Administrator Impact on Retention

Keeping on with a recent post about retention of teachers, I think it's interesting to bring light to some concerns a small focus group came up with about what they are concerned about and think would improve the retention rate of teachers: support from the school community. Read: support from the school administration and support staff.

The data speaks for itself, if teachers are willing to stay, they are more likely going to stay at the school they are currently at. If teachers are leaving, about 76% of teachers say that they are either extremely dissatisfied with their or mostly dissatisfied. When the same group of teachers (stayers and movers) were asked what would contribute to teachers staying for a longer time, the overall view was for a better administration.

I wonder, with the implementation of student surveys to assist with teacher evaluations, why not implement the same for administrators? Teacher surveys on the effectiveness of an administration in support or encouragement? I think that SER visits (that come around every couple of years) could possibly be an attempt at this, but an ineffective one. At schools across the district I am confident that similar things are happening: we have meetings during our collaborative planning periods to talk about what the SER team is expecting to see from their teachers. While the principal insists that nothing should change in our own instruction, we of course are reviewing what effective teachers should be doing, hint hint ;)

When the questions turn to what kind of culture is experienced from our administration, our teachers struggle. The administrator that is helping to facilitate the meeting encourages teachers to be truthful about weaknesses. Do they really want us to mention that teachers who have been placed on Performance Improvement Plans actually do not meet on a regular basis with the administrator they are required to work with? Do they really want us to mention that teachers are publicly ridiculed about data that is too low, while teachers who have achieved a 75% pass rate for other district tests are ignored? Do they really want us to mention that administrators admonish teachers in front of support staff, students and parents, showing them a lack of support during a meeting about extreme disrespect and bullying? For some reason, I think that this would rather be kept under wraps and a positive spin be put on all of the inappropriate comments, emails and utter disrespect shown towards our educators.

What do we do to increase the retention rates of our teachers? Improve the effectiveness of our administrators in Baltimore City. 

Welfare Funds Tied to Children's Academic Performance

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2013/jan/25/campfield-bill-would-tie-welfare-benefits-to/

While watching a left-leaning TV show a few weeks ago (either Steven Colbert’s or Jon Stewart’s—I can’t recall), the host took a dig at a Republican Senator, Stacey Campfield, and his recent proposal of a bill that would cut welfare benefits for parents of children who are not making “satisfactory academic progress” in school.

It was a strange moment for me because hearing that proposal would have probably infuriated me (a person who has only ever voted Democrat and joined Teach For America with the determination to combat social injustice in the education system) if I never had the experience of being a Baltimore City public school teacher.

As detailed in the article above, Campfield made some valid points (regardless of where he stands on other issues). He essentially said that student success is dependent on good schools, good teachers, and good parents—and pointed out that education reform currently focuses more heavily on holding schools and teachers accountable than it does on holding parents accountable.

Specifically, Campfield proposed that parents of students who do not pass their State standardized tests would experience a 30% decrease in welfare funds (currently they can already lose 20% if their children do not attend school regularly). In Baltimore City (at least at the schools where I have taught), that would affect the majority of students because very few of them pass the MSA. However, I think every single one of them is capable of passing the MSA (assuming any necessary modifications are provided for those with IEPs).

I think the reason most do not pass is because teachers end up having to spend so much class-time managing misbehaviors that they do not get to effectively teach the necessary content. Because those misbehaviors often hold even the well-behaved kids back from achieving on standardized tests, I would propose that the decrease in welfare funds be tied to Report Card grades instead (perhaps the funding that is taken away from parents whose children are failing could be given to other parents on welfare whose children are making all A’s). 

If a bill like this were to be put into place, I definitely believe parents of failing students would be in a lot closer communication with their children’s schools and teachers to ensure their kids get on and stay on the path to success. 

What Makes Employees Happy?

In light of the upcoming discussion on teacher retention, I wondered what it takes to retain any employee—not just a teacher. Certainly there are nuances to teaching that make us different from just any employee but certainly we are similar in our workplace happiness to people in another field.

An article in Forbes magazine points out that having happier employees actually leads a company to make more money. I suppose in the teaching world, our capital would be higher student achievement. This article, which is based off Nelson’s book “Make More Money by Making Your Employees Happy”, says that more money is not actually what makes employees happy but rather cited worker safety (where applicable), rewarding employees for success (with paid time off) and sharing information (being in the dark can result in resentment). The bottom line: employers showed compassion and appreciation for their employees.

