Our district does that with the Reading First mentality, especially in the primary grades. When the literacy coaches (reading police) come around all in a certain grade level need to be on the same page. At my last school the Reading First folks from the state told the teachers that they should be able to go from room to room and see the same lesson. The teachers are expected to carry the TE around with them and be referring to it. One teacher at my last school came in one morning and the furniture had been rearranged by the lit. coach because she didn't agree with the teacher's philosophy. We, as teachers, are being set up for failure.
In my 5th and 6th grades, I got sneaky, keeping two set of lesson plans. I taught the kids the strategies and the importance of reading. I used the text for mini lessons only. I kept the textbooks on the table and taught the kids to pick them up when the admin. came in. I finally had to escape elementary to get rid of that. Ironically, in now in 7th grade, I see the results of that sort of teaching. The kids get have a horrible time reading and comprehending, among many other bad attitudes. We won't even discuss writing. Please remember that it is not your fault that you can't meet the needs of your kids. The politicos that sit in the cushy chairs don't have a clue. We cover their butts. Since there is no trust, they give us the script, just so they can say they did everything they could. It has to be the kids' fault they aren't reading, or the teachers' fault. It certainly can't be the program's fault. Everything you say is true. And yes, any monkey off the street can follow the script. How do we fight this? We keep up the good fight. We get the kids to read and LOVE it. We point out to the parents what works and get them to watch their children. We get on the committees and leadership teams. We go to the board meetings at the district and state level. We get our voices out there. We talk to people. Try to convince them to change their votes. We keep reading and stay on top of the current research. Stay informed. kim On 7/21/07, [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > In a message dated 7/21/2007 8:13:36 AM Eastern Daylight Time, > [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > > Wow! I thought we were the only school that heard the word "fidelity"! > Not > only that, but we are required to keep the teacher's manual with us at > all > times. > > Not only I'm I not meeting the needs of 90% of my students but I feel I'm > ZAPPING the joy of reading right out of the students - all of them! > > Cathleen > > PS I hate blue dots! (You know, from the teacher's manual that tell you > when to stop and talk.) > > > >From Jane: > That is AWFUL!! Why pay someone with a teaching degree? It sounds like > they could hire people who don't even have a diploma as long as they can > read > the teacher's manual. > We have new standards in SC and I have spent many hours this > summer revising > my curriculum (also incorporating more of the comprehension > strategies) and > loving every minute of it! I am totally on my own to teach as I want as > long > as I cover the standards, and there is really no one paying > attention that I > do that! I really feel for those of you who are not allowed to make the > curriculum your own. I feel for your children, too. Through no fault of > your > own, you are not allowed to meet their needs. Jane in SC :-( > > > > ************************************** Get a sneak peek of the all-new AOL > at > http://discover.aol.com/memed/aolcom30tour > _______________________________________________ > Mosaic mailing list > Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org > To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to > http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. > > Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive. > > -- Kim ------- Kimberlee Hannan Department Chair Sequoia Middle School Fresno, California 93702 Laugh when you can, apologize when you should, let go of what you can't change, kiss slowly, play hard, forgive quickly, take chances, give everything, have no regrets.. Life's too short to be anything but happy. [EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive.
