Authentic Learning

We recently had a faculty meeting that was focused on standardized testing, scores, and their relevance and validity. I believe that each individual teacher has his or her own opinion regarding these issues, but generally speaking, we see them as one indicator of student achievement, but not the primary indicator, or even an extremely relevant indicator. I could probably spend the next three months writing about thees rationales and the pros and cons supporting them, but more importantly, it got me thinking more about true "learning"

I have written numerous times about grades vs. learning, the difference between the two, and the ideological world it would be wonderful to live in regarding these issues. Standardized tests raise even more of these discussions. But the day after our meeting, the fourth grade class was involved in a project where they built structures and then tested their ability to withstand a simulated earthquake.

Take a moment to think about what is a better representation of "authentic" learning. I would be willing to bet most of those children will be able to discuss this project many years from now and what they learned. (They do so now, with great enthusiasm.) It will never be asked about on a standardized test, it will never be tested on a piece of paper, but it may very well spark a child's interest in engineering or architecture. It may also help a child to understand all that goes into the completion of a project, how to work with others, and how to be responsible to their group. Again, no learning that will show up on a written test.

As standardized tests become more and more the "norm" for gaging a school's success, we need to keep in mind that assessment has many forms, and many of the skills taught in the classroom will never receive a percent, a stanine or a grade.

Diversity of Interests

Congratulations go out to many different factions of our student body over the last several weeks! Our boys and girls soccer teams recently competed in the CYO Annual Tournament, and both teams played well. Our girls team advanced into the second round, before being defeated on Wednesday 2-1. Watching our teams play was extremely rewarding, primarily because they represented our school well as athletes and as people!

Also taking place on Wednesday was our first ever music recital, which featured performances from over twenty different students or collaborations. I was extremely impressed with all the participants, and floored by the talent that showed itself that evening, ranging form vocal performances, to solo instrument performances and group collaborations and dance. Very impressive, to say the least.

All the Holy Angels students who participated in the recent Civitan track meet must also be recognized, once again for performing well and also for representing the school in a very positive manner.

We have recently seen the reemergence of a cheer leading squad, and Mrs. Bennett's drama and dance classes continue to be extremely popular and well received.

It is so easy to focus on what we "should" have, but I am still impressed by all that we do have. We are fortunate to have coaches, teachers and volunteers who create programs that speak to our children and their diversity of interests. Hopefully this is a trend that will continue throughout Holy Angel's existence.

When Parenting Means Staying Out Of It!

Several years ago, when I first took the position at Holy Angels, I was on the playground and heard one of the yard monitors telling the kids not to run on the playground. When I asked her why she was telling them not to run, she said it was because they might fall and get hurt. My response was that sometimes, kids have to fall and get hurt.

As parents, we constantly want to "catch" our children, not allowing them to get hurt in any way. This can be taken literally, but it also has a much stronger figurative meaning. We want our children to learn to deal with the world in which they will live. All types of personalities exist in this world. Some of our kids are very passive while others are more aggressive. Some may be bullies while others are constantly concerned with the injustices faced by others. These same personalities exist amongst adults. To be functioning, effective adults, we need to allow our kids to learn how to deal with these different personalities on their own. We should provide the tools necessary, but they must apply their use properly.

Being a relatively shy child made it very difficult when my parents made me handle situations myself. If a child was picking on me, I was responsible for dealing with it. If someone owed me money, (I had paper route, and people loved to ignore a ten year old asking them for money!) I had to collect it. My parents could have easily stepped in to many situations and taken care of them, but they allowed me and all of their children to handle things themselves, and ultimately, helped create independent, self-reliant individuals.

Too often in elementary schools, parents let children's issues become adult issues. When we step in and try to handle situations for kids, we don't allow them the opportunity to grow and become strong, confident teenagers. In fact, we end up holding them captives to ourselves, when the expectation that mom or dad will always take care of their problems. (I have even been told about parents who have accosted their child's college professors over grades!)

As I often say, consider the individual you want your child to become when making decisions involving your child. Momentary discomfort will pass, and the lessons learned by a child dealing with a situation on his or her own is invaluable.

