Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Johnny be good...

Sitting in the bar at Cragun's Resort in Brainerd, MN, tonight, I overheard this conversation...

"Keeping out of trouble?"

Pause. No response.

"Good for you!"

Which made me think about risk...and living fully.

There's a perspective on behavior that values risk averse behavior. Don't drink, don't smoke, don't do drugs, don't have premarital sex, don't lie, don't cheat, don't hang out in unseemly places, don't play your music too loud, don't hang out on the porch...

On the other hand, ignoring this advice has its consequences. Vice is...well...vice.

Would you really trust someone who has never done something stupid?

Would you really trust someone who does stupid things habitually?

Life is grand. But it's not simple.

Monday, September 25, 2006

Under the Microscope...

So, the doorbell rings, and the husband of a candidate for state representative is at the door plugging for his wife. He has a glossy flyer listing her claims to fame and promises to keep. After a couple of claims that she'll provide "Property Tax Relief" and "fiscal prudence" the brochure promises a "wise investment in our schools and greater accountability". Since this was all pretty vague, I asked the guy what this meant. He pointed out that his wife would make sure that the schools wouldn't waste money on administrative costs like flying superintendents in jets.

Flying superintendents in jets?

Is this the most pressing issue for our schools? I asked the guy if he has internet service. He says, "Yes". So I asked him if he made sure that his internet company doesn't waste money flying it's executives around in jets. He says, "No". I offered that perhaps we should trust our school boards, who are also elected, to do their job; rather than having our state legislatures meddling in the day to day operations of our schools. If we don' like the school board's policies or fiscal priorities, then we can replace them.

Good grief.

I also asked what party she is with, since the flyer fails to mention party affiliation. Apparantly she's endorsed by the Republican Party. I don't understand why that's not on the flyer. Wouldn't you think that would be something they would want to highlight?

So, he leaves. And I look at the brochure a bit more. Turns out he's a teacher. What gives? How can anyone who's ever worked in a classroom really think that administrative overhead is our biggest problem. Administrative loads in Minnesota average about 31%. Maybe this could be lowered somewhat, but not without sacrificing essential planning and support. Let's say we cut the heck out of Administration, by 20% for instance, that only changes the load to 26%, meaning that we get an extra 5% for instruction. While this would be great in the short run, it's hard to estimate what the long term effect would be. Particularly if the original 31% includes things like copies, custodial, and counseling. It doesn't help morale to have things like that cut by 20%. Also, I would guess that most calculations include professional development in the administrative costs. So much for ensuring Quality Instruction.

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Teaching Rationale: The Curious Incident

The following is a teaching rationale for "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night", which is referred to in the preceding post.

Teaching Rationale: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night

In May, 2006, several of the Roseville Area High School English Dept. instructors who teach English 9 met and agreed that a common novel was needed in the first half of English 9. Numerous discussions took place during May, June and July to find a novel that would be appropriate. Some of the characteristics of a good selection would be:

A novel that provides a strong coming of age story to work with the English 9A topic of Passage to Adulthood.

A novel that provides opportunities for instruction in literary concepts that are important in the Language Arts sequence of curriculum.

A novel that is interesting and accessible regardless of reading level. This is an important consideration. English 9A classes include a wide range of readers. Many students in these classes do not perceive themselves as readers and are not highly motivated to read for English courses.

A novel that will be interesting to both boys and girls in the classroom.

A novel that will be accepted by students, parents, and administration.

Many titles were considered. Traditional titles such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Catcher in the Rye were thought to be too difficult and lacking in relevance for many of our students. More recent novels such as The Bean Trees or The Secret Life of Bees are more accessible, but are frequently perceived as being only of interest for female students. In addition, almost all of the more contemporary adolescent literature that was considered has strong sexual content that cause more frequent challenges from the community.

For reasons that are detailed below, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night has been selected because it fits the above criteria. Those of us who will be teaching this book are very enthusiastic about the way that it is both a book that students can get excited about reading and it is a book that teacher’s can get excited about teaching. We are not insensitive to the fact that it contains some strong language. Our instruction will include a discussion of how that language fits into the cultural context of working class England and how words need to be understood within their cultural context. However, rarely will you find a book that has such interesting and sophisticated discussions of topics such as the meaning of words and the purpose of metaphor that is also enjoyable for the adolescent to read.

