I'm teaching.

Kelley Clark is a high school math teacher and member of the Teacher Leaders Network. She was the 2010 Secondary Teacher of the Year for Williamsburg-James City County in Virginia. She earned her graduate degree from the College of William and Mary and is currently a part of their clinical faculty program. You can follow her on Twitter @kkssclark.

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Cool Art and Music Teaching Opportunities!

Hi all, 

Gardner Pilot Academy in Allston, MA is seeking music and art teachers to work between 11:30 and 2:30 Mondays- Fridays, beginning in September.

OPEN INTERVIEWS:  August 24th from 10:00-12:00
Candidates should bring a copy of their resume, a sample lesson plan and a portfolio (optional) to Gardner Pilot Academy on August 24th

Please see the attached document for more information. I currently work at the school and it is truly an amazing place to teach!

Thanks, 

Liz Byron
AIE 08'
To contact her, email her at elizabethbyron@gmail.com. Thanks!

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

An Inspiring Letter to All Teachers....

As we begin a new school year, this easily reminds us all of why we teach. Enjoy and have a super, first day with students!


Why I Hated Meredith’s First Grade Teacher: An Open Letter to America’s Teachers

When my first born headed off to first grade, 21 years ago, she held my hand as we walked down the hallway of Will Rogers Elementary School in the Houston Independent School District. We walked into Ms. Miner’s room and Meredith’s steps grew more hesitant. This wasn’t the University of Houston Child Care Center, the place she had gone for years while I was a doctoral student at UH. This place looked different – bigger, more official. There were big-kid desks pushed together in clusters. And though there were centers, they were not the dress-up center or the cooking center or nap center or water play center of the Child Care Center.
The room was filled with children she did not yet know, with books she had not yet read, with a math center that had lost-teeth and birthday charts, and with a big poster by the door labeled, “Our Classroom Rules” that was still blank. “I don’t want to stay,” she said.  I didn’t want her to, either. I wanted her still with me, only me. I didn’t want to give up those first six years of childhood just yet, those years when her world mostly revolved around her parents and new baby brother and a silly dog with big ears and afternoons spent in our local library reading book after book after book or playing in our neighborhood park, sometimes just sitting on the grass, watching the ants march by. With every ounce of courage, I said, “Oh, you will love first grade. It was my favorite year in school. I loved my first grade teacher, Mrs. Allen, and I bet you are going to love Ms. Miner, too.” Meredith looked doubtful and so very small. And then Ms. Miner, long blond hair pulled back into a ponytail, saw us, came over, and bent down to Meredith’s level.  A first year teacher – the one I had told the principal that if he was willing to listen to requests I wanted – Ms. Miner was full of energy and excitement. She loved books, wanted to be a great teacher, and had obviously spent weeks making her room look inviting to these 22 six-year-olds.
“Oh, you’re Meredith! I recognized you from your picture! Come here and let me introduce you to some others. And let me show you all around the room. And, hey, you brought Corduroy as your favorite book and that’s one of my favorite books, too!”
And then, somehow, without me even realizing, Meredith’s small hand moved from mine to Ms. Miner’s and she was gone. She was swallowed up by the sheer joy this other woman brought into her classroom, into learning, and into my child’s life. “I guess I’ll be going now,” I said to Meredith who was busy putting school supplies away in her desk. “So, I’ll be just around the corner at our house,” I said blinking hard to keep away the tears.” I think she nodded. Perhaps she even paused to wave. My feet couldn’t move and Ms. Miner gently helped me and a few other moms out of the classroom. “She’s really shy,” I said to Ms. Miner just as Meredith sped by holding a new friend’s hand showing her “all these hooks where we can hang our backpacks.”
Meredith was breathless with excitement at the end of that day – every day – and by the end of the first week, our family had a new member: Ms. Miner. Each afternoon and for long into the evening, I had to listen to “Ms. Miner said . . .” and “Ms. Miner thinks . . .” and “Ms. Miner showed us . . .” and “Ms. Miner suggested . . .” and when I slipped and said, “Oh damn” at dinner burned in the oven, I was reminded that “Mom, Ms. Miner would never say . . .  .”  Right, I smiled through gritted teeth.  ”Ms. Miner says that manners are important,” Meredith said as she explained why we must always put our napkins in our laps, something that I swear I had mentioned a million times.
For the entire year I watched my child fall in love with school, with learning, with figuring out, and most importantly, with her first grade teacher, Ms. Miner. Meredith, who had once hated ponytails, now only wanted to wear ponytails. And blue skirts, “just like Ms. Miner’s.” “And Mom, my name starts with an M and Ms. Miner starts with an M. Isn’t that great!! We match!” Yes, Meredith, just great. Really great. Oh damn.
Though I had been a teacher for years before having Meredith, before sending her off to first grade, I had never truly understood the power of a teacher in a child’s life. We give our most precious and priceless to you – dear teachers – each year, knowing you will teach them, but also hoping you will care for them, help them discover how very much they matter, watching over them, and being there when they have been hurt by the ones who won’t let them sit at the “popular” table – and then you do just that and they fall in love with you. It shows up in different ways, as they grow older. But it’s still there, this deep affection and respect. And, certainly, it’s harder to forge those bonds when there are 150 students instead of 22, when the day is fragmented into 45 minute segments, when education seems to be more about the test than the child. But I promise, underneath that bravado of the seventh grader or swagger of the tenth grader you will find that small first grader who wonders, “Will my teacher like me?” And when that child – that teen – knows that you believe he or she matters, then that student will do most anything for you.
To this day, Meredith remembers you, Ms. Miner, and to this day, I so hated how much she loved you that year. And, simultaneously, I am so grateful that she did.
And so, teachers, across this country during the next two weeks, most of you will be opening your classroom doors in a first-day welcoming for your students.  As a teacher I am proud to stand beside you in all that you do. But as a parent, well, as a parent I stand in awe of all that you do.  And to Ms. Miner, thank you.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Building stronger student relationships....

