Dress for Success?

So, I just read this article about schools implementing dress codes for teachers.  My overall reaction includes an eye roll and some head shaking.

First, let me address what should be the bleeding obvious.  Of COURSE teachers shouldn't be coming to work in clothes that are revealing cleavage, bare midriffs, or underwear.  Anyone who argues that they should be able to wear those clothes to work is also worthy of an eye roll and a head shake.  As far as clothes that are excessively tight, light exercise or yoga pants, well, that's a trickier topic.  Personally, I think they are unprofessional.  When your pants are so tight that I can answer the questions, "Panties or thong?" without having to ask, it's unprofessional.  Beyond unprofessional, it's gross.  But I understand that this is the style, so I guess I can just let it slide, much like the low-rise jeans fad (which enables me to often answer the question, "Panties, thong, or nothing?" without having to ask) and hope it goes away soon.  But it sure won't stop me from saying things behind someone's back, as women are wont to do at times.

Shoes?  I don't care about shoes.  Wear flip flops.  Wear gym shoes.  Wear stripper heels.  Teachers are on their feet a lot, so I really feel that shoes can be whatever the person feels most comfortable in.

Now let's get to the items that are likely to cause the most controversy.  Let's start with hair color.  Personally, I think it's ridiculous to dictate to a teacher what hair color is appropriate.  How long until hair color guidelines lead to makeup guidelines?  It's just hair.  Get over it.  If the hair doesn't pose a danger to the students of fellow employees, then leave it alone, and I can't see how hair color can pose any credible danger.

Next, jeans.  I wear jeans to work usually once or twice a week.  I tend to pair my jeans with a nice top or some sort of school-related spirit wear.  The jeans I wear don't have holes in them and they aren't skin tight (or low rise!).  They are just jeans that I can't believe would draw attention from anyone.  Yes, jeans can look unprofessional, but they also can look just fine for a teacher at work, too.  Jeans are a staple in the American wardrobe; I see no reason to ban them outright.  Let teachers be adults; they know which jeans are okay for school (the dark blue ones with the buttons on the back pockets) and which ones are not okay for school (the ones that have a 2 1/2" zipper, a hole over the right cheek, shreds down the fronts of the thighs, and make my ass look fabulous!).

How about tattoos?  As a teacher with a dozen tattoos, of course I have an opinion.  On average, only 2 - 6 of may tattoos might show.  The ones that always are visible are the ones I have on my wrists -- my daughter's name in Hebrew and a bracelet of pink and yellow roses to recognize my mother and me.  Clearly tasteless and vulgar.  The other ones that might show include a cross on the back of my neck if my hair is in a pony tail (another one that is horrible inappropriate), a strawberry on one ankle and a bracelet around my other ankle (these show if I am wearing capris or a dress or skirt).  Those are also pretty naughty for school, don't you think?  I also have a flower on my upper left arm that sometimes shows if I am wearing something with a really short sleeve.  Horrors!  The other tats are always covered because I don't dress like a tramp for work.  That means nobody sees the parrot on my upper thigh or my tramp stamp or the opening line from The Prayer of St. Francis on my upper back.  In fact, nobody ever really sees the green heart on my left ring finger because it's covered by my wedding ring, or the number 3 tucked far behind one of my ears.  If I DID decide to get any ink that might be considered inappropriate for school, then it would be inappropriate for the general public, so I'd get it someplace that it would always be covered.  I wonder how many teachers actually have tattoos with swear words, alcohol logos, naked people, or references to dugs or sex AND have them visible to students.  I'm betting that number is astronomically LOW.  So cut the crap on tattoos.  The only reason someone would want to label tattoos inappropriate for school is due to a personal bias.

If a staff member is dressing unprofessionally, the administrator should deal with that individual personally.  Why come down on an entire staff for the actions of one?  I suspect that's because it allows for a blanket statement to be made without having to single anyone out, which can make for an uncomfortable conversation.  So a dress code based on the inappropriate dress of an individual is the coward's way of handling it.  Applause, applause.  Way to step up and be a leader to your staff.

The lip service that is paid to teachers always amuses me in a sad way.  "Teachers are professionals."  Yes, we are.  But really, that's a load of hooey.  Nobody really thinks of us as professionals.  We have to have a four-year degree and to be licensed like other professionals -- doctors, lawyers, accountants -- and we have to engage in professional development like other licensed professionals, but nobody sees teachers in the same light as doctors, lawyers, and CPAs.

