Crazy Classroom Blog

5th Annual Corporate IP Institute, Nov. 15-16

2011-11-04T08:31:00.006-04:00

I'm very proud to be a part of this two-day seminar from the very beginning...

The Georgia State University College of Law and the J. Mack Robinson College of Business are currently collaborating for the educational benefit of corporations interested in maximizing the value of their intellectual property assets. One of the primary initiatives of this collaboration is the Corporate IP Institute. The 2011 Corporate IP Institute is a 2-day event that will be held at the Georgia State University Student Center. This event provides a unique view into the world of intellectual property as it allows in-house IP professionals to discuss current issues facing in-house IP professionals. The CIPI provides in-house IP professionals the opportunity to hear common corporate issues and to network locally and nationally. Speakers from corporations, large and small, will be in attendance. All IP professionals are invited...in-house, law firm, and consultant professionals. In addition, the Intellectual Property Owner's Association will deliver an enlightening discussion on recent developments that will impact in-house IP professionals. Come to the 2011 Corporate Intellectual Property Institute to exchange your ideas and business cards.

GEORGIA CLE:12 General Hours1 Ethics Hour1 Professionalism Hour
FLORIDA CLE: 15 general 2.5 Ethics; 15 IP Certification Credits

Planning Committee, GSU Corporate IP Institute
Perry Binder, JD - Legal Studies Professor, Robinson College of Business

Chason Carroll, JD - Chair, GSU Corporate IP InstituteDirector of Intellectual Property, CompuCredit Corporation
Scott Frank, JD/MBA - President, AT&T Intellectual Property Corporation
Jeff Kuester, JD - Taylor English

7 Things the Amanda Knox Case Taught Us About Studying Abroad

2011-10-09T17:26:00.004-04:00

Many thanks to Doug Bremner who provided Italian translation below...

Studying abroad is a great opportunity to learn about other cultures and yourself. However, the Amanda Knox case has prompted students to be more mindful of their actions abroad. In 2010, I had the opportunity to teach in Northern Italy and critically compare the Italian and U.S. court systems. As I prepare to teach in Italy next summer, here's a short list of items that students should know before leaving the States to their study abroad country:

1. Keep a translated statement to police in your pocketbook or wallet. Before my students travel, each of them will carry two copies of this statement, translated into Italian: My lawyer has advised me not to talk to anyone about any criminal matter. I do not wish to answer any questions without my lawyer in the room. I have the phone number for my lawyer with me.

Italian: Il mio avvocato mi ha consigliato di non parlare con nessuno qualcosa questione criminale. Non voglio rispondere ad alcuna domandai senza il mio avvocato nella stanza. Ho il numero di telefono per mio avvocato con me.

CONTINUE READING IN THE HUFFINGTON POST BY CLICKING HERE

My Amanda Knox tweets @Perry_Binder

2011-10-04T11:25:00.009-04:00

Here's a summary of facts about the Knox case, along with highlights of some differences in the U.S. and Italian legal systems:

- At trial, Knox and Sollecito were sentenced to 26 years and 25 years respectively. Both got one year for allegedly staging a burglary in the Kercher/Knox apartment (Knox got one year for criminal slander, allegedly pointing to bartender Lumumba as a suspect)

- Guede had a separate "fast track" trial and was sentenced to 30 years (reduced on appeal to 24, and cut to 16 years which I'm told is standard in fast track appeal cases)

- At trial and in the appeal, the head judge and side judge deliberate with the jury.

- At the first trial, the defense request for an independent DNA review was rejected; the request was granted in the appeal.

- In the U.S., an appeal is heard by a panel of three judges which merely reviews the trial record for errors. In Italy, an appeal is a re-trial (again with a head judge and side judge who deliberate with the jury), where new evidence may be presented. In addition, an Italian prosecutor can ask the appeals court to enhance a sentence. Mignini was seeking life imprisonment for Knox and Sollecito.

- On appeal, while Knox and Sollecito were found not guilty of murder, Knox's sentence on criminal slander was enhanced from one year to three years, and she was ordered to pay $29,000 in costs. However, since she was in prison for four years, she was freed for "time served."

- In the United States, there is no crime of "slander," only a civil action to recoup monetary damages.

- The prosecution may appeal yesterday's verdict to Italy's highest court. It is unclear whether Knox could be extradited back to Italy if the sentence is reinstated.

Perry_Binder Perry Binder

#AmandaKnox The judge has 90 days to write the court’s conclusions, and parties then have 45 days to file an appeal. http://t.co/OaAkejuB

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
#AmandaKnox Giuliano Mignini, the prosecutor who led the murder investigation, said Monday that he would appeal to Italy’s Supreme Court.

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
@mchancecnn Tomorrow, I'm meeting some staff at CNN Atlanta, and I'll be raving about your case coverage.

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
RT @mchancecnn Astonishing scenes in stress of #perugia following #AmandaKnox acquittal. Supporters and opponents chanting outside court

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
From @cnn #AmandaKnox Prosecution can appeal case to the highest court. If overturned, #Italy could make an extradition request to the U.S.

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
Wow - appropriate verdict: #AmandaKnox #Sollecito & Time served/ costs for Lumumba defamation count against Knox

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
#NotGuilty #AmandaKnox #Sollecito - Time served and costs for Lumumba defamation count against Knox

BLNadeau Barbie Latza Nadeau
Retweeted by Perry_Binder
Courtroom is packed as journalists file in. Only 100 allowed in and no members of public for #amandaknox verdict.

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
Watching #AmandaKnox courtroom feed @cnn @cnnbrk (no audio yet) http://t.co/TiB4kwyc #Italy #Justice #CNN

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
Been listening/reading - thanks! RT @dougbremner video #amandaknox speech with transcript of my translation on my blog http://t.co/ZCNCuipd

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
@dougbremner Knox verdict at 3:30pm EST (9:30pm in #Italy) RT @mchancecnn court confirm 2130 for #AmandaKnox ruling!!!!!

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
In #Italy, two judges deliberate with a jury. Presiding Judge Claudio Pratillo Hellmann likely will lead the discussion. #AmandaKnox

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
#AmandaKnox jury is made up of the presiding judge, a side judge and six jurors, five of them women, #Verdict will be broadcast live today

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
#AmandaKnox jurors are not allowed to leave the deliberation room until they agree on a verdict.

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
RT @andreavogt #amandaknox: I am paying with my life for things I didn't do #Italy #Justice

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
? RT @ABC2020 You won't believe what investigators found on the kitchen knife, coming up... #AmandaKnox #Italy #Justice

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
RT @mchancecnn #AmandaKnox family may be watching #TroyDavis case with new appreciation of Italian justice system. #Italy #GA #Justice

Perry_Binder Perry Binder
#AmandaKnox a 'diabolical she-devil,' Lumumba's lawyer says http://t.co/BRxEINPK #Italy

93-Year-Old Woman Still Teaching After 72 Years

2011-09-25T05:54:00.003-04:00

If experience counts in the classroom, there's a teacher in Missouri that's hard to beat.

Still inspiring students, she's 93-years-old and has been teaching for 72 years. Marjorie Allen [says...] "With someone else's life, you can make it happy. See their family and be a part of their world."

Continue reading 93-Year-Old Woman Still Teaching After 72 Years

Instilling Professionalism & Humor in an Adversarial System

2011-09-09T10:02:00.004-04:00

I just published this article, based on a presentation for Litigation Paralegals.

Click on image twice to enlarge

Upcoming 9/11 Trial Isn't About Money But Elusive Justice

2011-08-11T16:11:00.004-04:00

Exactly one month before the 10 year anniversary of 9/11, I discuss the upcoming high profile trial in The Huffington Post

Please forward to others, post on Facebook, and even post comments.

The Upcoming 9/11 Trial Isn't About Money But Elusive Justice

"Money is the universal lubricant. It makes it easier to go on with one's life."--Judge Alvin Hellerstein

Ten days after Sept. 11, 2001, Congress passed the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. The law was designed to provide government relief to family members of victims and to those who were injured on the ground. In order to participate in the program, which paid out over $7 billion, claimants waived the right to litigate.

Of the 96 families that chose to litigate, all eventually settled except for one. The wrongful death trial against United Airlines and airport security firm Huntleigh USA begins Nov. 7, 2011, more than 10 years after victim Mark Bavis left Logan Airport in Boston on UAL Flight 175, the second plane to hit the World Trade Center.

Continue Reading:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/perry-binder/9-11-trial_b_923234.html

9-11 UAL Flight 175 Civil Trial Begins in November

2011-07-26T06:22:00.008-04:00

As a native New Yorker, I am personally connected to the events surrounding 9-11, and have commented on the Victim Compensation Fund and ensuing litigation for media outlets including The New York Times, Associated Press, and CBS Radio. My position paper on 9-11 Airline Liability and letters to Judge Hellerstein and the NY Attorney General are available at http://www2.gsu.edu/~rmipzb/9-11.htm.

Of the thousands of claims made by victim families, only one family refused to settle, seeking answers rather than money on how the hijackers made it past security at Logan Airport in Boston, MA on September 11, 2001. The trial of Bavis v. United Airlines (Flight 175) is scheduled to begin on November 7, 2011.

I am working on an article about the upcoming trial, which will appear in The Huffington Post in early September 2011.

Judge May let 9/11 Lawuit Pursue Damages for Suffering on Doomed Flight
The final minutes of the passengers on United Airlines Flight 175, the second plane to strike the World Trade Center, were sheer horror, as reported in calls to the ground. The hijackers used pepper spray and knives. A flight attendant had been stabbed; both pilots had been killed.

Roger Clemens' comments can come back to haunt him

2011-07-06T07:35:00.004-04:00

Below is what I said about Roger Clemens in 2008:

Famed criminal defense lawyer Alan Dershowitz, a law professor at Harvard, believes Clemens has walked into a perjury trap.

"My strong suggestion to Clemens is that he take the Fifth Amendment, and that he not walk into this perjury trap," he said.

But Hardin has said all along his client plans to testify today. That could be risky, says Perry Binder, professor of legal studies at the Robinson College of Business at Georgia State.

"Any time you've got stuff under oath by someone else or yourself, there's always the opportunity to be impeached with what you've already said," Binder said.

Dershowitz believes it's likely Clemens will face criminal prosecution at some point.

Well, here we are today.

Continue reading from 2008 article: It's T-minus one for Rocket

BRIAN McTAGGART, 02/13/2008 Houston Chronicle

Teacher who dropped out inspires at-risk students

2011-07-03T07:12:00.002-04:00

Excellent and inspiring article for students of all ages:

Tears well up in Deborah LaPlante’s eyes as she sits at the back of the Orleans Arena, watching intently as her students file one by one across the stage to receive their high school diplomas.

As with most graduations, it’s a joyful occasion. Parents are smiling, teachers are beaming and students are radiating pride and hope for the future.

LaPlante, a 51-year-old teacher at Chaparral High School, never experienced the triumph of a high school graduation. In 1976, she dropped out of Orange Glen High School in Escondido, Calif., just a few weeks into her junior year. She was 16.

Continue reading: Teacher who dropped out recalls experience to inspire at-risk students
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2011/jun/21/chaparral-teacher-uses-personal-experience-inspire/

Learning Empathy by Looking Beyond Disabilities

2011-06-22T05:45:00.002-04:00

Excellent article in the NY Times for high school teachers:

The unusual lessons are part of a new effort, called the Pearls Project, to promote tolerance and empathy in a school culture where being different can mean social exile. Ridgewood teachers developed it this year in partnership with Positive Exposure, a nonprofit group in New York City founded by Rick Guidotti, a fashion photographer.

Mr. Guidotti, who has photographed supermodels like Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer, began snapping pictures of children with genetic disorders in 1997. A year later, Life magazine published his photo essay on albinism, titled “Redefining Beauty.” His work with these subjects has also been displayed in galleries, medical schools and children’s hospitals, as well as at Harvard University and at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History.

For the Pearls Project, Mr. Guidotti photographed 11 young people, each with a different disability. He also arranged for them to blog about their experiences and answer questions from the Ridgewood students. The subjects are identified only by their first names — Byron, Ashley, Rebecca, et al. — and come from various states.

Continue reading Learning Empathy by Looking Beyond Disabilities

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/22/nyregion/at-nj-school-learning-not-to-look-away-from-the-disabled.html?_r=1&ref=education

The Importance of Education, from Walt Frazier

2011-06-19T06:53:00.006-04:00

Former NY Knicks basketball legend Walt Frazier discusses the importance of education:

"I grew up in very humble beginnings in Atlanta, Georgia. I'm the oldest of nine kids -- seven sisters and one brother, so I often tell people when you grow up in a scenario like that, you either like kids or you hate them. I've had an affinity for kids for a long time. When I came to the Knicks, they were my most ardent supporters. They bought my books, they bought my Clyde sneakers, they attended my camp. So today I feel compelled to give back.

"One of the things I do under my Walt Frazier Youth Foundation is I go into the schools and talk about the importance of education and the abstinence of drugs and alcohol. I go to inner-city schools and I also go to the elite schools. I usually ask the kids, 'How can you improve your relationship with your parents?' Whether it be the inner-city school or the elite school, they say 'communication.' They say, 'My parents don't communicate.' I think you can't motivate people unless you communicate, so you gotta talk to those kids, look in those eyes when they come in, know what they're doing, know their friends, and that's going to be essential for their success.

Continue reading Walt Frazier recognized as a "Fab Father"
http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/knicks/post/_/id/5404/walt-frazier-recognized-as-a-fab-father

Speaking for GAP during Paralegal Week: June 13th CLE Luncheon on Professionalism

2011-06-05T10:19:00.004-04:00

I hope everyone in Metro Atlanta joins me for a FUN (I promise) CLE Luncheon for The Georgia Association of Paralegals (GAP):

Instilling Professionalism and Humor in an Adversarial System
Perry Binder, J.D.
DATE: Monday, June 13, 2011
TIME: 12:30 pm – 2:00 pm (Lunch, then speaker will begin at 1:00 pm)
LOCATION: Nelson Mullins
Atlantic Station Atlantic Station
201 17th Street NW, Suite 1700
Atlanta, GA 30363

COST: Free
SPONSOR: ParaNet
DEADLINE: June 10, 2011
REGISTRATION: Registration online. Open to the first 40 registrants.
http://www.gaparalegal.org/June13_rsvp.shtml

Former civil litigator turned professor, Perry Binder, offers paralegals a mirror to reflect on unacceptable behavior witnessed in the practice of law. Participants get to “learn by example,” with Perry’s original and hilarious lessons. The ultimate goal of the session is for paralegals to envision living a rewarding professional life, through civility, humor, humility, and stress reduction. Perry uses examples dealing with law or other professions to draw behavioral parallels evidenced by legal professionals.
http://perrybinder.com/ParalegalTopics.htm

Bad Luck and Hard Times on the Menu at a Bus Terminal in West Virginia

2011-06-02T16:11:00.006-04:00

This article in The New York Times resonated with me, as someone who writes about West Virginia and who was a Greyhound ticket agent/baggage handler in New York state's so-called rust belt

Bad Luck and Hard Times on the Menu at a Bus Terminal in West Virginia

by Sabrina Tavernise

WEIRTON, W.Va. — The bus terminal in this old mill town used to be for people who were going places. Greyhound would take them to nearby Pittsburgh and Cleveland and other cities where the steel industry was booming. These days it is a diner where no one goes anywhere and regulars sit for hours smoking cigarettes, playing slot machines and talking about sports. it still has the same name, Bus Terminal, and a painted map with a clock for each time zone. But the promise of travel has long faded and the faces here remain the same, a cast of characters who fill the hours with verbal boxing.

CONTINUE READING:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/11/us/11weirton.html

"Illegally Funny" in the Classroom article in NSA Speaker Magazine

2011-05-26T14:49:00.006-04:00

As a proud member of NSA, the National Speakers Association, I wrote this month's "Humor Me" column in Speaker magazine. Enjoy!

Illegally Funny

I never dreamed of being a college professor. Does anybody? When my third-grade teacher asked us about our dream job, Molly said astronaut. Evan: actor. Perry: Obtain a terminal degree and lecture on legal morasses.

Continue reading by clicking .jpg to the left (enlarge article by clicking .jpg again)

Perry

Oprah's Inspiring Fourth-grade Teacher, Mary Duncan

2011-05-19T05:29:00.004-04:00

As Oprah winds down 25 years, she recalls her inspiring moments:

One of the defining moments of my life came in fourth grade—the year I was a student in Mrs. Duncan's class at Wharton Elementary School in Nashville. For the first time, I wasn't afraid to be smart, and she often stayed after school to work with me. I thought I would one day become a fourth-grade teacher.
http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Oprahs-Top-20-Moments/3

Reunion: Oprah's Favorite Teacher was on the Show - Includes Video http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/10-Memorable-Oprah-Show-Reunions/2

Race to Nowhere Movie Review

2011-04-30T06:35:00.005-04:00

This documentary is an interesting response to Waiting for Superman. Excellent movie review in Slate...

