Rethinking Rubrics

This year was my first year of teaching first grade and true five paragraph responses. It made me realize how involved grading a paper can be and how important it is to give feedback in a quick and detailed format. I will admit this is something that was difficult for me! I was very much used to grading second-grade writing and being able to “crank out” grades and feedback. With this being said, I wanted to find a better way of helping my students next year. Of all places, I found this website via TikTok! Without further ado, let’s talk about ThemeSpark by EDCOURAGE!

When you first type in the URL (or more easily, click on the image above), you see a website that boasts a fast and easy tool to help your students. Okay, sure, but we’ve seen this before. However, on the right where you can try out the rubric maker, or what I call my new best friend. If you scroll down on the page, you are able to sign up, view sample rubrics, and watch how-to videos.

To start creating a rubric, you first start by selecting the subject (or subjects!) you will be assessing. You follow that up with your grade level and the topics you will assess. For my purposes, I will be showing a rubric for 5th grade math/ELA that focuses on language, numbers and operations- fractions, and writing. Once you’ve selected your options, it then comes time to incorporate which standards will be your focus. Within each standard are options to select specific parts of a standard- this is super cool and helps to make sure you are specifically assessing a standard and not something that doesn’t need to be assessed. Once your rubric is complete, you are able to save it, look at lesson resources for the standards, and/or create your own lesson.

Here’s a link to the finished product: https://www.themespark.net/@lyndsayteaches/rubric/EJdUsPGsO

You can download your rubric, upload to Google Classroom, or share with friends.

I am still looking into their lesson builder, but I’m sure it will be just as awesome. Keep your eyes on this blog for a future post. Have fun and happy standards-based assessing and creating!

-Lyndsay

 

Minimal Pair Exercises

Minimal pairs are one of my favorite ways to practice pronunciation! You may be thinking, okay, cool, but what do you mean? They are a pair of words which have only one sound difference. By practicing minimal pairs, you are truly focusing on pronunciation. Heck, it’s great practice for native English speakers as well as we can often become lazy with our own speech. 🙂 Examples of minimal pairs would be “sheet” and “seat”, “lock” and “rock”, “cat” and “cut”. Non-examples would be “made” and “maid” (homophones), “wise” and “rice” (two differences), and “base” and “phase” (the sound of the “s” would create two differences).

In order to determine if your pair is a minimal pair or not, a tip would be to focus on what sounds make up the word. While spelling is important, in this case, ignoring it would be helpful. Using “base” and “phase” as an example, a non-native English speaker may think this would be a minimal pair as there is only a difference of the initial letters. However, a native speaker would know that the “s” in base sound like a traditional “s”, whereas the “s” in phase sounds more like a “z”. As you can clearly see- English is not easy! 🙂

With all of this background information, here are some ideas on how to practice! Some of these ideas have been found through classes, great mentors, and some are original. If you have any great ideas, please let me know and I would love to add yours to the list!

1. Bingo!- Create a bingo card using the ESLActivities Generator! Feel free to adjust the size to what you think would work best for your class. Type in words that your students need to practice and create the number of cards needed for your class(es). My recommendation would be to laminate these bad boys and have your students use some sort of marker/counter to make the cards last.
2. Glide and Grab- Place a pair of minimal pairs on flashcards (or on the board). Have two teams divided up and ready to play! Two opponents will stand at the back of the room and “glide” to the front of the room to touch the correct word. You could even have the students lead this game to further practice.
3. Snatch It- Put students into pairs (or teams). Each pair/team needs an object between them on the table/playing surface, as they are competing against one another. Tell the pairs/teams which sound they need to listen for, such as /b/. Call out words with similar beginning sounds, such as victory, vice, vote and finally, include a word with the correct sound, such as bonus. When the student hears the correct sound, “snatch it” and gain a point! 

   Have fun playing and let me know how you practice minimal pairs in your classroom! -Lyndsay

 

My Teacher Faves

So, this is not my typical type of post, but I’ve had several requests to see what I love in my room. Some of these are specifically for the classroom and others are just items that help me keep my sanity. 🙂

• InkJoy Gel Pens- While I love Flair Pens, these guys may well be my new favorite! They write so smoothly and I really love having a variety of colors to help me at least attempt to keep myself organized.

