The Opinions and Philosophies that Guide My Actions and Programs Teachers are interesting creatures, each with their own views and personality. It never ceases to amaze me how kids adapt to so many different teachers over the 12+ years of their academic career. I certainly had my share of eccentric teachers over the years, and spent a good amount of trying to predict their moods and actions. In order to avoid the possibility that my students would have to put any energy or worry into trying to figure out what I believe or why I do the things I do, I have written them here... in fairly random order, with varying degrees of explanation and at distinct risk of audience-less self-indulgence. Student Freedom and Self-Responsibility: This topic has to be first because it is closest to my heart and at the root of my teaching philosophy. The principal that first hired me to Kennedy always dealt with students in a way as to give them "dignity and respect," and that credo of his has rung true with me as well. Students sense deeply that I care about them and value them as individuals, regardless of their academic, social, or discipline status. I try to treat kids with a high level of dignity and respect, often combined with a bit of humor and an unwavering level of honesty. This translates to a wide range of unwritten class policies as well as the myriad of instantaneous interactions in and out of the classroom. There are some freedoms in my room that are uncommon and perhaps unorthodox -- but not unanalyzed. I believe that if students are given freedom to make their own decisions in many areas, and are held accountable for the results of those decisions, then the foundations for lifelong lessons are learned. The privileges and trust that I give kids are granted at the onset of the year and thrive as long as they are respected and honored. Students, don't expect me to give you the quick answer to your question or to tell you right from wrong -- life's greatest lessons are best learned through experience, tenacity, and introspection. My job is to provide the cleanest connection between your actions and their effects and to give you the trust and support to create your own web of knowledge and values from those connections. About Copying, Cheating and Self-Deception: In this area I have watched the personal integrity and moral strength of students decline over the past 20 years of teaching and it concerns and saddens me. More kids cheat, to a greater degree, more often, and with more impunity every year. Now, having said that, I can also understand why it is happening. The pressure students are under has grown, their invisibility amidst the school has grown, and the technology that enables them to copy has grown. Although I don't approve of cheating, I do accept that it happens -- I try to be an optimistic realist. My message to students about cheating has much more to do with practicality than it does about morality. I try to explain that IF a student copies another person's assignment, then they need to admit to themselves that they aren't learning or gaining anything from the assignment, except for perhaps a bit of handwriting practice. If a kid cheats and receives a high score, they should be careful not to fall victim to the false belief that they understand the material. Instead, I feel that they should make a contract with themselves to learn the material some other way. The student who receives a B on authentic work has much more to be proud of than the student who receives an A on unauthentic work. Class Pets and Aquariums: For the first few years of my career, my classroom was quite crowded -- even if no people were around. We had snakes, toads, marine fish, insects, plants, and a guest bird or two. But I learned a harsh reality of life after a few years: They die. Every animal that I have had in my class has died before its natural time, and I like animals too much to continue that trend. Perhaps the animals sense that I don't believe that they should be confined to cages in a classroom in the first place and they interpret that as being unwelcome. Or maybe I just don't take care of them well enough and adaptation to their non-natural environment simply takes too long. Whatever the cause, animals (and even plants) never do well in my room and so I don't have them around any more. If you have something at home that you are willing to bring in for a day, please let me know so I can make time in the daily schedule for the class to learn about your plant or animal (or fungus, or protist, or bacteria) -- don't let my bad luck with classroom pets limit the experiences that the kids in your class can have! Modified Instruction and Self-Advocacy: There are many many different learning styles and almost as many teaching styles. The chances that a student's learning style completely matches a teacher's instructional style are quite slight, but when there is a match it is extremely powerful -- the kind of situation that makes a lifetime impression on all involved. More likely, however, some adaptation has to be made by a teacher and the learner to best facilitate an "effective compromise." As a kid I spent enough time in situations that were outside of mainstream instruction to realize that the most powerful things that I had to learn were the nature of my own learning style, the tools and tact of self-advocacy, and an understanding of the limits of an education system designed to manage the masses. My parents, teachers, aides, and administrators gave me a great deal of responsibility as well as support as they challenged me to build my strengths, devise alternatives, and achieve high standards. As a teacher, I believe strongly that students of all abilities should set the bar high, maintain a triad of strong parent-student-teacher communication, and take the lion's share of the responsibility for their own academic, social, and moral education. I resist situations in which students with special needs/abilities are passive within the dynamics of their own educational programs and am strongly opposed to the silent epidemic of lowered expectations, politically-correct assessments, and social promotion. None of those things will serve the student, the educational system, or the society in which they operate. The Teacher-Friend Balance: In college I wrote a paper entitled "Students Learn Best From Teachers That They