Introduction 2012

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Last year, I got a good feel for how to work in and out of the classroom in my capacity. I felt like I was growing in this weird math coaching / data analyst / designer / web-type person for the school. Even though we had a few naysayers, I think the school as a whole had the right foundations for building some really awesome pieces, especially on the curriculum and assessment piece. This thrust coupled with the Common Core work and the GE Futures in Education conference empowered me to rethink my whole style of teaching.

Then I learned we were expecting Alejandro.

My personal life started to have an effect on my professional life, so I had to get back to basics for everything I did. Many of the new projects I wanted to undertake in the math department were put on hold, but I made sure of two things: that everything I planned worked for the students in the class and that everything I worked on for the school made sense. With those two guiding principles, I made good progress on becoming a better teacher and a better leader. In other words, I became a much more conscientious teacher.

I also know that in a cooperative teaching situation, I had to be on point. Last year, when I worked with Mr. Johnson, he said at the end of the year that I taught him a lot about math. Whether or not that’s true is really up with him (and Mr. Pasco, who works with him now as the math counterpart). Yet, I probably learned as much from him as he learned from me. For example, I learned that I have to be more explicit about my expectations for the class. I always emphasize trying hard, handing in assignments, note-taking, and studying for assignments, but I also realized that I needed to show students more often what these actions look like. If not, they can fall to the wayside or, worse, completely lose themselves in the material.

Mr. Johnson also taught me that I need to remember that, in order to get kids to higher levels of thinking, I have to help them build more bridges. It means actually detailing how we arrived at answers, and more often asking for students to explain how we got solutions. I needed to help them own the material in ways they couldn’t. Also, I needed to get lesson plans printed and in clear language for whoever I worked with. The stakes are higher when you have another adult working with you.

In a way, by having Mr. Morban there, it assured that I would have to stay on top of my game. I wanted to demonstrate to him that, should I be absent, he can easily pick up where I left off. This would prove necessary for the two weeks I took in January, when my son was born. During the nine school days I had with the new baby, I kept thinking about the students I left in school, too. Class 814 and I formed a bond in ways that I couldn’t with last year’s 815. Thus, when I came back for the math interim assessment, I had a rude awakening: the test was in less than three months and they were already two weeks behind in preparation.

Again, I sat with my curriculum maps, pacing calendars, and lesson plans and said, “What in the world am I going to do?” As I sat there, I realized what many of us do: we have to get back to the basics. I started to emphasize the standards I knew would come up, with some hope that my students would retain most of the information I gave them. I also continued tracking how they did on their assessments, which helped when I created new assessments.

Even when I didn’t do check-ins (unfortunately, I have too many missed ones), I had no choice but to reflect daily on my practice. A few missteps here and there, but cleaning up your child’s poop at 2 in the morning can humble anyone.

Reflection of SMART Goals 2012

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Last year, I said I would:

1. Improve my student’s use of math vocabulary in the content area.
2. Help transform data into information for all teachers in our school.
3. Improve my informal assessment techniques during the class time.

1. Improve my student’s use of math vocabulary in the content area.

Generally, I think I met my goals. I asked my students to use “hypotenuse” for the line opposite the right angle instead of “that line thingie,” or not settling for random guesses but assured values in their math work. The more I used the language in front of the students, they more they adjusted to it. It not only helped them understand the text they were reading in our class, but also have strong dialogue amongst their fellow classmates about the actual math. Their explanations became sharper and more extensive, and our classroom discussions became richer.

2. Help transform data into information for all teachers in our school.

For my second goal, I noticed that some of this work has been taken on by some of the teachers themselves. No longer do I have to explain to colleagues how to operate ARIS or dissect the numbers given on the state test per se. With the help of Dr. Fernandez’s workshops in the beginning of the year, people also got a taste of how to break down data to get a better understanding of their students. Most of the data experts in the building have gotten better at disseminating and sharing strategies for how to look at numbers more effectively. More importantly, people have started to share more about the qualitative and quantitative parts of their jobs. Always helpful.

3. Improve my informal assessment techniques during the class time.

This class took a while to build with my class because of their disparate needs, but over time, they started to make better attempts at answering my more poignant questions. Getting students to think is a legacy I hope to keep building. While some of my students still struggled with those types of questions, they were able to answer some of those questions, and hopefully, their growth will translate to gains when they ascend to higher levels of math.