By the end of this school year, about half a million people will have watched the documentary Race to Nowhere. This stealth juggernaut can't be seen on TV, in any multiplex, or on DVD. But since the fall of last year, it's been shown almost 2,000 times in school auditoriums and community centers across the country—mostly to parents beset with the fear that they're blowing the raising of their kids. The emotional discussions following the screenings—part catharsis, part call to action, part finger-pointing—are excellent introductions to the contentious debate about what we want from our kids and from the people who educate them.

First-time filmmaker Vicki Abeles, 49, a Northern California lawyer and mother of three, was moved to pick up a camera when her children started suffering from school-related headaches, stomachaches, and panic attacks. What she produced is a wide-ranging polemic against our current education system that is artless, occasionally overwrought, and undeniably powerful. It confirms—and stokes—the unease many parents have about how miserable much of childhood seems today. It also sets up Abeles as the anti-Amy Chua. In Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, Chua's thesis is that if you let up, your kid will become a coddled American slacker. Abeles offers the antithesis. She argues that part of America's greatness is born of our misfits and dreamers, that our gift to our children is time to engage in "aimless" play.

Continue Reading Battle Hymn of the Anti-Tiger Mother
By Emily Yoffe, Updated Friday, April 29, 2011

Inspirational community college students swap ideas

2011-04-24T06:32:00.004-04:00

California is nearly broke, the educational system is struggling and the economy remains wobbly.

But a large group of energetic and idealistic young college students gathered this weekend in San Jose to strengthen the one thing they can count on: one another.

In a competition of inspirational ideas for boosting graduation rates, teams of students from California's community colleges swapped strategies that ranged from peer counseling to a massive textbook exchange. The winners got grants worth up to $7,500 and one year of professional advice from the group Mobilize.org, supported by the Knight Foundation.

Continue Reading: Inspirational community college students swap ideas

Top 10 Spelling Errors in Law Papers

2011-04-17T06:32:00.008-04:00

As students finish another semester with a flurry of papers, here's my list of mistakes that students (and attorneys) make all of the time

1- File a mew (new) motion
2- Going to trail (trial)
3- Singing (Signing) an Agreement
4- The Compliant (Complaint)
5- Tired (Tried) to flee the scene
6- Breech (breach) of contract
7- Statue (statute) of limitations
8- Legal principals (principles)
9- The principle point (principal)

10-Recover principle (principal), court costs, and interest

Honorable Mention…
A faulty (faculty) member – maybe the student got this one right

Painful Mention...

An attorney filed a Motion in court asking the judge for more time due to his upcoming back disk surgery; however, he mistakenly placed an unfortunate "c" where the "s" should be in the word "Disk."

This entry was originally posted in July 2010

Amanda Knox case update

2011-04-03T08:27:00.011-04:00

Here's an article from Italy which gives an update on the case, as provided by Seattle reporter Candace Dempsey:

The ‘collapse’ of the charges at the appeal court.
By Giangavino Sulas

April 2011, Perugia.
The scientific proof, finally entrusted to experts nominated by the appeals court and not just to the police, is deteriorating and opens up disturbing questions about the procedures used. The witnesses, who when they were not drug addicts (like Hekuran Kokomani and Antonio Curatolo), have problems of deafness, of physical as well as mental health serious enough to be hospitalized in the psychiatric department. (That is the case with Nara Capezzali).

This is the Perugia appeals court for the murder of the British student Meredith Kercher. Before the bar are two suspects and on the bench a good three prosecutors (a public prosecutor and two deputy prosecutors). A number worthy of a Cosa Nostra super trial. Evidently there are a few problems. And the problems unfailingly emerge.

If Meredith’s bra clasp, on which the prosecutor maintains is revealed the DNA of Raffaele Sollecito, is now rusted and no longer capable of being analyzed by the experts entrusted by the appeals court, and if the only witness who claims to have seen Amanda and Raffaele together the night of the crime has changed versions, advancing a “vision” of the previous night, what remains against Raffaele Sollecito, the young man from Puglia?

And what remains against Amanda if, always according to the experts, the amount of biological material found on on the knife, the presumed crime weapon, is a level too low to be able to reveal the genetic code? Recall that this is the biological material from which the forensic analyst extracted the DNA of Meredith (on the tip of the blade) and of Amanda (on the handle.)

On the blade there is no trace of bleach
The experts added as well another particular: there was no trace of bleach on that knife. Then it had never been washed to clean the traces as maintained by the forensic police. The only proofs against the two young people have been cleaned away, but Amanda and Raffaele remain in prison after three and a half years. The young man of Puglia has celebrated his fourth consecutive birthday in a cell.

March 26, 2001 was the day for Antonio Curatolo, the homeless man who, since he decided to follow the way of Christ (he defines himself as a Christian anarchist but admitted to make regular use of heroin and other drugs) spends his days and his nights on a Piazza Grimana bench, in front of the University for Foreigners. He appeared before the court because the lawyer Luca Maori, Sollecito’s defense lawyer, discovered a few too many holes in the testimony given by the homeless man to prosecutor Giuliano Mignini, six months after the crime.

Curatolo–who in the last few years in Perugia helped police resolve two heinous crimes thanks to his timely presence on the spot where they occurred–went to court to reveal that on the night of November 1st, 2007 he had noted, from 9:30 p.m until 11:30 p.m., Amanda and Raffaele in Piazza Grimana speaking animatedly. And he tied his memory to the presence of the shuttle buses that at that hour carry young people to the various discos outside of Perugia.

Testimony that destroyed the alibis of the two young people, who’ve always said that they spent the night of Nov. 1 watching a movie together. But there was something wrong with seeing buses on that night. In fact, the owners of the various discos, from Giorgio Brughini, father of Marco Materazzi, to the director of “siae di Perugia,” came to court to say that on the night of November 1, the night after Halloween, all their businesses were closed and the buses stayed in the garage. A solid blow to the prosecution, which quickly removed the tramp. And Curatolo had come into court accompanied by a prison guard.

The homeless man and the experts

He’s serving a sentence of one year and a half in prison for selling cocaine. And in November he can expect another trial for drug dealing.

Before the appeals court judges overturned his deposition: “It was Oct. 31 when I saw Amanda and Raffaele. I remember all the kids were in costume.” Clear reference to the night of Halloween. End of testimony. Curatolo has gone back to prison.

He’s not going to solve the third murder in Perugia. Carla Vecchiotti and Stefano Conti, professors at Sapienza University in Rome, are the experts chosen by appeals court judge Claudio Pratillo Hellman when he decided to reopen the investigation and to appoint non-partisan experts because of too many obscurities in the courtroom.

In the first trial, independent experts had inexplicably been rejected.

The two experts should determine whether forensic science can verify what the police verified and whether the (police) forensic expert, when looking at the hook and the knife, applied the cautious protocols established for this analysis and if they can identify contamination.

For the knife, they seem already to have reached a conclusion. After taking samples from different points of the blade, they found an insufficient quantity of biological material. Insufficient to obtain genetic profiles for testing. Then how could they get the DNA of Amanda and Meredith?

The prosecutor Giuliano Mignini is quick to point out: “We knew that very little material was available and that the lab test done by the police was unique because it used up all there was.”

Then why did the court order new tests? In reality, the two experts rejected the work of the police, saying “on that knife there was never enough to get biological material to get DNA profiles.”

This is the truth that emerges from the sensational and shocking new report.

The bra clasp: The only bit of evidence said to link Raffaele Sollecito to the crime is too rusty to test.

Chain of errors.
And the discovery made on the second finding is even more astonishing. When the experts received the bra clasp of Meredith, they found it covered with rust. “Could not be tested,” they ruled.

But where and how it was this important piece of evidence preserved? How is it possible that nobody thought to keep it sealed in a vacuum bag? The history of this clasp after Raffaele Sollecito’s three and a half years in prison really is unique. On the afternoon of November 2, 2007, it was found under the body of Meredith by medical examiner Luca

All of a sudden, someone remembered the hook. They rushed to recover in a house that had, in the meantime, undergone two searches. They found it and, surprise, there was the DNA of Raffaele.

Now there’s just rust.

http://blog.seattlepi.com/dempsey/2011/04/03/new-revelations-no-evidence-against-amanda-knox-and-raffaele-sollecito/

Instilling Professionalism and Humor in an Adversarial System

2011-04-01T07:41:00.004-04:00

Yesterday, I was the general session speaker for a Litigation Paralegal Conference. I asked participants for one word answers on the positive aspects and negative aspects of the legal profession. A sampling:

Positive aspects of the legal profession
Justice (4 people), help others (2), Electronic discovery (2), equitable, resolve issues, equal, service, interesting, fairness, nothing is the same every day

Negative aspects of the legal profession
Injustice (3 people), chaotic, time, rules, slow, frustrating, too serious, disparity, time sheets, difficult, adversarial, lack of communication, unethical

....................................
Spring Break
On a different note, this is spring break for many public school children. I found a good Op-Ed for us all to read as we think of and thank our teachers who get a well deserved rest:

What I Learned at School

THE tumult over state budgets and collective bargaining rights for public employees has spilled over into resentment toward public school teachers, who are increasingly derided as “glorified baby sitters” whose pay exceeds the value of the work they do.

But how exactly do we measure the value of a teacher?

Continue reading:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/31/opinion/31lee.html?_r=1&ref=education

Wal-Mart Gender Discrimination case - My Comments in 2003

2011-03-28T07:52:00.007-04:00

As you may know, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear this case.

At issue is whether the justices should allow certification of the largest class-action employment lawsuit in U.S. history, a long-standing dispute against mega-corporation Wal-Mart Stores Inc. over alleged gender bias in pay and promotions. Arguments in the case are Tuesday morning and ruling can be expected by late June.
http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/03/28/scotus.wal.mart/

My Comments to various media outlets in 2003 and 2004:

USA Today:
"The potential damages are huge," says Perry Binder, a legal studies professor at Georgia State University in Atlanta. "Other businesses will watch this very closely."
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/retail/2003-09-24-walmart_x.htm

The Associated Press:

Perry Binder, an assistant professor of legal studies at the Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University in Atlanta, said the judge's ruling will be critical for both sides.

"Any time a class gets certified, there is power in unity. Any time a class-action suit is not certified, then you have to have individual plaintiffs filing individual lawsuits," Binder said.

"This is the biggest leverage point -- which party's got the leverage is the biggest (aspect) of a lawsuit," he said.

The plaintiffs describe several examples of discrimination, including a required meeting for female managers that was held at a strip club. Another meeting allegedly occurred at a Hooters restaurant, which is known for scantily clad female servers.

"The key is whether there is a systematic, across-the-company level of gender discrimination," Binder said. "What the plaintiffs have to prove is that this truly is a (men's) club."...

Binder said the plaintiffs have to come up with "smoking gun documents."

"The key for the plaintiffs is to find documents that link Wal-Mart to nationwide discrimination," Binder said, making it clear he doesn't know whether such documents exist.

Binder said the plaintiffs have to subpoena electronic archives of internal e-mails, computer files, instant messages and the like.

"This is going to be a very costly proposition. This is what litigation is in the 21st century -- searching computer banks for so-called deleted e-mails," Binder said.

http://tinyurl.com/45etgk4

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Published on: 06/23/04
"Prior to [Tuesday's] rulings, Wal-Mart had zero incentive to settle this case," said Perry Binder, legal studies professor at Georgia State University's Robinson College of Business. "However, now the plaintiffs can fight on a unified front and have leverage to force the issue."...

Already the case has generated more than 200 depositions and a million pages of documents. One expert estimated if the case went to trial, damages could soar into the billions of dollars.

"If there was a settlement, it likely could dwarf the settlement in the Home Depot case," Binder said of the 1997 sex discrimination suit in which the Atlanta-based home improvement chain paid $104 million, without admitting wrongdoing, to 25,000 female employees.

AJC News Archives: http://tinyurl.com/4ztzq3q

Professionalism & Humor for Paralegal Professionals

2011-03-25T14:04:00.007-04:00

I'm the general session speaker for a Paralegal Conference on March 31 in Atlanta. My session is:
Instilling Professionalism and Humor in an Adversarial System

Below are some quotes I use in this presentation:

Quotes to get you through your hectic day

- Effective communication with your attorney
I really didn’t say everything I said. Yogi Berra

- Dealing with mistakes
So go ahead, fall down. The world looks different from the ground. Oprah Winfrey

- Handling ethical issues
Those are my principles, and if you don’t like them…well, I have others. Groucho Marx

- Getting work done with little fuss - qualities of the well-rounded and grounded employee
If I only had a little humility, I’d be perfect. Ted Turner

- Going to the next level, and what that means to YOU
It isn’t where you came from, it’s where you’re going that counts. Ella Fitzgerald
If you don’t know where you’re going, when you get there you’ll be lost. Yogi Berra

- Being proactive - taking responsibility/ownership for tasks
Life’s under no obligation to give us what we expect. Margaret Mitchell
When you come to the fork in the road, take it. Yogi Berra

- Knowing when to ask questions, and who to ask
Every great mistake has a halfway moment, a split second when it can be recalled and perhaps remedied. Pearl Buck

- Managing deadlines
Due to a lack of interest, tomorrow has been cancelled. Anonymous

- Dealing with conflict and adapting to change in a professional manner
The need for change bulldozed a road down the center of my mind. Maya Angelo
Change is good. You go first. Dilbert

- Teamwork
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever does. Margaret Mead
Remember, nobody wins unless everybody wins. Bruce Springsteen

Former civil litigator turned professor, Perry Binder, offers paralegals a mirror to reflect on unacceptable behavior witnessed in the practice of law. Participants get to “learn by example,” with Perry’s original and hilarious lessons. The ultimate goal of the session is for paralegals to envision living a rewarding professional life, through civility, humor, humility, and stress reduction. Perry uses examples dealing with law or other professions to draw behavioral parallels evidenced by legal professionals.

McDonald's Spilled Coffee Case Revisited

2011-03-19T05:52:00.010-04:00

Yesterday I attended a Georgia lawyers conference (I'm a Florida Bar member) on million dollar verdicts in personal injury cases. In one of the cases, a women got a $1.25 million verdict for getting burned from her wrist to her knuckles by a cappuccino machine at a convenience store. The jury awarded $700,000 for her pain and suffering, and $525,000 for future medical expenses (the case was settled thereafter for a confidential amount)

At first blush, these verdicts sound laughable to the general public. On closer examination though, the media accounts usually leave out the important facts. The plaintiffs showed negligence on the part of the store. (that an employee cleaned the machine but failed to replace an internal part which led to the scalding) In addition, the woman's second degree burns caused nerve damage and excruciating pain which required heavy narcotic medication and necessitated the implantation of electronic stimulators on her spine - all of this a full year after the incident.

That case got me thinking again about the famous McDonalds coffee spill case from 20 years ago. Do you remember the media version or do you know all of the facts? This article helps give the other side of the story:

The Actual Facts about the McDonalds' Coffee Case
http://www.lectlaw.com/files/cur78.htm

Related to the McDonalds case, here's a portion of my upcoming presentation to Insurance professionals from ten countries, entitled:

OVERVIEW OF THE UNITED STATES CIVIL COURT SYSTEM & PRODUCTS LIABILITY LAWS

Questions to think about before our session:

A lawsuit can last anywhere from two to ten years in the United States. (I worked on two cases lasting thirteen years!) How does this compare with court cases in your country?

In some civil cases, a U.S. plaintiff may request punitive damages, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of a spouse’s love and affection. How do these types of damages compare with remedies in your country?

Is the U.S. legal system “out of control,” as many in the insurance defense industry suggest, or does the media only highlight and portray the most outrageous cases in its news reporting?

Today’s “Takeaways”:

- The U.S. legal system is at times inefficient, with lengthy appeals and little control over the Discovery process at the trial level

- Arbitration is a viable alternative to litigation but it is very difficult to appeal an adverse ruling

- What defendants fear the most in the U.S. legal system:

o Punitive damages, pain and suffering awards, juries

- What plaintiffs fear the most in the U.S. legal system:

o Delayed justice, attorney fees, and court costs

- The media shapes public perception of the U.S. and international legal systems

o The McDonald’s coffee spill case and the BP Oil case

o The Amanda Knox case

§ The U.S. and Italy’s court systems and media

I. Beginning the litigation process – you need “standing to sue”

Sample “Causes of Action” – Products Liability Case

A. Negligence - -was the defendant careless?

1. Liability

-Duty of defendant to plaintiff

-Breach of duty (failure to act “reasonably”)

-Proximate Cause

2. Damages

- when can a plaintiff seek Punitive Damages?

Other causes of action

B. Gross Negligence

C. Fraud

D. Emotional distress

F. Loss of consortium

G. Strict Liability - -The manufacturer of a product may be liable to a customer even if it is not "at fault" - in other words, even if the manufacturer acted "reasonably"

H. Breach of Warranties

II. Legal Theories to Sue the manufacturer of a product

Failure to warn customers of dangers
The particular product the customer bought was defective
The overall design of the product is defective

Which theory or theories did the plaintiff use in the McDonald’s spilled coffee case?