The following pages provide detailed information about the book. First you will find a short summary of the novel. The next section details just a few examples of ways in which the academic community has received the book. As you will see, this book is being read and taught in many schools and communities worldwide. We have also provided a selection of responses from the commercial publishing community, where the book has received considerable critical acclaim. In the last section, we have described how we are teaching this book, and the numerous ways that it allows us to teach important literary concepts from our curriculum.


Summary of the Novel --Jackie Gropman, Chantilly Regional Library, VA

“When a teen discovers his neighbor's dog savagely stabbed to death, he decides to use the deductive reasoning of his favorite detective to solve the crime. Employing Holmesian logic is not an easy task for even the cleverest amateur sleuth and, in Christopher's case, it is particularly daunting. He suffers from a disability that causes, among other things, compulsive behavior; the inability to read others' emotions; and intolerance for noise, human touch, and unexpected events. He has learned to cope amazingly well with the help of a brilliant teacher who encourages him to write a book. This is his book-a murder mystery that is so much more. Christopher's voice is clear and logical, his descriptions spare and to the point. Not a word is wasted by this young sleuth who considers metaphors to be lies and does math problems for relaxation. What emerges is not only the solution to the mystery, but also insight into his world. Unable to feel emotions himself, his story evokes emotions in readers-heartache and frustration for his well-meaning but clueless parents and deep empathy for the wonderfully honest, funny, and lovable protagonist. Readers will never view the behavior of an autistic person again without more compassion and understanding. The appendix of math problems will intrigue math lovers, and even those who don't like the subject will be infected by Christopher's enthusiasm for prime numbers and his logical, mathematical method of decision making.”

Acceptance by Academic Community

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night has been a very popular book among educators. It’s unique point of view and rich style combined with its relevance and readability make it an excellent choice for adolescent readers.

Recommended for Adolescent Readers by the Center for Teaching and Learning, New England Association of Schools and Colleges. http://www.c-t-l.org/high_school_readers.html

#1 Book You’d Leave on a Bus for 2005, Teachit, Ltd. (Ranked by English Educators). #2 was Wuthering Heights and #3 was Pride and Prejudice.

New Book Trust Teenage Fiction Award 2003, http://www.booktrust.org.uk/prizes/teenage.php

Whitbread Best Novel Award 2003, http://www.costabookawards.com/previousyears.cfm?page=49&year=2003

Booker Prize Longlist, http://www.themanbookerprize.com/about/

Developed as a recommended Secondary Education Whole Class Novel by the Department for Education and Skills on their Standards Site. http://www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/keystage3/respub/en_novel

2006 Young Adult Literature Conference Selection for grades 9 and up. http://cuip.uchicago.edu/schools/gearup/chicago/archive/2005-06/yal06/pdf/yal2006.pdf


Critical Reception and Reviews

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night was published in 2003. It has quickly become a very popular book in a wide range of circles. In the commercial publishing worlds, typical reviews are as follows.

Library School Journal, Recommended for High School students and adults. “Unable to feel emotions himself, his story evokes emotions in readers-heartache and frustration for his well-meaning but clueless parents and deep empathy for the wonderfully honest, funny, and lovable protagonist. Readers will never view the behavior of an autistic person again without more compassion and understanding.”

Publishers Weekly, “Though Christopher insists, "This will not be a funny book. I cannot tell jokes because I do not understand them," the novel brims with touching, ironic humor. The result is an eye-opening work in a unique and compelling literary voice.”

