Week Six Open Thread: How's It Going?

It's now roughly Week Six of the school year, and -- in theory -- things are settling down.  Or are they?  That's what I'm wondering.  How are things really going?

Specifically, did progress reports for the first five weeks get done (and how is everyone doing)?  Are class schedules and assignments finally set and reasonable?  Are formative assessments and other pretests done and out of the way?  Is whatever new curricula or approach you're doing working out?  Have the walkthroughs started yet?  How are your kids/parents/ colleagues/supervisors this year?

Here's your chance -- let us (and other CPS folks) hear about it.

Comments

Things are going REALLY well.
Progress reports? done on time.
Schedule/class rosters? Set by the second week.
Kids? Fantastic
Parents? Very nice.
Supervisors? Supportive. Yeah, that's right. At my school, they rock.
I consider myself unbelievably lucky.

[alexander]

great to hear -- good news is good, and hard to come by.

everyone's going to want to know what school you're at, or at least what type of school -- neighborhood, magnet, selective, MAAP?

also, can you tell us what part of town?

[methusaleh]

My school year is going well. We have a new principal who actually speaks to the staff as if we are human beings. He is bright and asks for teacher imput. He can actually read, interpret and utilize data in order to make instructional decisions. The students and the parents were always fantastic no matter where I worked. A good administrator is the single most important variable at a school. Good administrators retain and attract good teachers. It really is that simple.

Ok, someone give me the update at Brooks College Preparatory.

Things are not going so well at Richards Career Academy. Class sizes are down but teacher positions still have not been filled. Our freshmen attend many classes that do not even have a regular teacher but a sub(remember subs are cheaper !!) A young talented history teacher was cut and is currently teaching P.E. The school librarian is being forced to teach five history classes in the library. Why not give the cut history teacher the history classes? That makes too much sense. No, I am not making this up. The union has been out and has done nothing. S.O.S (Save Our School)

Anyone hear about the security breach at four or five west side elementary schools on Friday? Someone posing as a parent wandered through the halls, stealing money and car keys a from teachers' desks, purses and coats. A car was stolen and he used it to drive to the other schools.Have you seen anything about this in the news? Our security people say there has been no bulletin. Feel safe?

I'm wondering how case managers are doing without any special education reporting capabilities at the four IMPACT pilot schools.

I read the short report on the fight at Marshall. It sounded like school security and the assigned CPS were overwhelmed. Was it outside CPD that used pepper spray?

By the way it was nice to hear that some teachers are finding themselves in better situations this year so far.

Isn't Marshall the school that just got one of those super principals, the guy from Lane Tech?

Our year is off to a strong start-- teachers and parents happy, progress reports home. Late arrival of ISAT scores was a headache. No data to analyze in first three days of staff development. Cuts of our special ed aides(an an unexpected influx of special ed kids) is a headache. It seems impossibly hard to get crisis help for a severely disturbed kid. I'm furious at how NCLB kids and families were treated (the bus situation is nearly cruel-- families travel far to get to the bus and kids then travel FAR to get to our school).

[Andrew Martinek]

6th week is a mixed bag. Despite the overcrowding at Gage Park we've been able to keep things fairly well buttoned down. Of course, this is Spirit Week and Homecoming so the kids are losing it without the uniform policy. I've hear of a few fights this week and one of my AP students keeps getting jumped by gang bangers. Hopefully, this nonsense goes away next week but some of it usually lingers. I'm really pleased with the people I have the opportunity to mentor for their National Board for Professional Teaching Standards this year. There is a truly dedicated group in our cohort. I'm confident they will all complete, which is a big change from when I went through the program. CPS is really getting this one right. I'm also impressed with many of the new teachers at my school this year. Many of them came through Teach for America, and they are really working out well and fun to mentor. Even the department chair duties are going well. The collaboration among our teachers has been very strong and our curriculum maps are getting done; although I am a little uneasy about what my responsibility is to the guys at the "Area Instructional Office." We seem to be doing just fine without them. I suspect CPS could save a lot of money and lower our class sizes if they took all those middlemen and stuck them back in the classroom. After all, if they are such good educators, shouldn't they be out here showing us how it's done? Otherwise, classes are still too big and people seem unwilling to commit to a schedule or want to change or cancel things at the last minute which throws a wrench into the plans we make to accommodate them in the first place. Typical CPS stuff. I'd definitely like to see more parents organizing as well. There are small pockets beginning, but nothing solid yet. Hopefully this will build. But the worst thing is that I've been fighting a nasty flu bug for 3 weeks now and I really can't afford to miss a day with my students. I already took 2 last week and it just comes roaring back. No matter how explicit the instructions, things never happen the way you want when you're not there. BTW, I noticed that Veteran's Day isn't listed as a holiday for us this year. What's up with that?

