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My Classes in Pictures

We don’t get around to each other’s classes enough, so seeing pictures is a cool way to do that. I’ve had some interesting weeks in my classes lately, so taking pictures to share with all of you was a fun idea!

Picture #1

I’ve been doing yoga with my advisory on Wednesdays. It’s definitely silly. It’s also bringing us together. Our group has gone through a lot and stress has been a bit high. I think that being silly while trying to relax and enjoying each other has been good. 

Picture #2

My IB students are still working on finishing Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and one of the most intriguing elements of that book is a character named Jim. Part of our analysis of him, language, cultural context, audience, and purpose that I engage our students in includes contrasting him to Disney’s version of the film. It features a budding Elijah Wood from 1993. The portrayal is a perfect example of how audience impacts purpose and content. It also allows us to continue our conversation around the n-word and racism in the U.S. Here’s a pic of us watching the film. 

Picture #3

One of my two IB sections is 6 students. Yippee! It allows me to work closely with students on their writing and overall strengthen their analysis skills. Here’s a picture of them closely reading, annotating, and synthesizing that analysis about a passage from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. 

Things are cool in 2.201. :) 

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Influential Books

Hi Everyone, 

I am definitely a tourist here as I have read your posts but have yet to post.  Being a book geek, I couldn’t resist this one.  Hopefully you will read these if you don’t know them.  It will be super short and I won’t go into detail on why I chose them--if you know the works you will know why. 

Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed. 

bell hooks’ Teaching to Transgress

John Dewey’s Education and Experience

and there it is

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Heartfelt & Natural

What I do well when it comes to Student Led Conferences (SLCs): 

While at the middle school level, structure is important and boundaries are essential, I think that my flexible approach is a good system for me and translates into a good system for my students. In short, what I do is change some of the language around the requirements, reduce some of the requirements, allow flexibility in how they present to us, and offer them ample time in advisory to complete this work. I’ve found that it makes these sessions much more positive and pleasant for them. It feels less stressful and much more of an organic conversation. 

What’s missing from our SLCs: 

I thought that more teacher input was missing, but incorporating comments addresses that. Other than that, I can’t think of anything else to fix... 

Stories of challenges I’ve experienced and how I handled it: 

I can think of one student in particular who had a tense relationship with dad and these SLCs always surfaced that tension. While mom was present, she was clearly feeling the same tension as the student and both worked to appease dad and say things to “keep him calm.” It was so sad to watch this family dynamic. I handled it by focusing on my support of the student and making sure he felt listened to, appreciated, and celebrated. 

Wonderful ones? 

I think some of the best moments come in when students share the thank you i ask them to prepare. They have to select someone or more than one person to thank. Sometimes it’s a parent and other times it’s someone else, but nonetheless it’s heartfelt, honest, and usually touches upon something meaningful that’s been going on in their lives. 

I think that our approach to this parent-teacher-student conversation is a strength at our school. 

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Ted’s Homework

Jaclyn inspired the conversation (which I dig) and Ted assigned the optional homework, so I’m turning it in. Nerd alert for all of us reading this!!!

Overall Homework Philosophy

Rethinking Homework changed my perspective completely. I used to say, “My teachers assigned a ton of work, and it made me stronger!” Plus I didn’t want film to just be some “fun class” where they didn’t have any homework. So I’d assign films and written movie reviews every other week, with just one day of pointing at the journalistic criticism of Elvis & Ebert (Mitchell and Roger, respectively) and minimal time to write in class. Basically, if they finished their real classwork early then they could start the homework. And NO WATCHING MOVIES IN CLASS, because this is film class and we’re not wasting time. Then I realized that even my all-time best film students--who loved the movies they were watching and later went to film school and/or pursued professional filmmaking--couldn’t recall key scenes from their favorite assignments. Eventually, all but Conner Miller confessed they couldn’t possibly just watch movies on their own. In the comfort of home, these kids will text, check social media & email every time they go to the bathroom. They can’t stop. It’s multitasking diarrhea. Even when you bestow the  knowledge that multitasking is humanly impossible and there are concrete tools to stop it, I fear that this is the culture now. I’ve responded to three emails, 1 text, and 1 Facebook notification since I started writing this paragraph. So in addition to the book’s assertion that teachers should moderate the amount we assign per grade level, I also think we should consider that the work they’re doing from their bathrooms is even more time-consuming than we might think--and it’s crappier than what they might do in our classroom. That’s why my philosophy is: homework is not a good tool for learning concepts & skills. Which leads to Ted’s questions...

What's its purpose (individual assignments and, in the context of an entire course)? Skill building? Discovery? Deepening? Learning content? Practice? Review? I think short homework assignments for the sheer purpose of practice or review--especially in math, languages, and music--make a whole lot of sense. For the rest of us, I think turning homework into classwork in order to learn content, build skills, discover and deepen critical insights with our guidance is the way to go. And this seems to be what everyone else has written so far, which is awesome. I also think time away from school is a great chance for teenagers to be lovingly pushed into learning experiences, aka soft skill stuff. City as classroom and bursting bubbles stuff. Creative, art-making stuff. But I try not to overly mandate the learning opportunities. Only 1 local film event per semester and the rest is for funsies. Even without the daily homework grind, I find that film students are actually doing more and better work outside of class than ever before.

How is our approach to homework impacted by our schedule? For instance, and speaking for our language colleagues, do we want our students to be practicing frequently? If so, what's the best way to do that? Film students can do 50%-100% of their work in class. It’s really up to them  how hard they work in class and how ambitious their projects will be. I did the same thing with my English classes near the end of that tenure and it was groovy. Again--I understand this won’t work for all subjects that require daily practice. 