And if you want teachers to dress like "professionals", in "professional attire", then please pay me a salary that will allow me to purchase that wardrobe.  Until then, I'm going to continue to wear my khakis and polo shirts.  I might even throw on my fleece jacket with the school's logo embroidered on it when I get chilly!

Imposing a dress code on teachers is the passive-aggressive way of saying, "You're too damn stupid to know how to dress yourself."

Clear As Mud

Here's a topic that's as clear as mud: transgender students.

I will admit upfront that I am not terribly well educated about transgender issues.  I have been open about being a supporter of gay rights (or as I like to call them, civil rights), and often transgender issues and rights get lumped in with gay rights (as in the phrase LGBT -- lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender).  Honestly, I'm not sure what each one has to do with the other, but experts and people in the know have coined this term, so I defer to their expertise.

I believe, in my very limited understanding, that being transgender is a legitimate thing.  I believe it is possible for someone to be born biologically one gender yet feel as if he or she is actually the other gender.  I think it's probably pretty rare, but I believe it happens.  I don't believe it's a conscious choice by an individual -- it's just the way they are.  Much like I don't believe those who are gay are so by choice.  I can't imagine why anyone would choose to be gay, considering the social backlash that exists in this country (although it is moving in the right direction).  I can't imagine anyone would voluntarily choose to identify him or herself as transgender either because the social backlash against that is even greater than that against those who identify as gay.  I also can't believe that a child of any age would voluntarily choose to say he or she is transgender because that causes a huge brouhaha and opens the child up to bullying and cruelty from both peers and adults and society in general.  If a child identifies as transgender, that's got to say something for "being born that way" -- kids don't understand the controversy surrounding being transgender; they probably don't even really understand what it is (most adults don't even understand what it is) -- they just know that they are one gender physically but feel like they are the other.

I have to believe that such a drastic realization isn't taken lightly by anyone associated with the transgender person -- the individual him or herself, the parents, or any doctors or psychologists.  I'm sure that for a child to truly be identified as transgender, much analysis and discussion and understanding must happen first.  A child of 6, 10, 13, 16, or even an adult for that matter can't just walk into a psychologist's office and say, "I'm transgender," and have the response be, "Okee dokee, you are!"

That being said, something must be done to help those who truly are identified as transgender navigate their way in this world, and this includes school.  The California Transgender-Student Law, known as AB1266, has stirred up huge controversy.  A well-written law that asserts the rights of those who are transgender should be a good thing; note I said a WELL-WRITTEN LAW.  If AB1266 isn't well written, then it's going to do more damage than good.  Kids who are truly identified as transgender don't deserve to be bullied or harassed or discriminated against.  They are children and they are human beings with feelings.  If AB1266 is a bad law, then get it re-written so it is a good law.  If it a good law, then a massive education campaign must be launched.  In this country, ALL children deserve to get an education, and anyone who know anything about education knows about what is called the "hidden curriculum".  These are the things we all learn at school but are not directly taught -- things like punctuality, organization, teamwork, and tolerance.  So if ALL children deserve an education, we have to make sure that even children who identify as transgender get that education, too.

Rotten to the Common Core

The more I have been immersed up to my eyeballs in Common Core, the more I have discovered I have many concerns about them.  In theory, I like the idea of rigorous standards that are similar across state lines.  But after seeing how the standards are set up, how many there are, and how they are being used, I'm not so much a fan.  The more I learn about the Common Core, the more rotten the whole deal seems.  And I'll be honest -- I live in constant fear that someone in my district will find out how I feel and I will get in trouble for having a dissenting opinion from the powers that be in my district.  Although I freely admit that I have no idea how I haven't been found out -- it's not like I hide my blog posts from anyone.......

Today, a friend of mine shared this article with me, and parts of it just made me see red.  Here's the link to the article (it's long but worth a read), and what follows are some of my thoughts/reactions to what I read.

In terms of the CCSS getting students "college and career ready", here's a quote from the article:
"The substance of the standards themselves is also, in a sense, top down. To arrive at “college- and career-ready standards,” the Common Core developers began by defining the “skills and abilities” they claim are needed to succeed in a four-year college. The CCSS tests being developed by two federally funded multistate consortia, at a cost of about $350 million, are designed to assess these skills. One of these consortia, the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, claims that students who earn a “college ready” designation by scoring a level 4 on these still-under-construction tests will have a 75 percent chance of getting a C or better in their freshman composition course. But there is no actual evidence connecting scores on any of these new experimental tests with future college success."

