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I am the Student


The face of education is changing. In many ways this is a good thing. However, for many of us, the process of getting where we want to be ultimately is frustrating, and at times, challenging. Eventually, it will work like a well-oiled machine with the teachers and students working together to raise learning to a new level.

Leave No Child Behind made the country aware of the number of students slipping through the cracks. The law made a strong statement that all children were to be successful in school. While the high-stakes testing is a downside, it has made us sit up and take notice of  data and use it in our teaching. I am not just talking data from the tests, but other information as well.

Africa had it right - “It takes a whole village to raise a child.” The mindset spreading across the country is that all the adults in the building are responsible for the success of each and every student. Regardless of position. Whether the staff member works with the student on a daily basis or not. Identifications and labels do not matter. Everyone has responsibility in the success of all students. I believe this with my whole being. So, why then, am I having such a difficult time figuring it out?

It is about the data. My weakness. We are using data to group students according to performance in order to give them curriculum enhancement. Yet, we weren’t collecting the data. I am a veteran teacher. I have worked on many teams. For some reason, I have been struggling when it comes to planning common assessments, getting together to discuss the data, and mostly understanding how it all works. For most of the year, I have felt like this time was extra planning on my part. Six months later, I am finally starting to understand how it works. I am feeling hopeful, excited even, about what is about to happen. Once a week I will have a group of students who need intensive work in a particular area. This week, it happens to be the use of context clues to find out the meaning of a word.

This year, I am a student in many ways. Teaching has not come as easily as it has in the past. While at times it is a challenge, it is keeping me from growing stagnant in my profession. I continue to feel passionate about what I do on a daily basis. (Even though, at times I am want to escape from it for a bit.) I wonder if there is the same commitment for everyone to help a teacher succeed? I sure could use it.

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