III. Types of Damages

-economic

-non-economic (pain and suffering)

-loss of consortium

-punitive

Pay Teachers More

2011-03-13T07:46:00.006-04:00

Good Op-Ed piece in The NY Times...

A basic educational challenge is not that teachers are raking it in, but that they are underpaid. If we want to compete with other countries, and chip away at poverty across America, then we need to pay teachers more so as to attract better people into the profession.

Until a few decades ago, employment discrimination perversely strengthened our teaching force. Brilliant women became elementary school teachers, because better jobs weren’t open to them. It was profoundly unfair, but the discrimination did benefit America’s children.

These days, brilliant women become surgeons and investment bankers.

Continue reading Pay Teachers More
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/13/opinion/13kristof.html?src=ISMR_HP_LO_MST_FB

Now read: 5th Grader Donates Life Savings To Save Teacher Jobs

Alarmed to hear that state budget cuts were forcing teacher layoffs in her area, Arcadia, Calif. 5th grader Jocelyn Lam decided to donate her life's savings to help her school retain teachers.

Patch reports Lam handed over her entire $300 savings to Camino Grove Elementary School teacher Todd Weber. She also included a note expressing her support for her teachers and imploring district officials to use her donation to save jobs.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/12/jocelyn-lam-arcadia-5th-g_n_834800.html

For-Profit Colleges -- Still Partying Like It's 1999

2011-03-07T18:38:00.007-05:00

Just posted on The Huffington Post College section:

For-Profit Colleges - Still Partying like it's 1999

I was dreamin' when I wrote this so sue me if I go 2 fast. Prince, 1999

So where are we in the great debate on whether to regulate for-profit colleges?

From an owner of a for-profit college: I'm a businessman out to make a profit. Truly, I don't care about the well-being of the students.

CONTINUE READING AT THE HUFFINGTON POST:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/perry-binder/forprofit-colleges-still-_b_831771.html

Data from Senator Harkin's Oversight Investigation of Federal Dollars Going to For-Profit Schools
http://harkin.senate.gov/forprofitcolleges.cfm

fyi - University of Phoenix is a subsidiary of The Apollo Group Inc., listed above
http://www.apollogrp.edu/About.aspx

Story Update 8/24/11

Party Ends at For-Profit Schools - Wall Street Journal

For-profit colleges are facing a tough test: getting new students to enroll. New-student enrollments have plunged—in some cases by more than 45%—in recent months, reflecting two factors: Companies have pulled back on aggressive recruiting practices amid criticism over their high student-loan default rates. And many would-be students are questioning the potential pay-off for degrees that can cost considerably more than what's available at local community colleges.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904279004576524660236401644.html?mod=WSJ_hps_editorsPicks_1

Story Update 8/16/11

Last Monday, the Department of Justice filed a complaint against Education Management Corp. (EDMC), marking the first time the federal government has gotten involved in one of many cases against such for-profit colleges.

The move represents an escalation in a battle against for-profit colleges, which have been targeted because they are funded largely by students with federal loans, who are far more likely to default than students at non-profit colleges and universities.

The complaint against EDMC, which operates schools in 105 locations under the names such as Art Institute, Argosy University, Brown Mackie College and South University, alleges the company paid its recruiters based on how many students they enrolled.

"EDMC has created a 'boiler room' style sales culture and has made recruiting and enrolling new students the sole focus of its compensation system," the government says in its 122-page complaint.

Continue reading:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44093876/ns/business-school_inc_/t/us-opens-new-front-fight-for-profit-colleges

Classroom Doc Cam wins smackdown over PowerPoint

2011-03-06T06:19:00.005-05:00

The best classroom technology for education ever invented is the “document camera,” also known as the doc cam. Better than an overhead projector, you can place any piece of paper on this machine and it appears on the screen for students – funny cartoons, pictures, headlines – this machine is invaluable.

Each of my class sessions has a list of terms that I give to students in a packet. Knowing that many students forget to bring the term sheets, I project that list on the screen throughout the class session, so students can follow along. Students know the exact order we’ll discuss topics because of the sequence of the terms. In addition, the conscientious students know how to prepare for class since I have them look up the terms prior to class.

By the way, I hate PowerPoint. If the lights are out, you’ve lost. If you have too much text, people are trying to read and listen to you. I guess if you just use bullets and a couple of words per frame, it’s as effective as my term sheets. However, with my method, a student receives five to eight pages of terms per Exam Unit, on which they can take notes. To me, even if you load PowerPoint onto Vista for students to download and print, that’s going to be too voluminous for students, not to mention the waste of paper.

A College Semester is like a Hollywood Screenplay

2011-03-03T05:12:00.015-05:00

In a way, the structure of a college course is analogous to a Hollywood screenplay. The movie making process is a collaborative one among the director, actors, producers, and editors. However, the process is begun in a vacuum, when writer puts pen to paper. A compelling screenplay focuses on the:
- most important and chaotic moment in the protagonist’s life
- character flaws of the protagonist
- protagonist’s dramatic need to achieve some goal or perform some task
- unbearable barriers or insurmountable obstacles placed in front of our hero
- resolution of the character’s conflict and achievement
- character’s growth as s/he learns from this trying experience

I’m the first to agree that it’s a stretch to say that a college class is the most important and chaotic moment of anyone’s life. But the structure of a class has interesting parallels to the formula for writing a good commercial screenplay.

Similarity between a Screenplay and a College Course
1. Structure. A commercial screenplay has a very defined beginning, middle, and end. Screenwriters usually aim to write a 120 page script (one page of dialogue is equivalent to one minute of screen time, or a two hour movie). Likewise, a college course has a fixed number of weeks each semester.

2. Scenes. Unlike a novel, which has the luxury of providing the reader with rich detailed narrative and exposition, the screenplay’s action must be constant. For example, Thomas Harris’s terrific novel, Silence of the Lambs is 350 pages in length. In contrast, Ted Tally’s
adaptation of the novel to a screenplay needed to cut out many scenes and most of the novel’s detailed description, in order to write a condensed manageable product suitable for the screen. Thus, every scene of a screenplay must have some purpose which drives the story forward, as our hero is forced to confront challenges. Similarly, each class session better have a purpose, providing key information which builds on prior concepts, thus preparing students for a test.

Plot Points.
A screenplay has well defined and well placed plot points. A plot point is a dramatic event in the script which sends the protagonist in a new direction. Similarly, a college course has such plot points, which is set out below.

Syd Field, an acclaimed screenwriting teacher, discusses in his book, Screenplay, where a screenwriter’s plot points should be built into a script. In his book entitled Four Screenplays, Mr. Field analyzes the structure of a handful of screenplays, including Silence of the Lambs.
Below is a simplified version of his screenplay structure model and the placement of plot points. I then use this model to make my analogy of how a college course resembles the structure of a screenplay.

In the movie, Silence of the Lambs, Clarice (Jody Foster), a freshly minted FBI agent is sent off for an assignment which might be way above her head: to speak with the dangerously brilliant psychologist, Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) from his prison cell, seeking clues about a new serial killer, Buffalo Bill. Dr. Lecter, an expert at mind games, is in prison for killing one of his own patients.

Field’s Model & Silence of the Lambs

Act I - The Set Up leading up to Plot Point 1, an event at the end of the act which spins the story in a new direction with conflict
Act II - The Confrontation and The Mid-Point
Act III - Plot Point 2 begins just before the last act, leading to The Resolution
(from Four Screenplays, Introduction xviii)

Plot Point 1: Clarice is trying to find information about Buffalo Bill, a serial killer who likes to cut the skin off the victims’ bodies. Dr. Hannibal Lecter, an expert at profiling such killers, gives her a cryptic false lead, which she tracks down to a storage facility. Instead of finding a clue to where Buffalo Bill is, Clarice instead finds the severed head of one of Lecter’s former patients. She “passes” Lecter’s first test. “School’s out Clarice.”

Mid-Point: Lecter is transferred to a less secure holding facility in Memphis, thus facilitating his escape.

Plot Point 2: Clarice figures out who the serial killer is from one of Dr. Lecter’s clues: “We covet what we see every day.” Discovering that Buffalo Bill must have known the first victim, Clarice sets out to the home of that victim, which then leads her to Buffalo Bill’s home.

Resolution: Clarice finds and confronts Buffalo Bill. Clarice has learned about her character and conviction, and passed her test of courage.
(from Four Screenplays, 155-236)

The Structure of a College Course

Plot Point 1: Exam 1. Up until this point, the students and professor go through a feeling out process. Exam 1 is the student’s first test, the same as Clarice’s first test in the movie. The results of Exam 1 send students in a new direction, and signal that there will be many challenges ahead in the long semester.

Mid-Point: Term Paper or Extra Credit Paper. This is the Mid-Point of my college course. Students may be struggling with confidence after Exam 1. The paper is a test of their attention to detail. If students follow instructions and proofread thoroughly, they can succeed on the project. However, students will face far greater obstacles after this point.

Plot Point 2: Exam 2. This test is worth more towards the final course grade than the other tests, and covers more material than Exam 1. Once students receive this grade, they can determine what grade to shoot for on Exam 3 to achieve their desired course grade. They now have a course of action to resolve the conflict: achieve a good course grade. (and maybe never see that professor again?)

Resolution: Course grade received. Hopefully, students have learned something about the course material and themselves after Exam 3, in this months-long struggle.

And hopefully the structure offered in this article gave you something new to consider when writing a course syllabus. (or inspired you to get an agent)

Four Screenplays by Syd Field on Amazon
Additional Resource: Essentials of Screenwriting by Richard Walter

Reality of a Law Career Presentation

2011-02-26T10:58:00.017-05:00

Here's my recent presentation for the GSU Pre-Law Club, and some of the relevant questions to ask yourself before applying to law school...

Reality of a Law Career

- Why law school? My story - Punching my ticket, assessing, and reassessing the life of a litigator

- Does every attorney go to court? (various fields of law)

- How is law school different from the practice of law? Is being a "creative hustler of greater importance than grades and experience?" Interesting quotes from this article:

"Part of the problem is that students enroll in law school without really knowing what they will do," says White. She describes law school as "the great generalists graduate school" because the typical undergraduate has no real sense of what law is. "It is more common for undergraduates to have a popular culture sense about what the law is," she adds.

A dean who wanted enrollees to have an opportunity to reflect on whether to attend law school, "sent accepted applicants who had already paid their full non-refundable deposit a unique letter that generated national attention. In it, she asked, them to reconsider their choice of attending law school. The dean offered them the option to defer their admission for one year to further reflect on their chosen path. Of the 32 students who accepted her offer, only eight enrolled this year.

- Isn’t law school a very flexible degree? (It was for me)

- Does your graduate school decision require a cost benefit analysis? Is Law School a Winning Game or a Losing Game?

- Take Away Lesson #1 – If at all possible, the most important thing for you to do before applying to law school is to get a college internship - to see exactly what lawyers do.

- Take Away Lesson #2 – Start networking now -- In person opportunities (like the GSU Pre-Law Club which brought in an Immigration attorney to speak this week) and Social Media – which social media tool is the one you should focus on to reach attorneys? (LinkedIn)

Follow the Amanda Knox case on my Social Media Law site

2011-02-19T09:45:00.004-05:00

Last summer, I taught a Social Media Law course in Northern Italy. In that class, we followed the Amanda Knox case from an open minded international perspective, and how social media tools shaped public opinion, both in the U.S. and abroad.

As you may know, the case is in the appeals stage, which is much different from a U.S. appeal. I will be posting updated articles on the case here:
http://www.perrybinder.com/socialmedialaw.htm

Italy's Court System - The Amanda Knox case started in the Court of Assize (2 Judges and 6 jurors). The presiding Judge must be a member of a Court of Appeals; beside him/her sits a lay judge. Decisions are made by the giudici togati (Judges) and giudici popolari (Jurors) together at a special meeting behind closed doors, named Camera di Consiglio, and the Corte d'Assise is required to publish written explanations of its decisions. The lay Judges are paid for every day of actual exercise of their duty; and, in these instances, are considered public officials. They continue in office for two years. Lay Judges wear a sash in the national colours and are not technically jurors, as the term is understood in Anglo-Saxon jurisprudence. In Italian, Giudice (Judge) refers both to the eight of them together as a collective body and to each of them considered separately as a member of that body. Since lay Judges are not jurors, they cannot be excused, unless there are grounds that would justify an objection to a Judge. Also, they are not sequestered.

Amanda Knox appealed her conviction to the Appeals Court of Assize (2 new judges and 6 new jurors) – Same composition of judges and lay judges as the Corte d'Assise, but the Giudici Togati are senior to the judges of the first court. The Corte d'Assise d'Appello must also publish written explanations of its decisions. This appeal includes a complete review of the evidence – in effect a retrial.

The Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE)

2011-02-12T08:16:00.002-05:00

Just joined a great group: The Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE)

From PAGE:

PAGE believes in "walking the walk" and not just "talking the talk." Click on the hyperlinked words and phrases below to see examples of how everything that PAGE does is focused on our core business.

I. Core Business:

Our core business is to provide professional learning for educators that will enhance professional competence and confidence, build leadership qualities and lead to higher academic achievement for students.

II. PAGE Believes:

In providing a continuum of high quality, relevant professional learning for pre-service, novice and career educators.
Educators participating in our professional learning activities will lead their schools and school communities in systemic change through reflective and strategic thinking.
Educators are leaders to be valued and honored.
The quality of our professional learning activities makes Georgia a better place for teachers to teach and students to learn.
All professional learning activities must have a comprehensive evaluation process for continuous improvement.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON PAGE, VISIT: http://www.pageinc.org/

Your professor's inner thoughts (sounds creepy, but it's not my title!)

2011-02-09T07:23:00.012-05:00

This article was reprinted in my college alma mater's newspaper ...

Op-Ed Feb. 4, 2011

Click here for The Huffington Post version

or Click image below for college newspaper version

Teach for America rises to the challenge to ‘Make History’

2011-02-06T06:08:00.003-05:00

I am a huge fan of the Teach for America mission, and have a former student who just made the final round of interviews for a slot to teach. Here's a great article written by the TFA founder:

In low-income communities across the country, transformational teachers and leaders — and their hard-working students — are proving that America’s greatest injustice is a solvable problem. In “A Chance to Make History,” Teach for America founder Wendy Kopp explores what’s driving these inspiring success stories. Here’s an excerpt.

Continue reading
Teach for America rises to the challenge to ‘Make History’
By Wendy Kopp
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/41376767/ns/today-books/

Is College an Industrial Degree Factory?

2011-01-31T12:37:00.003-05:00

I found this Op-Ed in my alma mater's student newspaper (Pipe Dream, Binghamton University)

Two quotes caught my attention - perceived cynicism mixed with personal optimism:

Sadly, the fact that college is hardly about learning or getting an education is old news. Rather, it is widely accepted that college serves the primary purpose of qualifying students for professional positions.

College is, or at least should be, about personal development. As cliché as it sounds, it is important to remember that, more often than not, real growth takes place outside of the classroom.

So you tell me - what is/was college really all about for you?

Read Binghamton University: An industrial degree factory
By Michael Snow
http://www2.bupipedream.com/op-ed/binghamton-university-an-industrial-degree-factory-1.1922536

8 Things Your Prof Cares (or Doesn't Care) About in Class

2011-01-27T05:59:00.006-05:00

With the recent huff over college students not learning a darn thing (45% Of Students Don't Learn Much In College), I figured it was time to offer what goes on in the mind of a college professor. This is what I care about and don't care about in class:

1. DON'T CARE if your cell phone goes off, as long as I get to answer it. These days, I'm having trouble distinguishing incoming calls from texts. Droid!

2. DO CARE when you distract other students. This coming from someone who as a college freshman once launched a mini toy helicopter which circled the classroom and soft crashed on his professor's head. I was surprised and relieved that the professor didn't get all Cornell prof on me.

3. DON'T CARE if you text or surf the web in class (except during exams). Show me that you are a multi-tasker, especially if I have nothing relevant or funny to offer.

4. DO CARE that you view writing as a craft (not as a "spell check" exercise). True story: In a legal document, an attorney asked the judge for a delay in his case because he was undergoing a delicate medical procedure on his back: Disk surgery. However, he mistakenly typed a different four letter word that looked like DISK, inserting an unfortunate "C" rather than the needed "S." Spell check won't catch that!

CONTINUE READING IN THE HUFFINGTON POST

8 Things Your Prof Cares (or Doesn't Care) About in Class

Lessons of Justice and Empathy - On Coal River

2011-01-17T09:03:00.008-05:00

This weekend, I previewed On Coal River (tells the story of Marsh Fork Elementary and its fight for a new school), awesome documentary! I purchased a license for the film and will be showing it in my Introduction to Law class in a few weeks, as we discuss lessons of justice and empathy. On Coal River is receiving numerous awards, including the Gotham Award for the “Best Film Not Playing (yet?) at a Theater Near You.”