[sean]

Everything is fine with me, but some of the new teachers seem to be freaking out, specifically about grades and grading. They're beginning to realize it is physically impossible to grade every piece of work every student completes, and haven't figured out their system of what to grade and how. Also, they're not sure how to assign grades to work, since there are so many individual differences between students and their work. I truly believe grades, for the most part, are b.s. All grades seem to accomplish is to create an academic pecking order within the classroom, and really only further to inflate or deflate the egos of children and their parents. Rarely does anyone ask why they received the grades and how to improve their work. By middle school most kids seem so set in their expectations of grades that it becomes self-fulfilling. Grades are even less meaningful because in CPS, the students can only fail in 3rd, 6th, and 8th grades. I'm only a 3rd year teacher but I have my own system, but I was wondering what veteran teachers might suggest.

[anonymous]

A reponse to Sean. My bullet proof system for grading 100 to 140 high school students. All written work, assuming it is turned in which is a big if, is graded on a simple rubric. The rubric is explained the first two weeks of school and the actual curriculum for English I, or II is not implemented until the third week. I hate to admit this but the rubric I use is based on a rubric that was once used on the written part of the state assessment. If you dod not teach the rubric to kids you cannot expect them to be graded on its application.

I have my own highly structured first two weeks lesson plan for teaching the rubric along with classroom work and homework. Kids who have me two years in a row find it boring, but that is life. Needless to say what I teach the first two weeks is not exactly what appears in my lesson plan.

The rubric application includes classroom work, such as answers to text book driven questions and longer essays.

Needless to say the kids are given an explanation of the grading weight of the various assingments and reading content tests. I use the same basic approach for both English I and II and when I had to teach US History I did the same.

I am highly structured because of the student volume I am faced with due to teaching 5 classes with 2 different preps. Kids are never allowed to turn in work late, and are never allowed to make up missed work at the end of a marking period. It goes without saying I use the electronic grading system (Infusion Exchange)that is linked to our school's website. Students and parents can view the status on a constant basis I also print out kids info and give it to them two weeks before the quarter is over. My failure rate averages around 45%.

The Infusion Exchange system is wonderful once you master it. But you must keep it up because kids and parents will be on you if you do not input grades for the various assingments. Also you can look like a real fool on parent night if a smart parent sees that you are falling behind.

In stead of allowing students to make up late assignments I have a system of unused similar assignments that I will allow a student to use to raise their grade. I also have several sets of modified assingments for students with disabilities whose IEPs require them.

You must be structured to be an urban teacher. You can not give out more work you are required to grade than you have time to grade it. This must be the case even if you can not cover all the material you are required to cover based on CPS/State Standards. You have to pick the areas you will not require work products or assessments for when you have this many kids. It is not fair, but if things were fair I would not have 140 students to grade would I?

The main thing I am concerned with is that students can write in a structured way when they are done with my class. Most urban students in general high schools even with close to grade level reading skills cannot write very well. That may be an understatement actually.

I do not abandon the curriculum to teach writing, but to be honest most kids do not care much for Poe or Byron, so I use the curriculum to teach kids how to write to the best of my ability.

At the high school level things get easier after Xmas, because many of the kids who are failing stop showing up in general high schools I have taught in. Needless to say my principal would stroke out if he read this, so I will remain anonymous.

[Kugler]

Kids do not have lockers yet.

Anonymous at 3:40pm Oct-12

Are you concerned about a 45% failure rate?

[anonymous]

In regards to the 45% failure rate. No I am not concerned. Since we have gone to the electronic grading system I have been able to track my grading. Of my 45% failing 20% must be failed due to lack of attendance. Another 15% have turned in few assingments, have not used make up assingments, and failed most tests. The last 10% have submitted work products that have failed the rubric standards because of a real lack of effort, along with poor test scores.

Because I do give modified class work and homework assignment to students with IEPs some of these kids are also failed. The special education teachers have objected. But I have provided resource teachers with these assingments well in advance of their due dates and I have found that they have done little or nothing to help the kids to complete them. I have also requested that special ed teachers create modified assingments for kids they believe cannot deal with the ones I have created. They look at me like I am crazy.

Moreover, I have consistently emailed special ed teachers when tests are approaching. I have provided them with modified tests and allowed testing to be done in seperate settings for some special education students. Most of the special ed staff seem so overwhelmed, that they do not react until after I have issued an F for the kid on their case load.

My failure rate is well supported by documentation and when the issue has been raised to me by APs I have provided them with this documentation. I will not discuss with administrators lowering the failure rate abstractly. I will not lower my standards to achieve that goal.