Formative or summative? I hope it's formative. Back in my day, I used to get graded on math & language concepts I literally learned 10 minutes prior to being sent home with “practice” right out of a textbook. That was crazy. I love that our school pushes for formative assessments while the kids are still just learning as opposed to mastering something.

How do we think about other classes when we design assignments? Are we aware what's being asked of a student in another class? No. And I wish there was a way to do this. But I think the real question is: Is there a way to make this easy for teachers? I don’t necessarily need to know what everyone is assigning every week--I suffer from internet-based calendar fatigue every ten minutes--yet I am curious what everyone’s homework philosophy is and whether departments should make general adjustments for each grade level. I feel like this is doable!

What if a student has limited or no internet at home? Do we make adjustments to assignments so all students can complete then?  God yes. Is this even a thought? Y’all holler at me in the Mac lab anytime it’s an issue in class.

When you were a student, what was your most meaningful homework assignment? When you were a student, what was your least meaningful homework? I liked anytime I had choice over the type of homework I was doing, which come to think of it also involved doing a lot of the project-based work in class with the teacher’s guidance. It was also the only time I got to read books by black authors and then tell the class about them--otherwise it was nothin’ but Vonnegut. (Who I love, but not as much as Baldwin and his name sort of rhymed with net.) Oh, and I hated anything out of a textbook. 

In the context of debriefing, do we include homework in the context of that conversation? And, if so, what do we do with that feedback? I debrief deadlines, course load, and make adjustments all the time. Obviously, students love the idea that they don’t “have homework”. (Even though they sort of do, b/c we can’t do everything in class.) On the flip side, I’ve noticed that assessments sometimes speak louder than debriefs. I recently found that after one month of preparing for an IB oral in class, two students totally slacked and failed. How did I miss this? What were we doing with all that time? Did they only work when I “checked in” and then sit mindlessly in front of a computer the other 80 minutes? My adjustment will not be to trust that they’ll do even better quality work at home--I already know that won’t work for them. But I will be breaking down the process for our next big project into even small steps and making sure they get every step done under my watchful eye. But not in a creepy way.

Student Quote of the Week:

“I want to write a screenplay like some of the great coming-of-age, teen genre movies I know we both love--Dazed and Confused, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, those John Hughes movies...”

“But less casual racism and predatory behavior towards women, right?”

“Oh, yeah. Obviously. They were horrible to Long Duck Dong. I promise I will not make being Asian a joke!” 

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All of the things.

Biggest Challenge

I think the biggest challenge has been acknowledging the symptoms my body is having and pressing on in order to be productive and successful at work. There are afternoons where I just want to sleep. Sleeeeeep. And eat. 

Best Thing

I’m excited about the curriculum in 9th grade and my IB course. I’m really excited about the lessons, the student work, the class discussions, the texts, and the topics we’re exploring. I also love the middle school social justice group. They are so energetic, willing, hungry, and focused on learning about all of the issues we’re jumping into. It’s refreshing and invigorating. 

How I center 

Part of my work on balance and self care this year includes intentional centering or peace time. In the morning, I spend some time in my car, listening to music, sometimes praying, other times just meditating. I want to slow down before I jump in to the class/school world. After school, I use the drive to pick up my daughter as a second wind of that. I’m usually listening to music or on the phone with my sister, which means I’m processing events or issues. When I get home and play with Analiz, as hectic as it feels sometimes, it’s also a way of detaching and exercising a different side of me. It’s important and beautiful. 

Homework

I’m not completely anti-homework. I find that I’m personally most productive and more focused at home in my work spaces. My homework assignments are usually one of three things: 1) something we didn’t finish in class and now they have extended time to finish at home (this is usually planned on my end), 2) reading, 3) lengthier written task (an essay or extended response).

And, I want to answer Ted’s questions because I thought they were a good exercise: 

-What's its purpose (individual assignments and, in the context of an entire course)? Skill building? Discovery? Deepening? Learning content? Practice? Review?  I would say that my homework does some skill building, discovery, and practice. When students are reading, they’re discovering and when they are working on an essay, they are practicing the skills we’re focusing on. 

-How is our approach to homework impacted by our schedule? For instance, and speaking for our language colleagues, do we want our students to be practicing frequently? If so, what's the best way to do that? I find that in high school, the prep period, if used wisely, can serve as a fruitful time where students can collaborate or form study groups and work on skill building as well as deepening their learning of the content. 

-Formative or summative? I hope it's formative.  It’s formative, except when it’s an essay and the final version is due. Usually, day 1 I introduce the essay/written task and we do some prep work. On day 2 students are writing in class, conferencing with me and each other day. Then, they go home and keep working. On Day 3, students come in and we do specific writing workshop-style feedback and editing work. Written task is due that evening. 

-How do we think about other classes when we design assignments? Are we aware what's being asked of a student in another class? Nope! That’s the conversation I’m hoping we can get better at as a staff. We currently have zero space or time dedicated to knowing what’s happening across content areas within the same grade level to manage that type of stuff. 

-What if a student has limited or no internet at home? Do we make adjustments to assignments so all students can complete then? For sure. I haven’t encountered that, though. 

-When you were a student, what was your most meaningful homework assignment? When you were a student, what was your least meaningful homework? I think one of the assignments that I found useful were the discussion or review questions after readings. They helped me understand, sometimes, what I was supposed to catch and helped me process what I had read. The worst stuff was math. Ugh. 

-In the context of debriefing, do we include homework in the context of that conversation? And, if so, what do we do with that feedback?  Maybe one way I do this is through exit slips. I see those as ways to have a private conversation but also do a quick formative check. Depending on how off or on students are, I adjust my next lesson based on that information. 

