Take HEED!

As a university professor, my job is triangulated between teaching, research and service. Of course I see value in all three areas, but at the core of my passion and existence is teaching. I got in to education 20 years ago because I wanted to make a difference. Yes, that is corny, but it is true. I was the teenager who had some major trauma in her life and no one was there to help me. One teacher went so far as to say, “get over it”. WTF? I knew from that point that I would not only be a teacher but a pretty damn good one. At the pinnacle of education – the university – I teach pre-service teachers how to teach, using research-based strategies and models of instruction, focusing on classroom management and viewing the student as an individual who has unique needs or styles. I am met with district partners and “veteran” teachers who refuse to teach to the student. Rather, they follow their scripted curriculum or textbook like it is the Bible, forgoing all cognitive, social or emotional signs exhibited in the classroom only to have MY students come back and say, “this isn’t how it is done in the real classroom, only college.” Really? My answer is, “this is how you teach effectively. What you are seeing is BAD TEACHING. Don’t do that!” Despite the disconnect between how you should teach and what is currently happening in the classroom, I continue to fight the good fight and encourage students to connect to every child they encounter. Take the curriculum and create lessons that are authentic in nature and relative to the students in your classrooms. Be innovative and fun so that students can see value in academics. Be the teacher YOU want to be. Take Heed!