Variety Review: West Virginians "best a corporate Goliath… Keenly observed… Respectful, thorough, and relevant.”

For new Crazy Classroom blog readers, I have followed the plight of Marsh Fork for years. Here is my most recent post on the subject, re-published in The Huffington Post:

Lessons of Justice for College Students: Grandpa versus Big Coal

by Perry Binder

This is not an environmental issue. This is about a little human being. -- Ed Wiley (Grandpa) speaking to then West Virginia Governor Manchin (now U.S. Senator)

While the media insults and labels the youth of every generation like an X or Y or Z (oh you Slackers, Echoes, and Netters), I instead see college students bringing energy and a common message of hope to the table: to make a difference in their lives and those of others. And in an Introduction to Law class, it is my job to find them real world cases to teach lessons of justice and injustice. So let's meet Ed Wiley and the kids at Marsh Fork Elementary School.

Continue reading at Crazy Classroom and The Huffington Post:
http://yourrubberroom.blogspot.com/2010/10/lessons-of-justice-for-college-students.html

Teacher Training, Taught by Students

2011-01-15T07:04:00.004-05:00

Interesting teacher training program in low performing NJ schools ...

Syidah O’Bryant scribbled notes in a composition book, trying to keep up with a lesson about why teenagers are so sleepy in the morning.

Usually Ms. O’Bryant, an eighth-grade social studies teacher, is the one talking. But on Tuesday, it was her student, Kare Spencer, 14.

“She’s the boss of me; she’s teaching me,” Ms. O’Bryant said.

In a role reversal, Ms. O’Bryant and other teachers at Brick Avon Academy are getting pointers from their students this year as part of an unusual teacher training program at 19 low-performing Newark schools.

The lesson learned by Ms. O’Bryant? “It makes you think about really hearing the kids,” she said. “You can learn from them. They have their own language.”

Continue Reading Teacher Training, Taught by Students

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/15/nyregion/15metjournal.html?hpw

Learning to Manage College Finances and Debt

2011-01-09T07:52:00.010-05:00

A topic we don't discuss enough - managing debt in college and down the road. Here's a good article on why college students should take a personal finance course:
In College, Learning About Money
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/08/your-money/08money.html?_r=1

Every college student should consider enrolling in such a class. For example, here are Personal Finance courses offered by my department at Georgia State University:
http://www.rmi.gsu.edu/certificates/undergrad_pfp.shtml

As a side note, I am proud of my alma mata, Binghamton University - selected again by Kiplingers as "ranked among the nation’s top 10, according to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance on the magazine’s new list of 100 Best Values in Public Colleges."
http://www.binghamton.edu/inside/index.php/inside/story/binghamton-ranked-in-top-10-by-kiplingers-personal-finance

Adaptive PE teacher inspires athlete

2011-01-05T06:49:00.005-05:00

Everywhere Debi Anderson goes, she inspires and amazes. Her most recent show of talent and confidence was on "Skating with the Stars" on ABC. While doing a promo for Special Olympics, she was offered the opportunity to skate with one of the semi-finalists, John Moseley, in a show that aired a couple weeks ago.

She also recently competed in the Special Olympics Fall Games and won a gold medal in bowling. While there, Bill Shumard, CEO president of Special Olympics in Southern California, asked her if she would serve on the board of directors as an athlete representative. ... Soon, she started working at George Key School as an aide, and she got more involved with softball. She went to her first summer games in 2004, where she did track and field. She came away with three gold medals and a bronze. Through the encouragement and direction of George Key's Adaptive PE teacher Windy McGinnis, Anderson got into rhythmic gymnastics, using balls, hoops and ropes.

Continue reading: ON CAMPUS: District grad inspiring others
CORINNE GRIFFITHS

Motivated in the Classroom, Year after Year

2010-12-18T05:48:00.006-05:00

As I reflect on this past semester, I'm already preparing for 2011 classes. As I do so, I'm proud to say that a former student just applied to the Teach for America program. For the teachers and professors in this profession for the short term or the long haul, here's my take on staying fresh in the classroom:

There is a symmetry to every college semester, with a set number of weeks and exams at fixed intervals. Just like a Hollywood screenplay has three acts, I love the predictability that the semester structure brings. After teaching for a while, I became adept at seeing common class trends and defining plot points along an arc - when to expect enthusiastic student participation, when students might be stressed or losing confidence, when to pull back on the material or forge full speed ahead. While the structure is predictable, every semester has an energy and a life of its own.

Someone once asked me how I can teach the same subjects year after year without getting bored. My answer back: “Do you think that a recording artist gets bored singing the same song for the past thirty years?” It may be the same song, but there’s a different interpretation and a fluid audience each time. A performer can kill one night, and then fall flat the next evening if the crowd’s chemistry isn’t there. The song remains the same, but those sitting in on the sessions may not always be on the same page. Yes, the course material is similar from year to year, but meeting different students each time is the secret part of the equation which keeps things lively, unpredictable, and exciting.

A teacher’s job is to keep things fresh and provocative, regardless of mood, subject, or student engagement. The show must always go on. The good news is that there’s ample opportunity to shift gears from week to week to capture attention and to captivate. ...

Naturally, my curious students ask me why I don’t practice law anymore. The best answer I can come up with is an analogy from the movie, Good Will Hunting, when psychologist Robin Williams is discussing personal relationships with patient, Matt Damon. Damon just had a perfect first date with Minnie Driver, and he tells Williams that he’s never going to call her again. To which a surprised Williams inquires why. Damon explains that the date was so perfect, that he didn’t want to ruin that memory or image, and risk an imperfect second date. The psychologist smiles and reminds his young patient that he’s not so perfect himself, and neither is his recent date. The trick he says is to take a risk and discover whether you’re perfect for each other.

Being a teacher is not a perfect profession, and I know I’m an imperfect teacher. But we’re perfect for each other. I’ve learned, changed, grown, and gotten back more than I bargained for in many courtrooms and classrooms.

Today, I am refreshed and ready, but already messed up on the first day of the current term in front of 120 students. While I remembered to bring the syllabus, I forgot to bring their outline for the first unit. The class was already confused about the first assignment.

Maybe I have an overactive imagination or a hypersensitive ear, but I could’ve sworn I heard a student mutter under her breath: “This professor sucks!”

Excerpt from Unlocking Your Rubber Room: 44 Off-the-Wall Lessons
c 2009 Perry Binder

Classroom Humor Sparks Creative Problem-Solving

2010-12-08T07:33:00.002-05:00

In my recent article, The Case for Humor in the College Classroom, I wrote: As college professors nationwide prepare for a new academic year, my message for them is simple: Lighten up! Your students just might engage and learn.

Now, researchers on humor and thinking (not kidding, that's a field of study) at Northwestern University found that people were more likely to solve word puzzles with sudden insight when they were amused, having just seen a short comedy routine. “What we think is happening,” said Mark Beeman, a neuroscientist who conducted the study with Karuna Subramaniam, a graduate student, “is that the humor, this positive mood, is lowering the brain’s threshold for detecting weaker or more remote connections” to solve puzzles. ...

In their humor study, Dr. Beeman and Dr. Subramaniam had college students solve word-association puzzles after watching a short video of a stand-up routine by Robin Williams. The students solved more of the puzzles over all, and significantly more by sudden insight, compared with when they’d seen a scary or boring video beforehand.

Continue reading Tracing the Spark of Creative Problem-Solving
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/07/science/07brain.html?src=me&ref=homepage

Free the teachers: Give classroom educators the freedom to inspire students

2010-12-02T08:12:00.005-05:00

Below is an interesting Op-Ed in The NY Daily News - I agree with the tone of this piece, to give more freedom to teachers in the classroom. However, overthrowing an entrenched bureaucracy is a daunting task, and more immediate impactful suggestions are needed. For the short term, rather than asking what's wrong with K-12 education, I would ask each school the opposite question (as I quote from the book Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard): "What's working right now" at your school?

To me, what's working right now is that there are so many talented teachers who are doing great things, while toiling in anonymity. That is the main reason I created The Inspiring Teacher Series - to highlight the inspiration so evident in these teachers. So why don't we give financial or other incentives to the superstar teachers to mentor other teachers in your own school? With meaningful feedback for other teachers.

Over the years, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking on how best to connect with people to get them excited and engaged, whether in a classroom, boardroom, or bored room. I believe that if you show learners that you have a sincere stake in their futures, you have the ability to inspire them on a daily basis, and spark a “light bulb moment.” And if teachers commit to a sincere interest in each other's future, that level of commitment will become evident to the students, and learning will be infectious.

My mantra: Learn from each other and grow as a team. Borrow the best classroom secrets from each other, just as comics observe great comics to improve their own material and delivery.

Op-Ed by Philip K. Howard

Free the teachers: Give classroom educators, suffocated by bureaucracy, freedom to inspire students
Cathie Black, the controversial choice as New York City's schools chancellor, hasn't been saying much lately about her theories of education. But in her 2007 book, "Basic Black," she had this to say about what makes a good teacher: "The best educators bring an instant smile to your face." The worst ones, she went on, "were the ones who seemed to be on automatic pilot, teaching out of a sense of duty rather than joy, and just counting the months or years until retirement. These teachers lacked authenticity in their work ...

Inspiration is what makes a good teacher. Just as Black remembers, the good teachers are the ones who have that spark, that spontaneity, that essential honesty. The good teacher inspires her students to respect her and listen to what she has to say. These traits of personality cannot be taught.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2010/11/28/2010-11-28_free_the_teachers_give_classroom_educators_suffocated_by_bureaucracy_freedom_to_.html#ixzz16xZmyxiU

WVU football uniforms honor Miners lost in April's Upper Big Branch disaster

2010-11-27T07:16:00.005-05:00

As Massey Energy settles lawsuits with grieving families, West Virginia University's football team honors the miners who were in harm's way.

To create West Virginia's "coal dust" uniforms -- designed to honor those lives lost in the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster in April -- "Nike started with a clean white uniform and then envisioned what it might look like if it were to emerge from a coal mine." The "smudged black" appears throughout the uniforms but is particularly noticeable on the Mountaineers' helmets.

Perhaps most noteworthy is the yellow accent featured on the pants and bright cleats -- it "represents the canaries used long ago to test toxicity in mines." The helmet also included a "thin yellow line running from the front to the back that represents the beam of light emitted by a miner's headlamp."

Continue reading
http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/2010/11/26/1837435/nike-pro-combat-uniforms-west-virginia-pittsburgh-backyard-brawl-ncaa-football

HS teacher honored by Cornell for inspiring former student

2010-11-21T07:57:00.010-05:00

Teachers usually never know when their class or activity can plant the seeds of a student's future. In different ways, I express to my students: Every one of you is what inspires ME, because every one of you has a story to tell - What will your next journey be?

In this story, we discover that a Language Arts teacher's lesson shaped a student's journey - a career path from a Biology lab to a Hollywood screening room.

Ewan Good, who teaches French and German, has been recognized by Cornell University as a teacher who has made a unique contribution to the life of one of the college's top graduates, a former Mt. Blue student who Good taught seven years ago.

In class, Good said he introduced students to French poetry, literature, history and film and challenged them to analyze and discuss what they were learning. One particular movie generated an emotional reaction and made a lasting impression on Ramsey, steering him toward a career in film, according to Good. The film was Louis Malle's award-winning autobiographical classic, “Au Revoir Les Enfants.” The 1987 movie took place during World War II when the headmaster of Malle's Catholic boarding school decided to shield Jewish children in the midst of Nazi-occupied France to tragic repercussions.

Continue reading Mt. Blue teacher honored by Cornell for inspiring former student:
http://www.sunjournal.com/franklin/story/944286

The Inspiring Teacher Series: Interview with Paul Cohen

2010-11-15T05:35:00.004-05:00

Welcome to The Inspiring Teacher Series - a tribute to inspirational K-12 teachers and college professors, and what we can learn from them and each other about the craft of teaching. Now let's meet...

Paul M. Cohen
High School Science Teacher
St. Francis Prep
Queens, NY

Bio

- Graduated from Queens College with an MS-Ed in Biology and Secondary Education

- Currently working on a chemistry degree at SUNY Old Westbury
- Teaching for 10 years. Six years at St. Francis Prep in Queens (The nation's largest catholic school and ground zero for the swine flu : 0)
- Retired from NYPD in 1997 as a Detective assigned to the Organized Crime Control Bureau due to line of duty injury

What inspired you to teach?

My inspiration to teach came from the most unlikeliest place. From Arnold Schwarzenegger. In or around 1990 I saw the movie kindergarten cop. I always liked kids and was involved in coaching little league baseball. Jokingly, I thought I would become a "kindergarten cop." I was injured in the line of duty in the mid 90's and my early retirement seemed imminent. I needed a plan. I thought back on becoming a teacher and decided to go for it. My initial choice of K-6 changed quickly as 1) I fell in love with science and 2) I actually did some student teaching in a k-6 environment. In a "life imitates art" moment, I walked into a kindergarten class as a substitute teacher and the kids burst into tears. I'm standing there with twenty 5-year olds in tears. Remembering how Arnold saved the day in the movie, I grabbed a school aid to watch the kids and ran to my car to retrieve some insect samples I prepared for an entomology unit I produced for college. The kids were instantly hooked. Moments later an entourage from the superintendents office walks in with press in tow and here I am, freaking out, but calmly talking to the kids about how many legs an insect has and how many shapes can we use to draw them. No amount of undercover police work can prepare you for that, but I too was hooked on teaching. I did, however, decide that high school was a better choice for me. Additionally, as a police officer, I often encountered kids who were lost and heading closer to jail than home. I felt as a teacher, if I could change the course for one kid then I've made a difference.

Tell us about your career prior to teaching. Any words of wisdom for people wanting to transition into a teaching career?

Prior to teaching I was a NYC police detective. I experienced all kinds of people and had all types of supervisors. Coming from a para-military background I was able to transition quickly and easily to the supervision style of academia. I was able to take orders and criticism with equal enthusiasm. I am not saying that as a teacher I agreed with, or even complied with, every order given. Nor did I accept all criticism. You don't survive on the street by not following your instincts. I learned to smile, nod and disregard that which I didn't feel comfortable with. That is the key to teaching. YOU must be comfortable with what you are doing. If not, the kids will see right through you and your effectiveness goes out the window. What works for me may not be what works for you. So, for those coming into the game late like I did: The late great martial artist Bruce Lee once said that when approaching a new master, one must show that he is willing to learn by coming with an empty cup. The idea being that a full cup can hold no more. An empty one can be filled with all that is useful. So, to all those new teachers, empty your cups and fill it with all you think useful and spill over all that doesn't help. Just one more thing - don't ever spill out in front of your supervisor. Smile, nod and quietly disregard!

What teaching methods are most helpful in guiding students towards their goals?

Educrats like to talk of innovative pedagogy, standards both national and local, multiple intelligences and a myriad of other strategies. I use what works for the class which can change from day to day and class to class and even minute to minute. The material dictates the type of lesson. I usually have a plan a, b and c for every unit. I won't stick with a workshop model if I detect it is not working for the material. I do believe firmly in discovery and problem solving learning. I often present some basic concepts and leave some obvious road signs out when I assign a new concept. When a person can put something together for themselves, they have an ownership that can't be delivered by another person. If they can claim ownership for the knowledge then they will want to know more, just to know why, not just to score well on a test.

What would you like to improve about your teaching?

I am always looking for improvements for my teaching. I view my skill set as a toolbox. If I am presented with another version or a new tool by a teacher or even a supervisor, I am always willing to try it out. New is not always the answer. We have a smartboard in every classroom in my school for enhanced presentations. It works great, but when the Internet goes out or when technology has a techno-fit, one best still have some chalk in the room.

What is the one thing you wish you'd known when you started your teaching career?

After taking about 20 credits of education courses not one of them truly prepares you for the day to day operation of a classroom. It is frightening when for the first time you enter that room and realize that you are in charge and all these faces are staring at you and expect you to do or say something. Be prepared! Classroom management issues are multiplied without good preparation. You must be everything to all students in that room. They will ask you things you can never be prepared for. You can't be prepared for all the extras that will go on. But of utmost importance is to get them seated and engaged as quickly as possible. Teenagers are self centered by nature and demand instant gratification. You must teach them to delay that hormonally driven order. The one thing I wish I had known before I began teaching is how much work it really is. No one provides you with lessons. You must do it all. You work through weekends, holidays and after school. And, the work keeps coming. Remember that you must decide how you will assess the work you give out. Learn to regulate the flow or you will drown yourself. That is the major cause of first year teacher burnout. This will, however, be the most rewarding and satisfying career you can ever imagine. For all the hard work and frustration you are paid back with the kind of unconditional love that is reserved for parents.

College Class from Midnight to 3:00 a.m.

2010-11-14T06:46:00.002-05:00

How's your schedule looking these days? Looking for a good teacher to student ratio?