And that’s that. 

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Fast Times at Headwaters

I think Bueller would agree: Life at Headwaters moves pretty fast, and if we don’t all stop to look around we’ll miss it. Already there have been some highs and lows, and it boils down to this.

Low: Damn, shit is busy!

Apologies for the language, but that felt good to write. I hope it felt good to read, too. We’re all super busy people. Yet somehow I ended last school year thinking I had finally managed life-work balance for good. Three big changes have thrown me this first month back:

1) IB Film curriculum changed its entire curriculum. No examples. New concepts I’ve never taught. And a new online class for IB Film teachers. 

2) There are more advanced students in every single class--even both of the MS & HS 101 classes. I truly can’t ever do or screen anything I did last year. 

3) Along with these changes in curriculum, I’ve been reworking all 5 websites.

So even though I have one of my best ever schedules, I routinely work on school stuff till about 8 PM or later. My new goal is to start stopping the work by 6 PM every day. I just don’t know how.

High: I like my work!

The very cool part about this dilemma--which I know we all share--is that I love this work! (Except for the things I cannot change like having 5 preps, grading rough drafts, and overanalyzing emails from admin. It’s not personal, it’s business--but those emails always make the hairs on my neck stand up like maybe I’m in trouble or need to be doing a lot more...) Anywho, I haven’t found that one item from the to-do list that I can forever cross out, because all the things that I could do less are what I love most. I like meeting with Alamo Drafthouse and AYFF folks each week to brainstorm new events (’cause then I get to attend special film events!). I like spending my weekend preparing a presentation on The Shining as it relates to all types of film theory. (Did y’all know the bathroom axe scene was a total rip off from 1921′s The Phantom Carriage? Still love Kubrick’s crazy butt though.) Thing is, I like lesson planning. It’s a sickness. 

As a result of the work, this year has already yielded so many wonderful moments with film students. They’re right out there with me in the Austin film community, some are premiering at national festivals, and I know that these will be the experiences they remember fondly and most. Advanced and IB students are also doing some kick ass theory presentations that most film school grads couldn’t even imagine. Seriously--they don’t teach theory in film school. That’s strictly for Film Studies, PhD folk. Which means our film babies are GENIUSES.

Conclusions

The final thing is, I have an autoimmune disease that recently flared up and it’s critical that I find a way to better manage my time and stress. I want to take my newfound health (yay!) as an opportunity to be more intentional about creating time every single day to exercise, spend time with loved ones, work on my own creative projects, and watch more HBO. I want to turn off the teacher brain right at 6, and I think I can do it...if I’m ruthless. 

PS. Always feel free to send me any advice or shared experiences!

Student Quote of the Week: 

Me: “Excellent observation about how apparatus theory connects to sociocultural context. Any other debrief comments or questions on that?”

Simon: “Is a film a good first date to take a girl to?”

Me: “Slightly different subject, but yes. First dates can be awkward, and a film can give y’all help not force the conversation. Then you have tons to talk about after the movie, and you can learn a lot from what they say.”

Simon: “Thank you. I learn a lot in film, but this will be the most useful.”

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Thaaaanks!

I have only taught as a TA at UT-Austin and here at Headwaters. So it should not be surprising that the biggest impacts on my teaching comes from “the source”... To the following folks: THANK YOU!

The Don. The Don was chair of my thesis committee. I leaned on him for constant creative feedback and film analysis skills I might have never learned otherwise. I knew his taste in films but also felt free to disagree [I never did; I love everything] and explore my own taste [everything From Here to Eternity to Heaven’s Gate with The Wild Angels and Back to the Future III--seriously]. What I didn’t realize at the time (and have since thanked him for) is that Don taught me far more than Texas documentary filmmaking. He taught me how to let my students see me. He made me unafraid to sprinkle humor into lectures and let the cool, angsty kids know just how excited I was to talk about film and art and theory. He let me know it was okay to show kids your toils and spoils as an artist, even when the spoils are few and far between. And, perhaps most importantly, I learned over time to adopt his passion for students’ work. I opt in as an executive producer of every project that conspires in my classroom, and sometimes I feel more invested than the kids. But I think that’s more than OK, because they never wonder if I find value and joy in the work being asked of them.

Candler. Kat Candler is one of the most original, hardworking, and respected independent filmmakers out there. And she’s an awesome film teacher. I was lucky to TA for and then work with her teaching a filmmaking summer camp for adults that I mistakenly called “adult film camp”. She was kind. Patient. Invested. And organized. There was a protocol for watching film clips and discussing in small groups, workshopping scripts, and choosing only a few students to direct a few projects--even when the stakes and tuitions were incredibly high. Best of all, she kept in touch with everyone who was interested in pursuing films for years to come. After being a student, they had a fair chance to become a colleague on a professional set. I have tried to emulate her number one class rule: Be Kind, her tireless effort to reach out and provide professional opportunities outside of the classroom, and her calculated preparation for what could be total artsy fartsy chaos. She’s the #1 reason I *attempt* to have it all: making movies and teaching movies. God bless Kat for all of that.

Khabele/Headwaters. There are too many RTF professors who inspired me in countless ways to write about them all. And you don’t know them, so you’d be bored and confused even worse than whatever you’re feeling now. But as much as I’ve learned from these film professors about how to build rapport, create engaging lessons about film analysis and production, and interact with students in a way that respects their artform as much as equal to our own… The majority of my pedagogical practices come from Khabele/now Headwaters. And as much as I don’t live for staff meetings, I find myself consistently grateful for any and all meetings focused on PD/best practices”. I feel very blessed that this private non-profit school took a chance on a gal straight out of grad school. This school helped define the very words: assessment...content...delivery...differentiation...safety meeting… So many words. Because of my time here, I’ve also developed a true philosophy, a belief system around what I truly think education should look like. I’m not a master teacher yet, but I know I’m at a place that will nurture and propel that journey forward.