A high school math teacher shares the strategies that have worked for her in developing strong connections with students, which shesays leads to higher achievement.

Five Practices for Building Positive Relationships With Students


The objective is posted. The Do Now is ready to go. Your well-planned lesson is aligned with state standards, includes a variety of instructional methods, and offers opportunities for both summative and formative assessments.
 
What might still be missing? A strong positive relationship with your students, the kind of connection that makes them want to go above and beyond in your class.

Can you have a good lesson without having a positive relationship with your students? Yes. But can a strong relationship lead to an even higher level of academic success? Absolutely!

As education researcher Robert Marzano has pointed out, "Positive relationships between teachers and students are among the most commonly cited variables associated with effective instruction … A weak or negative relationship will mute or even negate the benefits of even the most effective instructional strategies."

Most of us have a general sense of what "positive relationships" means in the classroom context. We learned in our teacher preparation classes that we need to encourage our students to achieve the high goals we've set, treat all students equally, and always show them respect.

But how this looks on a daily basis depends on us—our personalities, but also our strategic efforts to make sure we're building relationships.

Here are five practices that have helped me develop positive relationships with my students:

1) Leave yourself reminders on your laptop.

I only see my doctor once a year, but every time I go in, he asks about each of my children by name. Of course, I know he checks my file before he walks into the room, but it still shows me he cares and makes me want to treat him with respect.

We need to do the same for our students. That's why I often have post-it memos stuck to my laptop with reminders, such as "ask Ari about her sister" or "check on Kristi’s tennis match." I wish I could say that I am capable of remembering everything without writing it down, but those days are gone!
Recently, I casually asked Brandon, one of my sophomore students, if his father was feeling better after his accident. On his way out of class, in typical high school boy fashion, Brandon gave me a nod and quietly said, "Thanks for remembering about my dad." No matter how many times I had told the class that I cared, that one simple gesture proved it to Brandon. If I had not followed up with Brandon about his dad's accident, I would have indirectly told him that I didn't care.

