'Unmovitated' Grade 9's
Two posts in two days!?!?!? What the what!?!? It's snowing outside. On May 18th. So...I'm gonna write.
I got my first negative reaction about the new job yesterday. It kind of threw me off, to be honest. The reaction was along the lines of 'Why would you go teach grade 9 THERE', implying that not only are grade 9's the worst, the school I'll be working at is particularly bad.
So I'm going to write about all the reasons my new work place will be fantastic, and also why I honestly and truly love grade 9 and plan to teach it for at least 5 more years before looking for something new (although now that I've typed that, there will for sure be some kind of wrench or curve thrown at me ;)).
New School: I'm not going to name it, but if you live in Winnipeg, you'll be able to figure it out.
1. Skills and trades training: This school is AMAZING. Its mission is to teach vocations, and it does a bang up job. Kids can learn aerospace engineering, photography, graphic design, carpentry, electrical, professional cooking and baking, child care, robotics and electronics, tv and radio broadcasting AND SO MUCH MORE!!!! One of my former students went through the aerospace program. He's graduating in June and will start a job at Boeing shortly after, where he will make more money in his first year than I do in my 7th of my second career, after 8 years of university. If there's anything teaching in the inner-city has taught me it's that we need to give kids more options than 'graduate and you'll get a good job'. That's a lie that we tell them. It's even a lie to say that 'university will get you a job'. It won't. Unless you get a professional degree of some kind, you are screwed. What's more, not everyone SHOULD go to university. Now, don't get me wrong, I LOVED university and am endlessly grateful for the experiences I had there, but my family could afford to get me started and I could afford to keep going. Not everyone has that ability. PLUS, the world needs people who know how to DO things. PLUS, the kids that graduate from this high school can still go to university if they want to, AND they'll be able to pay for it with their photography business (for example). BOOM! No student loans for them!
2. I can still walk there. Key criteria, although I did not mention that in my interview(s).
3. Cafeteria: Remember how I mentioned the kids can learn how to work in a professional kitchen? Well, who do you think makes the lunches!?? The cafeteria is the tops, and it's cheap. WIN WIN!
4. Teaching buddy: one of the best, most energetic and most connected-to-kids teachers I know will be teaching next door to me (she does gr 9 math), and we are on the same team. We are going to ROCK that school; they won't know what hit it.
5. Car maintenance: Obviously there is auto-mechanics at the school and obviously they need cars to work on so .... cheap oil-change, anyone?
6. Bust-up the stereotype!: Because this is a school that focuses on real-world learning, the academic side of things has gotten a bad rap for years. The colloquial wisdom is that 'dumb' kids go there, who can't hack a more 'academic' school. That attitude is slowly changing, but there are still people who think that the only way to be 'smart' is to KNOW things. The school is taking strides to make sure their academics are on par with everyone else's so the stereotype can be busted down, and I will be part of that. Jake and I have encouraged some of our best and brightest students to consider going there because they leave well-rounded: they are smart AND they can fix things. Perfect.
7. Non-pretentious: often high schools get a 'holier than thou' kind of attitude. They kick kids out who don't fit into their idea of what a student 'should' be. They don't take steps to help kids get past the wall that grade 9 can be (more on that next!). I have no patience for the attitude of 'We're the best and if you aren't going to fit into our 'mold' then we don't want you', which is common in high schools, unfortunately. This school is more about 'Hey, come on over and try it out!', which I appreciate.
Grade 9, the year of the 'WALL': In Manitoba, kids tend to get passed up the grades with their age group (social promotion), regardless of their actual skill development. This creates a crew of kids who stopped working some time in elementary school, realized there were no consequences, and kept not-working until...BAM. GRADE 9. Lucky for me and them, I LOVE this grade, especially in ELA. Here's why.
1. They are old enough to be through the worst of the teenage insanity: Not that it doesn't still exist somewhat - it sure does. But their rational selves are starting to return and you can usually reason with them, at least a little.