• Sharpie Art Felt Pens- These have replaced my Flair pens entirely. No bleed-through, fun colors, and sharp lines! They are great for coloring in planners as well!

• Mr. Sketch Markers- These are awesome! They can make an anchor chart 10x more fun to make. I also liked using them to grade to give the kids a bit of surprise, but I have to be honest, I think I liked them more than the kiddos. 🙂

• Pop-Up Post-It Notes- Love these, especially in neon. I don’t know about you, but I find myself writing ten million reminders a day, so these come in handy more often than not. I also had kids write their responses to a question/prompt on the Post-It notes to make recording answers on an anchor chart much easier. I also like the added fun factor of the pop-up feature.

• I have a secret to admit- I hated anchor charts. I know, I know, how can a primary teacher say that?! I will say that the “giant post-it anchor charts” have changed the game. No more wondering how to hang my finished starts, I just “post ’em”.

• Pre-sharpened pencils are a game changing item! I even buy them for myself. They’re great in a pinch and the satisfaction of being able to pull out a box of pencils that are ready to go is just plain unbeatable- especially when they are Ticonderoga.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Thoughts on “The Pepper Effect”

This post/review has been a long time in the making! “The Pepper Effect” by Sean Gaillard is one of those books you just plain have to read. Too often, as educators, we are handed books that promise to transform our teaching, but actually end up being transformed into dust collectors. This book is not one of those “dust collectors”, it is an inspirer.

Gaillard uses an interesting format to keep reading fun and light-hearted while also incredibly inspiring (you’ll see that word frequently in this post). Chapters are organized into two sections- a background involving The Beatles and a second that ties in the band’s story with school-related topics. Chapters conclude in what he calls “Making Your Mix Tape for Next Moves and Grooves” that center on the four principles of The Pepper Effect- believe in your vision, believe in your masterpiece, believe in your collaboration, and my personal favorite, ignore the naysayers. There are also a couple of “interludes” that incorporate tales of The Beatles aside from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band while interweaving examples from the schoolhouse.

The introduction of the book discusses that The Beatles were “unwilling to allow their failures to hinder the pursuit of their dreams and, ultimately, that determination changed the world.” Talk about a mic drop! Another main focus of the book is positivity and gratitude. One of my favorite “quotables” is “when individuals do not have a visceral sense of gratitude, there is the risk that the culture of the schoolhouse will shift downward”. There were many “truth bombs” throughout this book that provided what I like to call “duh moments”, but made me realize how I can change my own mindset and appreciate others.

The goal of the book is to provide a template for “inspiring the educators inside any schoolhouse to become more positive, innovative, creative, and collaborative.” Gaillard promises, like The Beatles, “a splendid time is guaranteed for all!” Let me tell you, he does not fall short of that promise. Now, my promise is that this post is full of passion- which means the organization may be a bit different, as I will focus on “quotables” and messages that spoke to me. I wanted to summarize each chapter for you, but in an effort to make sure you will actually read this book, I will be sharing what resonated and inspired me- so that we can have a conversation!

The first chapter of the book immediately provided such “quotables”, such as “collaboration has to be nurtured and encouraged in an environment where creativity can ignite” and “it began with the simple act of listening”. No fancy words, just realness. As I continued reading, I fell in love with the quotes “we subscribe to the tried and proven far too often” and “ never settle for the tried path”. Boom! This led me to realize, that we have stop that which does not grow us. Gaillard encourages educators to walk away from the status quo. To do so, you have to L.I.S.T.E.N., but to discover the meaning, you’ll have to read, literally. 😉

As far as how I am going to implement ideas from this book- here goes! I loved the idea of having “Sgt. Pepper Monday Moments”.  As the book states, “Monday is a chance to accelerate the positive in the schoolhouse”. This has made me think of possibly creating a “student favorites” playlist to use throughout Mondays (and other times we need inspiration/positivity).  Another quote from the book was “you just wait”, which was a response from Paul McCartney. I want that to be my motto for the year. I know that will help me to get through the rough times and inspire me to just keep going. Additionally, Gaillard challenges that “status quo is not welcome here.” I loved this and have decided that it will be my class motto for the year, as I want to create a class full of #changemakers! I am so looking forward to how what I have learned and gleaned from this book will change my practice!