If you’ve taught at Headwaters a few years, you’ve already read all the same pedagogical-ish books as me. But I'll write my favs here anyway...

Quiet: The Power of Introverts In a World That Can't Stop Talking, by Susan Cain. Because I didn’t understand the difference between introverts and extroverts until this book. It really makes creating differentiated assessment and feedback opportunities less of a task and more of a moral mission to reach everyone.

The Smartest Kids in the World: And How They Got That Way, by Amanda Ripley. Because USA USA USA is not #1 in terms of teacher salary, teacher education, or student content mastery & testing, and we can learn a ton from other education systems around the world. Props to Finland. Come to think of it, I’m just going to go ahead and mail this Betsy DeVos.

The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog: And Other Stories From a Child Psychiatrist’s Notebook, by Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D. Because this book taught me how to look for signs of trauma and mental health issues. It also created a deeper sense of empathy within me, which will affect how I interact with adolescents who walk into my classroom for the rest of my life.

Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, by Bryan Stevenson. Curveball: this book doesn’t have anything to do with teaching in a traditional sense.

I’m also going to watch/read everything Thom and Lorena recommended. Because, at the end of the day, fellow teachers have always had the #1 impact on me.

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Empathy, Humility, & Respect

I feel like English class is the easiest place to talk about character, development, and one’s character development. This subject is all about studying the human condition through others’ experiences and voice. The elements of character that I focus on depend on the age group. What I discuss with 6th graders is very different from what I discuss with 9th graders and seniors, for example. I could, for argument’s sake, teach the exact same book to all 3 groups, but have completely different conversations and engage in analysis that challenges each group appropriately. There are some elements of character that I often focus on and I think they’re key for all students as they “pass through my hands” and become adults (I’m translating that from a Spanish colloquialism- does it work?). 

Empathy- I try to build empathy in my students through exposure of others’ voices and experiences. I do that through a diverse selection of literature. This diversity spans ethnicity, culture, religion, gender, nationality, geography, and even the format of the book itself. This variety allows for students to see themselves in others’ shoes, develop new ways of seeing, understand the world a bit differently, and consider new points of view they hadn’t before. My goal with this is to nurture love and acceptance. 

Humility- I try to empower my students to be vulnerable through the sharing of their own writing. This pushes them to be humble and allows others into “their worlds.” These exercises of others offering them a critical read of their construction creates a sense of respect between them and their peers. It’s often very challenging for many students, but this is something that commonly takes the entire year. 

Respect- This is a very important character trait that is essential for success. I’m talking about respecting other people because they’re human; respecting others because they deserve it whether or not we want to. I try to do that by focusing on listening skills, class discussions, and the way we address each other. 

While there are many other character traits that we work on, I felt like these are the ones I really value the most as a mother and teacher. I want my girl’s teachers to build this up in her, too. I’d be wicked (in a Boston accent) proud. 

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Cornerstones & Pillars

My approach to teaching is fluid in the sense that I make many changes based on my context. It depends on where I am. Some things, though, are non-negotiables and are true to what you’ll always see in my classroom. I would say that students have had one of the biggest impacts on my teaching approach for obvious reasons. So, students aside, there are people and texts that have impacted me in profound ways. They are the cornerstones and pillars in this edifice called teaching I’m still working on. I’ll list them in no particular order because they’re all key.

Dr. Django Paris- He has designed what is called a Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (CSP). This refers to a practice in teaching that seeks to foster and sustain students’ cultures and lives instead of wanting to push that culture aside and teach the dominant one as standard. He was also my mentor during my master’s thesis, continues to be my mentor and a great resources in my life. I watched him lead an entire graduate program with grace while maintaining firmness in his demand for equity. His PhD work, continued efforts, and professional demeanor have impacted me the most.

Lisa Delpit’s Other People’s Children- This book allowed me to understand the complexities of teaching and helped me process some of my own experiences as a student of color with predominantly white teachers. Her words and clarity allowed me to become stronger in my field.

Dr. David Kirkland- In graduate school I learned so much about teaching, writing, leading, and creating from ONE class with this intellectual powerhouse. What I learned most (since I have to choose) was the value in honoring the students in front of me, engaging creativity in a rigorous way, embracing my students’ lives, languages, and culture as worthy of academic study, and how to be humble in my leadership.

Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed- If you haven’t read it, you must. It’s a game changer. Like the other book listed here, it allowed me to process my own experience, but more importantly it helped me understand what education should be about and for. It helped me develop a sense of right and wrong in teaching.

Professor Rae Paris- After one fiction writing class with her, I learned how to be unapologetically free in how I design and create my curriculum. I watched her design a course with diverse and purposeful texts without worrying about making space for “classics,” which we had either already read or would read (because we English teachers struggle to take risks), but would probably NEVER read the ones she chose. That example is in my heart until this day. It will stay with me.

Bread Loaf School of English (my master’s program)- Of the few things that positively impacted me from this program, I will say that in this program I learned to read again. I learned to read in between the lines, see into the eyes of the text itself, dig deep into the letters and search for meaning in new ways. The professors I had were experts and creative geniuses. I learned how to creatively design a course curriculum in a creative and complex way. I also met the people above (and other geniuses), and I’m forever grateful for that.