Businessnewsdaily.com states 11 ways to promote employee happiness

1.       Room for growth

2.       Good training program

3.       Small bonuses

4.       Autonomy

5.       Favorable office environment

6.       The ability to work from home

7.       Allowing workers to focus on their jobs without interruption

8.       Work/life balance

9.       Unique benefits package

10.   Help workers live healthier lifestyles

11.   Give them a break for social media and other activities

Finally, a report by Allegiance states that the average company loses 20-50% of its employee base each year. Obviously this is a huge range but it terms of these numbers, teachers low retention rates don’t seem as extreme. The main purpose of the Allegiance report is to give tips on promoting employee loyalty. They cite employee “engagement” to be the main factor in promoting employee loyalty. Engaged employees are committed to success, emotionally attached and socially involved with a company. To keep an employee, you must be helpful, make them feel competent and improved, and make them feel accepted and respected.

 So when you look at all employees, it’s not surprising that teachers are unhappy—lack of a work/life balance for 10 months of the year, lack of a room for growth, and feeling unappreciated, just to name a few.  It also feels like teacher retention is strongly linked to principal quality—in the end, who makes you feel appreciated, helps you grow, trains you and sets the climate of the school? A principal. It seems like teacher retention would be easier to discuss on a case-by-case basis, since every school is different. However, with retention rates low across the board, there must be some common link of unhappiness across many schools. Which of these factors are unique to teachers and which ones can we change to keep more quality teachers in the field?

http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevecooper/2012/07/30/make-more-money-by-making-your-employees-happy/

http://www.customerservicegroup.com/pdf/allegianceincreaseloyalty.pdf

http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/3132-keep-employees-happy.html

Physical Assault on Teachers

          A recent ABC2 news report¹ shed the light on an issue that most inner-city teachers are aware of, but few speak out about. That issue is teacher abuse. In the past 5 years, reports show that four BCPS school personnel are assaulted by BCPS students every single day. There have been noticeable increases in the number of teacher assaults in the last two years. Evidence shows that seventh, eighth, and ninth graders commit these assaults most often.

            The 2008 attack on Jolita Berry², an art teacher at Reginald F. Lewis (RFL) high school is what is brought to the forefront of most educators’ minds when they hear the words “teacher assault.” The brutal attack was captured on a cell phone and publicized on Myspace. When I was first assigned to work at RFL, I Googled the name and articles about the assault were the first thing to pop up. I was terrified.

            Unsurprising to any BCPS teacher, in Berry's court case, “the defense made a presentation questioning Berry's teaching skills, noting that she was on a performance improvement plan (PIP) at the time of the incident and a hall monitor was assigned specifically to stand outside her classroom.” Last spring, our administration put almost every teacher on a PIP for not passing enough students.

            Current BTU president, Marietta English states that teachers should not have to face physical and verbal assaults at work each day¹; yet they do. Teachers at inner-city schools go to work knowing they will be cursed at, threatened, and possibly even assaulted by their students. Administration says cases of teacher assault are “completely unacceptable,” yet (in my opinion) they don't do anything to prevent them or to lower the incidence of these increasingly violent acts.

            Karen Webber-Ndour is the Executive Director of the office of Student Support and Safety for BCPS. Her job is to change the perception, feel, and environment of a school in order to decrease violence. Her program has been piloted in 32 BCPS schools and so far, the results have been promising. Webber-Ndour claims there has been a drastic decrease in suspensions in that pilot group of schools, an increase in community and parental involvement¹.

            In order to decrease the number of teacher assaults and to better the culture and climate of City schools, we need more funding for programs like Karen Webber-Ndour’s and Professional Development for teachers on building better relationships with students. Students need to be held accountable for their actions. Incidents of students who attack teachers cannot be “swept under the rug.” Teachers should feel safe walking into their workplace. Teachers should never be threatened by or assaulted by students. If the system wants to retain high quality teachers, the system needs to change the way they view teacher assaults.

1: http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/region/baltimore_city/student-on-teacher-assaults-on-rise

2:http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/education/blog/2009/02/witnesses_say_jolita_berry_pro.html

Cultural Sensitivity and Awareness

I currently teach Honors Spanish I and II at one of the higher-performing high schools in Baltimore City.  Last week, right after giving a huge unit exam, I decided to design a cultural mini-unit on West Side Story to give my students a “fun” week of instruction.  Little did I know that watching an eleven-time Academy Award winning musical could be such a miserable experience for everyone who was involved.