"Think Huck Finn, The Catcher in the Rye, or the early chapters of David Copperfield." –Houston Chronicle

"More so than precursors like The Sound and the Fury and Flowers for Algernon, The Curious Incident is a radical experiment in empathy." –The Village Voice

“Moving. . . . Think of The Sound and the Fury crossed with The Catcher in the Rye and one of Oliver Sacks’s real-life stories.” —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

“Gloriously eccentric and wonderfully intelligent.” —The Boston Globe

"This is an amazing novel. An amazing book." —The Dallas Morning News

“A superb achievement. He is a wise and bleakly funny writer with rare gifts of empathy.” —Ian McEwan, author of Atonement

“Brilliant. . . . Delightful. . . . Very moving, very plausible—and very funny.” —Oliver Sacks

“Superb. . . . Bits of wisdom fairly leap off the page.” —Newsday

"Both clever and observant." —The Washington Post

“[Haddon] illuminates a core of suffering through the narrowly focused insights of a boy who hasn’t the words to describe emotional pain.” —New York Daily News

“Engrossing . . . flawlessly imagined and deeply affecting.” —Time Out New York

“The Curious Incident is the rare book that repays reading twice in quick succession.” —Detroit Free Press

Responses to the Novel by Adolescent Readers

Claire , Girl, age 43, from Winnipeg , Canada, on 7th June 2006. Rating: 10/10

I just finished reading this book and Oh my gosh it is just a wonderful story. Brought tears to my eyes in the end. One of the ladies at the library said she heard it was good and hadn't read it yet, and wondered if I wanted to read it and boy am I glad I did. Its wonderful from start to finish. A must read for everyone.

Cookie lover, girl, age 12, from London, United Kingdom, on 3rd June 2006. Rating: 10/10

A BRILLIANT book. it will have you gripped from start to finish, a beautifully written tale about one boy and his seemingly impossible quest. EXTREMELY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!!

Catheryne, girl, age 12, from Oxford, United Kingdom, on 20th May 2006. Rating: 10/10

Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Nightime was a really brilliantly written book about an autistic boy and his quest to find his Mother and to find out who killed Mrs. Shears dog, Wellington. It was so brilliantly written and is now one of my favourite books.

Johnny, boy, age 12, from North East, United Kingdom, on 7th March 2006. Rating: 7/10

A Wierdly Gripping Story With A Fantastic Ending Which Had Me Gripped From Start To Finish.

Moh, boy, age 17, from Kartoum, Sudan, on 22nd November 2005. Rating: 10/10

A great read!! I'm doing a personal study about it which proves how much i like this book. I read it last year in my Christmas holiday and i could not put it down. I'm not a big reader, but this has to be one of the best books ever!

Joan Hin, girl, age 13, from Wales, United Kingdom, on 11th October 2005. Rating:

Weird. But highly enjoyable. Putting it from the point of an autistic teen was a stroke of genius and there should be more books like this. The story would be great in it's self with an unautistic person but I like the way you see it from this angle. Totally unputdownable. This is just out of interest, but are there any autistic people out there who've read this book? I wonder what they'd make of it?

Kate, girl, age 14, from Fife, United Kingdom, on 4th October 2005. Rating: 10/10

I found this book very hard to put down. It covered real life issues, as well as being written from the point of view of an autistic teen, making the book interesting, but not too hard to understand. Maths is used regularly in this book, with chapters going up in prime numbers, meaning you can revise your Maths skills while reading an interesting book. I'll definately recommend this book to my friends and read it over and over again. I think this book is a must for adults and teens alike.

More responses can be found at http://www.readingmatters.co.uk/book2.php?id=235.


Opportunities for Instruction

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night is an excellent text for teaching Passage to Adulthood, Metaphor, Euphemism, Simile, Denotation, Connotation, Point of View, Characterization, Social Context, Dramatic Irony, and Symbol. As with all of our texts in English 9, we also look at Basic Needs, Question Levels, and Theme. The following is a broad outline of our curriculum. Each teacher is free to develop specific activities around the questions and suggested tasks in this outline.

Text Setup

Our focus on Passage to Adulthood traditionally begins with an examination of how the student is perceived and misunderstood by the world. This discussion generally involves an examination of stereotypes and perceptions, with consideration of how various communication mediums are understood by various participants in the communication. The novel begins with the protagonist being misunderstood by various other characters as he discovers the “dog in the night”. As we introduce the text, we look at stereotypes and perceptions and ask the following questions.