The Bible- It’s been the best example of humility, love, peace, kindness, and more as I try to be a woman, mother, and teacher all at once.

I believe I’m a strong teacher because of this list. I’m not done learning and I’m by no means the best, but I feel good about the road ahead with what and who is on this list and the others that are by my side.

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Testing, Testing, 123...

I think a strength in teaching is knowing what one’s weaknesses are. I could write a long list of all the things I believe I do wrong and need to fix. One of the ones I’ve been working on since I arrived at Headwaters is assessment. 

In my previous school, most assessments were designed for us. They were determined by chairs, administrators, or the state department. Whether or not I agreed with them or whether or not I thought they were accurate was irrelevant because students had to take them. One result of that reality, is that I rarely determined the best way to assess my students. I had limited experience in creating assessments.

On the contrary, at Headwaters I get to design my own assessments. That has been an amazing learning experience for me and I believe it’s made me a better teacher. It’s also demonstrated to me that teachers really are the best parties for identifying how to assess students. How do I help myself to develop in this area of my craft? 

1. Discuss with my colleagues: I am constantly working with other teachers (and getting ideas) to design my assessments. 

2. Read & study: I read many articles and essays to help me grow and learn in this area. 

3. Revise: I revisit assessments I’ve done in the past and I tweak them over and over again. 

4. Analyze results: I look over student performance and determine how they did. Based on their results and responses I’ll know if it was an accurate assessment, too easy, or way over their heads. 

5. Student feedback: I check in with them and use their feedback to know if this was well received and more importantly, if they felt they were able to demonstrate their skills. 

I enjoy learning alongside my students. Creating unique and specific assessments for them has taught me many skills. I look forward to this teaching/learning journey. 

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

What I Told My Seniors

I didn’t realize how unprepared I was for Trump’s election. I had simply not thought that result through. Immediately I began receiving text messages. My father’s words to all of his children will stay with me. I was teary eyed as I dropped Analiz off at school. I cried a bit when I arrived at my parking spot. Then, I tried to do what I usually do when I’m having a bad day: push it aside and go teach. When I walked in to my class full of seniors, they were going back and forth trying to process and make sense of these results that we had for so long laughed and joked about. They were anxious, on the verge of screaming, and confused. I started balling. I lost it. I’ve never cried like that in front of students. 

What do you say when you have no words? What does a teacher say to young people when she needs words herself? After listening to them and them giving me tissues, we began to dialogue. Clearly, there would be no English content. Real life was more important right now. This is what I told my seniors: 

1. It might not be okay: I don’t want to sugar coat it. It’s not my job to make you feel okay. It’s my job to prepare you for what’s out there. You will encounter hate and you will have to face that there are people who don’t like you because of things you cannot control and/or your appearance. While that’s been a truth, we may see a surge and openness around that for a while. 

2. You will have to learn to navigate the world intentionally seeking out allies: This is why having opinions and taking stances is critical. This is why indifference is wrong. You will need to figure out how to be safe and that safety will come from allies. 

3. Protect yourself next year on college campuses: Many young white millennials voted for Trump. That means that you have a lot of work to do next year. That means that you will also meet many people who don’t necessarily think highly of you. Join the Black Student Union, the Latino organization, the LGBTQ groups and be in places where you are supported and loved. Those will be the spaces that fill your cups. 

4. This isn’t about parties: Don’t be fooled by politics and agendas. This is not about feeling sad that your candidate lost. This isn’t about feeling sad that Republicans won. This is about mourning the fact that this man sad terrible things about groups of people and voters were okay with it. They chose that voice and those feelings to lead this country. That hurts. 

5. Do something: More than ever, it’s important to stand for something and be clear. Show up and stand out. Make your points and listen to others. Engage, debate, and dialogue.  

The rest of the day looked like hugs, more talking, confusion, tears, questions, anger, ice cream, and frustration. It was one of the toughest days in my 12 years of working with young people. 

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Good Grief

My Family’s Grief

I want to see all sides, to choose love, to surround myself with all things positive. But right now I feel grief. My uncle passed away just yesterday, leaving us just days after our family expressed with each other a collective mourning over the passing of a national dream. We all had the dream that Obama’s presidency would pave the way for our next generation to come of age in a new America whose leadership embraced all people regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, nationality, creed, sexual orientation, or even politics. The alt-right fringes would always be among us, but they would receive nothing but love and tolerance in return. That hope is gone. I was personally not very close to my late uncle, which I regret, but I did hold him in the highest regard as a salt-of-the-earth hard worker, upstanding father and grandpa, a devout family man who persevered through Jim Crowe to raise a compassionate, progressive family. And for the past 48 hours, as I speak to my parents and cousins and aunties and uncles, it’s never been more clear how personal and political grief can be intertwined. No one dismisses one pain in favor of the other. Both are real and omnipresent.

The Forgotten

I understand that many Americans did not vote for bigotry. I even agree with the core sentiments behind Trump’s campaign for the rural, working class folks who felt cast out of the American dream for so long under the corporate-elite paradigm, which was embraced by countless politicians regardless of partisanship and campaign promises.

What devastates me is that this movement of “forgotten men and women" decided not to see me as an ally. I grew up in a rural/suburban community, my family mostly comprised of working class farmers and Toyota or GE factory workers. My dad is currently a janitor, my mother a church secretary. We come from small town values, but also Christian ethics that urge us to stand up for the poor and persecuted. Why did Trump and his supporters make the decision--not only to overlook me and my family--but to portray all black people as inner city gang affiliates? Why were the poor, hardworking Latinos portrayed mostly as rapists and murderers? Why are brown immigrants classified bad and white immigrants hard-working and/or super hot? And what of the women from all quarters of the great American quilt--how could it be that our genitalia is literally up for grabs? In my heart of hearts, I expected even my most conservative Republican friends to denounce all of it. Instead, many of them have either cheered on or shrugged away Trump’s repeated invitations to violence.