Student Preparation

Yesterday I received an email form a parent with a link to a YouTube video that really had some amazing implications regarding education, as well as the state of our world. While much of it dealt with the changes or differences in populations amongst some of our most populated countries, what stood out the most to me, as an educator, was the information and implications regarding the labor market in coming years, and how it will effect today's students.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljbI-363A2Q


At the last CPTA, I was talking about our attempt to prepare students for the world in which they will live, not the world we grew up in. However, according to this video, the top ten jobs in demand in 2010 did not exist in 2004! Additionally, we are preparing our kids today for jobs that don't yet exist, using technologies that have not yet been invented, in order to solve problems we don't even know are problems yet. A great deal of additional information regarding world population and technologies is included in the video and is well worth viewing, but, again, it seemed to imply that it was almost impossible to repare students for the world in which they will work.

If we think back to our own childhood, many of us are of the age that computers were just starting to be used, and using them wasa major annoyance. Children today are digital natives, versus most adults who are digital immigrants. Many adults today still struggle with technologies that our children regard as simplistic. While the information contained in the video was initially overwhelming and almost made going to school seem futile, 24 hours later it gave me pause to think and maybe a new perspective as to what we need to focus on in school.

Foundation skills are obviously important and crucial to the future development of any child's success. But in addition to these skills, it seems to becoming more apparent that their is no way we could possibly prepare them for technologies we don't even know about. So maybe what we need to spend much more time on, as educators and as parents is problem solving. On one hand, this is not new information, and we have already identified this is an area we need to improve upon with our students. However, now more than ever, it seems that maybe this will be the number one skill necessary to ensure success in the "world of tomorrow." It is a skill that will be applicable to any career, profession or technology that comes along in the future. Any thoughts?

Bad Televison Habits

Some things are more difficult to admit than others. I think we all hesitate to admit our mistakes or wrongs we have committed, and I am no different. So it pains me to admit that I was recently watching Dr. Phil. Before you completely discount anything I write from her on end, it was not an episode of Dr. Phil's House. It was, however, and episode regarding sexual predators and it actually had alot of valuable information.

One of the panelists was an admitted child predator and he described how he, in the 70's, would pick up and victimize young children who were hitchhiking. He then went on to state that the Internet is where children hitchhike today. I thought this was a very poignant point.

I have stated my concern over in the past about Internet safety for our kids. I do feel it is one of the greatest dangers our children face today. Not because of content ( although sometimes) but because, as it has been stated, it often times invites individuals with less than noble intentions directly into our living rooms.

To that end, we will be having a duo of speakers coming to discuss internet safety with parents on April 9 at 7:00 PM. Simply stated, no matter how savvy you believe you are when it comes to this topic, children are one up on us. Furthermore, the criminal mind is capable of accomplishing extremely creative ways to further its own agenda. Too much education can never hurt in this realm.

My hope is that this has frightened you a little bit. Be it due to my watching of Dr. Phil, or because of the dangers our children face, we hope it will result in your attendance on the 9th.

Do We Have All We Want?

Seven of our teachers have been members of WASC teams in the last two years. These teacher work with a committee to ensure our fellow Catholic schools are teaching what they should be teaching, have a plan in place for improvement and and offer as complete a program as possible. The goal for every school is to receive the maximum six year accreditation.

With many of us, what has become glaringly evident is how truly fortunate we are at Holy Angels. We truly have an abundance, in terms of staffing, resources, funding and extra curricular activities. We so often can get caught up in what we don't have, ( Spanish classes, new bathrooms, new asphalt, new sports uniforms), that we fail to see how much we do have.

The first school I worked at, and which I stayed at for twelve years, was one such school. We did not have supplies as basic as paper. Many of our textbooks were hand me downs from other schools. Many of our teachers are going to schools very similar to this. I personally went to a school where the students said, among many other more relevant topics, that they just wanted some playground equipment.

We are a blessed community, much of this due to the hard work of our parents. But we must not forget one of the basic tenets of Catholicism, which is social justice. We have many wants at our school, but our needs are fulfilled. As we move ahead, and continue to improve our school, we must not forget our responsibility to help those who do not have their needs met. I think it might be a good component to add into all of our fundraising efforts as we look for ways to continue to make our school a great Catholic school.

The Saints Come Marching In!

It's always the most fun to use this space to highlight some of the great events that are taking place at Holy Angels. One of the "rites of passage" every second grade student remembers is their Saint Report and Presentation. Each year, the students get to pick a saint, research them, and present them to classmates and parents, while in costume. It encompasses so many of our Schoolwide Learning Expectations, including "Catholics of Living Faith", Confident Communicators", "Lifelong Learners.

As always, the second graders did a great job, and we are very proud of them as they take another step towards receiving their First Holy Eucharist. Great Job!