How are you understood/misunderstood?

How do you code shift to be understood?

Who tends to misunderstand you?

What prejudgements do others make about you when listening? Or that you make about others?

Section 1: pp. 1-21 Metaphor, Euphemism, Simile, Denotation, Connotation

One of the more exciting elements of the text in regard to how it can be taught is its frequent and explicit discussion of the meaning and function of words. The unique perspective of the narrator, Christopher, and his frequent ruminating about the words and symbols that people use provide a great opportunity to discuss how words are used and what they mean in the classroom. We explore this section with the following questions.

What is a metaphor?

How is a euphemism like a metaphor?

How is a simile like a metaphor?

Why does Christopher think a metaphor is a lie?

Explain differences in the denotation and connotation of words in the text.

Find the literal sentences for euphemisms on page 15.

Brainstorm other euphemisms and state the literal sentences.

Section 2: pp. 22-43 Point of View

Again, Christopher’s singular perspective on his world provides a wonderful opportunity to explore how point of view is used by an author to manipulate meaning in a text.

What is the point of view of this book?

How is it different from what you would expect from First Person Limited?

What is unusual about the reliability of this narrator?

Introduce this topic by identifying ten paragraphs from various points of view. Process as a large group?

Section 3: pp. 44-61 Characterization

Christopher has interesting opinions about the other characters in the book, and these attitudes on the part of the narrator provide an opportunity to explore how characters are created by authors.

What are the methods of characterization?

How are your evaluations of the characters in the book different from Christophers?

What specific elements of characterization does Haddon use to create this gap? Use textbook definitions of Characterization and process in class.

Section 4: 62-79 Social Context

This is an important element of the text in that it is through this teaching moment that we disarm the potentially offensive language of the novel. It is important for the student to recognize that within the cultural context of working class London, language is used in ways that differs from our own Midwest American social context. Students are generally skilled at understanding this kind of code-shifting, as they must do it every day when they move from the worlds of peers, school, home, church and work. While being similar enough to our own world to be easily understood, the world of the novel is different enough to support this conversation in the classroom.

In what ways do the world of this text differ from our own world?

What research might we do to learn the reasons for these differences?

Are these differences fictional, or rooted in a real social differences?

How does our social context affect the way we understand the text?

Section 5: 80-99 Dramatic Irony

Another way in which this text is uniquely appropriate for teaching a literary concept is the rich presence of dramatic irony in the text. Dramatic irony is that moment in a text when the reader knows something about the world of the novel that the narrator does not realize. Because of the ways in which Christopher understands his world, this happens frequently throughout the book.

How has the nature of the narrator’s point of view created dramatic irony?

Section 6: 100-124 Passage to Adulthood/Coming of Age

Because Christopher moves beyond the fears inherent in his condition, we are able to see that he can change his identify in his social world and move beyond adolescence into a more independent form of adulthood.

How might this be the beginning of a passage experience for Christopher?

In what ways might he have lost his innocence?

In what ways might he gain independence?

Predict Christopher’s passage.

View various images of cultural passage and discuss.

The following sections include discussions of several essential elements of the English 9 curriculum. Although not uniquely appropriate to these topics, this text is similar to others in the way that it allows these concepts to be taught.

Section 7: 125-140 Question Levels

Formulate questions in each of the three levels: Factual; Inferential; Big Idea.

Define and create questions.

Section 8: 140-164 Basic Needs

How are Christopher’s choices driven by his basic needs?

Define and answer question.

Section 9: 164-179 Theme

Identifying the main theme of a novel requires knowing the ending. How might possible endings create different themes for the novel?

Define.

Provide topics and ask students to explain what the book says about the topic.

Section 10: 179-200 Symbol

At this point, knowing more about the text, what do you think the dog from Section 1 might symbolize?

Final Section: 200-219

How did Christopher’s quest prepare him for adulthood?

What is the theme of this novel?

