ALGEBRA I: Start Simple
Review the Learning Ladder
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ALGEBRA I: Review the Learning Ladder
Posted by upskillingamerica on January 22, 2012
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2012/01/22/algebra-i-review-the-learning-ladder/
Mini-Lessons for New & Seasoned Teachers
The fight is happening in your room today! Now what?
Classroom Management defined
At-Risk Students strategies
Standardized testing strategies.
Things not to do around principals.
Easy part-time jobs for teachers.
5 things to do to keep your teaching job.
Why do adults have a harder time passing the GED?
Why most Black men leave or never enter education?
What happened to 2 homeschooled kids when they entered public school?
Tips for teacher General Knowledge test
These and more or subjects to be contemplated in Leo Cole’s Upskilling America’s blog posts.
Posted by upskillingamerica on January 7, 2012
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2012/01/07/mini-lessons-for-new-seasoned-teachers/
Pay Teachers $100,000 Now!
“Teachers should make $100,000 per year: Here is how.”
By Leo Cole January 2, 2012 10:30 am
When I first started teaching in the 80’s, my principal told me that education was the place to be for all the right reasons and that very soon the salaries would increase to reflect our worth as educators.
The school system I worked for in those years was one of the highest paying counties in the state and starting salaries were about $18,000 per year.
Fast forward 30 years later and the starting salaries for teachers are around $33-40K per year. Almost twice as much as then but with the cost of living changes in the last couple of decades, entry to mid level teaching salaries are still at or below city sanitation workers, enlisted military soldiers, truck drivers and prison guards.
We educate the nation and are expected to produce citizens capable of regaining our foothold in technology, math and the sciences, but we are relegated to an economic life of worry over day-to-day expenses.
It’s time to change this once and for all. Other great societies know and understand the importance of education and make sacrifices or allowances to obtain the best educators in their perspective fields. With the economic divide so prevalent between the rich and the poor, the middle class teacher is being pushed down to the lower middle or poor class.
This is wrong and should stop now! Large public schools systems are no longer needed in our high-speed technology driven society. Local school district departments can be all but eliminated through contracted services and efficient software programs. We must rethink educational infrastructure in the coming years and streamline those departments and warehouses which are no longer cost-effective or can be run more efficiently. Teacher salaries can be supplemented with the elimination of many now obsolete departments and previously allocated cash can go to higher teaching salaries.
Teachers can weather academic assessments and accountability hurdles with confidence and bad teachers should be sorted out. But if we want the best for our students and our country, let’s also want the best for its legion of dedicated educators. Let’s move teachers to upper middle class by paying them salaries that will help pay back their student loans with ease and allow them to raise their families in the best spirit of America’s work smart, study hard can do credo. Sure $100K salaries maybe a few years away, but $50K starting salaries should and can happen now!
I am sure that probably a great number of our best educators left the field to make sure that their families were secure, safe and healthy financially; never to return to help produce the next group of great citizens in our country’s history.
“So teachers, principals, parents and congressmen, take out your PPD and occupy education!”
Leo Cole is an educator, artist, entrepreneur, musician, and blogger
Posted by upskillingamerica on January 2, 2012
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2012/01/02/pay-teachers-100000-now/
At-risk students: Who cares?
At-risk students: Who cares?
Why most teachers struggle with the at-risk student
In my experiences, with at-risk youth in charter schools for about seven years, I’ve found that major problems exist between imparting academics and effective social integration.
The biggest hindrance is the inexperienced teacher, the unconcerned teacher, the ineffectiveness of the school culture as a learning community and the lack of appropriate resources [all of which are not the scope of this article].
In this article I am going to reveal what I think is the number one catalyst to helping at-risk students make learning and social integration gains.
There are a number of factors to consider when delivering content and developing socially adjusted students. Here is the short list:
1) “Teachers are from Mars and students are from Venus”
Teachers are typically from middle to upper income families raised with both parents and a supporting family unit. Even if the teacher is from a single parent low-income household, the values in the home are often the same as the aspiring middle class. In essence the teacher is confident of her/his ability and seeks to obtain knowledge (without being forced) as a lifelong commitment or attained goal.
