Meetings

Subtitle: too many cooks spoil the broth

We are preparing for the entire scheduling process for next school year (it's an enormously complex undertaking). Almost every school finds themselves behind the eight-ball in late August and vows to start earlier next year. Our high school secretary, Tech-assistant, and myself planned a meeting this morning to get the ball rolling. We invited several others who we felt had a great deal of experience/knowledge to contribute to the planning. Our guidance counselor, middle and high school principals, and the Tech-head all showed up. Our plan had been to lay out a timeframe, and gather some basic information to start the process.

Last year, we used our new computer system to schedule the entire district. It was a massive learning experience. And when I say we, I mean the high school secretary, tech-assist and I did it all. I volunteered about 50 hours during June to learn the computer system and begin the build process. None of the other invested parties bothered to learn anything about how it worked. Head-tech implemented a system change over in July before the new master schedule was built which instantly disabled many of the built in computer tools. Principals 'forgot' to inform us about minor things like teacher changes, class requirements, new electives, other pieces that added up to about another 70 hours of work. Counselor was too computer phobic to tackle the entire process (he has since come around and is much better).

Even with these hurdles, which are completely typical of any school, our trio managed to make some initial mistakes that only became apparent much later. There was a great deal of sweating by all involved with less than two days to go in August but we pulled it off.

Having learned massive amounts of useful skills and some key things to avoid, the trio went into this morning's meeting with huge expectations. What we got were the usual suspects once again not understanding the process and what we could actually do. They spent the entire meeting rehashing old arguments that are irrelevant or beyond our control. Instead of gather the information we needed from the individuals who are supposed to have it, we spent the meeting defending our ability to complete the task. We were the ones who pulled it off last year while learning the system and yet the sentiment seemed to be that it wouldn't work this year. The really frustrating thing was that the doubters didn't seem to realize that we weren't discussing an optional task. It has to be done and it has to be done with the computer system! Why not contribute what we need now and save the rhetoric for later?

Color me bemused with a tint of frustration.

End of Semester Reflection

Finished the typical marathon of grading that goes along with the end of a semester. 210 pages of chemistry homework, 21 chemistry exams, 75 biology exams, 6 physics exams, 20 8-page research papers, 20 in-class essays and 1 1/2 red pens later, I'm done. Only took 20 hours, off the clock of course.

A couple of thoughts

1 - allowing biology students to right their own semester final is time consuming but gives much better student results

2 - chemistry students still haven't learned the difference between writing down a correct answer in homework and learning material

3 - small class sizes (8 or less) is so much more enjoyable for the teacher and I assume for the students

4 - need to seriously revamp the research paper assignment in anatomy class
a - I really appreciate the proofreading and writing skills drilled into me by my high school English teachers!
b - the internet has destroyed (not enhanced) students' research skills
c - it is nearly impossible to assess a student's understanding of science if they are unable to compose a complete and coherent sentence (I feel like a grammar instructor more than a science teacher)

5 - I can see the light at the end of the tunnel! I get to start my Ecology class after break. It includes cladistics and phylogeny, Blue Planet, E.O. Wilson and most importantly bird identification!

The Entitled Generation

Had a student make a request from me that I find funny and annoying at the same time. Since my school is on a block schedule, I have only had 38 total class days with my biology classes this semester. This is even counting lost days to assemblies and standardized testing. School attendance policy is six absences (not counting school activities) before you lose credit. If a student goes over, they have to appeal for the credit through an outside review board. This justifiably eliminates the responsibility of teachers determining whether an absence is reasonable enough to deserve credit. All we have to do is mark the student present or absent, no whining, no excuses.

One of my veteran students (repeating the class) has a total of ten absences. That means she missed over 25% of the entire semester. That is equivalent to an entire month gone. Now she wants a letter from me to the review board to support her appeal. Her grades are passing (barely) and this time around she has turned in all of her work. Somehow that makes it OK in her mind to miss as much class as she wants. I'm supposed to be on her side when it was my class she was skipping? I don't think so! I'm girding my loins for the eventual tantrum she'll throw tomorrow when I break the news. It won't be the first; and, if she doesn't get the credit, it won't be the last!

Update: A pleasant surprise, when informed that I wouldn't write the letter, my student did not over react. She simply said "OK" and moved on, no pleading and no demands for explanation. Maybe she really is maturing. Now, I kind of hope that her appeal is approved.