This Week.

Finals happened this week.  I learned that I will always be giving my finals 1 week before the rest of the finals.  End of discussion.

My students are... animated... to say the least.  They are dramatic to the extreme.  But most of them never cross the line.  They might swear at each other, but if I hear them, they apologize to me  (which is funny - they yell f-you to someone else, but apologize to me).  They might roll their eyes when I ask them to put their phone away in school AGAIN, complain when I give them work to do on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or any day, or yell "I'm not late" when I ask them to sign the tardy sheet... but that's about as rude as it gets.  Until this week.  I took a student's iPod after repeatedly asking him to put it away and repeatedly he took it back out again.  The school's policy is that a parent has to pick up the electronic device on Friday between 3 and 5.  The policy sucks but it is what it is.  It's meant to motivate students to not use them in class - they do what they want anyway.  So, I took this kids iPod.  When he asked for it after class, I said his parents could pick it up Friday.  He started talking about how ridiculous that was.  I calmly stated "that's the policy. it's not up for discussion."  he then proceeded to storm out.  (There were other students in the room...) Not just storm out, but push every desk over on his way out while screaming profanity that I refuse to repeat or write down.  Let's just say - think of every cuss word you've ever heard and combine them in one sentence.  Yep, that was me.  I said (again, calmly), okay I'll go ahead and add that to the write up.  His response: "yeah, you do that B***"

He came back 2 hours later to apologize.  "Uh, Ms. Cook, I'm really sorry about earlier.  I'm not usually that disrespectful.  My friend was shot this morning and I was pissed and taking out my anger on you.  I'm sorry."

The situation was confirmed when I ran into my assistant principal who asked if Brian apologized to me yet.  I said, "yes how'd you know."  "Oh, he's my little project.  I love that kid and he has a lot to deal with.  He's got some tough stuff and is working on managing anger in a healthy way - which is not what he's learned in life so far.  He has a lot of potential.  He came to me frantically explaining he had exploded on his music teacher and felt terrible and didn't know what to do. I told him 'boy, you gonna march back down there and apologize to that lady.'"    And that was the end of that.  He still picked up his iPod friday.

Not 5 minutes after Brian stormed out screaming profanity, I met Jamequa (*name changed*).  A student that I have a good relationship with brought her to me.  The student that is in my class explained her friend had a problem and that she trusted me and Jamequa needed help.  I then learned that Jamequa's uncle had been raping her since she was 7.  Yeah, that's how I felt too - shocked.  Tears started streaming down my face.  I wasn't qualified to handle this.  I called DCFS for the first time as a teacher.  Hopefully, this will not be a common occasion.  Long story short, Jamequa told the DCFS investigator she made up the whole thing.  I still don't know if it's true.  The story changes a lot.  Either way - true or not- this precious 16 year old girl needs a lot of help.  Bottom line - she needs the saving grace and hope found only in Jesus Christ.

My 1st period seniors did so terribly on their final (which I graded towards the end of the week) I started crying.  Probably the tears were a result of the entire week.  But, I was so disappointed.  They didn't even try - most of them didn't do the review guides.  Most of them skipped the essay.  Just skipped it.  I'm realizing the low academic standard that most of these students have been held to throughout their education and they have created terrible habits.  I could go on and on about this, but mostly, I am just relying on the Lord for wisdom - how do I continue to hold high expectations and teach them in a way that helps them see they can reach them.

After a ridiculous week, Friday was the BEST!  The students had off - professional development day.  So, I went to Kelly HS, where I student taught, and watched their advanced choir rehearse.  Their top choir has rehearsals on every professional development day - the students come in from 8-12.  Amazing.  The guy I worked with there has built the best neighborhood high school choir program in CPS, no doubt about it.  His group performs the quality of literature that most of the suburban schools attempt (where all the students take private lessons) and competes with the best of the best fine arts schools in the city.  Yesterday, they sang in Russian, French, German, Slovak, English, Spanish, and Chinese.  Wow.  I was so encouraged.  (And it only took him 4-5 years!)  His students have become sweet, hard working.  They care for each other, they practice their parts, they help each other out...   He spent the afternoon giving me advice and answering my questions.  How do I get the beginners to sing more?  How do I cultivate appreciation for choral music?  How do I .... How do I .... How do I...

Bottom line - teach to the best.  Move forward with the best kids and many more, who see their success, will pick it up.  There will be some in every class who don't care and don't want to and never will.  And you can't bring the entire class down with them.  You have to move forward.  That is my goal for 2nd semester.