I also had a set of teaching and leading goals for 2012. Here is an update on those:

At this point, you’ve seen my self-reflection in both teaching and leading as per the rubrics. In setting my goals for next year, I thought about the next steps that the math department and the school could use in enhancing our practice in the building. Thus, these are my three goals.

1. Improve pedagogical communication within the math department.

Last year, I set out on having more clear discussions with the math department about strengthening certain portions of the curriculum so each grade would reap from the benefits of students with better foundations. I have yet to see the data, but the conversations have been happening, on a personal level and on a department level. With the emphasis on the Common Core, people are finally starting to see that they need to make strategic changes to their pedagogy to meet the needs of the students, and make them think critically.

2. Better document how to use data as part of the classroom.

After putting together sample data folders for people, I think the majority of the school has an idea about how to gather, organize, and use data in the classroom to inform instruction. Generally, I haven’t had to do much of the front-end work with data because others have done this. Having said that, we still aren’t at 100% even with the data meetings that Dr. Fernandez has had with the majority of the school in the beginning of the year.

3. Align my student portfolio system to a common set of standards.

This year, the 8th grade pilot teachers focused our efforts on the Common Core pilot which essentially gave us assessments to give as part of our classroom curriculum. We

All of these parts connect to my work as a teacher and a teacher leader, and I hope to embark on another trek towards the best person I can be.

In the artifacts below, you’ll see the evidence of my works throughout the year with small descriptions of what they meant.

Introduction

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Last year, I was just learning how to juggle the responsibilities of a math coach and a math teacher. I asked for a program where I could simultaneously help improve instruction throughout the building and test it myself.  It gave me buy-in with most of the teachers, particularly the ones who were most reluctant to participate in any real math discussion. In the classroom and the building, there were highs and lows, but I learned a lot after surviving the balancing act between coaching and teaching.

I started to see things in a different light from an administrative perspective. That new vision allowed me to get a better worldview for the complexities of running a school, and what needs to be done in order to assure that all students get proper education. A big piece of that is teacher quality and leadership. If teachers are invested in their own professional development and creating their own formulations for what’s happening in their classrooms (as long as there’s a set of high expectations), then the education improves.

I also started to see how even the pieces that seem inconsequential to a school running really make all the difference around the lives of the personnel. Thus, if we make those pieces part of a streamlined and useful process, then people gravitate towards that. Because of my hectic schedule, it became important to be more efficient with my work and effective wherever I was.

This year, I’ve been able to handle the majority of my tasks without compromising them. In the classroom, I found better ways to explain the material to my students through discussion and collaboration with my colleagues. Outside of the classroom, I’ve become more consistent with getting things done, even as they’ve gotten more complex in nature. I’ve also been more helpful with teachers, visiting classrooms for extended periods of time whenever possible.

Nowadays, the term teacher-leader has become popular, and I’m proud to be among those ranks.

Future SMART Goals in Teaching and Leading

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At this point, you’ve seen my self-reflection in both teaching and leading as per the rubrics. In setting my goals for next year, I thought about the next steps that the math department and the school could use in enhancing our practice in the building. Thus, these are my three goals.

1. Improve pedagogical communication within the math department.

This year, the 8th grade had improved greatly in their ability to discuss pedagogy in the classroom in their common planning periods. Now, we need to improve the discussions that happen from one grade level to the other. 8th graders need to discuss material with 7th graders, and 7th graders with 6th graders. This discussion will enable more understanding about our students’ experiences in previous math classes. Also, for the curriculum map developers, it gives us a keen sense of our students’ struggles and pacing with the topics.

2. Better document how to use data as part of the classroom.

While I have a really good understanding of data (a perk of being a math teacher), I haven’t had the opportunity to work hands-on with teachers to develop their understanding of their data. I would like to make that a central piece of my work next year working with individual teachers, whether by appointment or request, on data interpretation. I can offer my services through the common planning times or after-school sessions. This will fortify teacher ownership of class information.

3. Align my student portfolio system to a common set of standards.

For the math department, many of us have struggled to keep up with portfolios, mainly because we haven’t come up with a common way of approaching them. Next year, I would like to model how to keep good student portfolios. We have people working on separate tasks that will culminate the sorts of pieces we would like to see in each portfolio. Once we’ve done that for the 8th grade, we want to build that for the 7th and 6th grade as well with teachers involved in that process.

All of these parts connect to my work as a teacher and a teacher leader, and I hope to embark on another trek towards the best person I can be.