Look at how much money is being spent to develop the tests alone that align with the CCSS.  That number is astronomical!  That's just test development!  That's not curriculum development or costs associated with scoring the tests!  But what really staggers my mind is that the tests being developed by PARCC are not yet finished but PARCC has already developed a scale for scoring the tests and for determining a student's readiness for college.  All without having FINISHED the test or PILOTING the test.  How is this even possible?

Speaking of being ready for college..... "The idea that by next year Common Core tests will start labeling kids in the 3rd grade as on track or not for college is absurd and offensive."

Absurd and offensive are just the start!  Imagine for just a moment that you have a 3rd grader at home if your kids aren't that age.  Imagine how you are going to feel when you get the report sent home from school that based on the test your child took, it has been determined that your child isn't going to make it into college.  This has been determined 10 YEARS before your child is actually going to go to college!  Are you going to tell your child this at age 8?  "Well, honey, this test you took says you didn't score well enough to go to college."  How motivating will that be for a kid to go to school?  What's the point?  It's 3rd grade and he can't make it into college anyway, so why bother?  School sucks!  Yes, labeling kids in 3rd grade as on track for college certainly is absurd and offense as well as damaging and de-motivating and hurtful.

Think that the whole idea is for the students of this country to benefit from these standards?  Think again, o benevolent one: "Having financed the creation of the standards, the Gates Foundation has entered into a partnership with Pearson to produce a full set of K–12 courses aligned with the Common Core that will be marketed to schools across the country. Nearly every educational product now comes wrapped in the Common Core brand name."

Implementing the CCSS has been one of the most lucrative deals ever to come about for publishing companies.  Pearson is a superpower in the education arena and they are set to supernova right through the atmosphere with the establishment of CCSS.  Anything that can have the label CCSS slapped on it and sold will go like hotcakes because all the Kool-Aid drinking CCSS cheerleaders gobble those products up in bulk.  The economy should start booming from all the money being made from every last little thing developed to coordinate with the CCSS.

Now, not everyone supports the CCSS.  "...opposing the Common Core is 'an array of organizations with multimillion-dollar budgets of their own and much experience in mobilizing crowds and lobbying lawmakers, including the Heritage Foundation, Americans for Prosperity, the Pioneer Institute, FreedomWorks, and the Koch Bros.' These groups are feeding a growing right-wing opposition to the Common Core that combines hostility to all federal education initiatives and anything supported by the Obama administration with more populist sentiments."

At first, I feel a sense of relief that I'm not alone -- there are others out there who are speaking out against CCSS!  But then I look at the list of who's against it and their reasons and my heart sinks.  These people and organizations are just as radical as the ones who are ramming CCSS down the throats of American schools.  They might actually think the CCSS is a bunch of hooey, but we'll never know for sure because it's all mired in political agendas.  There is no benevolence here; it's just more agenda-pushing.

As a teacher, I have a vested interest in making sure my students are as well prepared as possible for the future, whether that future includes college or entering the workforce.  If I turn out a bunch of ill-informed students, they become problematic citizens -- maybe reliant on welfare, possible living in poverty, potentially unemployable because of lack of skills, possibly ending up in the prison system.  So no teacher wants to go easy on kids because we know damn well where "easy" gets us -- being senior citizens cared for by a generation of people who lack skills to take care of themselves much less the rest of us!  Teachers WANT rigor in their students' education!  Teachers WANT kids to be challenged!  Teachers WANT students to be innovators, problem-solvers, creative thinkers, and critical consumers of information!  Teachers WANT kids to know how to read, write, spell, speak, listen, calculate, and compute!  Teachers WANT kids to understand how the world around them works!  Teachers WANT students to understand the past in order to have a bright and promising future!  Teachers WANT students to be healthy and see the beauty in world!  Anyone who says that teachers who don't like the CCSS because they don't like the added accountability heaped upon them is utterly ridiculous.  Teachers are used to being held unfairly accountable for what their students do.  Teachers are constantly judged by society.  Teachers have endured high-pressure accountability for their entire careers.  So that's not the reason for opposition to the CCSS.  It's because these standards have been developed without any understanding of how education really works in order for companies to amass huge profits -- and do it all for the kids, so it looks neat and pretty.  It helps to further demonize anyone who dares speak out against the CCSS -- oh, you don't like the CCSS?  Then clearly you don't care about children or their education.

This is rotten.

How to Ruin School

I've been a teacher for more than 20 years, and the majority of those years have been spent teaching gifted kids.  I spent a lot of time finding lessons, materials, and activities that challenge those kids, so I don't think I am a stranger to the concept of a rigorous curriculum.  In fact, I think a rigorous curriculum is incredibly important.  The Common Core promises more rigor.  I'm not convinced it does; I'm not convinced it doesn't.  I like the sound of the standards, but there are so, so, so many of them, and some of them are really unrealistic, and it is impossible for one subject area teacher to actually cover them all thoroughly in a school year.  I'd love to wait and see what happens while these standards are implemented; let's see if the rigor really is there.

