Why I like teaching middle school:

So many people say “it takes someone special to teach middle school age students.” Other say “you can’t pay me enough to work with them.” In fact, I have been caught saying “they should pay me in dog years for working with these kids – 7 times the pay” when I have had a particularly bad day. But in the end, especially now that I am not teaching this age group as much, I realize that:

• I love a good class clown
• You get to relax a little and quit thinking about the college-bound issues
• You can see their emotional intelligence as well as their intellectual intelligence
• Use can use wit to break the impasse, or their attention span will quit and the argument will be over
• Life is too serious to be taken seriously. They should be negotiated with, not sent to the stocks.
• I love the challenging nature of junior high students. They always want to know “why” and more.
• I love the content of the young adult literature books. They tend to be about real subject the kids are facing.
• These kids are not just waiting for the assignment to be handed out. They still want to be talked to, and argued with, and have things explained, and to explain their own ideas.
• I liked watching them come into 6th grade on the short, round side, and leaving taller than me and wishing they could eat every minute of the day.

I guess I just like kids. All kids. Any age… even adult kids who act like junior highers. (Smile)

Love Your Kids, They'll Be Successful

The key to a raising a successful student is to have parents who love each other. Now that might sound like quite a controversial statement, but I will say it anyway… This is not the only key to raising a successful student, but with my 15 years of teaching experience, I can honestly say I think it is one the of the top 5 key factors. If every reader was honest, you would be able to find one way to agree with me, but you are probably wanting me to give a few details to explain my theory, so here we go.

Kids whose parents love each other:
1. Support each other while raising the kids and present a “unified force.”
2. Work together for discipline and “balance each other.”
3. Work together helping kids to do homework and make sure study time happens
4. Show that teamwork in life, as well as school projects, is effective
5. Coordinate to make sure that one parent is there for school activities and make their child feel like school is important
6. Are better able to save for college because they are most likely in a dual income family
7. Are more focused on their lives and the kids’ lives rather than trying to create a new one
8. Are not competing for love from the kids so the kids are not “playing any games”

My theory centers around the idea that if a mother and father love each other, either as friends or as a married couple, they will take more time to raise their kids and focus on what is important. However there are always exceptions to the rules. I have met some really fantastic single parents, and I could list what they have done to make sure the kids’ lives are great as well… but that is a different post.

Confessions of a Writing Teacher

Not only do I teach, but I also write. I write a lot. I read a lot and then I write a lot because what I read prompted my thoughts and made me want to write it down. Now, is this a confession or simply a statement of the truth? I would say that it is the truth. When I started this blog last year, I thought I would really find it work to keep up with it, and at times it is because I am so busy with other things. But I wanted to be a model for my students. I wanted them to realize that their ideas were important enough to write down and save for later. I wanted them to realize that writing is therapeutic, it helps to form your opinions, it lets you think things through more clearly, and it gives others a way to formulate their own opinions. I wanted the students to realize that they would have something to say every day or at least every few days. They spend their lives texting, posting to their "wall," instant messaging, and commenting. Their personal lives are filled with non-academic writing. What they don't realize is that writing in school can be just as fulfilling and interesting. They can enjoy it... so we began blogging.

So let's start with the basics: I have a word processing document on my laptop that no more readable than the scribble of a 3-year-old. This file is simply a list of quotes, topics, sentences, links, and messy ideas. None of them are publish worthy when they first appear in this file. If the truth be known, some of the ideas have been in this file for weeks, some even longer. When I am feeling the urge to write, especially after a long stretch of busy time and I need to unwind, and I haven't read anything particularly interesting lately, I go to the file and work on one or more of the ideas to see if it turns into something.

Other times, I don't need the file, like with this post. I simply have an idea and it comes out really quickly and easily. I can just blog... and blog... and blog. Some days are great for writing. The ideas come easily, the words are right in my fingertips, the distractions are low, and other tasks don't feel as pressing. I love these days. Someone who doesn't write might look from the outside and see me sitting in my recliner, laptop on, soda on the end table, and clicking away. They might think I am playing on online game or Facebooking or emailing, but what they don't realize is that I am most likely blogging.

