The tyranny of the syllabus
I know a handful of college professors personally. I know a handful more via Facebook and Twitter. I have known many, many more throughout the years. Right around this time…
Why does writing instruction so often suck?
Slate’s Matthew J.X. Malady offers any number of reasonable answers to this question, but I think the answer is far simpler: Writing instruction at the elementary, middle, and high school…
Working hard for the money: 2014 update
A few years ago, I posted a list of all the jobs I have held in my life in chronological order. It was an interesting exercise that I highly recommend.…
What were the three most important decisions of your life?
A recent Quora question asked, “What were the three most important decisions of your life?” I’ve been debating this question for almost a month, and I have finally settled on…
Best Teacher Appreciation Day gift ever
In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, my students presented me with a gift on Friday. The first was a PowerPoint presentation that explained why I was an excellent teacher. It…
Teaching is not quite a minimum wage job, despite what my students may think.
My students were reading an article about the proposed increase in the minimum wage in their Time for Kids magazine. I was secretly listening to their conversation. Student #1: “If…
A teacher’s memory of 9/11
The following is a piece I wrote on the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attack on our country. __________________________________________________________________ I was teaching my third graders when my classroom phone rang…