As you can see from the above, there are many elements of this novel that lend themselves to our instruction. Although it is certainly true that the language of the novel is strong, this language is rooted in a working class social context in which that language is accepted. At no time will instruction with this novel suggest that it would be appropriate for students to use this language. In fact, our explicit discussion of context will make it clear that students should not use this language. Although we may find the language offensive, it is a natural part of the text and we are confident that it will remain within the text.

Although it is certainly possible for someone to select a different novel and argue that it would be a more appropriate choice than The Curious Incident, we have been unable to do so. Each alternate that was considered failed to compare in some important element. Most telling is that fact that as of today, Tuesday, September 12, instructors who are using the text report that students are unusually engaged and enthusiastic about the novel. In many ways, our first task is to get students excited about reading and to help them see themselves as readers. We believe that this novel allows us to do this in unique ways.

Free Speech is a Dangerous Weapon..

Wow! How did it get to be Wednesday already?

It's actually been a very busy week. The parent who was unhappy about our use of "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night" persisted in her objections despite a lengthy conversation Monday evening. She was very cordial, but was quite insistent that the book's "obscene" and "vulgar" language was inappropriate for high school freshmen.

What was interesting was that she really didn't have anything that she wanted from us for her daughter. She didn't want her daughter to read the book, but now that the daughter had started the book she wanted to let her finish. So instead she's filing a complaint with the intention of preventing us from teaching the book in the future.

We had developed a really strong teaching rationale, which I'll post separately. Suffice it to say that we are very enthusiastic about teaching this book, and feel very strongly that it is a good choice. In addition, we have 180 students reading it right now, and the teacher's involved are reporting it to be extremely successful. There were three parents in the meeting, but the other two parents were not as firm in their objection to the book.

I suppose I'll report back more on this later. Ironically, the complaint should come through around the first day of this year's American Library Association's Banned Book Week. :-)


Interesting development in my Speech class today. I have this course that is called Speech in Performance, which is an advanced course fulfilling a Junior year communication requirement. I have an unusually strong group this fall. The class has 24 very intelligent, creative kids. My rhythm with this group is to create a very open, trusting environment. Thursday is "Free Speech Thursday", where the students are asked to bring a 100-200 word speech that can literally be anything they want (everything from reading the Microsoft Office User's Manual to orginal free verse poetry). We start the course with an Original Oratory of three to five minutes, and set it up by examining some theoretical foundations of persuasion and basic delivery techniques. Anyway...this group has been really adventurous and creative from day one. They have a lot to say and aren't afraid to say it. Much of their work has been bitingly satirical, and I'm not inclined to censor their efforts in this area.

So, we started presenting the oratories on Tuesday, and right off the bat a student presents a speech likening his first trip to the doctor for a physical to rape. It was supposed to be humorous, but risked offending people on any number of fronts. Then, today, a student doing a speech in support of organizations helping people with HIV had a humorous introduction that pushed boundaries as well.

It was the first time that I had ever felt like the openness of the classroom stood at risk of real abuse. So, we had a long conversation about whether we needed rules, and really evaluated the responsibilities that come with free speech. Just because you can say it doesn't mean you should say it. In many ways it was a really fabulous learning moment. But real free speech is a scary thing in the hands of enthusiastic and creative adolescents. Should be an interesting term.

Sunday, September 17, 2006

Sunday, Bloody Sunday

The problem with teaching is that there's always this pile of stuff you're supposed to be grading. It's like being a student again, where your very existence is infused with a constant nagging awareness that there's probably something more productive you could be doing. Unless you're actually in the process of getting things done...which sort of defeats the purpose of a weekend. I say this because I was out playing cards last night, so I'm tired today...consequently I'm not grading the papers that I brought home to look at this weekend.


Which is why I don't have much to say, either. :)

Friday, September 15, 2006

Whose Education Is It?

A friend of mine who teaches at Malone College once observed that 90% of education is in the hands of the student. That might be a conservative estimate. In any event, comparing private or charter schools with public schools irks me. As long as public schools provide services to everyone, regardless of their interest, and private or charter schools provide services to self-selected students who are generally motivated (whether intrinsically or extrinsically), public schools will appear to underperform as compared with private or charter schools.