If you catch me in car traveling you will not only find me with a book in my purse (with a pen as the bookmark), but you will probably also find my laptop bag and car charger just in case a few minutes to work presents itself. However, with or without an internet connection, I can blog.. (I live in such a rural area that it takes a 35 minute drive to get to work, it takes at least 20 minutes to get to the nearest small town grocery store, and it takes about 50 minutes to get a discount store, let alone a shopping mall. I have a lot of time in the car and I usually hope that I can get someone to drive me.)

So are you ready for the confession part, I wrote this blog a long time ago, and I am posting it today because I wrote it in the car, forgot about it, rediscovered that it hadn't been published, and since I am not particularly inspired to write today, I am posting it. Tricky huh? How many bloggers do you think do the same thing without confession?

Don't Abandon the Classroom Focus

Wow do I have a problem with Will Richardson saying this in his blog: “It’s pretty obvious that as my professional life has changed, my interest has been moving away from classroom practice more toward individual learning and how we help educators understand the potentials of these spaces for their own learning first and their teaching second.” Now in my head I know this is true, to a certain extent. I have learned a lot by experimenting with my own learning first, and then trying to find a way to incorporate this into my classroom. However it does alarm me that someone I have respected for a long time and looked up to says his interests are moving away from the classroom practices. I am not trying to take a direct hit at Mr. Richardson, but the reason why I have read his writing for so long is because he does make connections to the classroom. This is what is valid and important to me, and that is why I was following him. I know that over time, when people are out of the classroom, their interests change. I can vouch for this because the last few years, I have had a lighter teaching load and so my interests shifted a bit as well. Now that I am returning back into the classroom more, my interests have shifted back. Will Richardson was always the happy medium. Very classroom oriented, and also forward thinking. I am hoping that for us loyal readers he doesn’t move too far away from the classroom materials, because I have followed several who have moved away from classroom oriented writing, and I end up deleting their RSS feeds. I only have so much quiet time in the day to read and soak in new ideas… so I guess this is my plea to Will not forget the classroom.

Let the Summer Reading Begin!

It is time to confess, to stand up in front of a circle of people and purge my guilt. I, Nicole Badgley, do NOT spend the summer reading classic literature. I know, I know, the really good teachers do spend their summer in pursuit of worthwhile symbolism and life-changing immersion into the "written world." I on the other hand like to relax and forget about work-related reading. I pretty much assume that what I have been stock piling to read over the summer will be quick reads, not-destined-to-be-classics, enjoyable but not life-altering reads. I want something I don't' need a pen to read with (you know how English teachers love to read with a pen in their hand and write in the margin). I want something that I can read by pool and if it gets wet, there are no worries it won't be good enough for my classroom by the time I get done reading it. I want something that I can read in short spurts between t-ball games, running kids to camps, waiting through swimming lessons, and mowing the lawn.

One of my favorite summer authors, Jodi Picoult, wrote in the book Change of Heart that

“words are like nets – we hope they cover what we mean, but we know they can’t possibly hold that much joy, or grief, or wonder… you can describe it to someone else – and language only takes you so far…”

Let's just say, I wasn't expecting to find a phrase that would prompt me to write a blog entry. Not only do I think about this phrase in respect to what the author was trying to say within the context of the story, but I also looked at it from the stand point of a writer - of me as a writer. It makes me rethink whether I should give up blogging and go to podcasting - at least then I could talk about my thoughts and you could see and hear my emotions. No wait... I like hiding behind my words... a protective shield...

(As a side note, if you believe that I have quit reading my favorite work-related blogs, magazines, journals, and constant stream of email, then I have a bridge to sell you...)

Laptop Making Them Lazy?