2. Content: I don't really believe in focusing on content when you're teaching - it's SKILL the kids need. The skills to know how to study. To catch yourself when you realize you have no idea what it is you're reading and the skill to fix that problem. Of course, you need to have stuff you're learning ABOUT to help you figure out your skills, and in grade 9, it's Human Rights. In particular, the Holocaust. I find this subject endlessly interesting and fascinating and kids latch on to it as well. So it's fun. (We don't just talk about the Holocaust, don't worry. We also talk about propaganda, Rwanda, Residential Schools, the Indian Act, and various other genocides and Human Rights violations around the world). Kids this age have a lot of rage about unfairness in their world, so it's easy to transfer to this topic.
3. THE WALL: This is an aspect of our system that is broken. Severely. But, since we are in it, we have to deal with it. Starting in Grade 9, students have to meet at least 51% of the Provincial Curriculum outcomes for their grade and subject area. 51% might not sound like a lot, but for a kid who reads and writes at a grade 3 level (happens way more than you might think!), this is a real challenge. Plus, they often struggle with intrinsic motivation, since the love of learning for learning's sake has long been beaten out of them. I hate this wall, and am passionate about doing whatever I can to help kids build a stair-case to get over it. Manitoba has some embarrassing statistics about kids graduating high school, especially in specific demographics/cultural groups, and grade 9 is the culprit. Most kids who drop out do so before/during/ or shortly after grade 9. If we can get them through THIS GRADE, their chances of graduating from the whole show increase dramatically. Not everyone has the personality required to constantly cajole, motivate, encourage, prop up, adapt, and sometimes carry, kids to the finish line. A bad teacher in grade 9 can be the difference between graduating or not. I'm not saying I'm a great teacher, but I AM good with kids, and I care about them, so if they come to school every day and they try their best, there is no reason that they should fail my class.
4. Use of my skills: Even though I don't like a lot of the parts of my current job, I sure have learned a whole heck of a lot, including how to help older kids learn how to read, and I am happy to be able to keep developing that skill set. It sets me apart from other high school (or even jr high) teachers who throw up their hands and say 'but they can't read!'. DUH. Then we have to TEACH them.
Don't those sound like really excellent reasons to be excited about this new job? I think so.
Woop Woop!!!!
I got my first negative reaction about the new job yesterday. It kind of threw me off, to be honest. The reaction was along the lines of 'Why would you go teach grade 9 THERE', implying that not only are grade 9's the worst, the school I'll be working at is particularly bad.
So I'm going to write about all the reasons my new work place will be fantastic, and also why I honestly and truly love grade 9 and plan to teach it for at least 5 more years before looking for something new (although now that I've typed that, there will for sure be some kind of wrench or curve thrown at me ;)).
New School: I'm not going to name it, but if you live in Winnipeg, you'll be able to figure it out.
1. Skills and trades training: This school is AMAZING. Its mission is to teach vocations, and it does a bang up job. Kids can learn aerospace engineering, photography, graphic design, carpentry, electrical, professional cooking and baking, child care, robotics and electronics, tv and radio broadcasting AND SO MUCH MORE!!!! One of my former students went through the aerospace program. He's graduating in June and will start a job at Boeing shortly after, where he will make more money in his first year than I do in my 7th of my second career, after 8 years of university. If there's anything teaching in the inner-city has taught me it's that we need to give kids more options than 'graduate and you'll get a good job'. That's a lie that we tell them. It's even a lie to say that 'university will get you a job'. It won't. Unless you get a professional degree of some kind, you are screwed. What's more, not everyone SHOULD go to university. Now, don't get me wrong, I LOVED university and am endlessly grateful for the experiences I had there, but my family could afford to get me started and I could afford to keep going. Not everyone has that ability. PLUS, the world needs people who know how to DO things. PLUS, the kids that graduate from this high school can still go to university if they want to, AND they'll be able to pay for it with their photography business (for example). BOOM! No student loans for them!
2. I can still walk there. Key criteria, although I did not mention that in my interview(s).
3. Cafeteria: Remember how I mentioned the kids can learn how to work in a professional kitchen? Well, who do you think makes the lunches!?? The cafeteria is the tops, and it's cheap. WIN WIN!
4. Teaching buddy: one of the best, most energetic and most connected-to-kids teachers I know will be teaching next door to me (she does gr 9 math), and we are on the same team. We are going to ROCK that school; they won't know what hit it.