I also will not do individual tutoring with kids. The reason for this is my class load is simply to large and in order to survive I can not do it. I stay at school 1-11/2 hours each day beyond the school day in order to not bring work home.

I guess this is not a pretty picture, but it is the truth. I have to go to work, I have a second period class.

IMPACT is coming...

anonymous

Some more questions.

I have heard regular classroom teachers raise concerns before about getting assistance from SpecialEd teachers. Don't you teach as a team? What has been the response of your department chair and AP to your complaint that Spec. Ed teachers are not helping the students?

You have about 100 - 140 students and 20% (~20-28) don't attend often enough to pass the semester (or year)? At 5 weeks that would mean they have missed about 5 days or more so far.?. Do you know if the students are missing school or just cutting your class? Where are the athletes and incentives promoting attendance?

Have you heard from parents of students at risk of failing since progress reports were sent home? Does anybody - guidance counselor - division teacher - contact or try to meet with students individually or their parents to find out what is going on or to offer help? If you're not concerned about your failure rate or the students' failure rates, then who is? Maybe some parents don't know how to help their children or get help for them.

I wonder how many parents access the web of grades and assignments.

Has anyone talked to the children about the importance of their GPA and college?

Does your high school have the AVID program? Are students in AVID at risk of failing?
Does your high school have a Female Initiative or Male Initiative?

In view of your high failure rate, have you considered other instructional approaches to try to engage your students? It sounds like your "rubric" isn't working.

[anonymous]

If you could look at the failure rate at the school I am at you will see that 47% of the freshmen over the last few years are failing one or more classes. So my failure rate is not exceptional.

I have taught at other general high schools where the failure rate is higher.

I have co-taught with special education teachers. I saw a dramatic reduction in the failure rate for these students when the special education teacher was actively engaged in the curriculum. But there was a down side and that was the co-taught classes were larger than average, usually around 35 students in total with 30-35% special education students.

My best experience co-teaching was with an incrediably bright Korean-American special education teacher. I still use some of the modified lesson plans that she developed. However, she left after two years and took a job at Hinsdale Central I think. The last I heard she was now a stay at home mom, I would guess she is a great mom by the way.

The reality is that no CPS general high school can provide co-taught classes for the majority of its special education students who are not so disabled that they are self contained. Therefore many, many kids get only what is called consultative support. Which turns out often to be no support at all.

My experience with failure due to lack of attendance is that it begins in the second quarter in a major way. Kids get demoralized I guess, give up hope they can pass, hook up with kids that are cutting, etc.

I have had parents save their children due to progress reports. But the sad fact is that by the time my school actually sends them out it is two weeks before the end of the quarter. Many kids that I have failed are being raised by extended family members, in particular grandparents who are far too old to be raising urban teenagers.

The kids do go on line to look at their current grade status. In fact when I have made errors they let me know about it. Any parent can email me. Out of 140 kids probably only 20 ever contact me that way over the course of a school year. Only about half of the parents of kids in my divison show up for report card pick up. I have seen it worse elsewhere.

I have no doubt that I could lower my failure rate to some extent by reducing the level of writing I demand of kids. But I feel that the elementary schools are feeding us kids who have been drilled on test taking skills and not writing skills. The reason for this is writing is hard work, writing for clarity is very difficult and takes time. The primary concern at the elementary level is that the kids get higher ISAT scores, not that they can write.

Our counselors have huge numbers of kids on their caseloads. Mentoring programs do help, but I hate to say it, the kids or their families that seek out this type of help are not the ones who need it the most. Because I am a woman I have often wondered if the reason boys seem to worse than girls do in my classes has to do with that. But all the male teachers tell me girls do better in their classes also.

Time to go home and take care of my kids.

[Stan]

Great, expect for the two jerks, Eugene Giudice of Chicago and Steve Lardner of Mundelein mouthing off in letters to the Tribune that teachers are overpaid. Why don't these jerks just become teachers if they think its such a nice job?! Unfortunately for them, they're both listed on Yahoo People Search, and Giudice even has his email and resume posted online! I hope they get plenty of mail from their 'fans'!

[Stan]

Great, expect for the two jerks, Eugene Giudice of Chicago and Steve Lardner of Mundelein mouthing off in letters to the Tribune that teachers are overpaid. Why don't these jerks just become teachers if they think its such a nice job?! Unfortunately for them, they're both listed on Yahoo People Search, and Giudice even has his email and resume posted online! I hope they get plenty of mail from their 'fans'!

[Anna Farkas]

Is there a standard CPS policy on how long a high school student has to complete missed work after an excused absence? If so, where would I find this printed. Thanks. Anna Farkas, Wells