Gotta love a teacher who (Full Version)

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coolfamily6 -> Gotta love a teacher who (8/25/2008 5:17:52 PM)

when giving expectations for a project told the students that creativity counted but she understood that boys creativity is different from girls, so the project would be graded as such. She told them she has two sons and two daughters, so she knows that each have a different idea of creative.[:)] She showed the class two projects that were A+'s from last yr one from a boy and one from a girl. DD said they were drastically different yet both received a perfect score. DD was impressed with the teacher; so am I.



garsyt -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/25/2008 5:29:23 PM)

That's cool!

I love teachers that understand boys and girls don't think the same way!

Unfortunately we lost the one middle school teacher that I KNOW thought that way! Ty had her for 6th grade English but she had to leave us this past year due to some serious medical issues with her eyes that have left her nearly blind in one eye and her vision deteriorating in the other. Not a good thing for a middle school English teacher.

Blessings,

Garsy



csl7037 -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/26/2008 6:13:15 AM)

I'm not, I'd be furious. Especially a week into school, she doesn't even know these kids! What about the poor kid, boy or girl, who's the exception to that very generalized broad theory - they're doomed! What about the poor, technically minded little girl who might not be as creative as the others? Every girls is not as creative as the next; it's no more fair to judge all the girls by the same standard than to judge all the boys by a different one. I don't get it. What the point to this exercise?? If it's to see who'll stand up for themselves when they're being subjected to an absurdly over-generalized assumption, it might be an interesting experiment. If the assignment is really about creativity, why not encourage them to find ways to be creative, not just say "oh, boys, I know you can't really do this so I'll go easy on you." That's ridiculous!

Sure, my dd likes to sit down and draw pretty pictures and make up silly stories. My ds has no use for crayons or markers whatsoever. But he can create some amazing things out of legos - don't tell him he's not creative! I'd be all over this teacher, anything but impressed.



Tinkerbell_ -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/26/2008 8:09:34 AM)

I think I agree with you. I don't like students being seperated just because they're boys or girls. Each child is different and that is how they should be graded. Thing 1 doesn't have a creative bone in his body but he is wonder at following direction. Thing 2 on the other hand is VERY creative and uses everything in his environment to his advantage. Both Things are boys but I would expect them to be graded differently.



garsyt -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/26/2008 12:17:23 PM)

I guess I didn't take it like that.

Knowing that the teacher had
quote:

two sons and two daughters
and has taught for several years (I'm assuming) I would think that she would know that ALL children are different and create differently. I realize that not all girls create in the same manner - I have two of my own and KNOW so many others that all have a different idea of what is creative and how they create. The boys I know are all over the board as well.

Now the teacher may have been able to find a better way to get that message across - but what I think she was trying to say is that she wanted ALL of the kids to know that she realized that everyone's idea of creativity is different, but she expected EVERYONE to do their best.

Blessings,

Garsy



csl7037 -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/26/2008 12:49:17 PM)

It just sounded like she divided them into two groups when, realistically, there are surely no less than 10-15 different creative styles and personalities in that room. She could've said she was looking for their personal best, an exercise and exhibit of their creativity and then showed two different "A" projects to illustrate her point - regardless of boy or girl. I object to the two different sets of expectations being conveyed - there could be a future Mark Twain in that group who just got the message "boys aren't as creative" making him question or diminish the ideas and imagination God gave him. Or a little girl sitting there looking at the girl's "A" paper thinking, "oh, no, I could never do that, I'm not very girly, I guess" . . . who knows where that line of thinking could lead a child with the absurd messages being thrown around by society!

Maybe the differences in creativity is something that educators recognize - but I still am not comfortable with such broad generalizations. Regardless, not a message that can or should be conveyed to kids, IMO. Too many things a kid can infer from that.



GroupW -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/26/2008 1:03:30 PM)

Even if she did oversimplify the issue and break it down by boys vs girls, it's a slight improvement over lumping every child in one category. Clearly, the best solution is to recognize that each child will express creativity differently.

Here's a horror story for you - we pulled my son out of one school after we sat in on a few classes to figure out why he was saying he was stupid (he's now in a gifted & talented track, so we know it's not true.)

What we found was a teacher who was teaching in a way that girls could get but boys struggled with. The class was divided into the high vs low performers. The high performers were all girls, the "low performers" were all boys.

We placed my son in a different school a few weeks after that. He now excels in about every discipline.



coolfamily6 -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/27/2008 4:20:26 PM)

quote:

Knowing that the teacher had quote:

two sons and two daughtersand has taught for several years (I'm assuming) I would think that she would know that ALL children are different and create differently. I realize that not all girls create in the same manner - I have two of my own and KNOW so many others that all have a different idea of what is creative and how they create. The boys I know are all over the board as well.



quote:

Even if she did oversimplify the issue and break it down by boys vs girls, it's a slight improvement over lumping every child in one category. Clearly, the best solution is to recognize that each child will express creativity differently


I never even thought of it the way CSL did!