I want to leave you with a final quote/question from the book, “what masterpiece is the world waiting for you to create?” Let me know! I want to be a part of your journey.

“The Pepper Effect” is available for purchase on Amazon.

-Lyndsay

P.S.- If you haven’t watched this yet, it’s a must see! Carpool Karaoke with Paul McCartney

The Merit of Multicultural Education

Here is another mini-research paper completed for my Rank 1! I am very passionate about multicultural education and wanted to share my thoughts with you!

-Lyndsay

THE MERIT OF MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION

 

Our world changes every day. Schools have become quite a mixture of ethnic, linguistic, cultural, and experiential plurality due to our diversity and surge in immigration. Multicultural education is the answer of how to embrace our nation’s increasing diversity. James A Banks, “the father of multicultural education”, defines multicultural education as “an inclusive concept used to describe a wide variety of school practices, programs, and material designed to help children from diverse groups to experience educational equality” (Banks, 1984, p. 182). Multicultural education is the solution to creating world-ready students.

One of the main benefits of implementing multicultural education would be that our students are able to develop both ethnic and cultural literacy. Students are able to learn about historical backgrounds, cultural characteristics, contributions, languages, significant individuals, critical events, and economic conditions of the various majority and minority ethnic groups. Unfortunately, some, or even many, of these topics are forgotten in texts and lessons (Gay, 1994). Students are entering, and already a part of, a very globalized world. By not allowing them to develop their cultural and ethnic literacy, we would be putting students at a major disadvantage.

By developing cultural and ethnic literacy, students are also gaining skills for life beyond high school. As educators, it is our responsibility to create 21st-century learners; multicultural education does just this.  If a student is part of a classroom that focuses on multicultural education, thus avoiding textbooks and lessons that focus predominantly on White/Anglo-Saxon identities, and instead choose to teach using textbooks and materials that discuss a wider range of cultures and historical backgrounds, students will clearly benefit. Students will receive a more well-rounded approach, therefore creating students and workers who are more inclusive, knowledgeable, community-oriented, and compassionate. As a side benefit, students will be much more prepared for living and working in a diverse community (O’Grady, 2000).  

A third benefit is that while more opportunities are being created for new types of learning, we are also increasing the number of equal learning opportunities. Multicultural education creates these equal learning opportunities for students, regardless of race and/or ethnic background. By teaching with multiculturalism in mind, diversity is encouraged through the promotion of appreciation and respect for cultural differences. Students will also learn how to recognize social injustices, such as prejudice and/or bias. Through this recognition, students will also be better equipped to combat these social injustices. Multicultural education truly sets a goal of encouraging cooperation and equality while eradicating stereotypes and the bias that comes with negative thinking. Thus, with multicultural education, students will be taught how to develop strong identities based on who they are as people, focusing on abilities, dreams, goals, interests, values, and cultural background, instead of focusing on the color of their skin and the superficial (Derman-Sparks and Ramsey,  2011). Research also shows that multicultural education aides in the improvement of mastery of writing, reading, and mathematical skills, as well as critical thinking, and conflict resolution, all of which are skills that will benefit students beyond their academic career. Additionally, if the education includes the use of ethnic materials, examples, and experiences, as the context for the educational process, educators will be increasing the appeal of instructional tools, heightening practical relevance of skills to be learned, and improving attention to a task. In addition, the combination created by these conditions will lead to task persistence, greater focused efforts, academic achievement, and skill mastery. Clearly, multicultural education will create the citizens we need for a successful future (Gay, 1994).