I began the mini-unit by having students read a New York Times Article that discussed the changes in immigration demographics from the 1960 to now in New York City, with references to how these demographics were portrayed in West Side Story.  Then, students used their background knowledge about Romeo and Juliet and the new information about New York to predict what would happen in the musical, and how issues such as racism would affect the story.

As with almost all of the “creative” lessons that I have taught throughout the past two years, I encountered some unanticipated obstacles throughout the lesson—for example, my students could not discuss migration patterns from Puerto Rico and Spain, because even as 10^th graders at a high performing school, they did not know where these places were located.  So, in an attempt to be thorough, I adjusted my lesson plan to include a world map.  However, even with the world map, years of Spanish instruction, and even a targeted unit on ethnicity, several of my students were still referring the Puerto Ricans as “Mexicans.”  And this was before the movie even started.  As an educator, I felt responsible for not giving them the necessary background information to support their learning—but in my preparation, I felt that I was honestly doing so.  I had not anticipated the cultural references I have, and that I was taking for granted.

Once the movie began—West Side Story consists of over 20 songs—before each song, in each class, I had at least one student exclaim “OH MY GOD, ARE THEY GOING TO SING…AGAIN?!”  At that point it hit me.  Most of my students had never even seen a musical.  Not only did they not have the frame of reference to understand the conflict in the musical, they did not have the experience to support watching a musical for information.  As a Spanish teacher, taking a week off of vocabulary to do culture was a risk, but even in that week I could not physically give my students what they needed to be supported and successful, which leads me to ask—If we can move students two grades ahead in reading level in one year, how do we incorporate our student’s identities into consideration, all while making up for a lifetime of culture incompetence?

Where Have All the Teachers Gone?

I go back and forth between a TFA-lover and hater.  Part of what makes Teach for America a popular fix to urban systems is that it attracts young, motivated, type-A personalities – those who have a do-what-it-takes attitude and a drive to be successful.  These teachers are given a crash course in teacher training and then thrown into the waters for the next two years of their lives.

But what happens after that?

Well, about 50% of TFA corps members leave the classroom after their two years, and 80% leave the classroom after three years.

One of the biggest arguments against programs like TFA is this low long-term retention rate.  So I started to wonder: are the results really different when looking at teachers coming from other backgrounds?

Interestingly enough, attrition seems to be pretty high across the nation.  About 50% of new teachers nationwide quit after five years.  This statistic is even worse in high-need schools (which, of course, is where TFA places their corps members).  In fact, around 20% of teachers at high-poverty schools leave their schools each year.  Some leave education all together, but others merely leave to go to higher-performing schools.

I think the reason this is true due to two major factors.  The first factor (and the one that most TFA critics focus on) is the teacher’s ultimate long-term goals.  For some, who do choose to use TFA as a “stepping stone” after college, the plan to leave the classroom after two years never changes. Others, like myself, find their long-term goals refocusing on education.  In some ways, this is a scenario that is dependent on the specific person.  However, the second factor is where I think we need to focus our efforts: overall satisfaction at their school.  Understandably, teachers who found problems with their administration, working conditions, or teaching placement are less likely to remain in their placement schools.

This is obviously a systemic problem in urban districts – so, how do we change this?

Teachers Say They Are Unprepared for the Common Core

            The Common Core State Standards is going to be hitting 46 states and the District of Columbia for good starting in August.  While many schools have opted in to the new curriculum already for the 2012-2013 school year, everyone will have to be on board in less than half a year and yet I came across an article in EdWeek titled, “Teachers Say They Are Unprepared for the Common Core.” 

Reassuringly, 67% of teachers said that they feel the CCSS will improve teaching.  I agree with this statistic and I think the Common Core will show a transition to teaching from a more skills-based perspective than merely content based and that the CCSS will force upon teachers a shift in instruction that needs to happen.  While I did not feel a big shift in the pedagogy expected from teachers (likely because I am only a second year teacher and the CCSS is the framework in which I began my career), it is understandable that many teachers have to rework their system of teaching to meet the needs of the new curriculum – which isn’t to say that’s a bad thing.

            The biggest question that comes to my mind is “how do we get teachers more prepared?” Only 60% of teachers teaching at risk youth who had more than 5 days of preparation and professional development regarding the CCSS felt prepared to teach their students.  Having the same amount of preparation, only 40% of teachers who educate students with disabilities and English-learners felt prepared to implement the standards.  Knowing that these are the populations that we work with in Baltimore City, it is unacceptable to think that potentially less than 60% of our teachers will feel prepared to help our students meet success in the coming school year.