At-risk students are from lower to middle-income families with one parent in the household whether divorced, separated or never married; with other siblings and a less structured family unit. The parent resources are focused on survival or day-to-day struggles. This situation presents emotional discomfort; having its own set of counteracting, negative idiosyncrasies in the family unit.
A typical first year high school at-risk student has been in the principal’s office most of their pre-adult academic career. This particular student is obviously out of class more often than other students because of home life, family situations or mounting referrals. The at-risk student has not learned how to study and retain knowledge in a traditional manner but is deftly skilled at getting out academic situations; which helps to avoid embarrassing moments with peers.
This student is likely to come off as rude, uncaring and insensitive to authority, rules and policies.
Inexperienced teachers generally sympathize not empathize with students they instruct and can be numb to the social and academic horrors lurking beneath the surface. These slightly buried dynamics paralyze the at-risk student and trigger unwanted behaviors.
As a teacher you must step outside you comfort zone and search for solutions for the individual students not the masses. Find out what each student needs to be successful.
2) “I (the teacher) am the supreme authority and ruler over all
classroom activities.” “I’ve earned the right to control you and you’d better %#*# well listen to me!”
Yes, it is hard work to become a teacher and the road is littered with people who have abandoned the profession to take on other professions which yield more income.
But to think that students will respect you and follow your every command is stuff of fairy tale classrooms in “Far Far Away Land”.
The at-risk child doesn’t have a great track record of teachers or any adult helping them socially integrate or achieve anything positive. This student has been dismissed, in all likelihood, by his parents and others in and outside her/his family unit as a Good for nothing you fill in the blank loser.
I have witnessed cases upon cases whereby students were not supported by their parents, teachers and other adults. And in my presence the students were sometimes reminded of their loser status.
We as educators are the first and many times the last line of defense. We must first earn the respect of the student and commit to helping them with their barriers. As well, we should follow through on a commitment. If not, we will be in the same group as every other adult who has let them down before the age of 18 years old.
Here is a quick list for success with the at-risk student:
Meet with them one-on-one.
Find out their motivation/position in life.
Give them hope.
Offer your help.
Find out their modality of learning.
Incorporate ways for them to be successful within their peer group/classroom.
Find out their pains and concerns daily – address them right away.
Compliment them on their small, medium and large academic successes.
Follow through – Follow through
How can we up skill America if we don’t start in our classrooms?
Leo Cole is an educator, artist, entrepreneur, musician, and blogger.
Follow @mindmovement
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Posted by upskillingamerica on December 31, 2011
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2011/12/31/at-risk-students-who-cares/
Are teachers worth six figures?
Pay Teachers What They’re Worth
By John Wilson on December 15, 2011 8:30 AM
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Education Secretary Arne Duncan said teachers should be paid six figures. That’s visionary.
Marc Tucker said that teachers in only three countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) were paid less than teachers in the United States. That’s embarrassing.
A recent controversial study said teachers were overpaid. That’s ridiculous.
The National Education Association (NEA) has proposed a new system of different career paths of Novice Teacher, Professional Teacher, and Master Teacher. That’s promising.
The NEA plan begins with creating a new organization that will be called the National Council for the Teaching Profession (NCTP). This new group will establish national standards for teacher preparation programs, teacher educators, teacher evaluation, and advancement within the profession. One supposes that once this group determines standards for being a Professional Teacher or a Master Teacher, local districts or states would attach a salary to that certification. New Mexico has used a similar approach to compensation for several years.