Some of my close friends [and at least two relatives] from childhood supported Trump, and I know they love their families, UK basketball, Dave Chapelle, binge-watching The Office on Netflix and then texting me about it, our friendship--many things that I also hold dear. Of course I don’t think they are all racists and homophobes. I personally don’t know any liberals who characterize all Trump supporters so simply. But I do believe that when my good friends and two relatives punched the button reading “Trump-Pence” they chose to tolerate pure, white hate. It reminds me of my adolescence, in which I had a friends or acquaintances “accidentally” call black folks niggers and then turn to me and realize I was one of them. Or at the very least, they tolerated it. Often, before I had a chance to process my innate pain, many a white friend was quick to defend those who called me a nigger, explaining that it "didn’t reflect who they really were”. They told me how to feel or rather not to feel and to just move on. This election feels exactly like that. 

Some Things I Can’t Ignore

Since the election there have been a stark rise in hate crimes--vandalism, intimidation, sexual assaults, racial and LGBTQ-targeted violence since the election. In my past, I have had my life threatened before merely for being a brown-skinned girl walking alone on the street. And now, for the first time in my nine years, I have heard and seen random acts of racism, intimidation, and misogyny on the streets of Austin, Texas. There has also been violence against Trump supporters. I would never condone violence by any hand. I was raised to always turn the other cheek but also not to turn two blind eyes. And because I know that deep in my bones, I am a walking target for a dangerous minority of empowered white folks, I am fearful of a return to those bad ole days. I am also hurt that half of the country decided that this particular vote was more important than my safety and inclusion in the dream. They should own up to that. I won’t hate them for it. In fact, I want to embrace them even more now and to make them see me again. All of us have a right to bereave the loss of a dream yet again deferred.

Making Grief Great Again

As a teacher, I have hugged and consoled crying students, only sharing my vision for a positive path forward (being an ally, being active in the social causes you cherish, listening and showing love to others who disagree with you). Being a teacher puts me in a unique pair of shoes that forces me to sometimes to walk a path of  impartiality, to sometimes ignore my own feelings for the good of the young and impressionable. I want them to think critically and for themselves, so I am careful to present opportunities for all sides to still be heard even through invisible tears. My school has allowed us to gather and speak frankly, to promote the cause of unity and justice. I feel inspired to push forward with youthful energy and to turn feelings into actions. More volunteer work. More listening to my friends who disagree with me. More forgiveness. And, yes, even more politics. 

Three last things: I ask that all of you hold a small place in your heart for those of us who feel less safe. And to see us. Maybe even join us. Because our grief is going to make great things happen. 

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Why I Heart Headwaters <3

Why I’m Writing This

Writing ed blogs for the first time has led me to do a lot of soul searching. I’ve been forced to sit with my thoughts on everything that works and doesn’t work about my classes, my teaching style, my school, and how I relate to students. It’s exhausting. Also, I suddenly came to the conclusion at the end of last week that I don’t know anything about teaching or film or teenagers and/or I’m really tired. On top of everything: the election. So I’m writing down 10 reasons I love teaching at Headwaters simply because I NEED THIS.

1. The kids like school. Even the kids that sometimes hate school like school. I don’t have any solid proof as to why so many tweens and teens like school in this way I’ve never seen before, but I do think it has something to do with the other items on this list.

2. The teachers like kids. I haven’t met any teachers at our school that don’t genuinely enjoy teaching their grade levels. And both teaching and learning are hard, so all this mutual good will goes a long way.

3. The teachers like the other teachers. This actually helps me out on two levels. a) I seek out other teachers and their infinite wisdom. We converse about classroom management and content delivery. We help each other figure out how to organize our websites and create better tests. We have lunches, book clubs, and “safety meetings” (i.e., happy hours) together. I’m always learning from them, even when an adult beverage is in my hand.                                                         b) Many of my fellow teachers are lifelong friends, and it makes me excited to go to work and hang out with my peoples between classes.

4. I’ve never had a class size over 18... Which means I get to know everyone’s names and something of their personality, their challenges, and what I can do to make their learning experience more successful and more fun.

5. Kids call us by our first names. I didn’t like it at first because I’m a black woman from Kentucky. This wild behavior seemed unheard of, rude, disrespectful, and deserves a good whoopin’. But contrary to my OG fears, having students call me Alex didn’t make them automatically disrespect me. It actually made me more of a human person. And this simple, informal policy also helps encourage both parties to form relationships that are more similar to the mentor/mentee model than that of school marm/pupil.

6. My school teaches me how to teacher better. I didn’t know how to teach all that well when I arrived. I was lucky to be in the exact right place at the right time when openings for both English and film teaching positions--and I was both! Our school provides articles, books, guest speakers, and meeting time that is focused on making us better at delivering and assessing content. The more I learn about other school systems, the more I realize that many others do not do this. Teachers are, instead, encouraged to follow the binder that is handed to them in earlyish-August, distribute preordained exams, and focus on state testing scores. Some schools offer little time and space for all-staff teaching improvements during the actual year (when it matters most, right?). Considering that I’m still desperately trying to get better, I can’t even imagine continuing on the path I started in 2010. I’d still be lecturing from over-written PowerPoints with few and far between opportunities for feedback and summative homework assignments followed by summative tests and wrapped up with zero opportunities for reteaching and reassessments--bluuuurgggh! (That was me throwing up, Tina Fey style.)