As the school year came to an end, and the inevitable frustrations of an overscheduled calendar, a bit of summer fever, and the ever-popular lack of classroom time to complete all the curricular objectives, present themselves, I was beginning to question if the laptops have make our kids lazy. Things we as teachers have noticed and questioned over the past couple of weeks are that kids are turning in assignments during the class right before it was due. This made us question if they were doing the assignment in the previous class instead of completing them at home as expected. (On the other hand, was it done and they simply forgot to submit it?) Things that we expect to take a lot of time, seem to take less and less time. Now this could be because students have become more adept at figuring out the software, they are better at doing research, and they have gotten faster with getting their ideas into a written document. However, if we as teachers know they are getting faster, is it our obligation to give them more to do?

Are laptop kids getting lazy because they can do things faster? This questions leads my mind down the path of how do we keep them from getting lazy? Do we need to change what we are asking them to do? Are we not challenging them, or making their work relevant enough that they want to take more time to “digest” the buffet of material? Instead of just being the consumer of knowledge, can’t we make them the cook? Or the owner who chooses what they put in the buffet? Or the farmer who originates the components of the buffet??

How do we motivate them to work to their potential? More importantly, how do we motivate them to work beyond their potential to want to gain information for their own personal interest and benefit, not necessarily for the grade? “Seek meaning for self…” The best students don’t always learn for themselves, they learn for the grades. Are we as teacher prepared for the risk takers? Those students who go beyond the basics to learn more for themselves, but it might not fit the tidy assessment or rubric designed by the teacher when the assignment was given.

“Advocates for learning with laptops would say that you can’t measure effectiveness with traditional measures of student performance, as it’s a mismatch in skill sets.” Yes, laptops can be a distraction, but how do we keep them on task with our content? I know I have to change how I design assignments, and the questions I ask them to think and write about. But that isn’t always enough…how do we keep students from becoming lazy?

For an example of how to handle apathy, you can go to http://oneillcbl.ning.com/ and see what their challenge-based learning project is trying to do about it.

Deathwatch

I can honestly say that I am torn over the issue of textbooks. To use or not to use? To buy or not to buy? To supplement or not to supplement? Over the past couple of years, I have noticed that some of our teachers are really attached to their textbooks and couldn’t live without them; but others are starting to supplement more with outside digital resources. I was reading in Tech & Learning Magazine an article titled “Textbook Deathwatch” and it really caught my attention. This article surveyed and found out that only “29% of middle and high school students are using online textbooks or curriculum as part of their regular schoolwork.” To take this a step further, they asked what a fantasy digital textbook would include, and the survey said “63% wanted the ability to personalize their book with electronic highlights and notes… and 62% wanted quizzes and tests for self-evaluation.” (Of course there were many more results, but you can read those for yourself in the May 2009 issue.) What I want to know about the survey is, did they ask what teachers want?

Now don’t get me wrong, I am a huge proponent for digital resources, especially considering the fact that districts are under huge budget constraints and textbooks are way over priced. My question for textbook companies is this: What are you going to do to save your product and company from extinction?

What are you going to do make textbook more affordable? Right now it costs us the same amount for a digital textbook that you don’t have to print, bind, or ship. Yes, the costs for writing the texts and layout etc are the same, but burning a CD is not nearly as expensive as printing, binding and shipping. If we want to walk the tightrope of absurdity, we can also talk about the fact that often when you order some digital textbooks, you also get a paper copy or you are required to get a paper copy. Why is that? Yes, some companies are getting smarter, but not fast enough.

What are textbook companies going to do make your digital textbooks more usable? We have tried digital textbooks, and in fact think that they are wonderful. We love the simulations, the "clickability" for interaction, the self-quizzes and reviews, and the full color features. However, when we bought the digital textbooks they sent me a CD. Then when I tried to install on the laptops for the kids, it required the use of the CD for all the features to work. So that requires that the students carry around the CD all year – without scratching it – which is nearly impossible. I also can’t clone the CD and keep the original new because they were copyright protected from cloning to ensure that we paid for the CDs for all the kids. Therefore next year, I have to buy the CD again which means I am replacing textbooks every year. We can’t afford that!