Thursday, September 14, 2006

A Response to Demagoguery

So, I just spent a bit of time responding to someone on our community forum who has annoyed/engaged/intrigued me. It's enough for one day, so I post it here.

The original conversation was around our district referendum, which passed. A lot of the comments that were like this, "I won't get into the debate about how the Public Schools are a cash sinkhole with poor results. There are plenty of comparative studies that bear this out, but this thread is not about that."
Hmmm...a debate on the efficacy of the US model of public education would clearly be beyond the scope of the forum. I might agree that the paradigm is broken, but this isn't the place to debate that issue. It is beyond the pervue of the Roseville school board or administration to really make the kind of changes that might be called for. For that debate, move up to the federal level and engage NCLB for what it really is. As an educator, I agree that there is something fundamentally broken about how we teach our kids; but I doubt that the CDH model is sufficiently different to really address that concern. A real paradigm shift requires more than attitudinal and rigor changes; it requires a basic examination of the pedagogy. Ironically, I would like to move on and get my PHD to engage this question, but worry about becoming mired in the EduCratic Bureaucracy.

In another moment, the writer suggested that the local private school cost half of what the public system spends on education.
Meanwhile, I can't resist the need to take issue with the numbers for CDH. Based solely on the numbers that I find on the web, I find that CDH appears to have about 1,240 students, with a total budget of $13,413,00. This resolves to a per pupil cost of $10,817 per student. Tuition may be $8,500, but that is not the total cost. Roseville appears to have (based on 2005 data which is available online) 6,328 students with a total cost of $68,793,00. This resolves to $10,871 per student. I am completely prepared to believe that the numbers I have found are in error, but on it's face the available data would suggest that the costs for the two institutions are similar. This is particularly interesting when you consider that something in the vicinity of 18% of the high school staff are in the Special Education Dept. I doubt that the percentage of federally mandated special education costs are in the range of 18% at CDH (though I could be wrong).

The writer went on to say that his children were underprepared for the private high school when they left the public system.
As for the efficacy of the two educational models, I can only use anecdotal evidence to suggest that the students entering my PreAP English 9 classes seem equally prepared whether they come form local private schools, RAMS, or Parkview. I don't doubt your own anecdotal evidence, but it remains only anecdotal. Like any product or service, Education is great when it fits your needs. There are 2,200 students at the Roseville High School. It's absurd to think that we are meeting all of their needs, and it is also absurd to think that we are completely ineffectual. The real question is what is the essential underlying purpose of public education, and whose needs are we really trying to meet.

He offered a tour of the local private school, which is what I had offered in a previous post.
I love the idea that we're offering comparative tours of the schools. I love my classes...I love my students...I believe in what we're doing. I have no doubt that CDH can claim the same. God bless educators for their beliefs...sometimes it's the only thing they have going for them.

By the way, the Superintendent's name is spelled Thein. ;)

Here's a few notes on the tone of discourse.
Lastly, and I'll be fairly direct with this since it's off the forum, your contributions to this discourse would be a whole lot more effective if you quit insulting people. Yes, you get everyone's attention that way, but it took me a week to decide that a conversation with you might be of value. I get that you're despondent, and maybe your experiences warrant your attitude, but after reading your blog I have to say that you would be considerably more effective if you had less in the way of random insults and more reasoned arguments. I suppose that's my prejudice as an educator, I prefer the five-paragraph essay over demagoguery. :) On the other hand, politics shows us that demagoguery is considerably more effective as a means of swaying the masses. sigh

I get that you are pissed off. But perhaps it would be useful for you to remember that the organizations at which you are pissed are filled with people who are working to make life better for people just like your kids, whether they choose to be in the public schools or not.

And then there were the complaints because the district underpays his wife for her job as a TA.
Also, I would suggest that the tragedy of TAs and Custodial workers toiling for obscenely low wages is less the fault of the school district than the conservative and/or liberatarian elements of our society. A living wage law, or some governmental requirement that compensation gaps between the haves and have nots be less egregious would go a long way toward making your wife's compensation more appropriate. As a sixth year teacher, my wages are adequate, but I agree that it is tragic that millions of citizens in this country work as hard as I do for wages that wouldn't pay for a two bedroom apartment. This is an issue that will only change when we loosen our worship for the libertarian belief in the market system.

