It’s not all doom and gloom 🙂
I’ve got one student who has pretty much been a rockstar all year. He’s totally respectful, and almost always on task. He’s so consistent that it’s hard to imagine him any other way. On Friday, at the honors ceremony, he received an award for being on the Dean’s List. After the ceremony, his grandmother thanked me and claimed that his achievement was due to my efforts, and confided that this was the first time he’d ever made honor roll.
I don’t really take much credit for it. Most of the time, I feel like I’m actually letting down students like him who have to suffer through the chaos and my lack of experience as a teacher. But it is really good to know that good things are happening in my room too. I’ve got nothing but awe and respect for the kids who come to my room and do nothing but the right things, in the midst of so much gone wrong.
On another note, I’ve been reading through a fantastic series the Baltimore Sun has done profiling our CEO of schools, Dr. AndrĂ©s Alonso. I haven’t finished it yet, but from what I’ve read so far, it provides an great and truthful look at Dr. Alonso, the school system, and what his vision is for it. When I’m done reading, I’ll be sure to post my thoughts on it. It can be found here. I think he’s doing great things, but I, like many people, definitely have my reservations on some of his approaches.
Lastly, the countdown continues–5 full, 5-day weeks until spring break. I appreciate all the support I’ve been receiving. It’s going to help me keep my stamina up for this long stretch!
Alan, online. 