When I explained I don't really have a budget - we have no money in our music department - he said, "Make a list of what you want and we'll buy it for you.  We have the money."  I could have cried (which, as we've established, isn't saying much this week since it was an emotional roller coaster).  The best part was connecting with another music teacher (2 actually) in another school where the choir program is working.  I often feel isolated at work.  The Lord brought this along and I am so thankful to him.

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Heavenly Father, who is unchanging."  (James 1:17)


Thankful for the end of this week and for a fresh start,
Renee

Charles Payne

Ben and I heard Charles Payne speak this week.  He is currently a professor at the University of Chicago and has been studying education reform for many years.  I'm currently reading one of his books, So Much Reform, So Little Change.

He some interesting points to make about the current discourse on public school reforms.  (I'll just give you what he said and try to leave out my opinions.) 

• He didn't spend much time talking about teacher's unions.  (Thank goodness!)  He pointed out that teachers unions take up too much time in these sorts of discussions.  His bottom line: they're not going away, unions are necessary in some way, and the fact that they have too much power is not the MAIN reason our schools are failing minority students. 
• Reformers tend to come up with great ideas based on removing one component (principal, curriculum, program, etc...) and replacing it with something better.  The problem with this is that it does not consider the social and political entity into which the reform is being placed.  Failing urban schools often have a demoralized culture - one defined by mistrust and failure.
• Even if we can get good teachers in an urban school, the lack of support and resources make it nearly impossible to keep them there.  For example, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) has a 50% teacher turnover rate every 4 years.  Reformers should place more energy into figuring out ways to develop and support teachers.
• In New York, the mayor literally took human and financial resources from wealthy schools and put them in poor schools.  Payne did not think this was humanly or politically possible until Bloomberg successfully reallocated these resources in New York.  (And guess what?  The wealthy schools didn't suffer at all.)
• He said Waiting for Superman has one of the worsts lines in the history of American film regarding the idea that giving money and resources to poor schools doesn't work, therefore charter schools are the only solution.  He said something along the lines of "you can't tell me resources don't work when Evanston spends 22,000 per year per child and Chicago spends 6,000-8,000.  There is a difference."  
• He pointed out that some charter schools do amazing wonders for children, but the majority aren't doing anything radical.  
• The best alternative we've seen for public schools, especially for black male children, are Catholic schools... they do the fundamentals well.
• He discussed the different Chicago mayoral candidates' goals for CPS.  One comment he made was about Rahm Emmanuel's idea of engaging parents by "calling on all parents to commit to help their child succeed by entering into a signed agreement with the teacher that outlines clear expectations for how they will help their child outside of the classroom." He said asking parents to enter into a signed agreement seems superior and demeaning.  He said he'd like to ask Rahm, what would make you personally disconnect from your child's education?  If Rahm were able to honestly answer that question, he might have a better idea of what CPS needs to do to reach parents of minority children in poor, failing schools.  This was just one of his comments about he mayoral candidates.
• He said teacher training programs should have students spending more time in the classroom, beginning with their first education class and that they should stay in contact with their graduates, supporting them for several years into their teaching career.

 Those are just a few of the points he made.  Perhaps, more to come after I finish his book.

B Rob Visits

Ben's long time friend, Brian Robinson (aka: B.Rob) came to visit this weekend.  We ate at Portillo's late Saturday night, a must have for visiters in our opinion.  Sunday - church at Moody, bears game with home made chili, R & R with old school nintendo and wii.  Monday - sleep in, see the downtown sites, signature lounge (living the high life... hehehe), Harold's Chicken Shack (famous south side fried chicken dive).  I wasn't the best at taking pictures all weekend, but here's a few...

outside the federal prison downtown

 

immature? yep...

B. Rob's first cup of dunkin... they don't have it in Nebraska.  1 point for Chicago ;)

our view from the signature room lounge.

Thanks for visiting, B. Rob! 

If you want a different outcome...

...do things differently.

I recently read that on a blog about test prep.  The author (who is a teacher) says she often reminds her students that if they want different results on tests (i.e. final exams), they need to do things differently.  Simple, but brilliant.  I am going to start reminding my students of this.  I'm not a big lecturer in the classroom.  In fact, I don't think I've lectured my students on anything longer than 30 seconds so far.  (I guess, I figure that no teenager was ever radically transformed in their thinking through hearing someone lecture at them.)  However, "if you want a different grade, do things differently" doesn't count as a lecture, right?  The kids who want to know more will ask.