Like." It espoused naive ideas of student-teacher partnerships in learning and a school wide climate of camaraderie and common purpose. Although experience and age have tempered my views slightly, I still feel strongly that without the interpersonal tension and adversity that often plagues teacher-student interactions, classroom learning can be an enjoyable process for all parties involved. I have seen some situations in which a teacher striving for the friendly environment lost sight of the priorities and let the learning goals get overshadowed and their adult status get compromised. When faced with a decision to be the teacher OR the friend to the students, I would choose the former, BUT it is my passionate contention and personal experience that both can exist simultaneously. Teaching Is A Well-Compensated Profession: Someday I will write something here that will alienate me from my colleagues who see teaching as an underpaid and unappreciated endeavor. I feel quite the opposite. In my opinion the money is fine, especially considering the job security, the contractual working days and hours (187 days at 7ish hours per day), and the relative autonomy. Add to those, the amount of parent support, the fun interactions with students, and the unending supply of energy and helpfulness that constantly exudes from the students, and you've got an incredibly rewarding profession. Until the someday that I get the courage to voice my uncommon perspective more loudly, I'll stay quiet in my own little appreciative utopia. My Presumptuous Postulate on Parenting and the Pre-Adolescent: The following excerpt is from the first issue of the "Heumann Happenings" Newsletter: "As kids make the journey through seventh grade, they may experience adventures like none other that they have known before. They are well prepared for the road ahead. Many are equipped with a good sense of direction but no map or itinerary can provide a complete lay of the land or prevent the blind curevs and bumps in the road, so their skills may be tested from time to time. I will try to support them with a balance of guidance and freedom, compassion and objectivity, and most importantly, trust and responsibility. Thanks for trusting me to help guide your travelers along their most amazing journey through middle school." The following 4 questions don't really belong on this page, but they do describe my teaching philosopies fairly well. Please forgive the self-promoting tone -- they are from a job application! 1.
Describe your background in implementing thematic, developmental
learning in a classroom setting. In the early 1990's,
during the formative years of my teaching career, my principal hand
picked me to help design, build, pilot, and evaluate a thematic
teaching approach for middle schoolers. I, along with three other
teachers and 180 students, created the first "village" at Kennedy
Middle School in Cupertino which quickly grew into a district-wide
model for effective education. My science and math curricula were thus
built with strong and natural connections to the other disciplines. For
example, in that pilot village, I headed up the creation of a
cross-disciplinary unit called "The Pyramid of Discovery" in which the
students explored the behind-the-scenes aspects of a well known
discovery or invention in order to uncover the less-known details about
what people, controversies, or issues may have been involved. The
students discovered that there were often research assistants of
minority or color who were crucial to the outcome but unknown to the
public, or that the discovery strayed from the accepted paradigm of
science at the time. In addition to learning about the scientific
method as required by the California State Standards, they went much
deeper by uncovering (rather than just covering) the content. Though
the project was highly collaborative, it did require my leadership,
persistence, and understanding of the power of thematic student-driven
learning. It was an amazing experience for all of us and set the tone
for my long-term career. In the decades since that first project and
pilot village, I've had the great fortune of working with professional
learning communities to create and refine a yearlong life science curriculum of highly effective lessons that tap into the strengths and
dispositions of middle schoolers. My psychology
degree with it's focus on cognition, my knowledge of learning theory
instructional design, and my constantly growing knowledge of science
content and teaching strategies have put me in a unique position to be
an effective educator, colleague, and champion for education.
As a parent I also believe strongly
in the education of the whole child and the power of thematic and
developmentally aligned educational practices. My wife and I chose to
put our daughter at Christa McAuliffe Elementary school because of our
convictions regarding that kind of education, and since then, all three
of our children have attended and thrived in an International
Baccalaureate School. Thematic learning is deeply entrenched in my
learning, teaching, and parenting strengths. 2. Describe the types of teaching
methods you believe work best in a learning environment that promotes
supporting the whole child and developing life long learners. Providing relevance is of paramount importance in the middle school years because it is a time when lifelong decisions are made about keeping curiosity alive and setting the stage for a healthy, balanced, and effective academic career. The final "R" of the three stresses the fact that education is not an independent or solitary venture. In work, in school, in family, and in community, the individual is a part of many diverse relationships. As a teacher I create lessons and experiences that tap into the power of connectivity and communication. Peer interactions, cross-age collaborations, and a high level of discussion and discourse all catalyze learning, and my students develop knowledge, skills, and attitudes that extend far beyond the classroom and timeframe that we share. They are challenged yet always feel supported, their learning is both conceptual and concrete and always connected to their whole world, and by interacting with each other, they become passionate and active members of a learning community.
Great Quotes about Teaching & Learning:
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