2) Never let the other students see you react inappropriately to a student's comment.

I'll never forget the moment when I realized that this was a critical part of forming a positive relationship with the students in my class.

Andrew, a junior who definitely marched to the beat of his own drum and had trouble fitting in, raised his hand to answer a question. His response was not only incorrect—it was something he should have known. The room became silent. Students began glancing around and grinning awkwardly. Every eye in that classroom was on me.

In that moment, I knew that I could not let my eyes veer even slightly from Andrew's, nor could I allow the merest hint of a smile to show. Yes, by looking at the other students with a smirk, a pitiful face, or a confused look, I could have "bonded" with the class. I could have been part of the group that "got it" and knew Andrew's answer was off. Instead, I looked only at Andrew, thanked him for answering, responded quickly, and moved on.

In a single moment, all 26 kids in that class learned three important things: 1) No matter how foolish your answer is, you will not be ridiculed in this class; 2) All of my students are equally important to me; and 3) While I want to have a close relationship with you, it will never be at the expense of another student.

3) Actually use the information you receive from a first-day student survey.

While this seems obvious, I must admit that I didn't always do it. I spent years developing what I think is a pretty great first day information sheet for my high school students. Certainly I would read and reread the surveys throughout the semester—but it was only last year that I found some concrete ways to use that information.

I now make a list of the hobbies, interests, and extra-curricular activities that they write about on their surveys. I also write down their responses to such questions as, "Do you prefer to work alone or with a partner?" and "Do you like doing math?"

As a reminder to myself (I've already established that I need reminders and post-it notes!), I keep all of this information on my desk throughout the semester so I remember to use it as I group students, plan lessons, or arrange seats.

Almost every semester, some brave student asks if I'm really going to read their responses. It's a fair question.

Think about it: What does it say to a student if she writes that she doesn't like sitting in the back or working with a partner, but I seat her in the back and assign partner work without so much as a comment?

4) Schedule "bonding" time.

Before you dismiss this one, hear me out. I must admit, I'm not a fan of using icebreakers or getting-to-know-you activities at the high school level. Students work hard in my class, and I need to make sure they are learning during every available minute. In addition, with 25 to 30 students in a class, it can be a challenge to find time to bond with each one who walks through my door.

I've realized that I can get to know students effectively while they are doing problem-solving activities or small-group work. There's really no need for extra activities.

For example, while small groups of students did practice work on functions last semester, I remember walking around the class very purposefully and connecting with certain students. I used that time as an opportunity to ask about their activities or lives outside of school.

If I notice that the dynamics are off in a particular class, I will schedule an activity that does not require much guidance from me just so that I can use the time to reconnect.

5) Finally, and most simply, learn your students' names immediately.

This has been, by far, the best first-day-of-school advice I've ever received. I know it may seem like a tired old saw, but this strategy is effective. I always know my kids' names by the time they leave my classroom on the first day. In their eyes, it's a very impressive feat to learn so many names in 90 minutes. I just have to make sure they never find out that I have access to their photos and names before they ever enter the room!

If you're like me, you may sometimes get so caught up in the act of teaching that you forget the heart of teaching. Many teacher-preparation programs for secondary teachers tend to focus on content knowledge, which is obviously critical. But, in the process of mastering what I'm teaching, I don't ever want to forget whom I'm teaching.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Annual Mindset List


Always an interesting read. #20 made me think of some of my students. I hope you enjoy this!

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Can technology REALLY replace real teachers?

It's a scary thought. As districts and states look for more efficient ways to operate, they are turning to technological approaches that some see as a threat to teacher jobs.


Published Online: August 7, 2012
Published in Print: August 8, 2012, as When Technology Tools Trump Teachers

Can Technology Replace Teachers?