The pastor at the church I grew up in defined insanity as "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

Here's to a year of not practicing insanity,
Ren

Busy busy busy.

A friend and I are currently reading the book Falling in Love with Jesus (by Dee Brestin and Kathy Troccoli).  In one chapter, the authors look at Mary of Bethany's love for Jesus.  They also contrast Mary's communion with Jesus against Martha's actions for Jesus.  Here's an excerpt:

"Usually artists depict this scene with all of the disciples in the room along with Mary, seated around Jesus,a and poor Martha alone at the door of the kitchen... Fixing lunch for 13 men is not a one-woman job.  But notice the pronouns in Luke 10:38 carefully: 'As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.'  Is it possible that Jesus was alone?... Charles Swindoll puts it like this: 'Martha, Martha - chips and dip would be fine!'  In The Sacred Romance, the authors claim that too often, 'communion with God is replaced by activity for God.'  That is exactly what we see with Martha."

How often have I replaced communion with God with activity for God.  Is activity for God bad?  Nope!  Definitely not.  These authors go on to write that "It isn't that Jesus doesn't value good deed.s  He knows that good deeds will naturally flow out of communion with Him."  (After all, in James 2:20, we read that "faith without works is dead.) However, "communion will not necessarily flow out of good deeds.  There are a host of Christians who are busy with church activity, or just plain busy.  They claim to love Jesus, but their time with Him, their aloneness with Him... has all but disappeared."  (Brestin)

This convicting passage left me asking myself, has my aloneness with him disappeared?  I have CERTAINLY been guilty of this.  In fact, at one point, my busyness in college (largely due to over involvement in a campus ministry) was so stressful, I got shingles.  Shingles!  As the doctor put it, only old people and stressed out people get shingles.  At that point, I was probably sleeping 4-5 hours a night and drinking 4-5 cups of coffee minimum per day.  Let's just say, I had to eliminate some activity.  That was the beginning of a long lesson on busyness.  Too busy.  I was too busy.  I used to think I had some sort of obligation to fulfill to all these people and activities and ministries and... the list could go on.  The truth is, busyness helped me feel important.  Think about it.  Have you been there, or am I alone in this one?  Why do people seem to always complain about their busyness?  Why is it such a big deal that everyone is so busy?  If I'm busy with stuff, I must be important.  God taught me to slow down and find my worth in Him.  He taught me how to watch for opportunities to serve him that HE brought about.  He taught me how to reach out to people, yet preserve time to be alone.  A huge part of this was simply not being on the phone in every moment of time in between activities, classes, meals, etc...   

Fast forward.  God recently led my husband and I to a new church.  In the transition, I have not yet begun serving in a ministry.  God calls us to serve and be connected in fellowship with other believers.  I am eager to develop relationships with other believers at our new church.  However, God has brought this issue to my attention again - almost as a warning.  Renee, serve me.  But do not replace our time together with busyness over at that church.  It'll be easy to be involved in everything over there.  Don't do it.  I'll open the right doors.  I want time with you still.  Our time together is precious.

Has the Lord ever spoken to you about this?   Most importantly, how do you respond to his command.  He told Martha, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed."

Brestin and Troccoli end their chapter with this:


"Communing with the Lord needs to be as necessary and consistent as breathing.  We must practice His presence in everything.  What do you put in your heart?  What do you think about?  What music?  What books?  What about your friends?  Have you sought out people who will really sharpen you?  What you allow to seep deep into your soul will affect your love relationship with Jesus..."


Slowing down,
Ren

p.s. this reminds me - a book on my list this year is Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World.  If this topic speaks to you, check it out!  I've heard great things :)

Elementary Teaching Resource

I stumbled across this website when looking for teaching resources a while ago.  It's for primary grade classroom teachers, so it's not very helpful for me.  But, for any elementary teachers out there... it's fabulous.  I'd be lying if I said I didn't look through a lot of it and live vicariously through this lady's creativity in teaching the littles!  (I love my teens but sometimes I miss those little ones.)

Click here, teachers, and enjoy!

Why does it take a tragedy...?

These questions were posed on another blog in which the author reflects on the 1-year anniversary of Haiti. 

"Why do I need a tragedy to open my eyes to the pain and suffering that surrounds me? Why am I so prone to forget the urgency of the call as soon as my emotions subside?"

You can read the full post here.

Convicted,
Ren