A community college in Maryland has joined a growing trend nationwide: midnight classes.
Inside a brightly lit classroom, professor Paul Vinette stands near a chalkboard making comical noises. He is trying to keep his "Introduction to Psychology" class engaged and awake. His class begins at midnight and ends at a yawn-inducing 3 am. Kory Fox-Ponting is 1 of 10 students taking the Wednesday course.

Continue reading College Holds Classes At Midnight To Meet Demand

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130911603

"Do What You Love, But Don't Jeopardize Anyone You Love; Including Yourself."

2010-11-12T12:45:00.006-05:00

Lesson 33 from Unlocking Your Rubber Room was just quoted on Twitter by a fellow tweeter:

@Perry_Binder "Do What You Love, But Don't Jeopardize Anyone You Love; Including Yourself." - Perry Binder J.D.

My reply back:

Good words R far gr8er than the utterer!

Lesson 33 - Do what you love but don’t jeopardize anyone you love. Including yourself.

Recognize and assess the risks in every major decision you make. And how they affect those around you.

When I left the full-time practice of law to teach, I was single and had no children. Would I have made such a career transition if I had a spouse and two kids at the time? I’d like to think so because in the end, career satisfaction is one key to personal fulfillment. Some opportunities are rare and don’t come around often. The difficult part is learning whether to jump at or pass on an adventure when your responsibilities require the support of those around you and a closer look at risk and reward.

For-Profit College, Kaplan University, is Scrutinized

2010-11-10T08:17:00.002-05:00

An eye-opening and disturbing article on higher education in the for-profit sector:

Scrutiny Takes Toll on For-Profit College Company

[O]ver the last few months, Kaplan and other for-profit education companies have come under intense scrutiny from Congress, amid growing concerns that the industry leaves too many students mired in debt, and with credentials that provide little help in finding jobs.
Reports of students who leave such schools with heavy debt, only to work in low-paying jobs, have prompted the Department of Education to propose regulations that would cut off federal financing to programs whose graduates have high debt-to-income ratios and low repayment rates.

Continue Reading:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/10/education/10kaplan.html?hpw

Follow Your Dreams or Pick a Practical Major?

2010-11-05T05:33:00.006-04:00

I had a great time with the students at Georgia State University in this session (five of my own students showed up!!). I went over the lessons in this link:

Follow Your Dreams or Pick a Practical Major?
http://www.perrybinder.com/college.htm

Sample Dream Jobs listed by student participants:

Own a non-profit to work with young girls; Math teacher; Self-employed chiropractor; Photographer; Musician; Marketing Exec for Nike; CEO of global corporation; Music supervisor; NFL general manager; Business lawyer; District Attorney; Restaurant owner

Lessons Discussed on How to Get There:

- Know the consequences of no regrets
– Figure out of you’re a structure person or someone who can self-motivate at any given time
– Figure out how to compensate for your weaknesses
– Are you a “Touch Wet paint” person?
– In stressful moments, lean on your strengths
– Do what you love but don’t jeopardize anyone you love. Including yourself.
– Never crush anyone’s dreams
– Find your light bulb moment by helping others
- Be willing to walk in anyone’s shoes
- Education and Preparation - the keys to creating options
– By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. When you’re finished changing, you’re finished (Ben Franklin)
– Learn at your own pace. You’ll get there eventually

My number one takeaway of the day:

The riskier your dream, the better your backup plan must be

Lessons of Justice for College Students: Grandpa versus Big Coal

2010-10-29T13:12:00.003-04:00

Just posted on The Huffington Post...

Grandpa versus Big Coal

This is not an environmental issue. This is about a little human being. -- Ed Wiley (Grandpa) speaking to West Virginia Governor Manchin

CONTINUE READING @ The Huffington Post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/perry-binder/grandpas-school-kids-vers_b_774929.html

Binder on TV News - Facebook Privacy

2010-10-20T09:24:00.002-04:00

A five minute interview with 10 seconds on camera. Oh the cutting room floor!

Enjoy!

Facebook/Social Media Privacy Settings

http://www.wsbtv.com/video/25433647/index.html

Math, Science Teachers take weightless flight

2010-10-17T05:43:00.001-04:00

LOGAN, Utah (AP) — Five Utah educators experienced moments of lunar, Martian and zero gravity during a Weightless Flights of Discovery program geared toward inspiring teachers to inspire students. During the flight, participants experienced lunar, Martian and zero gravity. They floated, flipped and pirouetted mid-air, did push-ups on one finger and tossed each other through the air.

The program is geared toward middle school math and science teachers with an interest in the STEM subjects of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Continue reading: Utah math, science teachers take weightless flight

http://www.westport-news.com/news/article/Utah-math-science-teachers-take-weightless-flight-705302.php

Community College Prof: Every rock tells a story

2010-10-10T06:54:00.003-04:00

"He makes learning fun,” said Josh Lee, a Wilmington resident who was a student in one of Phil Garwood’s classes nearly 10 years ago. Lee said he took the class because he heard from friends that Garwood’s class would be different, involving field trips and more interactive lessons.

“I just think there’s certain people out there who have a gift, and Garwood’s gift is the gift of teaching and spreading the word about geology,” Lee said.

Continue reading Teacher shares ‘gift of teaching, spreading word about geology’

http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20101009/ARTICLES/101009626/1004

Oprah and Bill Gates Discuss Their Favorite Teachers

2010-10-06T05:41:00.005-04:00

The White House's new TEACH Campaign features videos of prominent Americans sharing the teacher or teachers that inspired them most.

Who made the difference for you?
Bill Gates says, "There wouldn't be a Microsoft without what they did." The software pioneer shares the teachers who mattered most.

Oprah and Bill Gates Discuss Their Favorite Teachers

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/04/oprah-john-legend-jj-abra_n_748704.html

Don't Jail Me Bro! Bail Me Out Mr. Prof Man

2010-09-28T11:32:00.002-04:00

Just posted at Huffington Post College:

Don't Jail Me Bro! Bail Me Out Mr. Prof Man

My classroom syllabus says: No legal advice questions! Yet, I still get telephone calls from students, usually when it's too late -- after they have a court date.

You know how you get one call before you are hauled off to prison? Well, I got this call from "Steve": Perry, I'm in the DeKalb County Detention Center. Get me out of here!

Continue reading at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/perry-binder/dont-jail-me-bro-bail-me-_b_734426.html

The Inspiring Teacher Series: Interview with Brendan Halpin

2010-09-26T13:44:00.004-04:00

BRENDAN HALPIN

Author & Teacher

Boston, MA

Bio: Brendan Halpin is the author of the memoir Losing My Faculties as well as several novels for adults and young adults. He's in his thirteenth year of teaching, and he lives in Boston with his wife Suzanne, their children, and their dog.

What inspired you to teach?

I just kind of fell into it. I had to teach English in order to participate in this program that took me to Taiwan after I graduated from college. I was kind of dreading it, but when I got there, I actually enjoyed it. The idea that work was something you could enjoy rather than just endure was pretty revolutionary to me, so I decided that was probably a job I should pursue.

Losing My Faculties is one of my favorite teacher-written books, especially because of your humor and unabashed honesty. How how the book helped or hindered your connection with current students and teachers?

Thanks! Honestly, it hasn't affected it that much at all. It wasn't enough of a runaway bestseller to have really penetrated the consciousness of most people I meet. I think it's had a pretty corrosive effect on my relationship with some of the teachers I used to work with, but I don't really talk to those people anyway.

What teaching methods are most helpful in guiding students towards their goals?

I would say whatever methods allow the teacher to teach with passion will help students. I've had and seen great teachers that lectured nonstop and great teachers that have students work in groups. I don't think one method is necessarily better for all students, but if the teacher is really engaged and having fun, the students will be learning more.

What would you like to improve about your teaching?

I'm still just so disorganized. I really admire and envy people who just naturally know how to keep everything where it's supposed to be.

What is the one thing you wish you'd known when you started your teaching career?

A few things, actually:
1.) You can successfully ignore whatever the administrators tell you in those meetings on the first couple days of school.
2.) Almost every workshop you're forced to attend will be dull, insulting, or both. Try not to take it personally.
3.) A lot of people who've been teaching for decades are very wounded. Try not to judge them too harshly. You'll get wounds of your own.
4.) The wins you'll get along the way will be better than any other reward and will make it all worth it.
5.) There are a lot of different settings in which you can teach. Keep moving till you find the right one for you.

Any words of wisdom for teachers who want to be entrepreneurial - such as balancing a teaching career with a writing career?

I would say don't expect to do anything else that requires a lot of energy or creativity in your first three years of teaching. You need time to establish your bag of tricks before you can spare any creative energy for other projects.

Teacher Reflects Back on 31-Year Career

2010-09-26T06:58:00.003-04:00

His first year salary was approximately $10,000, and he said he did the math to figure out how much he was making per hour. "I averaged four cents an hour," he said. "I sat down the last day of school with (retired Dixon Elementary teacher) Rick Stinson - who was also a first-year teacher that year - and we said to each other, 'Why are we doing this?'" The two of them finally decided their love for working with children was the motivation, and more important to them than the amount of money they were making per hour. "I really enjoyed the kids in the classroom," he said.

His advice to new teachers: learn about human behavior.

"The big piece of advice would be if you haven't had a human psychology course, take one," Willoughby said. "Getting kids motivated to do the work, and understanding why they're not doing their work is the real challenge of teaching. I would also tell them (new teachers) they need to have a sense of humor, and not to come into it like they're the enemy or you're their drill sergeant. They are people, too. "The other takes care of itself," he added. "The highlight won't be the 'straight-A' kid or the athlete that won the state championship. It'll be the ones that changed for the better."

Continue reading Making A Difference - Dixon Teacher Reflects Back on 31-Year Career:

http://www.isurfwebster.com/news/local-news/5650-making-a-difference-dixon-teacher-reflects-back-on-31-year-career.html

Supporting Our Community Colleges

2010-09-19T07:02:00.005-04:00

I am a huge supporter of community colleges. I was an adjunct professor for several semesters at Miami Dade Community College and Broward Community College before moving to Georgia to teach full-time at the university level.

Simply put, community colleges offer excellent job training skills at an affordable price. They remain the best value for re-training, though their message gets lost in the noise of slick for-profit college commercials offering similar choices at drastically higher tuition cost.

Supporting Our Community Colleges, by Dr. Jill Biden

I am writing today with some exciting news and a great video that I want to share with all of you. I was delighted last spring when President Obama asked me to convene the first-ever White House Summit on Community Colleges to highlight the importance of community colleges to our students and our economy. I am pleased to announce today that this summit will take place on Tuesday, October 5th.

Continue reading:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-jill-biden/supporting-our-community-_b_717670.html

Teacher living her dream to teach

2010-09-19T06:44:00.003-04:00

My inspiration to continue teaching every day is my students.

When I enter the classroom I have an opportunity to light a fire in them and my greatest reward is seeing that light come on and the ‘ah-ha' moment.

I have the privilege of affecting these children's lifelong learning.

Sound like someone you know? It's likely you. Continuing reading Moura teacher living her dream

http://www.centraltelegraph.com.au/story/2010/09/16/malindas-living-her-dream/

Teachers share what they've learned from students

2010-09-12T08:19:00.005-04:00

If you want to teach young children to write, you must “cultivate your sense of astonishment.” I heard professor Donald Graves say that many years ago. He explained to us that if a 5-year-old comes bursting in with the news that he saw a firetruck on the way to school, you don't say, “Yeah, there's a station down the road. I saw that truck, too.” What you do say is, “You saw a firetruck! Wow! Did you hear the siren? Was it going really fast?” We need to share in the excitement a child feels about a world in which everything seems new. It's the way we help them learn to love language and to use it well. “Cultivate your sense of astonishment.” So I did. I cheered and exclaimed over the firetrucks, the baby teeth that fall out and the new ones that come in, the tadpoles that become frogs, the dandelions that turn into clouds of tiny parachutes, and learning to tie your own shoes. I said that it was all amazing, wonderful and, yes, astonishing. Then, one day, I realized that all of it is.

— Mary Mello teaches at Union Elementary School in Montpelier.

Continue reading Vermont teachers share what they've learned from students:

http://www.timesargus.com/article/20100912/FEATURES02/709129854/1016/FEATURES07

Five Ways to Ace College Exams

2010-09-09T17:37:00.003-04:00

Wouldn't it be great if college classes were pass/fail, and students could focus on learning rather than competing for grades? Let's get back to the real world for a second, as I propose what I would do as a student to prepare for college exams:

CONTINUE READING @ THE HUFFINGTON POST:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/perry-binder/this-professor-sucks-five_b_705162.html

"Capturing the Friedmans" Dad Was My Unforgettable Teacher: Apply His Classroom Lessons to Set His Son Free

2010-08-25T14:44:00.003-04:00

Just posted in The Huffington Post:

Capturing the Friedmans Dad Was My Unforgettable Teacher: Apply His Classroom Lessons to Set His Son Free

Arnold Friedman was a quirky nuclear physics teacher who wrote something odd in my high school yearbook: Perry - I would like to meet your 3-eyed kids, but don't blame me! (a seeming poke at the irradiated material we handled in his college-level class, and the resulting mutations) He was a funny, inspirational, award winning teacher whose teaching techniques I model in my college classroom. In 1986, students organized a retirement party and recalled that he was "unforgettable" and "he turned my life around."

In 1987, Mr. Friedman and his seventeen year old son Jesse were arrested and accused of molesting over a dozen young children in their home basement, where the retired teacher opened a computer school for kids.

CONTINUE READING @ THE HUFFINGTON POST:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/perry-binder/capturing-the-friedmans-d_b_689465.html

Humor in College & Blogging @ The Huffington Post

2010-08-13T14:29:00.003-04:00

Today, we take the Crazy Classroom on a class trip to The Huffington Post, where I'm blogging on college-related issues. First up is humor...

The Case for Humor in the College Classroom

As college professors nationwide prepare for a new academic year, my message for them is simple: Lighten up! Your students just might engage and learn.

I never dreamed of being a college professor. Does anybody? When my third grade teacher asked us about our dream job, Molly said an astronaut; Evan, an actor. Perry: Obtain a terminal degree and lecture on legal morasses.

Continue reading at The Huffington Post...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/perry-binder/the-case-for-humor-in-the_b_679826.html

The Inspiring Teacher & What Makes a "Great" Teacher?

2010-08-08T07:44:00.004-04:00

Good News - My Inspiring Teacher Interview Series now has a web site which compiles all of the teacher interviews from the Crazy Classroom blog. Please visit:

The Inspiring Teacher Series

http://www.perrybinder.com/teacher.htm

Also, I found an interesting article on teaching, including this segment:

What I do believe is that it's very rare to find a "natural teacher" who is a success from her first day to the last class twenty-five or thirty years later. It requires a number of years of "seasoning" in which many mistakes and many inspirational moments give us the repertoire of approaches that enable students who are willing learners to excel, but also those who are reluctant learners to arrive at a "tipping point" that can produce remarkable results. Bur (sic) to conclude that a "great teacher" is the most significant factor in determining the success or failure of a student twenty-five years later is, at least to me, ignoring the importance of many other circumstances, not a few of which are not "measurable."

Educating for Democracy: What Makes a "Great" Teacher?

Joel Shatsky

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joel-shatzky/educating-for-democracy-w_b_669140.html

Inspired by High School Theater Teacher and Her Play about AIDS

2010-08-03T06:24:00.004-04:00

Bianna's High School Teacher's Play Changed Her Life
By BIANNA GOLODRYGA

How many people can say a high school play changed their life? I can and it's because of my inspiring teacher who wrote that play, Sharon Ferranti. Ferranti's play tackled a difficult issue – AIDS. For many Americans, the impact of AIDS in the mid-1990s was little more than a blip on the nightly news.

But for Ferranti, it consumed her life. "When you're 65 and 70, 75 you expect to have gone to a lot of funerals and hospitals. You expect to be watching your people go," Ferranti said. "That's not supposed to happen when you're in your mid-30s."

Continue reading: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Inspirations/bianna-golodryga-inspired-high-school-theater-teacher-play/story?id=11110388
Bianna Golodryga Inspired by Her High School Theater Teacher and Her Play
Bianna's High School Teacher's Play Changed Her Life

By BIANNA GOLODRYGA

The Case for $320,000 Kindergarten Teachers

2010-07-28T14:42:00.002-04:00

From The NY Times...

The Case for $320,000 Kindergarten Teachers
By DAVID LEONHARDT
Published: July 27, 2010

How much do your kindergarten teacher and classmates affect the rest of your life?

Economists have generally thought that the answer was not much. Great teachers and early childhood programs can have a big short-term effect. But the impact tends to fade. By junior high and high school, children who had excellent early schooling do little better on tests than similar children who did not — which raises the demoralizing question of how much of a difference schools and teachers can make. There has always been one major caveat, however, to the research on the fade-out effect.

Continue reading:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/28/business/economy/28leonhardt.html?_r=1&ref=education

Top 10 Spelling Errors in Law Papers

2010-07-21T16:26:00.009-04:00

Here's my list of mistakes that students (and attorneys) make all of the time

10-Recover principle (principal), court costs, and interest

Honorable Mention…
A faulty (faculty) member – maybe the student got this one right

Painful Mention...