Nancy Bujnowski, a French and German teacher who was laid off from Eagle Valley High School before officials adopted an online learning program, calls friends to help her make a last-minute move to Colorado Springs, Colo. She was recently hired by that school system.
—Nathan W. Armes for Education Week

Quality debated as districts tap tech over teachers

Premium article access courtesy of Edweek.org.
Of all the recent budget cuts made by the Eagle County, Colo., school district—the loss of 89 staff jobs through attrition and layoffs, a 1.5 percent across-the-board pay cut, and the introduction of three furlough days—none sparked as much anger or faced the same scrutiny as the decision to cut three foreign-language teaching positions and replace them with online instruction.
At a spring school board meeting, supporters of the targeted programs in French and German, as well as the affected teachers, railed against the 6,200-student district for replacing face-to-face instructors with a digital option they argued would not be as rich or as meaningful.
The highly charged response reflects the fear many teachers are beginning to feel that technology could push them out of their jobs, especially in an era of persistently tight budgets. Emerging management models that rely on a smaller number of highly paid teachers supported by new technology and a larger roster of relatively low-paid paraprofessionals are also fueling such fears.
Those worries seem likely to grow, even though younger teachers and many veterans appreciate the teaching potential of the Internet and digital devices, and educational technology advocates insist the teacher is still essential to any technology-based effort to improve schools.
Brian Childress, the Eagle County schools’ human resources director, said his department recommended keeping face-to-face instructors for Spanish and Chinese because of higher enrollments in those courses, but also suggested cuts in the arts at the high school level and other cuts of staff in the elementary and middle grades.
“I’m surprised that we didn’t have an equal amount of attention for all the pieces that we had to do,” he said.
It’s unclear whether the concerns dramatized by the action in Eagle County, about 120 miles west of Denver, are justified on a broad scale.
Most administrators say decisions such as the district’s move to offer students online French and German courses are more reflective of extraordinary budget circumstances than an institutional desire to cut staffing.
Further, developers of even the most sophisticated learning technologies insist their goal is to help make teaching a more efficient and effective profession, not a less relevant one. Teachers’ unions and other teacher advocates also appear to vary greatly in their openness toward technology initiatives according to the policy and economic climates in different states and districts.
“It’s not only about how do you bring teachers into these new roles so it is not disruptive to their own livelihood and so forth, but how you bring about these roles to ensure it brings about a better education system,” said Michael Horn, the co-founder and executive director of the Mountain View, Calif.-based Innosight Institute’s education practice. He is an advocate of blended learning, which mixes online and face-to-face instruction.
“The thing is, you’ve got 5 percent of teacher training that is focused on 95 percent of your job,” Mr. Horn added, regarding how poorly he says the content of current teacher training matches the demands of teachers in a technologically integrated classroom. “It’s terrifying for an individual and terrifying for a system.”

New Roles?

Mr. Horn is among several educational technology leaders who say they see technology’s role as enabling improvements to make teachers more focused and efficient.
For example, Joel Rose, a self-proclaimed follower of Mr. Horn and a former educational-human-resources director for the 1.1 million-student New York City school system, founded the School of One math program in the city in 2009 on the idea that a combination of adaptive online content from multiple vendors could be the primary source of instruction for students. The role for teachers then becomes to intervene when students encounter difficulty with a computerized lesson, ideally with different teachers having different specializations in a manner similar to a team of doctors at a hospital.
By co-founding the New York City-based New Classrooms Innovation Partners in January, and breaking away from the city school district, Mr. Rose is trying to carry the model to a handful of new districts.
If implemented more broadly, the model likely wouldn’t affect the total number of positions, but it could mean a restructuring of compensation with a few highly paid expert teachers and a broader base of lesser-paid paraprofessionals.
One in a series of briefs released last week by Public Impact, an education policy and management-consulting firm in Chapel Hill, N.C., estimated that such an approach could result in a 41 percent increase in compensation for those more expert instructors.
The briefs resulted from the organization’s examination of 20 alternative models of schooling that have been researched through its Opportunity Culture Initiative, which is funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. (The Gates Foundation also helps fund Education Week’s coverage of business and innovation.)