A common argument against multicultural education is that the implementation will fragment and alienate rapport and communication between ethnic groups. Bennett states (1995), “to dwell on cultural differences is to foster negative prejudices and stereotypes, and that is human nature to view those who are different as inferior” (p. 29). At times, American schools want to make their students “color blind” to try to ascertain equal treatment and justice for their students. The goal of this approach is also that there is a “sameness” of all cultural backgrounds. What is being missed here, is that the goal of multicultural education is not to “color blind” students. As previously stated, multicultural education is “an inclusive concept used to describe a wide variety of school practices, programs, and material designed to help children from diverse groups to experience educational equality” (Banks, 1984, p. 182). Thus, we are creating culturally and ethnically literate students who are sensitive and understanding of others’ backgrounds.

A second argument against multicultural education is that ethnicity may break up nations. Some will say that focusing on multiculturalism and race could lead to divisiveness between races within our country. Proponents of this thought process feel that multicultural education goes against the typical American traditions of integration of cultures into a majority culture, thus rejecting assimilation.  Their argument is also that by doing so, we are creating a country of distinct ethnic groups instead of a homogenous “melting pot” (Schlesinger, 1991). Once again, the goal of multicultural education is not to “break up” our students, but rather to create an understanding of one another. What people may forget is that while the United States may be referred to as a melting pot, it can also be called a salad bowl. Regardless of the “meal” that the United States is, it all comes together to create a “wonderful dish”.

Multicultural education is a wonderful solution to creating world-ready, culturally and ethnically literate students. Like any idea in education, there will be some who disagree. But with such wonderful benefits for students, it is clear to see that our students need this type of forward thinking to make them their best selves.

 

REFERENCES

Banks, J. A. (1984). Multicultural education and its critics: Britain and the United States. In J.A. Banks (Ed.). Race, Culture, and Education: The Selected Works of James A. Banks,182.

Bennett, C. (n.d.). Comprehensive multicultural education: Theory and practice(3rd ed.). MA: Allen & Bacon.

Derman-Sparks, L., & Ramsey, P. (2011). What if all the kids are white?: Anti-bias multicultural education with young children and families. New York: Teachers College Press.

Gay, G. (1994). A synthesis of scholarship in multicultural education: Urban education program. Oak Brook, IL: NCREL.

O’Grady, C. (2000). Integrating service learning and multicultural education in colleges and universities. New York: Routledge.

Schlesinger, A. (1991, July 8). The cult of ethnicity, good and bad. Time, 21.

 

The 3 Types of ELL Students You’ll Teach

Throughout your teaching career, you will for sure have at least one ELL student in your class. What is not often thought of, is the fact that there are three main types of ELL students you will encounter. Here are three types of ELLs and how you can help them!

Type 1- The Newcomer with Little L1 Literacy Background

What does this mean?- This kiddo has newly arrived (is a “newcomer”). They may have never attended school or possibly have had an interruption or interruptions in their schooling. Most likely, they will not have the highest language proficiency level. Thus, their parents may not be educated in their first language (L1) either. Don’t assume this, though. 🙂 Because of the language barrier and possible lapse in/lack of history of education, there is a much greater chance of culture shock for these kiddos. The silent period could occur from 6 weeks to 6 months. Initially, the achievement gap may seem very wide and impossible to conquer, BUT it is possible to narrow it! Remember to be patient, kind, and understanding. You and your student can do it!

Type 2- Newcomers with a Strong L1 Literacy Background

What does this mean?- These newbies will typically have had some sort of schooling, as have their parents. Once again, please do not make any assumptions either way. 🙂 Because of their L1 literacy, learning will be easier once they have made it past initial struggles with language and concepts. Typically, they will learn social language (BICS) first, and then quickly pick up academic language (CALP). Building on their L1 background will be incredibly helpful.

Type 3- Long-term ELLs

What does this mean?- Your long-term students were either born in the US or emigrated very early in life. Their parents will speak a language(s) other than English. Be careful not to be fooled by their social language ability! Long-term ELL students can struggle to become fluent in using academic vocabulary. They also tend to have a better understanding of the American culture and customs as they have lived in the country longer than newcomers. They would be great resources for your newcomers! 🙂

I hope these descriptions of the three types of ELL students you will encounter have been helpful. Another post in the series will be coming soon! If you have any questions, post ideas, or comments, I’d love to hear them!