An attorney filed a Motion in court asking the judge for more time due to his upcoming back disk surgery; however, he mistakenly placed an unfortunate "c" where the "s" should be in the word "Disk."

The Inspiring Teacher Series: Interview with Mara Mooney

2010-07-19T10:39:00.005-04:00

Welcome to The Inspiring Teacher Series - a tribute to inspirational K-12 teachers and college professors, and what we can learn from them and each other about the craft of teaching. Now let's meet...

Mara Mooney, J.D.
Assistant Professor of Legal Studies
Clayton State University

Morrow, GA

Ms. Mooney is a graduate of Lafayette College in Easton, PA (B.A., cum laude, Government & Law; Phi Beta Kappa) and Emory University School of Law in Atlanta, GA (Notes & Comments Editor, Emory Law Review; Dean's Fellow in Legal Research and Writing). She is the author of the textbook, Fundamentals of Georgia Real Estate Law, and co-author of the forthcoming article, “Assessing the Role of Personality Traits in Student Performance in Traditional, Hybrid, and Online Classes.” She has been teaching at the university level since 1996. Ms. Mooney is a full-time assistant professor in the ABA-approved Legal Studies Program and Paralegal Certificate Program at Clayton State University. She was instrumental in developing the program’s four-year bachelor’s degree in legal studies, and she is in the process of developing a minor in legal studies. Ms. Mooney is an active faculty member at Clayton State, where she has served on several university committees, such as Faculty Council, the University Hearing Panel, and the University Curriculum and Planning Committee. Prior to joining the faculty at Clayton State, she practiced law with Alston & Bird, LLP in Atlanta, GA, where she represented national commercial real estate clients. She also taught at two ABA- approved paralegal studies programs in Pennsylvania. At Clayton State, Ms. Mooney teaches traditional, hybrid, and online courses in Introduction to Law & Ethics, Legal Research & Writing, Real Estate Law, Contracts & Torts, Law Office Skills, and Homeland Security Law.

What inspired you to teach?
The hope that I could make a difference in people's lives inspired me to become a lawyer, but it also inspired me to ultimately become a teacher. My former life as an attorney was rewarding in some respects, but I felt that the long, solitary hours toiling away in a high rise office building, one cog in the corporate wheel, wasn't my true calling. I did a lot of soul searching, thought about the values and human interactions that were important to me, and realized that I was meant to be a teacher. Over the last ten years, I can truly say that the time I spend with students in and out of class, is the most rewarding and enlightening part of my professional day. I am so fortunate to have found a career that combines my two loves, law and teaching.

What teaching methods are most helpful in guiding students towards their
goals?
The teaching methods I find most helpful are to be active, engaging, and enthusiastic in my classes. Our students crave as many hands-on activities as possible. The more we can give students an opportunity to experience the actual type of work they will be doing, the more the students feel energized to achieve their professional goals. Students also respond well when current events are used as a catalyst for discussion in class. Finally, I believe that most students perform at an optimal level in class when their teacher promptly replies to emails and conducts him or herself in a fair, yet approachable manner. I once had a law school professor who made me feel incompetent for coming to his office with a question about civil procedure. As a result of that unpleasant experience, I realized the power that teachers have over their students' achievement in school. I try to serve as an example to students by treating them in a respectful, encouraging manner.

What would you like to improve about your teaching?
I am an organized person, and yet, I never have enough time to make those tweaks and improvements to my classes that I always say I am going to do, but never seem to have time to address before the next semester begins.

What skills should be emphasized in high school to succeed in your college class?
Writing, writing, writing! Poor written communication skills will translate to lower grades in school, but students may not realize that a poorly written cover letter or resume will also be a barrier to entry into their chosen career. I constantly tell students to read aloud what they have written and to proofread their work. There is an excellent book, written in an engaging style, entitled “Woe is I: The Grammarphobe's Guide to Better English in Plain English” by Patricia O’Conner, that can help. Students should understand that people will form professional impressions based solely on the quality of someone’s written work.

What is the one thing you wished you would have known when you started your teaching career?
I wish I would have known how rewarding it is - I would have started teaching even sooner!

Why It's So Hard to Teach for America

2010-07-16T14:02:00.003-04:00

From The NY Times:

A Chosen Few Are Teaching for America

HOUSTON — Alneada Biggers, Harvard class of 2010, was amazed this past year when she discovered that getting into the nation’s top law schools and grad programs could be easier than being accepted for a starting teaching job with Teach for America.

Ms. Biggers says that of 15 to 20 Harvard friends who applied to Teach for America, only three or four got in. “This wasn’t last minute — a lot applied in August 2009, they’d been student leaders and volunteered,” Ms. Biggers said. She says one of her closest friends wanted to do Teach for America, but was rejected and had to “settle” for University of Virginia Law School.

Continue reading: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/12/education/12winerip.html?adxnnl=1&ref=homepage&src=me&adxnnlx=1279303377-lPYYIqulcG+KpQPsB0DEFg

On Facebook, Telling Teachers How Much They Meant

2010-07-14T16:32:00.002-04:00

Great article in the NY Times:

On Facebook, Telling Teachers How Much They Meant

Darci Hemleb Thompson had been on the lookout for Alice D’Addario for many years. From her home in Hampton, Va., Ms. Thompson, 49, who is married and has a 12-year-old daughter, was determined to find Ms. D’Addario on the Internet. She tried every search engine and networking site she could find.
About 18 months ago she hit the jackpot.
“Nice to see one of the greatest teachers of all time on Facebook!” Ms. Thompson wrote on Ms. D’Addario’s wall. “I love to go to your page just to see your smiling face. Even your eyes still smile. You are an amazing person!”

Continue reading: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/14/nyregion/14facebook.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1&hpw

Read comments from AJC Education writer Maureen Downey and her readers:

http://blogs.ajc.com/get-schooled-blog/2010/07/14/adults-use-facebook-to-find-and-celebrate-former-teachers/

The Inspiring Teacher Series: Interview with Greg Henley

2010-07-08T07:24:00.005-04:00

Robinson College of Business
Georgia State University
Atlanta, GA

Bio
Dr. Henley is the director of the Herman J. Russell, Sr. International Center for Entrepreneurship at Georgia State University. His passion is to help entrepreneurs succeed and his experiences have prepared him to do so. With a BS from MIT and an MBA and Ph.D. from Columbia University, he’s been blessed with opportunities in both business and academia. Prior to joining Georgia State University, Dr. Henley taught at the University of South Florida’s (USF) Center for Entrepreneurship, helped start the entrepreneurship undergraduate major at the University of Tampa. He worked in the Center for Entrepreneurship at Columbia University while pursuing his Ph.D.
Dr. Henley’s entrepreneurial experience includes starting a mortgage company, an investment advisory firm, acquiring a community bank in Alabama and another community bank in Florida. Although he began his career working for large companies, including Procter & Gamble, Chemical Bank, and New England Telephone Company, entrepreneurship has always been his passion. Dr. Henley has held positions of President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. His consulting assignments included evaluating bank acquisitions, working with de novo banks, E-commerce start-ups and implementing the installation of a web site for a bank client. He is an active investor in small businesses and real estate.
He is interviewed frequently for his views on a wide-range of entrepreneurship topics by the media and has been quoted in media outlets ranging from the Wall Street Journal, Atlanta Journal Constitution and the Christian Science Monitor to Heart & Soul. Dr. Henley also wrote a monthly entrepreneurship column for Business-to-Business, an online publication for Atlanta executives.
Community involvement is an important part of Dr. Henley’s life. He is an active member of St. James United Methodist Church. He has served as a judge for business plan competitions for organizations including the National Black MBA Association’s Entrepreneurial Institute, the Youth Entrepreneurs of Atlanta at Morehouse College, and the Future Business Leaders of America. Dr. Henley also speaks to youth organizations throughout the nation and recently has addressed the Piney Grove Baptist Church youth program, the Atlanta After-School All-Stars, the Montgomery, AL chapter of Jack and Jill of America and M3Boys in Berkeley, CA.
He has begun a multi-year initiative, “Dr. Henley’s Road Trip,” in which he intends to interview entrepreneurs in all 50 states for a book. His goal is to also host the monthly entrepreneur forums that he currently hosts in Atlanta during his trip around the country.

What inspired you to teach?
During my business career, I noticed that a lot of people, especially people of color, have started businesses. However, many of the same people seemed to have trouble running the businesses effectively. I thought that I could help people (of all colors) run businesses more effectively, so went back to school with that objective in mind. Since my Ph.D. program, I have been teaching entrepreneurship and business strategy at business schools and, hopefully, my students can run a business better than if they hadn't taken my class.

What teaching methods are most helpful in guiding students towards their goals?
In the classroom, since I teach business courses, I try to relate everything back to the real world so students can relate to something they are familiar with. This includes bringing in businessmen, using case studies and talking about some of my business experiences. In addition, whenever possible, I like students to reach out to the business community. Examples of this include assignments for students to interview entrepreneurs and internships. For business classes, application of the material is critical to prepare students for the real world. So, telling them something and asking them to take a multiple choice question may be good for some things, but is a poor method for many business concepts. Getting the students to apply what they've learned is a goal. Often, this can be done via case studies and sometimes by working on projects for businesses. Some of the more challenging (for me and the students), but rewarding courses I've taught involved students working for real businesses. The students are able to apply business concepts, but see how businesses are actually run - the good, the bad and the ugly.

What would you like to improve about your teaching?
It's very important that I reach the students on their level. If I can get their attention, then I can teach them. Improving my teaching requires that I get constructive feedback to insure that what I'm doing is working. As I get older, using tools that are consistent with the way students learn can become more challenging, so I need to work to make sure that I'm communicating in ways they grasp. So what I'd like to improve is my knowledge and understanding of what is important to our students.

What skills should be emphasized in high school to succeed in your college class?
The skills that should be emphasized are certainly business skills. But, more broadly, I'd like for students to be able to think more analytically and in more depth. Other specific skills are a basic grasp of math and, importantly, writing skills.

What is the one thing you wished you would have known when you started your teaching career?
The value of testing early whether the students understand the material I'm presenting. In one of my first classes, I presented the material and got the verbal feedback I hoped for when I asked questions that indicated the students understood what I was telling them. However, when it came to apply the material for an assignment, the students did poorly - and my hopes and expectations were dashed. What I learned is that some of the early exercises, questions and tests that I needed to implement should be better tied to what I expected the students to learn. Also, that I needed to implement those exercises, questions and tests earlier in the semester so that I have time to make adjustments if I need to. The other thing I learned is that quite a few students are in the class to get a grade, but not necessarily to learn. This is in contrast to me whose primary reason for being in the classroom is because I want to teach.

The Inspiring Teacher Series: Interview with Jody Blanke

2010-07-02T07:45:00.006-04:00

Jody Blanke
Professor of Computer Information Systems and Law
Director of Undergraduate Programs
Stetson School of Business and Economics
Mercer University
Atlanta, GA

Bio
Jody Blanke has been a full-time college professor for the past 27 years. He earned a B.S. in Computer Science and Psychology and an M.S. in Computer Science at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, and a J.D. at the Emory University School of Law. After practicing law and clerking for a judge for several years, Blanke starting teaching full-time at St. John’s University in Jamaica, NY. After two years at St. John’s, he came to Mercer University to chair the Computer Science Department at the College of Arts and Sciences in Atlanta. After five years there, he moved to the School of Business and has been there ever since.

Blanke has had law journal articles published in the Columbia Science and Technology Law Review, the American Business Law Journal, and the Fordham Intellectual Property, Media & Entertainment Law Journal, among others. His main areas of research are privacy law and copyright law. He is currently serving his second stint as Director of Undergraduate Programs at Mercer. He is most proud of twice receiving the Outstanding Faculty Award, which is bestowed annually based primarily on the voting and comments of graduating students.

What inspired you to teach?
I don’t believe that there is any one thing that I can point to. During my school years, I always seemed able to explain things well to my fellow classmates. While I was in graduate school, I had an opportunity to be a Teaching Assistant and I enjoyed that a great deal. After practicing law for a few years, I looked into the possibility of teaching a course or two as a part-time instructor. As it happened, St. John’s was looking for a full-time instructor and I gave it a shot – no master plan here.

When I look back at teachers I had when I was in school, two names pop out at me. The first was an Earth Science teacher I had at Linden Junior High School – Harvey Moder. He was a retired fireman and was very dedicated to his students. I happen to have him the year of the Teacher’s Strike in New York City. We missed almost two months of school. He invited students to his house during the strike so that we wouldn’t get too far behind. He also arranged a trip to a science lab at his alma mater – Hofstra University. It was the first time most of us had been to a college campus. He went out of his way to help us learn.

The second great teacher I had was Robert Greenman at Madison High School. He taught English and Journalism. He also went way beyond the job description in his teaching and his supervision of the publication of the school newspaper. Back in those days, we had to bring the content to a typesetter to set up the pages for publication. He would drive a few of us to the printing press in Manhattan and we would spend many hours laying out the pages. Mr. Greenman cared greatly about his students. In thinking back on it today, I realize that he understood that each student was different and that he needed to treat each student differently.

What teaching methods are most helpful in guiding students towards their goals?
One thing that I have come to realize is how differently people learn. There is no “One Size Fits All.” There are visual learners, auditory learners, kinesthetic learners and probably other types as well. It becomes particularly challenging because most of my delivery comes by way of four-hour lecture periods. It helps to have PowerPoint presentations for people to read, but it is absolutely necessary to get students engaged in the discussion.

I generally start off all my law lectures with Legal Show and Tell. Students are supposed to bring in stories about legal news that they read, heard or saw during the past week. For the most part, these are about current events, about which many students have at least some interest. And almost always, I can tie the legal issues to some topic that we will be exploring. It also helps to get as many students as possible involved in the discussion.

I like to teach by example. I think it is much easier to understand an idea if you can see it in action, rather than merely in the abstract. Quite often you can discuss the nuances of the topic by simply varying the facts of the example. Also, I believe that it is imperative to explain why we have certain laws and rules, rather than merely what they are. It is much easier to learn something if you understand the rationale behind it.

And finally you must not lose sight of the forest for the trees. It is very difficult to learn about something in a vacuum. You must be able to step back and look at the big picture, to understand how and where the rule fits in. I try to do this as often as possible in each lecture.

What would you like to improve about your teaching?
One of the biggest challenges I face is to keep the material fresh and entertaining. The last thing I would want someone to say about my class is that it is boring. When I first started teaching, I taught probably 8 or 9 different computer science courses each year. I much preferred that to teaching the same course over and over again. I was continually learning new material and changing my courses because the subject matter changed so rapidly. For the past 15 years or so, I have pretty much been teaching the introductory legal and ethical environment course in our various business degree programs – the BBA, the MBA, the Executive MBA and the Professional MBA. While each course is somewhat different, the basic topics in law remain very similar.

I think it was Joe DiMaggio who, when asked why he always played baseball so hard, responded that someone at the game might be seeing him for their one and only time, and that he wanted to make sure that that person saw him play the game the way it should be played. Before I teach something like contract law – which I could probably start teaching within seconds notice if awoken at 3:00 in the morning – I have to get myself excited about the subject. I have to realize that my students probably don’t know much about contract law and that I have to bring energy and enthusiasm to the classroom to make the subject as interesting for them as it is for me.

What skills should be emphasized in high school to succeed in your college class?
As a college professor, I have to emphasize how important it is to be able to write clearly and succinctly. It is extremely important. But I also would like to mention two other skills – probably more accurately described as traits – but traits that can be learned and honed. The first is inquisitiveness. Asking questions is of utmost importance to successful learning. You must ask questions in order to learn. The second is persistence. To truly learn something you must never give up. If one approach to learning something doesn’t work, try another approach. (And by the way, one of the most effective ways to learn something is to have to teach it.)

Do you have any last bits of wisdom?
Yes. For those high school and college students who do not yet know what they want to major in – don’t worry! Take a variety of courses. Take courses that sound interesting to you. Ultimately, you will be most successful in learning about something that interests you or for which you have a passion. Try something different!

Teaching Justice in Class through Documentaries

2010-06-29T06:50:00.004-04:00

When my class studies The Buffalo Creek (coal mine) Disaster in West Virginia from the 1970's, I try to bring the book to life in my Introduction to Law class with clips from a documentary on the subject.

As an extension of that book, we also follow the plight of Marsh Fork Elementary School, and how a grandfather in West Virginia took it upon himself to move a school (which sits downstream from a river of coal sludge held back by a dam) away from danger. See my March 25 post: Move Elementary School out of Harm's Way .