Later...

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

The Referendum Passes

Our local district education referendum passed, which should make me happy. There will be adequate funds for books this year, which is a rare and blessed event. Ironically, I'm somewhat depressed about the whole thing. The reason for this has to do with a whining blogger who posted his dark, dreary, unsubstantiated opinions on our local forum. It's kind of ridiculous, really; that I should be affected in any way by his references to the black hole of education funding...and yet I am.

The segment of the population who are so totally convinced that government waste is overwhelming and pervasive baffle me. Education, social services, and a range of other functions that the government undertakes are in many ways impossible tasks. When a company builds a product, it's clear to everyone involved whether it works or not. If your widget does what it is supposed to, then you're happy. If not, you get your money back. It's obviously harder to determine whether the poor have an adequate safety net, or a child has an adequate education. We can't even agree on the characteristics of a well made product, so how can we possibly know whether our system is efficient. The very idea of waste in such a system is problematic.

Which isn't to say that waste isn't part of the deal. Any of us could walk into any government agency and pick away at expenses we deem unnecessary, and we might even reach consensus about something. But my guess is that many of the things we might eliminate are existant to an extraordinary degree in the business world. I don't know. It's just aggravating. We tape the bindings of decrepit paperbacks, need supervisory approval for colored paper, take classes of 39 or more students to labs that have 32 computers...but since test scores are flat we must be wasting money. Test scores, there's a topic for discussion...but not today.

On the positive side, I have 115 intelligent high school students every day that I have a blast working with. There's no question in my mind that they are not a black hole.

Wow...something more constructive is in order.

I had a great moment in class today. My freshmen were supposed to have created a text (which is broadly defined) in response to the novel, The Secret Life of Bees. One of the students wrote a piece of music using the Garage Band software and played it for the class. It was a very haunting piece, reminiscent of George Winston's work. What was really cool was the way that the discussion wove around different elements of the text that were evoked by the music. Another student did a mime performance, which prompted a lengthy discussion in which the students made metaphorical connections between the performance and the struggles of the protagonist, Lily. It was interesting, because the performance was a fairly literal expression of a moment in the text, but the student's response to the performance was almost entirely metaphorical. Although the class really focuses on academic writing, this activity is designed to create a range of abstract responses to the text that the students can synthesize in their writing. It's always a treat when it works the way it's supposed to. :)

Hmm...well, enough for today.

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

A Start is a Start is a...

Somehow it feels like this is the moment to say something particularly pithy. But, of course, noone is likely to read it; which reduces the pressure significantly. In any event, this is a start.

To what, it would appear, is fairly irrelevant. The world is now filled with a bjillion blogs. I was moved to start my own as a consequence of reading the blog of a conservative demigog in my own area. I participate in a community forum the purpose of which is to discuss issues of import for the suburb in which I teach (Roseville, MN). In any event, in the midst of a reasonable dialogue about an upcoming education referendum this gentlemen plunges in with a variety of broad accusations and pronouncements, within which was a link to his blog. So I read it. And I was struck by the complete lack of coherent discourse. I realize that I shouldn't be surprised, but I had never really grocked the idea that people were blogging so that they could simply vent their unregulated and incoherent spleen. Hmmm...naivete par excellence! :)

After reading his blog and thinking about his posting on the community forum I realized that the last thing I wanted to do was to really engage him in a dialogue about something I cared about; as it was clear that his opinion would never be swayed by coherent thought or careful argument. He, like much of the country, is likely to stay the course regardless of the consequences.

However, I did start to think more about the nature of the blog and how it might function. And 44 years of edging up to being a writer has a way of poking its head over the parapet to see if the coast has cleared...of what, I'm not sure. Anywho, 50 million bloggers can't be wrong.

Teacher, golfer, theatre artist, parent, husband, American. Seems like there ought to be enough in there to write a few words each day. This is day one. We'll see if there's a day two.