So what am I doing when I can’t afford the digital textbook, and I can’t afford the paper textbook? I improvise! Here’s how:

• I have downloaded ebooks from web sites such as Guttenberg.com and then the students can take notes in the margins, add their own pictures illustrating what they have read
• I have downloaded audio books for kids to listen to, especially poetry. You can even find reading by the actual author if they are new enough.
• I have scanned and downloaded supplemental readings for the students.
• I have searched the Internet for supplemental materials (powerpoints, web sites, short videos, etc.)
• I have created all my own worksheets, writing assignments, multimedia assignments and rubrics, assessments, and tests to go along with the units of study instead of using blackline masters, and test bank questions.

The Real Meaning of Love and Home

So many words have meanings beyond what the dictionary includes. This is the difference between connotation (the emotional definition) and denotation (the dictionary definition). And with Mother's Day approaching I can't help but think of my own mom and how she defined "love" and "home" for my life. So much of what mom's do goes without appreciation. So much of what mom's do goes without recognition. So much of what we should say to our moms goes unsaid...

LOVE (\ˈləv\ )
1 (age 3): verb -state of being: when your Mom makes macaroni and cheese for the third time this week {Mommy loves to make macaroni for you, especially since Daddy is gone and I don’t want to cook.}
2 (age 9): noun: when your Mom lets you have 6 other kids come for a sleep over, doesn’t yell when you stay up all night, then lets you take a nap instead of cleaning the garage the next day {Yes, love, you may take a nap, but remember next time to try and get some sleep when you have friends over.}
3 (age 16): verb -state of being: when your Mom can still hug you after rolling your eyes, saying you hate her, slamming your bedroom door, and not speaking to her for a week and then asking to borrow money so you can go out on Friday night {I love you honey, when you’re not mad anymore you dinner will be in the refrigerator.}
4 (age 25): verb -state of being: when your Mom will tell you how to cook a whole chicken for your new boyfriend or husband, without rubbing it in that you refused to take Home Economics in high school, and wouldn’t learn from her either {Your husband will love this kind of chicken, and you don’t have tell him how easy it is…}
5 (age 30): noun: when your Mom listens to you rant and rave about bad day even though you didn’t ask how her day was {Teaching is your first love, try to remember that while you are driving to school tomorrow.}
6 (age 40): verb -state of being: when your Mom will do unconditional favors, including babysitting at the last minute - even when she has other plans {I love babysitting my grandchildren, of course I will drop my lunch plans with my friend I haven’t seen since high school.}
7 (age 45): verb -state of being: when your Mom sympathizes with the horrible things your children are doing knowing that you probably did the same thing when you were young {You know you love them dear, they are just kids and they all make mistakes, you just need to find the right punishment. Remember?}
8 (age 70): noun: when your Mom needs to be taken care of, and you stop to see her every day so she won’t be lonely {Love is greater than any other feeling there is, and we need to make every day Mother’s day.}

HOME (\ˈhōm\ )
1 (age 3): noun: the place where your bed is, and where you keep your blanket, favorite stuffed animal and all of your Disney movies. {I want to go home, I am tired...}
2 (age 9): noun: where you are forced to stay because you are too young to drive to get to anywhere that is fun. {Yes, I have to stay home again this weekend because my parents won’t drive me and friends around wherever we want to go.}
3 (age 16): noun: where you have daily emotional meltdowns and where your parents rebuild you and send you back into the world {I am going home… you can’t treat me this way.}
4 (age 20): noun: the place you write down on college applications, part-time job applications, and where your stuff is stored, but your body is never in attendance {I’ll just take my entire dorm room home and live with someone else for the summer.}
5 (age 25): noun: the crappy apartment you have settled for because the price is right and it is all yours {Welcome to my new home.}
6 (age 35): noun: it is not a place anymore, it where your husband and your kids are, where your family comes for holidays, where your memories are made, and where your hopes are born, not your stuff. {It just doesn’t feel like home when the kids are all busy.}
7 (age 45): noun: the place where you kids store their stuff as they are running off to college and remains until they get married {When are you coming home to get the rest of your stuff? I really want to make your room into an office.}
8 (age 70): noun: your new location when all of your kids are gone, and you finally get to choose for yourself where you will be, what the décor will look like, and where your memories will reside {When are you coming home for a visit?}