Intellectual Tasks

Richard J. Murnane, an economist by training and a professor of education and society at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, says such a restructuring driven by technology would mirror the effect technology has already wrought in other industries.
With an increase in automation, jobs in education would likely shift toward three functions he says are difficult to computerize: expert thinking and complex communication; solutions to new problems; and service jobs.
But because the demands of the school system itself are changing, Mr. Murnane suggests that the future education system may include a larger number of higher-paying positions that involve thinking, communicating, and problem-solving.
“Effectively, the country is asking our schools to provide all students with skills that, 40 years ago, only a small percentage mastered,” Mr. Murnane said, referring to the new push for college and career readiness. “So that’s just a dramatic new demand on the nation’s educators, and it’s important in my mind to frame it that way.”
But at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, researchers at the school’s Language Technologies Institute believe they are exploring the kinds of technologies that could aid even those more sophisticated tasks through natural-language processing, the science of how computers can interact with human language.
Although Carolyn P. Rosé, an associate professor at the institute, and her research team gained publicity for participating in a recent analysis of automated essay graders, that work flowed out of more in-depth explorations of using computer analysis to moderate student online discussions and analyze individual student contributions to collaborative projects.
Those technologies, such as a computerized persona that can contribute comments to a class message board, have been tested in middle and high school classrooms in the 25,000-student Pittsburgh school system, but Ms. Rosé said they are not yet “stable enough” to be offered to other school systems.
When those technologies are perfected, they will ideally help a teacher keep tabs on small-group work completed outside of class, while informing students of the type of information they should contribute to larger-group discussions during class, says Ms. Rosé.
She acknowledges that she could also foresee a scenario in which a cash-strapped district might use the technology to increase teacher courseloads, even in classes emphasizing collaborative learning.
“I would definitely say our goal is to work with teachers and support the instruction teachers are doing,” Ms. Rosé said. But, she added, “I don’t have any moral concern about what we’re doing, because even if it’s misused, … even if they don’t have the opportunity to have [smaller class sizes], then I would say at least they’re getting [the technology].”

Arguments in Idaho

It’s an issue Ms. Rosé has dealt with only in theory. Developers and proponents of virtual education, however, are now seeing arguments over the use of their technology to replace teachers sprout across the country.
Nowhere has the issue been more pronounced than in Idaho. State Superintendent Tom Luna successfully pushed a three-piece education package that includes a mandate for all high school students to pass two online courses to graduate, and for all Idaho high schools to provide 1-to-1 computing environments out of their district budgets within the next five years.
The Idaho Education Association, an affiliate of the 3 million-member National Education Association, opposed the legislation all the way through to its passage and has led a successful effort to put Mr. Luna’s “Students Come First” package to a referendum in this fall’s general election.
Without specific state aid provided for the technology changes, the IEA maintains that the requirements would result in districts being forced to cut teacher positions to find funding for the package. And although most of the online courses students would take would have a human instructor, the IEA claims those courses would generally be provided by for-profit companies that it says skimp on hiring and paying qualified instructors in order to maximize profits.
“We know that online providers, as they have done in the past, will continue to use fewer teachers to teach more students,” said IEA President Penni Cyr. “That equates to a loss of teaching positions if you are requiring online courses.”
Mr. Luna counters that most teachers are actually indifferent to or in favor of the digital-learning provisions in the legislation, but instead oppose the two other major provisions, which curb unions’ collective bargaining rights and impose performance-based-pay measures. He says the IEA has directed its scorn at the digital-learning requirements because that issue is an easier sell to the general public.
“It’s easier to get parents riled up over laptops and online classes than it is over labor issues,” Mr. Luna said. “So they chose to focus on replacing teachers with laptops.”
Nationally, union attitudes toward technology’s impact on teachers appear more nuanced than simple opposition. In June, in an apparent endorsement of digital-learning practices, the 1.5 million-member American Federation of Teachers announced the launch of a digital-content repository designed to give members access to learning objects aligned to the Common Core State Standards.
In Arizona, where more than 36,000 students enrolled in multi-district virtual schools during the 2010-11 school year, the state teachers’ union has indicated that its concern is not virtual schools themselves, but their implementation in a district as a cost-saving measure.
“Teachers get excited when you put these issues in terms of innovation and teaching students better,” said Andrew F. Morrill, the president of the Arizona Education Association, an NEA affiliate. “Where teachers get sensitive is when teachers get the impression that the legislature is not concerned about quality.”