            From my own experience and in speaking with other BCPS teachers, the personnel administering my professional development do not teach the same demographic that I teach.  Yes, they teach 6^th grade science like myself, but in regards to students current level of academic performance, there is no comparison.  To teach me how to effectively engage students and teach students CCSS, facilitators use on grade level or above text and many strategies that I know are higher than and inappropriate for most of my students’ academic levels.

            The disconnect between professional development and individual teachers’ needs is frustrating and what I believe is holding teachers back from feeling like they will meet the CCSS with success.  What teachers need is time to collaborate within their school settings and with an expert on how these standards can realistically be implemented in our schools.  Likewise, if professional development is held on site at teachers’ schools, they have to go.  Currently many teachers are not going to district wide CCSS development sessions. How can a whole school be prepared for testing of CCSS when certain teachers at those schools aren’t even learning about how to implement the standards?  Furthermore, we need the time to plan for and adjust our current lessons and units to blend with and meet the same standards of the CCSS.

I also can’t help but wonder if this poll was taken by a number of worried teachers that are feeling the urgency of the Common Core pressing down.  While we have been practicing with the standards and some schools have opted in, until we are assessed on the CCSS, there is no way to tell if teachers really were or were not prepared.  Only time will tell.  Until then, what do you other bloggers think?  Do you think the shift to Common Core is a smart one?  How prepared do you feel for the shift to happen?

Article Link: http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2013/02/27/22common_ep.h32.html?tkn=QYVFy81d5R7avRfWtqsMHKs07ao9B7Xvxyz0&cmp=clp-edweek

Safety and Suspensions

It was Wednesday morning at my school. I arrived at my normal time but immediately upon turning on my computer checked my inbox and saw someone had sent me a link. It was an ABC news story about how school assaults on staff were on the rise. It was not the best way to start my day. Almost immediately after reading this I stepped out into the hallway where two students were fighting. A staff member and school security personnel broke up the fight but one student would not stop, and was very close to striking the school security staff that had intervened.

Some of the schools that we work in have serious safety concerns. A minority of our students come to us with issues that are not easily addressed with re-directions, consequences and incentives. As it stands, the system does not provide enough real support for these students. They are often passed between schools, pushed into transferring, or bouncing from suspension services or alternative programs.

There are many ideas and studies on how to support these students, but that is not the central focus of this post. Student and staff safety is the main focus. It may seem cynical to focus on safety over strategies for these children but bear in mind I choose to work in these schools and, on most days, I do my best to educate every student I teach.

We cannot completely fix the education of these students if they attend schools that are dangerous. The culture of schools and the consequences and systems of schools need to be all aligned behind the idea that every school should be completely safe. I am not simply talking about assaults on adults. I am talking about verbal threats, menacing, and intimidation. The culture of acceptance and the reality of these behaviors need to change in every school.

Suspension numbers be damned. While we cannot teach individual children if they are suspended, we cannot teach a classroom of children if a culture of violence prevails. Students in every school need to know that these behaviors are not acceptable. This needs to be taught and reinforced with actions. If this is done, in the best case scenario children will learn to avoid these behaviors. Worst case scenario, at least there will be consequences for such actions which is a step up from where we are now in certain schools.

Getting back to the original incident that happened the morning that I read the story. The one student that was fighting another student and attempting to strike the school security staff was not suspended. There was no real consequence or even discussion of his behavior, he remained in classes for the day. While keeping him in school may seem like a good idea, my perspective from the classroom says otherwise. This student, just two weeks prior to this, had repeatedly shoved me in my classroom and tried to forcefully steal my personal property. He was not suspended for these actions.

I do not think that suspensions or consequences are the only answer for troubled students. But in the absence of anything else, I believe strongly that my students and I deserve to be safe.

Read more from ABC 2 Baltimore: http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/region/baltimore_city/student-on-teacher-assaults-on-rise

Recently, the Baltimore City School Board announced that several City Schools will be closing or renovated within the next ten years.  Low enrollment and outdated facilities have been the main concern of Baltimore City School officials.  Each school building in the city was evaluated and became a part of an intense intervention for the much desired update to the school buildings.  Some schools will receive basic updates at the end of the ten years, while others are facing more immediate “solutions” including school closure.

 

For some communities, the news that their school is being closed has been cause for an uproar.  Some communities have protested at school board meetings while others have even taken legal action in response to the news. 