Another Letter To a Student

Yesterday I shared a letter I wrote to one of my students, but what you don't realize is that these letters are like potato chips, "you can't have just one." So I thought I would share a second one I felt compelled to write...

I really wanted to get you a great gift, but nothing seemed to be enough to show much I have enjoyed having you in class, in school, and in my life. You are a truly remarkable person. It is hard to believe you are the same person who, as a freshman, made me root beer cookies, who couldn’t put an article together for the newsletter without a complete reorganization, or who was so quiet others didn’t think you would eventually take charge.
Your accomplishments have been big, and you probably don’t realize it.

1. You have started a tradition. I bet we will continue with the “Got Milk” ads, simply because the elementary kids enjoy seeing the posters in the cafeteria each day. It is something everyone can be proud of, and it was a brilliant idea.
2. You have a legacy of pictures in both the annual and the newsletter over the last couple of years. How will I ever find someone as passionate about going to every event and taking pictures. No one is as bold as you.
3. You have set the bar high for the writers of our school. I am sure that no one will show as much improvement as you have over four years. If everyone had as much perseverance as you do, everyone could anything they set their mind to.
4. You have proven yourself as a leader. You have quietly taken charge of the newspaper. You have pushed, prodded, pulled, cajoled, begged, and pleaded articles out of every student in our class. You have taken on more work than any other student in the class – consistently every month.
5. You have been a great role model not only for your journalism classmates, but also for other students in the building, and it hasn’t gone unnoticed. You have done great things with the elementary kids, with the TADA group, and with our involvement in activities. You have given an example of how to have fun and “get high on life.”
6. You have been a great friend to all. And when I say all, I also mean me. You have proven that you will do anything for anyone at anytime. You have found that fine line between being helpful and not getting taken advantage of. You have found the line between being a friend and being a friendly leader, which often the most difficult thing to pull off, but you seemed to do it effortlessly.

I could probably go on and risk embarrassing you, but I also want to be assured that you are told what a great person you are. People too often think nice things about others, but are afraid to say them out loud. So I just wanted to tell you what a special young woman you have become, and I look forward to seeing how your life turns out. I look forward to seeing your byline – so be sure to send emails so I can subscribe to your college paper, or download a copy so I can see how far you take this career ambition. No matter what you choose to study, even if it turns out not to be journalism, no matter where you choose to live, or what you choose to do with your life, I will be waiting in the wings to see how things turn out. You always have me to turn to for help, support, guidance, or simply admiration. I will miss you. I will miss your cooking. I will miss your spelling errors. I will miss you checking on me when we are on deadline. But most of all, I will miss seeing your shining face every day. Good Luck and God Bless you with your future.

An Unusual Letter to a Student

This week I was given my first gift when a student was getting ready to graduate. Usually I am trying to find gifts to give those seniors, so it was a extraordinary day to receive a gift instead. After receiving this gift, I felt like any gift I could give this student would seem so shallow, so I wrote a letter... from the heart... in hopes she would know how much she has meant to me as well. Here it is...