5. Car maintenance: Obviously there is auto-mechanics at the school and obviously they need cars to work on so .... cheap oil-change, anyone?
6. Bust-up the stereotype!: Because this is a school that focuses on real-world learning, the academic side of things has gotten a bad rap for years. The colloquial wisdom is that 'dumb' kids go there, who can't hack a more 'academic' school. That attitude is slowly changing, but there are still people who think that the only way to be 'smart' is to KNOW things. The school is taking strides to make sure their academics are on par with everyone else's so the stereotype can be busted down, and I will be part of that. Jake and I have encouraged some of our best and brightest students to consider going there because they leave well-rounded: they are smart AND they can fix things. Perfect.
7. Non-pretentious: often high schools get a 'holier than thou' kind of attitude. They kick kids out who don't fit into their idea of what a student 'should' be. They don't take steps to help kids get past the wall that grade 9 can be (more on that next!). I have no patience for the attitude of 'We're the best and if you aren't going to fit into our 'mold' then we don't want you', which is common in high schools, unfortunately. This school is more about 'Hey, come on over and try it out!', which I appreciate.
Grade 9, the year of the 'WALL': In Manitoba, kids tend to get passed up the grades with their age group (social promotion), regardless of their actual skill development. This creates a crew of kids who stopped working some time in elementary school, realized there were no consequences, and kept not-working until...BAM. GRADE 9. Lucky for me and them, I LOVE this grade, especially in ELA. Here's why.
1. They are old enough to be through the worst of the teenage insanity: Not that it doesn't still exist somewhat - it sure does. But their rational selves are starting to return and you can usually reason with them, at least a little.
2. Content: I don't really believe in focusing on content when you're teaching - it's SKILL the kids need. The skills to know how to study. To catch yourself when you realize you have no idea what it is you're reading and the skill to fix that problem. Of course, you need to have stuff you're learning ABOUT to help you figure out your skills, and in grade 9, it's Human Rights. In particular, the Holocaust. I find this subject endlessly interesting and fascinating and kids latch on to it as well. So it's fun. (We don't just talk about the Holocaust, don't worry. We also talk about propaganda, Rwanda, Residential Schools, the Indian Act, and various other genocides and Human Rights violations around the world). Kids this age have a lot of rage about unfairness in their world, so it's easy to transfer to this topic.
3. THE WALL: This is an aspect of our system that is broken. Severely. But, since we are in it, we have to deal with it. Starting in Grade 9, students have to meet at least 51% of the Provincial Curriculum outcomes for their grade and subject area. 51% might not sound like a lot, but for a kid who reads and writes at a grade 3 level (happens way more than you might think!), this is a real challenge. Plus, they often struggle with intrinsic motivation, since the love of learning for learning's sake has long been beaten out of them. I hate this wall, and am passionate about doing whatever I can to help kids build a stair-case to get over it. Manitoba has some embarrassing statistics about kids graduating high school, especially in specific demographics/cultural groups, and grade 9 is the culprit. Most kids who drop out do so before/during/ or shortly after grade 9. If we can get them through THIS GRADE, their chances of graduating from the whole show increase dramatically. Not everyone has the personality required to constantly cajole, motivate, encourage, prop up, adapt, and sometimes carry, kids to the finish line. A bad teacher in grade 9 can be the difference between graduating or not. I'm not saying I'm a great teacher, but I AM good with kids, and I care about them, so if they come to school every day and they try their best, there is no reason that they should fail my class.
4. Use of my skills: Even though I don't like a lot of the parts of my current job, I sure have learned a whole heck of a lot, including how to help older kids learn how to read, and I am happy to be able to keep developing that skill set. It sets me apart from other high school (or even jr high) teachers who throw up their hands and say 'but they can't read!'. DUH. Then we have to TEACH them.
Don't those sound like really excellent reasons to be excited about this new job? I think so.
Woop Woop!!!!
Congrat on the new job! Takes a special and patient person to love their teaching job, regardless of the school or grade, way to go!!!
ReplyDeleteJoanne and Reg