Now, a new documentary highlighting the efforts of that grandfather (Ed Wiley) is available, and I will be sure to add this doc to my class on teaching justice: http://www.oncoalriver.com/

Mr. Wiley's efforts took awhile, but the forces of justice, leverage, and political embarassment eventually led to funding for a new school:

Goodbye Massey Coal Dust: Welcome to the Ed Wiley Elementary School!http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeff-biggers/goodbye-massey-coal-dust_b_559167.html

There has always been a "marriage" between Justice and Documentaries - the latter serving as a slow vehicle of change for the former. The documentary referenced above (On Coal River) was screened at the AFI/Discovery Silver Docs conference in June. The conference featured several workshops including this interesting sounding session which should be taught in every film school:

TEACHING FILMMAKING, TEACHING JUSTICE: CONNECTING STUDENTS TO THE GREATER COMMUNITY

The University of Alabama–Birmingham works with students across the arts and sciences who have never picked up a camera for anything more serious than a snapshot. They use a collaborative critique process to hone their eye and encourage a community co-authorship process to help them shape their stories. This session will give participants a look at new pedagogy on student civic engagement and techniques for introducing and incorporating filmmaking in all subjects. PRESENTER Michele Forman, co-director, University of Alabama, Birmingham Digital Community Studies Program

http://silverdocs.com/conference/about-conference/

Never-say-quit teacher leaves a final lesson

2010-06-21T15:41:00.003-04:00

Quick to smile, always armed with a sense of humor, a tireless advocate for children’s education and the “best teacher ever,” students and faculty say. On June 17, [Steve] Birdsall will stand in front of his fifth-grade classroom for the last time. He is retiring after a 23-year career in the Issaquah School District — 21 of those spent at Maple Hills....

But unlike other classrooms, this teacher stands in front with a walker.
Birdsall, 51, was diagnosed with a rare degenerative disease, known as multiple system atrophy, last fall.

CONTINUE READING: http://www.issaquahpress.com/2010/06/15/never-say-quit-teacher-leaves-a-final-lesson/

Never-say-quit teacher leaves a final lesson

Chantelle Lusebrink: clusebrink@isspress.com

Elementary School Teacher Publishes Reading Response Activity Sheets

2010-06-17T16:03:00.004-04:00

Erica Bohrer (who graduated from my alma mater, Binghamton University) published her first teacher resource book Just-Right Reading Response Activity Sheets for Young Learners: 50 Reproducible Graphic Organizers That Help Children Write Meaningful Responses to the Books They Read (Scholastic, 2010). She sells lessons and teacher downloads online at teacherspayteachers.com. Erica is a first-grade teacher for Lindenhurst Public Schools on Long Island, and an adjunct off-campus professor at Brooklyn College.

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Just-Right-Reading-Response-Activity-Learners/dp/054513370X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1276804984&sr=8-1

Amazon Product Description:
Help kids extend and deepen their reading experiences with these delightful, comprehension-boosting graphic organizers. Designed for use with fiction and nonfiction books, the simple formats help young readers really think about what they read and record their thoughts in an organized, meaningful way. Topics include identifying story elements, sequencing events, drawing conclusions, summarizing, making connections, examining words, and more. Encourages critical and creative thinking! For use with Grades K–2.

Former HS Teacher's dream led her to career as astronaut, seat aboard shuttle

2010-05-26T02:15:00.005-04:00

When Dorothy “Dottie” Metcalf-Lindenburger tells students to reach for the stars, she means it literally. ... Metcalf-Lindenburger, who taught five years in Vancouver, Wash., completed astronaut training in 2006. She is a member of NASA’s Teacher in Space program and visits schools to inspire teachers and students to think more about space, science, math and technology.

Continue Reading: http://www.gazette.com/articles/led-99025-aboard-seat.html

See also: The Teachers in Space program
http://www.teachersinspace.org/

The Teachers in Space program is working with many new spaceflight companies to make sure that teachers are among those who have a chance to go. As a new age of opportunity unfolds, who better than teachers to lead the way? Unlike NASA's Educator Astronaut program, which takes teachers out of the classroom to join the NASA astronaut corps, Teachers in Space will allow teachers to “keep their day jobs.” Training will take only a few weeks; and many teachers will be able to complete the program during school breaks which will eliminate having to take time away from the classroom.

The Inspiring Teacher Series: Interview with Travis Tingle

2010-05-10T07:49:00.003-04:00

Travis Tingle

Band Teacher

Union Grove Middle School

McDonough, GA

Bio
Travis Tingle has been a middle school and high school band teacher for 8 years. He taught at Hull Middle School in Duluth, GA; Jonesboro High School in Jonesboro, GA; Stockbridge Middle School in Stockbridge, GA; and is currently the band teacher at Union Grove Middle School in McDonough, GA. Travis received his undergraduate degree in K-12 Education with a concentration in instrumental music from Georgia State University and his Master’s in Business Administration degree from the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University.

Travis was awarded the Business and International Education Scholarship for overseas studies in International Business in spring 2008. He spent 16 days in South Africa with the J. Mack Robinson College of Business studying the social, educational, and economic landscape. He perceives the global business community as a large contributor in aiding countries both financially and socially by producing jobs and partnering with the academic community. His students have been selected to participate in the University of Georgia Honors Clinic, the Georgia All State Band, Troy State University Honors Clinic, Metropolitan Atlanta Youth Wind Ensemble, Atlanta Youth Wind Ensemble, and the Music USA Contest in Orlando Florida. His students have consistently received excellent and superior ratings in all Georgia Music Educators Association large group performance evaluation categories.

What inspired you to teach?
Much like Bridget Robbins, one of the other bloggers for the inspiring teacher series, teaching was the last thing on my mind when graduating high school. My dad was an assistant principal and my mom was a world history teacher. Dinner discussions were not at all inspiring or very positive!! Don’t get me wrong, they did a great job in their fields but the schools they taught in were very difficult. The communities around the schools were plagued by drugs, alcohol, and broken families. I remember finding a baseball bat in my dad’s closet in his office and I was immediately reminded of James Belushi playing the role of Ricky Latimer in the movie “The Principal!” Who in their right mind would want to enter the teaching profession after hearing those horrifying stories at dinner every night!! Not me! I was dead set against being a teacher or a pastor! In my teenage opinion, both were underpaid and had to deal with crap being shoveled on them every day! Who needs it!!

I had no idea what I wanted to do as a career and after two quarters I dropped out of college and decided to work at a restaurant waiting tables until I figured it out! Several months later I decided I would give the college of education at Georgia State University a chance seeing as several of my friends I attended high school with were education majors there. I went in as a K-12 Music Education major because I was very involved in music through my school years as a kid. During my middle and high school years I was fortunate to be selected as a member of the Georgia All State Bands 8th-12th grade and was also selected to attend the Governor’s Honors Program in Jazz Studies at Valdosta State University. The opportunity to teach private saxophone lessons afforded me the break I needed to quit waiting tables and still make a living as an undergrad! Then the unthinkable happened: I actually started to enjoy teaching and watching the kids get better! I was full force going to finish my undergrad in education and get a job teaching!

I was VERY fortunate to have great mentors that taught and still teach in the Atlanta area. While watching them teach I took endless notes and my mentors allowed me to teach their classes and gain experience using their techniques!

**Here’s the most important facet of learning to teach in the classroom for people currently teaching, student teaching, or just registering for your first education courses as an undergrad: You must have mentors that have held successful teaching careers from surrounding schools and from the University you attend. Go ahead and fight the pride and understand you know nothing about teaching in the classroom until you have copied their techniques and molded and developed them into your own over several years by trial and error (I call it “Trial by Fire”)!! Then give it some time and hang in there! Hey, it takes 5 years of teaching to get over the shock of it and then things in the classroom will get a little easier and VERY rewarding!!

What teaching methods are most helpful in pushing students towards their goals?
I teach 6-8 grades, so Character education is something my students and I practice in the classroom. It may sound old fashioned to many, but students by and large do not know how to address adults or each other. We spend a considerable amount of time in the first two weeks of school going over my expectations and role playing them in class. It’s simple stuff like, being in your seat on time, raising your hand before you speak or get up, do not play your instrument until the director begins rehearsal, and do not touch anyone’s property except for your own. The big one is, you must answer with yes sir or yes ma’am, or simply yes or no. There is no yeah-uh huh business that goes on in our classroom!! Another crucial expectation is disrespect with gestures like smacking lips and sucking teeth!! I use Bon Qui Qui (look it up on You Tube) at Burger King as an example of this and the students think it’s hilarious that I am re-enacting Bon Qui Qui!! I have a student act like the teacher and I act the part of a student. They call on me for misbehaving in class and I respond by smacking my lips and sucking my teeth. Then, the student (acting like me the teacher) gets up and writes my name on the board! Hey, it gets the point across and they get to see how ridiculous people look when they behave this way! I have the students demonstrate the wrong way and the consequence of me writing their name on the board and they receive what we call in my school a “citation”. Of course, they don’t really receive a citation from me while we are role playing the expectations! The first 2 weeks of school is perfect for this because the environment is not threatening and most students are not misbehaving yet!! Basically the procedures of the classroom are ingrained in their minds so they become second nature to the student. Now, it’s not as easy as it sounds, the first few weeks will be a little difficult and there will be quite a few names on the board!!!

What is the one thing you wish you'd known when you started your teaching career?
I wish I had known how mentally and emotionally draining it was going to be. If I had considered the emotional drain and the pay scale, I would have majored in something other than education. I wish I had known how many years of experience (5-6 years) it would take for the shock of teaching to wear off! Presently, I enjoy my job at my new school and am happy teaching, but I had no idea how much of an uphill struggle it would be to get there. Most jobs, careers, and life in general are common in that way. Unfortunately, Generations X and Y were not well prepared for the reality of the world. Our teachers and guidance counselors painted a very rosy picture of the world and told us everything was going to be okay if we work hard and pursue our dreams. That is partly right but it was definitely not the whole truth!!

The Inspiring Teacher Series: Interview with Barry Hantman

2010-05-07T05:19:00.011-04:00

Barry Hantman
Homebound Instruction Teacher
Queens, NY

Bio

Barry Hantman won his school spelling bee in 5th, 6th, and 7th grades. His inexorable decline began shortly thereafter and he’s been trying to make a comeback since 1973. Barry graduated from Bayside High School (Go Commodores!), Binghamton State University (Go Bearcats!) and received his teaching Masters degree from NYU (Go . . . ?). Barry has worked as a Home Instruction teacher for the NYC Department of Education since 1984. Relevant quote: “If Perry perceives me as an inspiring educator, I fear we may already be in trouble.”

What inspired you to teach?
Teaching was not a calling that beckoned me. I had always been interested in politics and government (so-called “political science”), thus I’d assumed I wanted to practice law. But the dull reality of law school inspired me to find a better way. I don’t believe in reincarnation so if I only have one life to live, I decided it would not be as an attorney. Since my parents were teachers, the field of education seemed like a natural option to explore.

Please explain the “day in a life” of a homebound instruction teacher.
A homebound instruction teacher educates students who cannot attend school for physical or emotional reasons. A typical case is a broken ankle/leg for about 7 weeks, but I’ve had students recuperating for months from heart surgery, a kidney transplant, leukemia, etc. Or a pupil might get expelled from school and is at home awaiting placement at a new school. Once I even taught a youngster in the Witness Protection program! I work with students from grades 7-12, but occasionally teach even kindergarteners or first graders (and have proudly taught 3 such children to read). Not only do I instruct students of various ages and home environments, but I also teach kids from the most diverse possible ethnic backgrounds. I work in Queens County, New York City – according to the US Census, the most diverse area on the planet!

A Home Instruction teacher is like a basketball point guard – you must know when to speed things up (such as reviewing for state exams) and when to slow down the pace (at times that a child isn’t feeling well, whether physically or emotionally). You start to get adept at readings faces and moods; within 20 seconds of walking through the door you can usually tell how productive the day is going to be.

I love my job but of course, it has its own peculiar set of hassles. Driving from apartment to apartment means finding several parking spots a day, no easy feat in congested parts of the city. I might only find a one hour meter but the lesson is for another half-hour. Then I have to remember to go back downstairs to feed the meter or I’ll return to find a nice orange parking ticket slapped on my windshield. Building elevators are frequently out so I have to walk up and down several flights of stairs. And driving in the snow is a hassle. I have a fuel-efficient Nissan Sentra that squeezes into tight parking spots but it doesn’t like heavy snowfalls.

What teaching methods are most helpful in guiding students toward their goals?
I have the luxury of working one-to-one so I try to take full advantage. I assess student strengths/weaknesses in order to focus on areas of concern. Many classroom pupils who failed a course or state exam and now must retake it will suddenly flourish with their own tutor. It’s incredible what a difference the extra private attention makes. This is true for the math and creative writing instruction I give but also for the tennis and guitar lessons I arranged for my son; there is no comparison between one-to-one and thirty-to-one.

I also utilize what’s around me. I scan a home’s walls and tables for homework essay ideas. For example, a Sikh student’s apartment displayed a large drawing of the Golden Temple at Amritsar. I asked Chami to write about the Temple’s significance and to outline some of his faith’s tenets. I read Chami’s essay the next morning while sipping chai tea his mother had prepared. Another pupil’s family were Afghan refugees. They had an enlarged photo of the father in between President George W. Bush and Afghan leader Hamid Karzai. Detailing that treasured photo was Shaheera’s writing assignment. Even the smell of a delicious meal being prepared could very well lead to a recipe request for homework (and to a free sample for the teacher).

What skills should a teacher training program emphasize? De-emphasize?
The most critical factors can’t be taught – intelligence (both IQ and even more importantly, EQ – emotional intelligence), motivation, creativity, sense of humor, and character. But all those qualities can be enhanced. I believe the best teacher training involves hands-on experience mirroring the actual job you seek. My teaching Masters degree courses were a joke, consisting of either theoretical jargon or somewhat interesting concepts that I could’ve easily grasped on my own. I would eliminate such grad school requirements and instead mandate a two year “student teacher” training program in classrooms led by outstanding educators.

What would you like to improve about your teaching?
Nothing. I’m done. Actually, my view is that as soon as anyone in any profession grows overconfident, it’s the start of that person’s downfall. The ancient Greeks were right – we must guard against complacency (hubris). I’m still always learning from my students, National Geographic, the Science section of The NY Times, museum exhibits, The History Channel, etc.

What is the one thing you wish you’d known when you started your teaching career?
I’ll just relate the sage advice of a retiring veteran homebound teacher fondly known as Bamby. At the annual end of June luncheon, Bamby was called to the microphone to deliver a few parting gems of wisdom. Perhaps he would reflect upon the meaning of his 35 years in the program. As Bamby cleared his throat, we all attentively leaned forward. His gaze met ours. Then Bamby uttered his immortal final words as a Home Instruction teacher: “In the winter, park in the sun. And in the summer, park in the shade. I’m moving South tomorrow. Bye.”

Never Crush Anyone's Dreams

2010-05-04T12:57:00.005-04:00

I never dreamed of being a college professor. Does anybody?

In fact, I always gave my teachers fits in school, as evidenced by grade school report cards:

- Second Grade: Improvement needed in self control

- Fourth Grade: Perry needs to exert more self control

- Sixth Grade: Perry needs to exercise better self control

As a little kid, I dreamed about playing professional basketball. I played and played for hours. In third grade, we had to write an essay on what we wanted to be when we grew up. I wrote that I wanted to be 6’10” and play in Madison Square Garden. When the teacher handed back my paper, she laughed out loud and said “You can’t do that!” That was the first time someone had crushed my professional dream.

Why would a teacher be so unthinking? She may have been right about the 6’10” part, but this molder of young minds lacked the understanding of what negative reinforcement can do to little kids. She also lacked the understanding that height isn’t everything for a basketball player. Teachers, especially in the impressionable K-12 years, are my personal heroes. But they need to be dream builders, not dream destroyers. It’s healthy to discuss rational backup career plans, but why spoil youthful exuberance which could flower into the unexpected?

Take Away: Your words can stay with a student for his or her entire life.

Note: That's me at age 25, playing basketball with former NBA Defensive Player of the Year, Mark Eaton (7'4" center for the Utah Jazz)

Unlocking Your Rubber Room: 44 Off-the-Wall Lessons to Lighten and Transform Everyday Life http://www.yourrubberroom.com/

What qualities make a great teacher?

2010-05-02T05:33:00.023-04:00

Reader comments from Minnesota Public Radio.

My favorite: Never-ending understanding. Non-judgmental. Accepting. Encouraging. Inspiring. Dedicated. Driven. Knowledgeable not only in subject matter but life lessons as well. Has desire to continue learning. Levelheaded. Ability to see from any angle needed. Patient.

Continue reading...
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/collections/special/columns/todays-question/archive/2010/04/in-your-view-what-qualities-make-a-great-teacher.shtml

...................

SPEAKING OF GREAT TEACHERS:
TAFFEL TALKS KINDERGARTEN BLOG
Here is the blog of Arleen Taffel, an inspirational teacher for 40 years who recently passed away.
http://mtbethel.blogs.com/taffel/
A kindergarten teacher for 40 years, including 30 memorable years at Mt. Bethel Elementary School in Marietta, Georgia, Arleen taught up until nearly her last day and will always be remembered for her love of teaching. She will forever serve as an enduring inspiration for the countless children, parents and teachers whose lives she touched.