But what I know I definitely don't like about the CCSS is the way they are used to regulate Every. Damn. Thing. that happens in a classroom or a school.

Case in Point #1: Students write letters to Santa according to CCSS standards.  Come on!  This is a childhood rite of passage!  It's supposed to be fun, a fantasy, a dream!  It's not meant to be an exercise in correct argumentative writing form.  By sucking the fun out of activities like this that are rooted in fun, there is no joy left in learning.  Learning is purely utilitarian.  Can't there ever be a time when something the kids do at school can be just because?????

Case in Point #2: Bathroom breaks can help students do better on the tests that will come about as a result of CCSS.  Now, there has been some kerfluffle over the headline for this story being sensational, but to me, the point is this: nobody wants to lose instructional time because kids need to go to the bathroom.  Having scheduled bathroom times is common in elementary schools, but the suggestion that an entire class of students all finish with their bathroom activities in five minutes being timed with a stop watch is ridiculous!  And the idea that having kids use bathroom passes and writing down departure and arrival times to give extra practice in hitting the CCSS about telling time -- both analog and digital -- is preposterous!  Now we are taking a function of nature -- going to the bathroom -- and tying it somehow to CCSS.  When will someone, anyone with a scoche of influence stand up and publicly announce -- ENOUGH!

If adopting the CCSS means everything that happens in a school turns in to an exercise to learn the standards and prepare for the tests, education is going to be in need of overthrow, not just overhaul.

Crossing a Line?

Anybody who knows me knows the following things about me:

1. I am a heavy social media user.
2. I am an advocate for kids being taught how to use social media safely and appropriately.
3. I am passionate about teaching kids about how to handle cyberbullying.

I read this article this morning about whether or not schools should monitor students' activity on social media, especially in light of cyberbullying and the devastating effects it can have on students, driving some children to suicide.  I have been outspoken about the school's roles and responsibilities when it comes to cyberbullying.  I wrote a blog post once (read it here), and a revised version of that post was published by ISTE in their "Point/Counterpoint" feature (read it here).  However, I think schools actually monitoring students' social media use crosses a line from responsibility into invasion of privacy.

Kids who use social media ned to be taught how to use it properly and appropriately, and ultimately, that job falls on the shoulders of the parents.  Sadly, far too many parents don't bother to teach their kids how to use social media properly, nor do they monitor their own children's behavior online, and that includes however the kid goes online -- via computer or laptop, tablet, or cell phone.  There's a difference between parents monitoring their children's social media activity and a school monitoring that activity.  Parents have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their children, and that includes the online arena.  Schools can supplement what they are taught at home, as my district does with its technology safety and cyberbullying lessons and presentations (and I'm proud to say we were doing it before it was mandated by the state).  I also acknowledge that for some kids, the instruction they receive at school isn't a supplement -- it's all the guidance they get.  Yet that isn't reason enough for a school to creep around its students' social media pages.  It takes the responsibility off the shoulders of the parents and it makes kids continue to see adults as the "enemy", and they will continue to find better ways to hide their online behavior.  Adults -- parents and school personnel -- need to find ways to coexist peacefully on social media rather than have kids feel like they are being spied on.  What the kids perceive as snooping will only continue to encourage improper social media use.

That doesn't mean that schools can wash their hands of cyberbullying.  Schools need to encourage students and parents alike to understand what exactly cyberbullying is and teach them how to preserve evidence and then share it with the proper authorities -- whether that means a school principal, a dean, a school counselor, or even law enforcement if necessary.  Schools can act on it when they are alerted to it by someone who has a concern, but they should not actively seek it out by monitoring students' social media pages - even if it is voluntary, even if it does by a machine.  It takes the responsibility of teaching proper social media use off the shoulders of the parents where it belongs; it can make students feel resentful that "big brother" is always watching them; and it puts a school at increased risk of fault-finding if the algorithm used to monitor activity fails to identify a case of cyberbullying that ends in tragedy.  This a bad idea all around.

The Best That Money Can Buy

I just read this article in Education Week highlighting the widening gap between students in families with financial means to enhance their child's education and students in families who are not financially established enough to keep up.  For some reason, it really struck me, the difference in time and money and experience these two groups of kids have.