Today you mentioned that tomorrow is your last day. I am not sure if that means your last day in my class, or the last day of high school, but what I realized is that it is the my last day with you. I am going to miss you so much. I will miss your triumphant emergences from the “writing closet.” I will miss "kick starting" your creative process when you get stuck. I will miss hearing your stories about your “boyfriend” whom you babysit. I will miss your sweet smile when you have just helped another student and you look to me for approval. But the hard reality is that you will move on. You should move on. It is your time to move on. Your life will get really exciting, full of new firsts, new struggles which lead to new triumphs, and new loves. Loves that hopefully involve learning, experiences, and someday people. You will go on to college, and then on to a job you love, and eventually into a family.

When I look at you I see a lot of myself when I was the same age. I know, I know, this likeness could be perceived as a curse because of the way I turned out, but let’s call it a good thing for the sake of this letter. The things I see that we have in common are numerous.

I see in you as a dreamer with goals. You know what you want to do, where you want to be (philosophically) a few years down the road. I knew I wanted to be a teacher, and that I wanted to work with kids, even though I knew I would never make it rich. But the best advice I can give is to follow your passion. If you dare to dream you will be happy and fulfilled. If you have goals that go with those dreams, you will find that the money will find its way into your wallet.

I see in you an accomplished writer. You seem to thrive on being able to put into words the thoughts you don’t really have a verbal audience for. You see the value in preserving those thoughts, because they can be fleeting. I was the same way. I have many journals, but I have more backs of envelopes, scraps of paper, loose-leaf notebooks of pages from all kinds of notebooks, and many digital files of writing. The difference between you and me? You are confident enough to share those pieces of writing. I didn’t have that confidence when I was young. In fact, it took many years to want to even share the very best – let alone the drafts. Don’t be afraid to share your ideas and your writing. You have a great talent, and someday I hope to see you (and Allistair Graves) on the best-seller list. I promise to even stand in line for your first book signing.

I see in you a compassionate leader. You are someone cares about others, their well being, and their progress. You are fair and caring towards other people, and that shows in the manner in which you help others, including those who frustrate you. At your age, I loved being a waitress, helping with the Special Olympics, tutoring in college, teaching Bible School, and eventually moving into teaching. I can see all the same in you, which can be a heavy burden, but rest assured, “paying it forward” in your community is well worth the time and energy, and you get paid back in love and respect twofold.

Now you are probably sick of hearing nice things from me, and this letter might be getting a little long, but I can’t stop without telling you that when you are older, like me, you might look back and appreciate something I have taught you over the last four years. What you probably won’t realize, is how much I have learned from you; and if I don’t tell you specifically, then you will never believe it. You have to know that you have inspired me through you columns. You make me stop and take a moment to appreciate the moment. Adults can get caught up in working toward the future so much, that they forget to appreciate and enjoy what is happening right now. You have given that back to me. I am stopping to smell the roses, or the coffee, or whatever.

You have also reminded me how much I love to write. Just as I said earlier, I have been so caught up in work, raising a family, grading papers, cleaning toilets, making meals, balancing the books, and all my other chores, that I forgot to stop and do something for me. I remembered how much I had to say, how much I had to write, and more importantly, I realized that I am good at something and I should enjoy it while I can. You reminded me that I once had a goal to get published, and to write a novel. I have been published, and now I am working on that novel – thanks to your enthusiasm.

It seems that at the end of each year I am sad to see the seniors go. I am sad to see them graduate, and I am sad to realize that they stop coming back to visit after the first long holiday or summer. I know in my head that it is normal – and as it should be, but it still makes me sad. It will be a sad day when you walk out that door, and when the only information I get about you comes from your younger brothers, and then from your mom and dad when I run into them, and eventually from announcements in the newspaper. It will be a joy to watch your life unfold, because that is what is really happening; your life is just beginning. So go out there and make all of us proud, and know that you have an unofficial cheerleader waiting on the sidelines to cheer you on. Good Luck and God Bless you with your future. -- Mrs. Badgley

End of Year Approaching Fast

"As this time of year comes when we bring to a close one more school
year, no doubt, we think of dreams -- the dreams we had back in the
fall for our students, the dreams we had for making this our best year
of teaching yet, the dreams of accomplishing something--big or small--
that others gave us little chance of accomplishing.