...................

Here's some...
GOOD NEWS -- UPDATE ON MARSH FORK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Thanks to a generous $2.5 million grant from the Annenberg Foundation, the long march for a new elementary school for children in the besieged Coal River Valley hamlet of Sundial, West Virginia, has come to an end: A new school will now be built in a different location. ...
Along with the Annenberg funds and a gift from the Coal River Mountain Watch, the school also received commitments of $2.6 million from the West Virginia School Building Authority, and $1.5 million from the Raleigh County Board of Education and Massey Energy, which is responsible for the whole mess of coal dust and the dangerous coal slurry impoundment.

Continue reading...
Goodbye Massey Coal Dust: Welcome to the Ed Wiley Elementary School!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeff-biggers/goodbye-massey-coal-dust_b_559167.html

See my posting

Thursday, March 25, 2010
Move Elementary School out of Harm's Way

This is a follow up to my Saturday, January 23, 2010 post

I follow the Marsh Fork/Massey coal issue very closely -- in April, there will be a school board vote on needed funds to move this school.
In West Virginia, the Marsh Fork elementary school sits 400 yards downstream from a dam holding back billions of gallons of water/coal sludge. The West Virginia government has refused to build a new elementary school in a safer location. The community, afraid for its children's lives, began the organization Pennies of Promise to raise the funds themselves. In April 2010, the school board will vote on funding for a new school. Are you willing to lend your voice to support these kids?

My students have joined the Facebook page below, and I am reaching out to other schools in an effort to elevate media awareness and the importance of a new school.

The "Pennies of Promise" Facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2256931294

The Inspiring Teacher Series: Interview with Bridget Robbins

2010-04-28T05:45:00.016-04:00

Welcome to the first installment of The Inspiring Teacher Series - a tribute to inspirational K-12 teachers and college professors, and what we can learn from them and each other about the craft of teaching. Now let's meet...

Bridget Robbins

Kindergarten Teacher

Abbotts Hill Elementary - Johns Creek, GA

Bio
Bridget Robbins has been an elementary school teacher for over eight years. For the past 2 years she has taught Kindergarten at Abbotts Hill Elementary School, and prior to that taught 1st through 6th grade in both urban and rural settings. Bridget worked as a substitute teacher at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. She received her undergraduate degree (B.S. in Elementary Education) from the University of Michigan – Flint and continued her education at the University of Georgia where she earned her Master’s Degree in Educational Administration & Policy and an Early Childhood Reading Endorsement, May of 2006. While attending the University of Georgia, she worked as a graduate assistant with the UGA - Clarke County School District - Athens Community partnership. In that role her primary responsibility was to act as the liaison between the partners. She helped further the goals and vision of this long-term Partnership for Community Learning Centers’ initiative. During this time she also helped plan professional development and conferences for teachers. Bridget recruited and trained students to help with tutoring and to provide other support and academic services at the elementary schools in Clarke County. Bridget loves teaching and helping students realize their full potential! She currently serves as Team Coach for her grade level and began First Class Learning, LLC – which offers tutoring services and Adventures in Reading & Math camps for children at Abbotts Hill and in the Johns Creek, Georgia community.

What inspired you to teach?
Wow! Teaching was the last thing on my mind when I graduated from high school in 1995. My family is full of teachers – my mom, grandma, aunts, and uncles but I decided I wanted to be different and began working on an accounting degree. However, that was not to be my fate! I decided to spend some time helping my mom out in her classroom and eventually began substitute teaching to make some extra money. As I worked in the classroom I was amazed by how much I enjoyed it and how much the students seemed to enjoy having me as their teacher. They were enthusiastic and eager to please. I was taken aback by their natural unconditional acceptance of me which inspired me to change my major and pursue a career in education. When I started substitute teaching, the teachers and principals began requesting me regularly to sub in their schools. It has been such a rewarding experience to teach children and see the progress that they make academically and socially. I feel it is one of the most fulfilling jobs. Teachers help shape tomorrow’s future which is what makes teaching such a fulfilling job.

What teaching methods are most helpful in guiding students toward their goals?
Positive, positive, positive & meaningful reinforcement!!! I respond well to words of affirmation and I believe this plays a role in my teaching style. I have found that helping to build up a child’s self esteem and self worth reaps a great reward – for the student and for me! We all want to do well and we all want people to like and care about us so I try to do my best to encourage, support and build trust with my students, especially during the first few months of school. Students need to know that you genuinely care about them. At the beginning of the year, I take time to get to know their likes and dislikes and what really matters to them. We develop our classroom rules and consequences together so that students can have ownership and actively help to reinforce the rules.

The second thing that really makes a difference is consistency in discipline and classroom routines. Believe it or not children like and respond very well to order and a consistent schedule. It helps them to feel safe in the classroom. The idea of fairness is very important to children. Being consistent promotes a feeling of equality in the classroom. Whenever I discipline a student, I do my best to do so in a positive way. Instead of saying “stop that or be quiet, I try to say things like, “Please keep your voice off or remember to raise your hand before speaking.” I then explain to the students that because of the choice he or she has made, he or she will have to deal with the consequence. I tell them, I know you can do better next time and everyone makes mistakes.” Students will usually respond well and take the consequence without complaining. Many times, they will apologize or choose to sit by themselves next time so they won’t get in trouble. With time, students become intrinsically motivated to meet our classroom expectations.
We celebrate as much as possible in my classroom! Throughout the day we cheer each other on! “Way to go!! Awesome! Great Job!” is frequently heard in my classroom. We have class parties and on Fridays we play our Morning Boogie music and dance together which helps build a sense of community. When you encourage kids, they become encouragers. Be what you want your students to be!!!

What skills should a teacher training program emphasize? De-emphasize?
Teacher training programs should emphasize hands on, real life experiences with children in classrooms. Service learning is a great opportunity for students to get some of these experiences while helping others. It would be beneficial to have more classes on classroom management and meeting the needs of diverse learners. It would also be great to have more of a focus on self reflection; thinking about what kind of teacher you want to be and what you need to do to become that person.

De–emphasize classes on research and statistics, and focus more on practical techniques that can be used in the classroom.

What would you like to improve about your teaching?
I would like to create more lessons that are fun and engaging for the students that really focus in on the skills and objectives that they need to master. Time management is another area I would like to improve on – getting the most out of the minutes we have with our students each day. I am always looking for ways to be more efficient.

What is the one thing you wished you would have known when you started your teaching career?
I wish I had known the importance of time management, organization and prioritizing! I have learned that I need to focus on what is most important because there is always more to do. Focus on the things that will give you the greatest return for your efforts -those things that will really help your students be successful.

College Professors should use Social Media as a Learning Tool Outside the Classroom

2010-04-23T07:35:00.021-04:00

I've stated repeatedly over the years how the internet has revolutionized how educators can give assignments and communicate with students outside of class. And in the middle of our social media revolution, I still feel the same way (e.g. in the past, I've had extra credit assignments done exclusively on Facebook; and in an upcoming Mass Media class, the students and I will make active use of Twitter for communication outside of class, in an effort to engage professionals in the field).

On the other hand, while I encourage college students to bring laptops to class (to take notes or look up class information on task), I am not a proponent (yet?) of integrating Twitter/texting in real time to post comments DURING class for immediate review. Yes, I believe that class is an improv troupe, with the unexpected just waiting to happen. However, there is also a certain structure and flow that would be disrupted by real time comments posted and displayed on the big screen. Maybe if I had a teaching assistant to filter the relevant comments/questions from the clutter in my class of 120 students, I'd consider this usage.

I do recognize that students are techno-multi-taskers and that everything a prof says is not so useful or interesting. Thus, I have no problem with a student receiving a silent text because it doesn't disrupt the class. Professionals at conferences are continuously under the table with their Blackberries, and I try to treat the students the same way - as adults. It's up to me to make the class dynamic enough so they'll resort to paying attention.

I do have one classroom rule: If an unmuted cell phone call/text goes off - I get to answer it! That usually gets students to mute the phones AND get a good laugh.

Anyway, do you really think you can prevent students from using technology in class?

Why Banning Social Media Often Backfires

http://mashable.com/2010/04/13/social-media-ban-backfire/

Graduation Gift Book Ideas

2010-04-18T07:41:00.008-04:00

Here's Amazon's Best Graduation Book Gifts (my list)

http://www.topbooksguide.com/list.php?lnr=R8FVR619DQRR4

They left out one of my suggestions - Oh the Places You'll Go!

Professor goes from caves to classroom

2010-04-16T11:30:00.001-04:00

By Genevieve Adams - Kentucky Kernel April 15, 2010

What is learned in the classroom is only half of one’s education.This is the mentality one UK professor tries to bring to her students. As a cave diver, teacher, adventure seeker and published author, Stephanie Schwabe seeks to not only teach her students about geology, but the wonders of the world they don’t see.
“I try and bring my experiences and the excitement that I feel for what I do to the students,” Schwabe said. “I want them to be excited about this amazing planet as I am. That is the main reason for teaching. It certainly isn’t for the money.”

Continue reading:

http://kykernel.com/2010/04/15/professor-goes-from-caves-to-classroom/

Name School After Role Model - A Teacher

2010-04-12T05:47:00.002-04:00

From Canada...

Admirers of inspiring teacher seek new tribute

April 11, 2010

Joanne Shuttleworth jshuttleworth@guelphmercury.com

GUELPH — There’s a movement afoot to have the new public school under construction in Guelph’s south end named after Michael Elrick, the high school teacher who ran environmental leadership programs for the board and who died of lung cancer in November last year.

For Joanne Harris, there’s dignity, passion, grace, and a quest for excellence associated with Elrick’s name, making it a fitting name for the new school, she said.

“He had a broad reach,” said Harris, who teaches the co-op education program at Centennial CVI. “Mike was on the national kayaking team, he was passionate about the environment and he touched so many lives. Teachers at Centennial are telling me this is a brilliant idea.”

Continue Reading:

http://news.guelphmercury.com/News/article/619904

Ranked # 2 in Kindle Book Sales > Education > Classroom Management category (April 7-9, 2010)

2010-04-09T13:06:00.004-04:00

Bestsellers in Classroom Management (April 9, 2010, 1:00pm)
Kindle Store > Education > Classroom Management (Updated hourly)
1. The Daily Five by Gail Boushey (75 customer reviews) 4 customer discussions Auto-delivered wirelessly Kindle Price: $7.99

2. Unlocking Your Rubber Room: 44 Off-the-Wall Lessons to Lighten and Transform Everyday Life by J.D. Perry Binder (10 customer reviews) Auto-delivered wirelessly Kindle Price: $7.95

Also #13 in the > Humor > Lawyers & Criminals category

I like the J.D. Perry Binder name above! A lawyer, criminal, and famous writer?

April 5-12, Featured Author of the Week

2010-04-05T08:52:00.008-04:00

Everyone - From Monday-Friday, I'm the Featured Author for "I JustFinished" Books. This link has a Q&A section for readers at the bottom of the page:

http://www.ijustfinished.com/author/perry_binder/4

Enjoy! And have a great week.

Perry

Book Review: "This [book's] course of study can change your life"

Unlocking Your Rubber Room ISBN 978-1934938249
February 14, 2010

44 lessons by a former lawyer, teacher and motivational speaker offer keys to unlock the reader's "Rubber Room", a mindset that limits a person's happiness in life. Many of these lessons come from the realm of law, which also offer practical "advice" through anecdotes about "Law and Negotiation" ( section A). Remember, "It's good to be a Judge"; not so good to face one unprepared.

In the "Potpourri "section, Binder gives lessons abut "Law and Life", using positive attitude, laughter, and exaggeration. Lesson 22, Just Because You're an Expert, Doesn't Mean You're Right, relates an incident with a demeaning professor to point out that opinion is not fact, and attack is not a valid way to deal with people. Find a better way.

A close look at the justice system in America comprises the last section : Justice and Education. What do you do in the face of injustice? Make your choice between fear or anger. Consider consequences, and use your strengths. Anecdotes deal with facing your limits and overcoming them.

Then you take your final exam. You won't need a pencil, but a scream is mandatory.
If you have learned from these tales, you have indeed graduated, and Binder gives a graduation speech for the occasion. He relates a life changing incident that caused him to re-evaluate his life and "saved" him from himself.

Turn your life around. Get ready for the lessons Binder relates, and prepare for your graduation. This course of study can change your life.

Lights are going out on drama teacher’s career

2010-04-03T06:09:00.010-04:00

This week, I reflected on the teaching career of Jaime Escalante (pictured), the teacher who inspired his students in East Los Angeles, and others in the movie, "Stand and Deliver" (1988). Mr. Escalante passed away a few days ago. He was 79 years young.

In Mr. Escalante's honor, I am celebrating the teaching career of a lesser known teacher, Doug Smith. Smith is a high school drama teacher in California. (His former students include American Idol's Adam Lambert)

Smith's teaching philosophy: Love the art in yourself, not yourself in the art.

He is the focus in the following article:

Lights are going out on drama teacher’s career
By Blanca Gonzalez, UNION-TRIBUNE

The curtain will come down on Doug Smith’s teaching career this spring after more than 30 years of inspiring and guiding high school drama students, but for now, the show goes on.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/apr/03/lights-are-going-out-on-drama-teachers-career/

Quoted in AJC article: ‘Undercover Boss’ on CBS

2010-03-26T07:03:00.002-04:00

CBS hasn’t had a new reality show hit in several years so when it green-lit “Undercover Boss,” the network only ordered nine episodes, a dutiful sign of caution.
...
“I think most workers think executives are aloof and don’t understand their problems,” said Perry Binder, an assistant professor for legal studies at the Robinson School of Business at Georgia State University. “They get a kick seeing them get down and dirty and hope if they see what they do each day, they can improve things.”

Continue reading:
Undercover Boss’ on CBS spotlights Stone Mountain Park & the Norcross company that runs it
March 25, 2010, by Rodney Ho
http://blogs.ajc.com/radio-tv-talk/2010/03/25/undercover-boss-on-cbs-spotlights-stone-mountain-park-the-norcross-company-that-owns-it/

Move Elementary School out of Harm's Way

2010-03-25T16:53:00.009-04:00

This is a follow up to my Saturday, January 23, 2010 post

I follow the Marsh Fork/Massey coal issue very closely -- in April, there will be a school board vote on needed funds to move this school.

In West Virginia, the Marsh Fork elementary school sits 400 yards downstream from a dam holding back billions of gallons of water/coal sludge. The West Virginia government has refused to build a new elementary school in a safer location. The community, afraid for its children's lives, began the organization Pennies of Promise to raise the funds themselves. In April 2010, the school board will vote on funding for a new school. Are you willing to lend your voice to support these kids?

My students have joined the Facebook page below, and I am reaching out to other schools in an effort to elevate media awareness and the importance of a new school.

The "Pennies of Promise" Facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2256931294

Please pass this post on to others.

APRIL 7 UPDATE

Our prayers go out to all of the miners' families -- The Upper Big Branch mine near Whitesville, W. Va. is just 9 miles from Marsh Fork Elementary in Sundial, W. Va.

Marsh Fork Elementary School is the Media Staging Area for broadcast and print journalists for the latest information on the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster. Video on this link. http://www.wsaz.com/news/headlines/90049972.html

WVU is collecting condolences for families of mine disaster http://blogs.wvgazette.com/coaltattoo/2010/04/06/wvu-collecting-condolences-for-families-of-massey-energy-mine-disaster/

Keep Them Laughing to Keep Them Learning

2010-03-19T14:54:00.005-04:00

Below is my university's Center for Teaching & Learning Newsletter (pdf)

CONTENTS:

New technologies spark student-teacher symbiosis

Teaching Today’s Students - Is it harder or just different?

Keep Them Laughing to Keep Them Learning - my article, originally in Atlanta Journal Constitution

I never dreamed of being a college professor.
Does anybody?

When my third grade teacher asked us about our dream job, Molly said, “Astronaut.” Evan, “An actor.” Perry: “Obtain a terminal degree and lecture on legal morasses.”

Whether you teach third grade or nuclear physics, every student wants a
good laugh. As teacher accountability objectives collide with shorter attention
spans, laughter is the secret ingredient to keep everyone on task.

CONTINUE READING (PDF)

http://www.gsu.edu/images/CTL/_CTLnewsletterSpring10.pdf

Students found their hearts in Joe Fran’s classroom

2010-03-18T06:56:00.003-04:00

I enjoy reading these stories and passing them on:

By Cate Murway, Correspondent, Bristol Pilot News
We all have favorite teachers. Whether they taught us how to read, write or do arithmetic, encouraged us, challenged us or gave sound advice in times of confusion, all of us have one or two educators in mind when we are asked: “What is the best thing you learned, so far?”

...

“Teaching was a wonderful career for me and I loved it. The student taught me as much as I taught them. I taught them to love and be passionate.”

Continue Reading: http://www.buckslocalnews.com/articles/2010/03/17/bristol_pilot/news/doc4ba126bba69a2897790441.txt