-Lyndsay

Navigating through a Sea of Acronyms

If you’ve been a reader for awhile, you most likely will recall that I started my career in public education as an ELL/ESL paraeducator. What I didn’t know was how many acronyms are involved in teaching! I have created a guide that focuses specifically on acronyms you will need when teaching an student who is an English Learner. Hope it helps!

-Lyndsay

ESL	English as a Second Language
TESOL	Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages
SIOP	Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol
SI	Social and Instructional (1 of the 5 WIDA ELP Standards) or Sheltered Instruction
SDAIE	Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English
ELL	English Language Learner
EL	English Learner
LEP	Limited English Proficiency
CLD	Culturally and Linguistically Diverse
ELP	English Language Proficiency
WIDA	World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment (An organization).
ACCESS	Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State-to-State for English Language Learners
WAPT	WIDA Assessment Placement Test
SLA	Second Language Acquisition
L1 / L2	L1 = “Language 1” = the student’s native (primary or first acquired) language. L2 = “Language 2” = the language being learned or studied

 

The Five Stages of Language Acquisition- Simplified

I am so excited about this! I am starting a series of ESL posts. As I am working towards my certification, I felt like now was the perfect time to begin this journey. ESL education is something for which I have a crazy amount of passion! I hope that this series will provide you with knowledge and make you feel much more comfortable helping your ESL kiddos. For my first post, I wanted to introduce you to (or hopefully review) the five stages of language acquisition.

Stage 1: Pre-Production

What is it?- You may have heard of this stage as “the silent period”, which is a very real time! Not all students will experience a silent period, but if they do, please respect it. 🙂 Students who are within this stage may have up to 500 words in their vocabulary. Now, just because they may understand the words does not mean they necessarily have the confidence to use them just yet.

So, how do I help?- In this stage, vocabulary is so, so important! The best way to help your student is to build up their vocabulary. You can do this by focusing on listening comprehension, using gestures, allowing students to copy focus words, utilizing study buddies/partners, focusing on receptive vocabulary, repeat as necessary, using as many picture-supports as possible, or even by starting a vocabulary or alphabet scrapbook.

Stage 2: Early Production

What is it?- During this stage, students are quickly adding to their vocabulary. In fact, it may have doubled in size! Students can use short phrases (typically one or two words) that they have memorized. The words may not always be used correctly, but students are beginning to gain confidence- which is awesome!

So, how do I help?- Vocabulary acquisition is still at the forefront in this stage. Continuing strategies from pre-production is still helpful. Just allow your students to “test their wings” a bit if they are ready. 🙂 Other strategies include modifying/simplifying content vocabulary, asking simple questions that require one or two-word answers, use websites/apps such as Epic that will read books to students to help them hear proper pronunciation, introduce simple books with predictive/repetitive text and easy to interpret illustrations, provide labeled-diagrams to introduce more vocabulary (you could even challenge students to create their own labels), and use graphic organizers to help students understand information.

Stage 3- Speech Emergence

What is it?- By this point, students will have a vocabulary of about 3000 words. Students will be able to use simple phrases and sentences. Confident students will have short conversations with their peers and even be able to understand easier illustrated read-alouds. Students will be able to complete scaffolded content work when they are provided with support.

How can I help?- I bet you’re surprised, but vocabulary is still critical. Students can now complete their own graphic organizers with the help of word banks. You can provide decodable texts for students to read as well as vocabulary flashcards for content words (placing pictures and definitions would be incredibly beneficial). Students would benefit from choral readings while receiving assistance for comprehension (if needed). Other ideas included providing no more than two-step instructions, creating dialogue journals to communicate with other students or with you, having students write short narratives to help them express themselves and to communicate, providing leveled texts, and scaffolding homework.