'Cutting Good People'

In Colorado’s Eagle County, where three foreign-language instructors lost their jobs, and students in French and German classes were given the option of continuing their studies online, a perceived lack of quality in the online alternative appeared to rankle teachers, parents, and community members.
Mr. Childress, the human resources director, concedes that offering only the online courses isn’t ideal.
“We are cutting good people, and we are cutting good programs, and we know that,” said Mr. Childress, who says the decision to lay off French and German instructors was made based on student demand, and came well before an online substitute was explored as a possibility. “It’s not what we want to do.”
One teacher who lost her job, Nancy Bujnowski, disputes that position, saying that the administration and district parents had not considered foreign languages—aside from Spanish—as important to students’ education because they had little exposure to practical uses for French and German in Eagle County.
In fact, Ms. Bujnowski says, that lack of regard for other foreign languages proves that administrators were thinking first about which courses to cut before they explored any sort of online replacement, because if they had been thinking of the two hand in hand, they might have considered cutting instructors in courses that more easily lent themselves to online instruction.
“One of my fellow teachers said to me, ‘I don’t see them cutting out the math program and doing it on a computer. Wouldn’t that be the most logical?’ ” said Ms. Bujnowski, who, after 21 years at the district’s Eagle Valley High School, will take a new job teaching French in Colorado Springs this fall. “It’s all finances. The first thing they always think of is the money part of it.”

Computer vs. Teachers

Ms. Bujnowski also said computerized programs like those promoted by Arlington, Va.-based Rosetta Stone, which are marketed to the public at-large in addition to educational institutions, also give the public a sense that computerized foreign-language instruction is suitable to replace a flesh-and-blood teacher.
However, Gregg Levin, the senior vice president of school solutions for Aventa Learning, a subsidiary of Herndon, Va.-based K12 Inc., said that the French and German instruction and curriculum his company will be providing the Eagle County district will include feedback from a live—albeit remotely located—teacher and much more oversight.
He said the district should understand the nature of the Aventa Learning courses since the company previously offered courses to students in the district’s Vail Ski and Snowboard Academy.
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“They were looking to support a student population that is a natural fit for online learning,” Mr. Levin said of the company’s work with the academy, which serves elite-level youth skiers and snowboarders who are unusually mobile and under obligations for their time. “We’ve created a purposefully flexible model so we can expand and contract however school districts want to run their program.”
If districts are going to use online courses to help cut costs, they should try to give teachers in brick-and-mortar schools some ownership of those courses, said Todd Yohey, the superintendent of the 8,100-student Oak Hills district in suburban Cincinnati. His district switched to a mandatory online health course before the 2010-11 school year.
While Mr. Yohey acknowledges that the decision was partially budget-driven —and that the retirement of three health teachers made the decision to implement a cheaper online option easier—the Oak Hills district also bought proprietary rights to the course material, allowing other teachers in the health and physical education department to tweak the course as they saw fit.
“I think providing ownership of the online programs is critical to its success,” Mr. Yohey said. “You don’t want to create a competitive environment, where teachers feel like they’re competing for students with an online option.”
“Our hope is that our classroom teachers are also the online facilitators,” he said. “That’s our goal.”