7. My school allows teachers to make HUGE changes. We design our absentee, assessment, and curriculum policies. This year, the teachers’ lounge was buzzing about some charged racial language we’d heard, and a week later teachers and admin had formed a group focused on “fostering empathy and embracing diversity”. Our little committee meets for lunch, organizes and leads staff meetings, plans events, and some of our work will eventually influence school wide curriculum. I just can’t imagine working for a school that makes all of these decisions for its teachers--how creatively stifled, bored, unheard, disrespected, and helpless I would feel. I genuinely pray for all my fellow educators that this becomes the norm for all teachers and soon.

8. Admin supports teachers’ side projects. Our school admin have been incredibly supportive of my own filmmaking as well as the film, art, math, travel, etc. side projects of our faculty. At first, I thought I should keep all non-Headwaters pursuits quiet as my bosses might immediately assume it would distract from my real job as a teacher. They didn’t. They want us to pursue our personal passions for our well-being and to make us more knowledgeable, more life-experienced. And when I wanted to start a film festival for middle and high schoolers--my school put up the money and provided the technology resources (aka Jason!) to help me get started. It was just a wild idea I thought they’d tell me to do on my own time, but instead they embraced it, promoted it, funded it.

9. I’m kind of a kid and that’s OK. All pedagogy aside, the teachers at our school have a good balance of work and play in our classroom. We are encouraged to see all things from the eyes of our students, to make our classes engaged in critical thinking, hard skills, and fun. This suits me just fine, because I have the mind, humor, and cinematic taste of a 15-year-old boy (well, a 15-year-old boy who studies film theory) in oh, so many ways.

10. Our time is for teaching. Some of my fellow teachers also work as unpaid hall monitors, cafeteria workers, before-or-after-school daycare aids, and grading machines. A friend recently confided to me that, because of this and the emphasis on state testing, she feels that her school very much de-emphasizes good teaching at every turn. She is so overworked as a “monitor” of her students and a “professional grader” of their constant testing that she rarely spends time preparing, tweaking, or re-teaching a class lesson. And she never sees her students outside of the classroom. At our school, all of our policies promote inventive, original, and personal lesson plans + building relationships with students and their families. We can actually leave our classroom when we are not teaching, in order to do more of this kind of work. So after my last class of the day, I go home and prep, grade, read articles, and watch tutorials that make me a better teacher. It also just feels great knowing that admin trusts me to do my job without me being monitored. I get more done because I can be trusted to go find a quiet, uninterrupted space to do it. And, lastly, having extra time to myself throughout the day allows me to organize field trips and after-school external learning opportunities with the film students who actually want more school. I highly doubt I would have the time or desire to create festivals and film sets and opportunities outside of class if I was stuck in my classroom all day, babysitting and grading someone else’s test. I heart spending my time focused on making the learning fun. To my knowledge, our school didn’t invent these 10 things. But when we see a good idea that fosters a love of learning and teaching, we’re the type of school that goes for it. Amen.

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Making Movies in School Is Unique--But it Shouldn’t Be

Why Headwaters Is Unique

I love that my school has allowed the film department to grow into a program that can take eleven year olds through senior year of high school. There are a lot of fellow teachers that also integrate filmmaking into their classes, encouraging students to create short films in order to demonstrate mastery of math, science, English, history, and foreign languages. Now that cameras have become truly affordable, particularly since all computers and cell phones can shoot quality videos… I want to make the case that making movies shouldn’t be so unique. (And all of these reasons could apply to any longterm, collaborative art project!)

15 Reasons Why Making Movies In School Shouldn’t Be Unique

Students like watching movies.

Students like making movies.

Students like having freedom. Even if the content and skills are mandatory--the movie itself is an opportunity for a lot of student choices.

Students are more likely to finish complex, longterm projects if they are having fun along the way.

Movies allow an easy format for showcasing student work, and that also gives the the young’uns more than just a deadline to look forward to--it’s a premiere! People are gonna watch their work at Pitso! It’s on Youtube!

Since everyone can so easily watch that final project on a multitude of screens, there is a nice little added pressure that the work be good. (And even bad movies can show high quality content mastery.)

Humans are more likely to remember information if they have a lot of attention on the content over a sustained period of time, use and interact with the content over time, and apply skills to new situations. All of this can happen when students take content and figure out a way to make a movie about it over the course of one week or even up to a few months.

Making movies builds computer software literacy and troubleshooting skills.

Making movies in groups teach students how to people manage.

Making movies in groups requires coordinating with others.

Making movies creates an infinite sea of unforeseeable, complex problems. And the skills to solve them and persevere through the crazy.

Writing, planning, storyboarding, filming, and editing involve critical thinking.

Writing papers, presenting about, and discussing movies = more critical thinking.

All of this stuff helps cultivate creativity.

Numbers 7-13 represent the top 5 skills employers will look for or require by 2020 regardless of what field our students enter.

For me, #s1 & 2 are the real reason I teach at all. But that other stuff makes a good case for me to keep my job, which is cool, because I like teaching and my own movies don’t pay the bills.

Student Quote of the Week

“Alex. I need to show you pictures of my bedroom. Gage painted movie quotes and faces of all the best auteurs, like ever, on my wall. It’s not done and IT’S NOT WEIRD.”

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

UT vs. Headwaters (Go Hawks!)

What’s the Same/What’s Different

So... I’ve never taught middle or high school curricula outside of Headwaters. However, as a Teaching Assistant at UT-Austin’s Radio-TV-Film I prepared weekly lessons, taught certain sections alone (depending on the class), and even graded projects. I often find myself comparing what I experienced and witnessed through my professors at the university to my own private school world, so here are some of those similarities and differences. (You might need to command+ to see this one.)