Enough prologue. Let's talk education. In the last 24 hours I've managed to annoy two separate sets of parents. Let's talk free speech and censorship.

Item One: I have a poster in my room. It's nestled among several posters that I'm fond of. See if you can guess my political bent from these.
  • Poster One: The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who in times of great moral crisis maintain their neutrality. --Dante
  • Poster Two: The more you can increase fear of drugs and crime, welfare mothers, immigrants and aliens, the more you control all the people. -- Chomsky
  • Poster Three: A chart measuring the pace at which the Rich get Richer, and the poor don't.
  • Poster Four: Join the Army. travel to exotic, distant lands, meet exciting, unusual people, and kill them.
The item of offense was the fourth one. My principal came down and let me know that a parent had called. Just a heads up visit, no suggestion that I change anything...which is remarkable when you think about it. My thought, though, is what's the problem? If you think the Army is a good place to be, that's fine...but why pretend that the purpose of the army is anything other than to violently alter the behavior of others? Killing people is the science of the armed forces. One might argue quite convincingly that it's a necessary and honorable vocation. The purpose of the poster is less to critique the purpose of the army than it is to critique it's marketing techniques. The whole focus of the US armed forces on the opportunities that are created for the individual by joining the armed forces is absurd at best. It is without question the purpose of the army to eliminate the influence of the individual in preference for the expediency of the collective good.

Not that any of that is what matters. The parent seemed disturbed that I might be expressing an idea that would make their student feel bad because they disagreed with me. Good God! If they feel bad simply because I'm critical of an organization that they plan on joining, they're going to have a hard time in the armed services. The whole idea that teachers should function as if they don't have opinions on important topics is absurd. They should be respectful, thoughtful and attentive in providing opportunities for students to express their views; but that is no reason to suddenly eliminate all of their personal views from their expression.

Part of it is the culture that is created within the classroom. Students need to feel welcome. It is true that these posters probably don't make a conservative student feel welcome. I like to think, however, that the posters exist within the context of the personal rapport that I have with my students. Though, apparantly, not with this particular student. Of course, it's the first week of class and I teach freshmen...so maybe they'll feel differently in a few weeks.

Item 2: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night. Ever read it? Do so. Wonderful novel by Mark Haddon that tells a story from the perspective of an autistic adolescent. Here's a summary from Jackie Gropman done from Publisher's Weekly:

“When a teen discovers his neighbor's dog savagely stabbed to death, he decides to use the deductive reasoning of his favorite detective to solve the crime. Employing Holmesian logic is not an easy task for even the cleverest amateur sleuth and, in Christopher's case, it is particularly daunting. He suffers from a disability that causes, among other things, compulsive behavior; the inability to read others' emotions; and intolerance for noise, human touch, and unexpected events. He has learned to cope amazingly well with the help of a brilliant teacher who encourages him to write a book. This is his book-a murder mystery that is so much more. Christopher's voice is clear and logical, his descriptions spare and to the point. Not a word is wasted by this young sleuth who considers metaphors to be lies and does math problems for relaxation. What emerges is not only the solution to the mystery, but also insight into his world. Unable to feel emotions himself, his story evokes emotions in readers-heartache and frustration for his well-meaning but clueless parents and deep empathy for the wonderfully honest, funny, and lovable protagonist. Readers will never view the behavior of an autistic person again without more compassion and understanding. The appendix of math problems will intrigue math lovers, and even those who don't like the subject will be infected by Christopher's enthusiasm for prime numbers and his logical, mathematical method of decision making.”

So, we're teaching this book...and it's a wonderful text. I mean phenomenal. And we're excited about teaching it...but there is one problem. There are sixteen instances of the word (not sure how much I'm aloud to say here...wait while I look for rules...hmmm, can't find anything) f### and one instance of c##t and one of bitch (that seems mild enough). Anyway, what are you going to do? Students enjoy reading it, it's a great book to teach, it provides a unique point of view and an opportunity to increase awareness of disabilities. We'll see how it goes.

Okay, that seems like enough to start. Especially since it's just for me. :)