In particular, the community of Northwestern High and some of its highly successful alumni have filed a lawsuit claiming that the decision is discriminating against low-income, minority groups.  The counterargument is that most schools in Baltimore City have similar demographics to Northwestern and are able to supply their students with an updated facility and effective teaching resources – unlike Northwestern High School.  If the decision was truly meant to deprive low-income, minority students, the majority of schools in the city would be closed. 

But, while parents and alumni are concerning themselves with saving a fallen building, I think that they should be more concerned about where their children are destined to go after the school is closed.  While Forest Park High School, the school students are being transferred to, is benefiting greatly from the reconstruction of Baltimore City Schools, their recent test scores have fallen even below that of the dismal scores of Northwestern.  In the case of Northwestern students I would pose the question: can a new building be the answer for both school communities?  Will glossy hallways and up-to-date art centers be the answer to failing schools?  Forest Park will also experience a school that is running at full capacity; will this help students be career and college ready?  And if Forest Park does not prove to offer the turn around it appears the school board is claiming it will be, what are the other options?

Climate Survey Results at Forest Park

Climate Survey Results at Northwestern

Blended Learning: A phenomenon that could actually change education for the better?

            As a classroom teacher, I’ve become increasingly interested in different ways to deliver instruction.  One of these methods is blended learning.   Blended learning is a method of teaching where are portion of instruction is delivered online.  The Innosight Institute has categorized different types of blended learning: the enriched virtual model, where student students use an online learning program that is complemented with a teacher in a classroom on an as needed basis, the flex model, where students receive most of their instruction through online tools and teachers circulate to provide extra help, the rotation model, where students rotate on a fixed schedule between online learning and spending time with a teacher in a traditional classroom, and the self-blend model where students choose to take one or more courses online to supplement their schools other course offerings.

While many of these models are used in a higher education setting, a number of charter school organizations have adopted the rotation model of blended learning, in which students use online learning tools and rotate through small groups with a classroom teacher.    

Blended learning is unique because it allows the teacher to be a true “guide on the side.”  Suddenly it’s not longer imperative that the teacher, execute a lesson effectively.  Instead they can be more concerned with helping students understand the depth and complexity of the material.   Additionally, by allowing students to spend a portion of time using an online tool, they are learning important technical skills that will aid them in their careers.  While the research on the impact of blended learning is still preliminary, I think that this type of instruction delivery could really revolutionize the way in which students learn because it allows for more targeted small group instruction, and it could prepare students more effectively for the future. 

To learn more about blended learning, check out the work that innosight institute is doing: http://www.innosightinstitute.org/media-room/publications/education-publications/classifying-k-12-blended-learning/

Keeping Urban Schools Safe

It is no secret that urban schools serve many needs of students beyond education. Schools provide sports, clubs, counseling, therapy, and two meals a day to students. It is also our charge to keep students safe. Inner city schools themselves are not inherently unsafe places, however the violence of the city can infiltrate the school walls and metal detectors.

For the past two weeks, This American Life on NPR produced a two-part episode on this exact topic. The program spent a few months in an inner city high school in a rough neighborhood in Chicago, Harper High School, in which there had been 27 students shot in the previous year, six of whom died. Harper, facing significant issues, was deemed a turn-around school, and given additional millions of dollars over five years to try and enact real change with this additional support. To help the student body in this tragically violent setting, the school added support staff of social workers, counselors, and enrichment/mentoring programs, including teams of people who speak with students and community members to stay informed of happenings in and around school to take preventative measures against violence. However, as the school is in its fifth year of turn around status, the money goes away next year, and with it the staff, programming, and sense of community it took so long to build. Two security guards who worked at the school for a long time commented, “It always changes when the money is added. Then everything goes backward when it’s lost. There’s more fights. The violence gets worse.”

I am not a proponent of the argument that increased funding will save urban schools in America. That is far too simple. However, I do believe that kids must feel safe in order to learn. They must feel like they have a shot at life in order to be invested in an education to make their lives better. To create this environment, it does take more staff and programming, which in turn does require more funding. Students must take care of their most pressing needs of physical and emotional safety before opening their minds for learning.

The final act of the program addressed a tweet at This American Life that stated the program “found the most violent high school in the country.” They addressed the point that this is statistically impossible to tell, and, more importantly, Harper High School is not an isolated case. Poignantly, principals and teachers in cities all over the country state the number students who have been lost to violence at their schools. I will add my statement to theirs:

My name is Sara John. I am a teacher at Patterson High School in Baltimore. I have lost one student this year to violence.

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/487/harper-high-school-part-one