Who Won?

We’re all winners here. And losers. Not losers--that’s not an educationally PC term. We are all still developing our soft skills. On one hand, universities do an excellent job of hiring experts in the field in which they teach. I learned so many practical, analytical, and pro skills from my professors plus UT offers a ton of opportunities for students and teachers to network and even collaborate after graduation--which is invaluable in “the real world”. UT faculty are also encouraged to deepen their knowledge and pursue independent work within their field, and to do that they have a lot of freedom and time that is not spent in meetings, assessing and reassessing work every week, or preparing 4-6 totally different preps each semester. However, because of this, there is far less emphasis on making sure that each unique type of learner processes the content and ultimately turns in their best work--this burden is placed directly on the student. And TAs who have the ability to teach entire sections and grade projects do not receive any specific training for how to do so. Considering this, I continue to struggle with whether I am adequately preparing my high schoolers for the reality of college/professional environments where all of our wonderful opportunities for office hours (often a lot like tutoring), reteaching (in case of absences), and reassessments (retaking tests and turning in projects for full credit after deadlines)...don’t exist. 

On the other hand, Headwaters does a great job of recruiting experts in all subjects who also practice their skills and crafts; and that’s on top of the weekly discussions, meetings, and improvements around creating the best possible pedagogy as a united staff. We still have some of the freedom and tons of encouragement to pursue deeper work within our fields. And we have much of the curriculum autonomy and ability to form bonds with our students as professors do. (Go Hawks!) 

The thing that really makes this ultimately a draw...is that 4-6 different class preps is unsustainable in the long run for teachers. If I could figure out a fix for that, I think we’d have the best of all educational worlds.

Student Quote of the Week:

“College is fun, but it’s a lot harder than I thought it’d be. There’s so much work and you have to do the deadlines.” — Former Student

“I miss the, like, family vibe we had [at Headwaters] and all the teachers, obviously. No one’s funnier than Kelly Dickens.” — Same Former Student

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

No Sir-ee

This is my twenty fourth year as an art teacher and my ninth year at our school. I taught in the public school system in Ireland for six years schools before moving to Austin where I taught at another independent school for eight years prior to starting at Khabele/Headwaters. I can honestly say that teaching at Khabele/Headwaters over the last nine years has been the most challenging and rewarding experience I have had in education. The standard of education in the Irish public school system is generally high with all public schools following a national curriculum. The system is pretty bureaucratic and very exam-focused so that was a marked difference for me when I began teaching in independent schools in Austin. Designing my own curriculum was very liberating and challenging at first but having taught AP studio art and then the IB program I have grown a lot as an art educator. Yes, the IB is a bureaucracy in many ways but there is a lot of creative freedom in how the teacher can plan and teach the course. My teaching style has certainly evolved over the years. My first teaching job in Austin was at a small private school very like the early incarnation of Headwaters where the students called the teachers by their first name. This took some getting used to on my part as in Ireland I was always referred to as “Mr. Mulvany” or “Sir”. Now I can’t imagine a student calling me Mr. Mulvany and certainly not Sir.  Since moving to the US I also have always had the strong sense that anybody who addresses me as Sir is about to admonish me in some way.  “Sir, do you know why I pulled you over today?”   There are many reasons I enjoy teaching at our school but the close relationship with students and the sense that we are all working together towards common goals is what I find most rewarding.

[writesomethingtogether-blog]

Teachin’ Ain’t for the Faint-Hearted

Teaching at Headwaters is quite the change of pace & style for me. The main differences are the creative teaching autonomy I have and the student academic freedoms they enjoy. The following are things I’ve never experienced before teaching at Headwaters: 

1. Debriefing class/lessons. 

2. Offering students the opportunity to reassess and try again at demonstrating their skills. 

3. Selecting my own books and creating my own curriculum. 

4. Ability to leave the classroom and use other physical spaces freely. 

5. Expecting that students can/should have school materials that I don’t provide. 

And is it a positive change? 

Absolutely! The freedoms and comforts I listed above are just that: luxuries. Technically, they’re not necessary, but they certainly make for a positive and healthy learning environment. The challenge for me, is knowing that there are thousands, if not millions of students, in other economic regions of the country NOT enjoying these privileges and suffering through oppressive classroom & school environments. I think I’m a better teacher because of these freedoms. It’s challenged me to really find my teaching voice and develop my skills around curriculum design and course development. 

Have I faced resistance or found pushback from students, ever? 

For sure. My content isn’t always easy to take in. My teaching approaching can be very challenging because it pushes students out of their comfort zones. However, as I endure, take in their feedback, and adjust as necessary (in ways that I know don’t change the essence of my structure & vision) they join the ride. The best ways (I’ve learned) to handle resistance from students is to: 

1. Stop. Persisting in the face of their discontent minimizes their voice and you’ll never get their trust back. 

2. Make changes. Yep. Even when I don’t agree with their concerns or find that my vision is more important, I make changes. I know I get frustrated when administrators don’t listen to me. I feel ignored when administrators don’t make changes based on my feedback or recommendations. When I feel that way I disconnect and am not a team player. I don’t want my students to feel that way. 

3. Have open and vulnerable conversations. I share with the students what I want to do, what my vision is, and where we’re headed. Do I have to tell them these things? Nope. Do I "owe” them an explanation? Nope. But if I want them on board and if I want them to be engaged, then I do these things. It’s worked. 

Wha’s the biggest lesson I’ve learned from all of this? Teachin’ ain’t for the faint-hearted.