Stage 4- Intermediate Fluency

What is it?- Students in this stage have a vocabulary of around 6000 words! By this point, students are writing and speaking using more complex sentences. To help themselves, students will use strategies from their L1 (home language) to help them in acquiring English. Students in this stage can express their opinions and can defend themselves at times. They can also make inferences and ask questions to better understand information. Students can work on grade-level material with support, as needed. While students are able to write with more complex sentences, it may well still be difficult for them due to word usage, spelling errors, and/or sentence structure.

How can I help?- Students would benefit from continued use of graphic organizers, incorporating technology to provide lesson extensions, having content-related references available (spelling lists, sight words, grammar rules, etc.), providing vocabulary previews and definitions to help build connections, providing visual directions in addition to oral instructions, and having conversation practice/debates.

Stage 5- Advanced Fluency

What is it?- This stage takes a great deal of hard work and dedication. If we are being honest, this stage can take our newcomers 3-10 years to reach. Unfortunately, many of our ELs have “tested out” of the program by this point; however, this does not mean that they do not need support. Please still be willing to help kids who are reaching/have reached this point.

How can I help?- Continue to use those graphic organizers and the use of study buddies to help build further language support. Use those teachable moments and every possible opportunity to study vocabulary in context. Make your classroom a supportive and friendly environment so that students will feel comfortable trying out more difficult tasks. Provide opportunities for students to dive into non-fiction texts and resources. Most of all, celebrate this point and continue to be a resource and champion for your students!

My hope is that by understanding these stages, you will have so much more success with and better ideas to help your students! Please let me know how I can help you and your ESL kiddos!

-Lyndsay

Resources (in addition to what I have learned from my mentors and professors)-

http://www.qualitylearning.net/programs/demo/la/resources/5stagesoflanguage.htm 

https://education.cu-portland.edu/blog/classroom-resources/five-stages-of-second-language-acquisition/

http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/language_stages.php

An Exploration of Standardized Curriculum Using the Common Core State Standards

So, I am back in grad school! I want to share some of my work with you and will be doing so through posts. Let me know what you think.

The desire to standardize curriculum is not new. The Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSI) was established in the Spring of 2009 to detail what students from Kindergarten through twelfth grade must know in the subjects of language arts in math. By 2010, the standards were published. The goal of the CCSI  is to establish consistent educational standards across the United States, within participating states (Kendall, 2011). The CCSI is an incredibly beneficial solution for creating a standardized, equitable playing field for all students.

One of the first advantages to the CCSI is the fact that the standards were created to represent 85 percent of the total amount of standards that states might choose to implement.  Thus, the standards are much more manageable. The content within the standards most certainly can be addressed within available instructional time. A huge effort was made in creating the standards with the goal in reducing the chances that core content areas would require more time than what is available. Prior to the creation of the CCSS standards could vary greatly in content, time allotment, and structure, thus creating huge disparities for students (Kendall, 2011).

Thus, a major advantage to using the Common Core State Standards is the consistency the standards provide for students and educators. Prior to the creation of the standards, it was not a rare occasion for a student to move across states, or even to another school in a the same state, and miss a chunk of curriculum because the schools taught concepts within different grades. Without standardization, students who come from say a military background or who are part of the foster care system are certainly put at a major disadvantage. Now, moving schools will not cause a student to re-learn or miss entire concepts in their education. This is beneficial in reducing stress for both the student and their parents/guardians and will more quickly help teachers to identify problem areas for students, as they will know that students did not miss instruction, but truly did not understand a concept. This helps with the formation of small groups and addressing how to best help students within the class while also increasing their collegibility (Kendall, 2011).

Thirdly, instruction becomes much more intentional. While lessons certainly should be fun and engaging, prior to the Common Core State Standards Initiative, the lesson may well have been meaningless in terms of tying into standards. Teachers now have the “what” established, but are still very much in charge of the implementation and how they go about teaching the said standard or standards. By being more intentional about instruction, strategies that are more appropriate to the content that students are learning are being used (Dean, Hubbell, Pitler, & Stone, 2012). Thus, by using a coherent, standardized system, instruction will most certainly gain both potency and efficiency. The standards are set up in a way that students are more readily able to access prior knowledge to help them comprehend new material as the standards build upon themselves. This is especially helpful for students who move frequently, as the standards will be the same across most states (Kendall, 2011).