Read full report http://bit.ly/t2jzeB
Posted by upskillingamerica on December 27, 2011
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2011/12/27/are-teachers-worth-six-figures/
CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT:FIRST THINGS FIRST Maintain order and…
CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT: FIRST THINGS FIRST Maintain order and…
by Leo Cole Jr., educator, blogger Follow @mindmovement
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This is the first in a series of articles, designed and expressly directed to the elementary and high school teacher. These articles are based on true and daily practices collected through observation in fully functional highly qualified teacher’s classrooms. The students are generally at-risk of dropping out later on in life because of socioeconomic barriers to learning as well as other challenges. The students and classrooms chosen range from general education students to students with exceptionalities and students who have reentered high school after dropping out on one or more occasions. This common occurrence is due in whole or part to personal struggles with academics, home life, pregnancy, court orders and bad choices. Parents of these students are usually not a part of the educational support group and may very well be one of the key factors to success for these students.
For these articles we shall focus on the day-to-day classroom administration. The in-debt knowledge not taught in teacher’s colleges and universities.
The responsibility of the classroom teacher is of pivotal importance in our society today and these tips, rule of thumbs, and real world solutions found in this series will hopefully change the lives of students all over the world and make teaching a delight. As a former teacher in the classroom with students who are at risk for dropping out; I empathize with the teachers and students in their journey and struggles. The goal is to help students complete their K through 12 education and consequently go on to post secondary education or enter the workforce.
Now, the tips and procedures in this excerpt will primarily focus on elementary to middle school classrooms but can be implemented throughout all grade levels.
Here are some tips, rule of thumbs, procedures or strategies for composing the classroom:
- Have an orderly and neat classroom
The first thing that I noticed in a particular classroom (after observing a quiet and engaged group of students) is that the classroom was clean and orderly with clearly displayed scheduled times of what needed to happen and when. The students knew when classroom activities and lessons would occur and became to rely on this schedule to move from one activity to the next.
- Clearly display a system for unacceptable behavior
In the observed classroom was a method by which the teacher and the students would keep up with their behavior-good and not so good. All students started out with great behavior positions and then would have demerits are points deducted from the chart/board as the day progressed. The students moved their positions as the teacher instructed them. As the behavior in the moment deteriorated or consistent better behavior improved their position, the student would walk up to the chart and move their name upward or downward. This system worked in a variety of formats with the central theme being that, the student’s actions controlled the movement of their daily behavior status. Rewards and consequences were also tied to their actions. [I will give detailed descriptions and examples in a later session or package for teachers]
- Students respond to disapproval or approval triggers
Children in effect look to please the adult in the family or group structure. Children respond to parents and teachers that show genuine concern for the safety, education, and their overall welfare. When teachers verbalize their displeasure with the behavior of a student, they tap into the child’s emotional need to please the adult in the learning environment or quasi family unit. Stating that you are not pleased with the action(s) of a particular student in your classroom clearly sends a message. Sending a positive message to students with acceptable behavior boosts their confidence level. Receiving the message of disapproval or approval gives the child an opportunity to get on track in a positive way. Now, they all are looking for your (teacher) approval.
This method or correcting unwanted behaviors rings strongly in a student’s natural desire to please the adult. Punishing unwanted behaviors lead to conflict, strife and combative retaliatory responses for adolescents.
Leo Cole Jr. is an educator, musician, artist, entrepreneur, and blogger. His company Upskilling America is providing education and preparations for people helping move the country towards more stable long-term competitive viability.
Posted by upskillingamerica on December 13, 2011
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/classroom-managementfirst-things-first-maintain-order-and/
Learn from Your Mistakes?
Secrets for self-control without suffering.
by Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D.
How Mistakes Can Make You Smarter
OK, nobody wants to make mistakes — but how you react to them makes a big difference in whether you learn from them. http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-willpower/201112/how-mistakes-can-make-you-smarter
This is a big part of learning more and being better at achieving your goals.
Posted by upskillingamerica on December 11, 2011
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2011/12/11/learn-from-your-mistakes/
TPI Composites CEO comments on jobs in industry
Posted by upskillingamerica on December 10, 2011
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2011/12/10/tpi-composites-ceo-comments-on-jobs-in-industry/
Youtube Video
Posted by upskillingamerica on December 10, 2011
http://upskillingamerica.wordpress.com/2011/12/10/54/
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