We see students graduate who were given little chance when they began,
yet we have walked along beside them as they toiled day after day
along the often lonesome road of achievement. They overcame many
obstacles put in their way so they could, eventually, realize this
singular bright and shining moment that we call "graduation."
Commencement is, after all, well named, for it represents a beginning
-- a new and fresh beginning -- a validation that past efforts have
yielded positive momentum for a brighter future." - Larry Anderson, ADE listserv

How can someone read this and not be inspired to write something? I realized this morning that I have until Wednesday to say everything I feel the need to say to the seniors. I have until next Wednesday to motivate the younger high school students to get through the summer and be excited to come back in the fall. And the irony? I am already planning for the fall. I am already planning what I need to do this summer to get ready for the fall. I am excited about the new beginning. I am generating new ideas for the classes I will teach. I am already thinking of how to revamp lessons I have taught in the past. I am already laying out the classroom, putting things away in my mind in their new locations. I haven't even gotten to the end of this year!

As I look back in time, I can remember the years when there was a change and the excitement I felt. I can look back to the first teaching job and getting ready for those first days. I can also look back and see myself when I was changing jobs and getting ready to teach junior high English. I can look back at the excitement of change when I added my 8th grade affective skills class and the 8th grade newspaper class. I can look back at the year when I switched schools again and began teaching high school English and being the technology coordinator. A couple of years later I found a new passion when I stopped teaching English and beginning to teach dual-credit computer classes. Another year later, when I was less than satisfied with teaching computers, I found my focus working toward a laptop initiative. Now I am making a change again and this time focusing back on high school English.

But the constant in all of these exciting changes if obvious... a new challenge. New material to think about. New lessons to design and new students to plan for. So many people say that they hate change. They don't want to change, they don't care if they try anything new. These people would be happy teaching the same lesson 22 years in a row. Evidently I am not that person. I thrive on the challenge of something new. I love to work with new material. I love to try designing new lessons and topics of study that the students will embrace, change into their own, and become motivated. Kids thrive on change as much as I do. They don't like to do the same old thing any more than I do. They get excited when we do something challenging. They might have to work harder, but it is easier to get excited about something that is not busy work. What changes can you enact in your classroom this fall to get excited about? How do you become motivated?

Challenge Me So I Can Improve

I was recently reading The Connector for Mar/Apr 2008, and an article by Julie Everett really caught my attention. The article “Leading With Reflection and Encouragement” was interesting in itself, but it was my follow-up thoughts that encouraged me to comment. Her ideas came from a Gallup study seminar she attended. The key elements she highlighted included the following:
1. This last year, I have had the opportunity at work to learn and grow
2. At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day.
3. In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work.
4. There is someone at work who encourages my development.
5. In the last six months, someone at work has talked to me about my progress. (growth, development, goals, etc.)

When I thought about each of these statements I had some concerns…
1. The opportunities at work to learn and grow are the opportunities I have made for myself.
2. Sometime I feel like I am so busy doing the official paperwork for things that I don’t have te opportunity to do what I do best – and that is teach kids.
3. Praise for doing good work is not something that happens often, and when it does happen, people don’t know how to graciously accept that praise because we fear it might sound conceited to say “thank you, I worked really hard on that.”
4. The people who encourage my growth, my learning, and my development don’t really understand my job. My best friend at school really doesn’t understand my technology job, my husband doesn’t really understand the English teacher side of me, and my family doesn’t really understand why I find teaching interesting and stimulating because “they couldn’t pay them enough to teach kids every day.”
5. The only person who has talked to me about my progress at work is someone who can’t give me a raise, or promote me. I would love to be challenged by someone who could criticize me enough to make me want to work that much harder to improve myself and my profession. I probably question and criticize myself the most.

(If you would like to read more about Gallup study, please visit Dr. Gordon’s website: http://www.buildingengagedschools.com)