An argument against the standardization of curriculum using the Common Core State Standards is the effect they will have on assessments. The argument that is heard most often is that there are negative consequences for our transient and minority students (Resnick and Berger, 2010). While assessments could be a concern, by creating a set of uniform standards, assessments are now created on a much more level playing field. As previously stated, one of the advantages of using the Common Core State Standards, is the fact that consistency is provided for all students. This means that students are provided with the same set of expectations and opportunities regardless of ethnicity, economic status, or any other criteria commonly categorized as an educational disadvantage. Prior to the creation of the CCSS, assessments were not necessarily as rigorous nor were they tied to a specific set of standards (Kendall, 2011). In fact, student assessments are more equitable now than in years prior.

Another common argument against the CCSS is that they are compulsory and that educational agencies should be able to determine what their students are learning. A worry is that some schools and districts will not want to accept changes to what they know and that they will resist the change (Ravitch, 2010). Several states have opted out of the CCSS; however, they are most certainly obligated to make certain that their students will not fall behind states that are using the standardized curriculum (Kendall, 2011). By using the Common Core State Standards, teachers are not limited in how they teach they content, thus they still maintain control of the classroom. The CCSS is beneficial in that teachers are required to teach all content, and not skip around to teach what they feel most comfortable teaching or what they think is most beneficial. While that may remove some of the freedoms previously given, it also ensures that students learn what will propel them towards success. Without this standardization, students are the potential victims. Should students be put at risk to allow for more “freedom” of choosing what is to be taught? Kendall states that the focus should be on student success, which is the basis of the creation of the Common Core State Standards (2011).

The Common Core State Standards are the answer to the desire to create a standardized and equitable education for United States students. Despite the fact that there are arguments against the CCSS and their effect on assessment and freedom of lesson creation. It is clear to see that they are invalid. The benefits of more manageability, consistency for students, and intentionality of lessons, in addition to those not mentioned, are wonderful for students and prove reason as to why standardized curriculum is what students need for success.

REFERENCES

Dean, C., Hubbell, E., Pitler, H., & Stone, B. (2012). Classroom instruction that works: Research-based strategies for increasing student achievement(2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Kendall, J. (2011). Understanding common core state standards. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Ravitch, D. (2010). We’ve always had national standards. Education Week,29(17), 28-30.

Resnick, L., & Berger, L. (2010). An American examination system. National Conference on next Generation Assessment Systems. Center for K–12 Assessment & Performance Management.Retrieved May 15, 2018, from https://www.ets.org/Media/Research/pdf/ResnickBergerSystemModel.pdf.

#whyiteach

About a month ago, I made a video that explained #whyiteach. Here is the transcription from that video, along with a link if you are interested in viewing. Thanks for reading!

-Lyndsay

Trying to explain why I teach is not easy. I teach because I was taught. I was taught how to be strong, to be who I am, and to challenge the status quo.

My parents clearly were my first teachers. They taught me the lessons of life I needed to know to be who I am today. I am a teacher because of people like @Jeff Anderson, Tonya Nichols, Sandy Miller, and Ginny Robke. I am a teacher because of my grandma and my grandpa’s legacy.

I am a teacher because of kids like Owen, Jack, Hannah, Garrett, Larkin, Claire, Race, Kayden, Sarah, and well, because of all my kids! That’s thing people tend to forget, once a student enters your classroom- they’re your kid- forever.

I teach because it’s what I was called to do. Even when I think it may not be worth it, something each day proves that it is. I’ve battled self-doubt, abuse in several forms, and literally fought to get here. It’s not something I will give up easily. I teach because kids deserve a teacher who is in their corner and won’t give up- no matter how big the proverbial mountain we have to climb may be.

You see, teaching is my life. So, why do I teach? I teach because it’s what I’ve fought for- and it’s what I hope all of us will continue to fight for- no matter how nasty the battle may become. I don’t know about you, but I was taught to rise above my struggles, and that is what I will do. Are you with me?

Video Link- https://goo.gl/sA9Fuh