My daughter didn't necessarily grow up in a rich family -- we are pretty much your typical middle class family.  But here are the things my daughter got to experience between the ages of 4 and 12 beyond her regular school day:

• A parent who was home with her during school breaks and the summer.
• Trips to the library with family.
• Trips to museums with family.
• Preschool.
• Summer camp.
• Vacations to numerous places, including Disney World, Disney Land, King's Island, Washington, D.C., Houston, Galveston, Minnesota, Key West, and Cancun.
• Week long summer camp at Sea World in San Antonio.
• Bowling lessons.
• Soccer.
• Dance classes.
• Tumbling and gymnastics classes.
• Karate lessons.
• Being on a poms team and a cheerleading squad.
• Participating in track and field.

And I am sure this list is nowhere near exhaustive.  To me, she seemed to have a pretty typical childhood, with a few extra nice things thrown in.  She had parents whose schedules allowed for her to participate in activities beyond her school day, and parents who were willing to outlay cash for those experiences.  Some of those things were funded by other family members in whole or in part, but all of the activities listed above gave my daughter a huge wealth of experiences to draw from.  Clearly her social and academic skills were helped by all the things she got to do in those few very important years.

Then I think about kids who are in families where parents are out of jobs, or where parents earn particularly low salaries, or where there might be only one parent at home, or where a student might be a "latch-key kid" who comes home to an empty house, or a child whose parent(s) work nights, or a kid who has to help with household responsibilities like cook, clean, do laundry, or babysit for the family.  How many of the things listed above are going to be readily and easily accessible to these kids?  It requires great effort and sacrifice by parents who are already having to put forth great effort and sacrifice to maintain the basics.

If you are like me (or in an even better situation financially), stop and think about the experiences your own kid has had thus far in life.  Now think how many of them would still be there if you were a single parent working a custodian job from 3 - 11 PM.   I can tell you that almost every one of those things would be off the table for my own child if that were me.

It's no wonder that gap exists and widens so deeply.  I guess to me, that means it's that much more important for schools to do what they can to help bridge that gap.  And I'm not just talking academically, but finding ways to enrich the lives of students.  Just making sure kids can read, write, and do math is not enough.  They need to experience things that give context to their learning, that make then enjoy living, that give them ideas for the future.

I don't know why that gap never made sense to me before, but it does now.

Veterans' Day

I can remember having the day off from school every year on Veterans' Day.  I can remember having it off as a teacher, too.  But for the past few years, my school district has been having school on Veterans' Day, and what a great idea that is!

This is supposed to be a day to honor the selfless service of those brave men and women who keep our country safe and free.  Some people object to having "business as usual" on Veterans' Day, saying that the day should be used to really honor the service of our vets.  I couldn't agree more, which is why I have come to believe with every fiber of my being that having a day off from school is the absolute WORST way to honor our veterans!

A day off from school is just that -- a day off.  The typical kid will sleep in and spend the day parked in front of the television or computer.  On TV, they will see some news promos for Veterans' Day activities being held or short ads thanking vets for their service.  Online, they might see posts on Facebook from friends saying, "Thanks for your service," and maybe the kids will even "Like" some of those posts.

What has been learned about veterans or Veterans' Day?  Not one blessed thing.

If we want our students to understand the sacrifices made by those who serve our country, then keep them in school so they can learn.  I was at one assembly in our district today where the 3rd and 4th grade kids invited veterans from their families to attend some presentations.  In the assembly, the local boy scouts and girl scouts did a color guard ceremony and demonstrated the proper way to fold a flag.  The junior high pep band played the national anthem while the 3rd graders sang it and signed it in ASL.  The PE teacher taught all the kids to do a patriotic cheer.  Some students wrote personal letters of thanks to members of their families who are veterans and read them at the assembly.  They 3rd graders also sang "America the Beautiful" then the 4th graders sang "God Bless the USA" and signed the chorus to the song.  They all were also treated to a presentation by a veteran who also shared some video of an fighter jet getting re-fueled mid-air.

To prepare for this assembly, the kids had to learn about the branches of the military, practice flag ceremonies and flag folding, talk to their family members to learn about their family history in terms of military service, learn and practice iconic patriotic American songs, and lear some sign language, too.  These 3rd and 4th graders have been learning about service to our country and how valuable it is for weeks now; today is just the manifestation of their appreciation for what they have learned.  If these kids had stayed home for a day off, what would they have learned about our nation's veterans?  They would have learned that this is just one more free day for play time.

Thanks to all our veterans, and I also say thanks to all the schools who work hard to teach our students what this day is all about.