The teacher has taught for 18 yrs in grades from Elementary to High School. I think the second quote is the most accurate. She oversimplified. She is not judging one person creativity against another. I think she was just trying to make sure they boy/girls knew that she understood that they were all not going to be the same. DD said she has about 10 examples of "A" projects displayed.

The rubric says "Quality not Quanity".



ladyingrace1979 -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/28/2008 8:04:57 PM)

I tend to agree that the teacher didn't mean to show gender bias. I think it's great that she realizes that kids learn differently. However, I would be more impressed with a teacher that recognized this and then helped students adapt their learning style to the real world. The fact is that in the real world most teachers aren't that flexible in their grading, and successful students have to learn to adapt.
Kim Q



mapachito13 -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/29/2008 6:38:49 AM)

There are actually many different learning styles or multiple intelligences that every teacher should be teaching to. They call it differentiated instruction and if this teacher is only reaching some students they definitely need to take a course or read the myriad of books on the subject.

Not all students learn the same way. A teacher should be knowledgeable enough to reach their many different students but some teachers insist on using the same methods they were using years ago to try and reach a new generation.



coolfamily6 -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/29/2008 5:12:41 PM)

quote:

if this teacher is only reaching some students they definitely need to take a course or read the myriad of books on the subject.


I never said the teacher was not reaching all the students. I am actually impressed with her class.

Our school is a charter school based on the belief that all children can be successful if you give them the right tools for learning. I worked at the school for two years, so I have seen the this in action. I have met students who were failing at traditional middle schools, d's and f's, come to this school and get a's and b's. NOT because the curriculum is easier, it is actually advanced but because the teachers teach the students not the test.

When a student is struggling the teachers are available to help. Every teacher has a "drop in" help class at least one day a week. If a student has a specific question they are encouraged to come during that time or email the teacher to set up a tutoring session.



artemis -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/29/2008 10:22:19 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: mapachito13

There are actually many different learning styles or multiple intelligences that every teacher should be teaching to.


I have 160 students. While I would love to be able to teach to each of their "learning styles," it's just not possible. There have been talks of giving every single student an IEP (individual education plan) and making the teachers follow it, including separate assignments for each kid. Wonderful in theory, but ridiculous to try to put into practice.


Good for this teacher for realizing that not everyone fits into the same mold. I, too, think she was using the girl/boy analogy as an example and was probably just trying to illustrate to the class that she will be grading them individually, not exactly the same as everyone else.



coolfamily6 -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/30/2008 8:25:30 AM)

quote:

There have been talks of giving every single student an IEP (individual education plan) and making the teachers follow it, including separate assignments for each kid. Wonderful in theory, but ridiculous to try to put into practice.


How could teacher's teach? When my child was needing individual help, I homeschooled him. I understand this is not feasible for everyone but I do not think all children need an IEP. Most kids are fine as long as the teachers are willing to understand that they are not clones.



artemis -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/30/2008 8:51:13 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: coolfamily6

quote:

There have been talks of giving every single student an IEP (individual education plan) and making the teachers follow it, including separate assignments for each kid. Wonderful in theory, but ridiculous to try to put into practice.


How could teacher's teach? When my child was needing individual help, I homeschooled him. I understand this is not feasible for everyone but I do not think all children need an IEP. Most kids are fine as long as the teachers are willing to understand that they are not clones.


Well, they couldn't, of course. It sounds like a great idea in theory... every child would get an individualized education. But in practice, no one would get the help they truly need. Even in a class of 25, it would be nearly impossible to create, teach and evaluate 25 separate lessons. One good lesson, with helps on the side for the few students who really need them is infinitely better than 25 crummy lessons because the teacher didn't have time to prepare something better. However, a good teacher will vary the way he/she teaches. They might do a bookwork lesson one day, a hands-on lesson the next and something using technology the following day.

Now, my little brothers go to a special needs school and there, every child has an IEP. But the student-teacher ration is 4-1 [;)]



Sideways -> RE: Gotta love a teacher who (8/30/2008 11:36:08 AM)

Reminds me of the concept of completely reorganizing PS by competency instead of grades. In other words, one student might be able to do 6th level math, and 5th level science, but only 3rd level reading and writing. Abolish the grade system where everyone is forced to do all subjects at the same level, and if a student needs to repeat a level because they don't have the competency, then it wouldn't be as much of a big social deal.

That kinda starts to happen in high school, but I can't imagine how the elementary schools would do it. Homeschoolers tend to work their subjects more according to competency rather then grade, but I can't see how it would logistically work in most PS.



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