New teachers reflect on their first semester

I enjoyed this article about new teachers, the mistakes they've made, and the motivation they have to succeed in the 2010 spring term.

Enthusiasm is contagious (excerpt):

When I was in college, I had several friends studying to be teachers. Every time they would talk about student teaching or creating lesson plans, I would think 'No way. Not me.' " At that time in my life, the idea of holding the education of 20-some students in my hands was enough to strike terror in my heart. Now the idea of putting up with 20-some children who are not mine is enough to do the same. So my hat is off to those who decide to pursue that career. The best teachers are the ones who hold that calling on their life, who have that special gift of inspiring students to do their best and to explain the concepts they need to know in a way that each child can understand.

Read the article:

http://mywebtimes.com/archives/ottawa/display.php?id=394586

Did you know The Fonz co-authored 9 children's books about Dyslexia?

To his great surprise, veteran actor Henry Winkler has carved out a new career for himself as a children's author. Having struggled - and suffered - throughout his school years with unidentified dyslexia, it's still hard for him to imagine his name even appearing in the same sentence with the words "author" or "book." But, Winkler and his co-author, Lin Oliver, have completed nine novels in their series, Hank Zipzer: The World's Greatest Underachiever, which recounts the hilarious adventures of a resourceful, wisecracking fourth-grader - who also happens to have dyslexia.

Winkler, who recently turned 60, graduated from the Yale University School of Drama and has achieved a successful 30-year career as an actor, director, and producer. Although he's received many honors for his work, he's probably still best known and loved for his role as the definitively cool Arthur "The Fonz" Fonzarelli in the 1974-84 television comedy series Happy Days, co-starring well-known director Ron Howard.

Continue reading: http://www.greatschools.org/LD/managing/henry-winklers-dyslexic-hero.gs?content=977&print=true&fromPage=1

On Happy Days, The Fonz played an auto mechanic teacher. Here's an actual car mechanic with dyslexia who became a teacher...

“TEACHING has changed so much over the years,” are the opening words from Paul Reid, a 39 year old from Perry Barr, when you ask him what he thinks of his new career. “I really struggled when I was at school. It was differrent (sic) back then and admitting you had a problem understanding something wasn’t easy.’”

Paul was a car mechanic for 15 years before suffering from arthiritis and decided to change career.“I loved mechanics so much that I decided that I wanted to teach others how to do it,” he explained.

Continue reading: http://bristol.indymedia.org/article/691242

Radio Interview, Dec. 17, 4pm-5pm EST

Looking forward to this interview with longtime radio host Pam Atherton. I recently listened to her interview with Bill Kurtis, Journalist/documentary host (and recovering lawyer!) and learned some very interesting things about his life.

But what I really like is the cool promo photo for the show, pictured here.

A Closer Look with Pam Atherton

Dec. 17, 4pm-5pm EST

Listen hear: http://www.acloserlookradio.com/binder.php

NYC Teachers Sue for a Pass Out of Rubber Rooms

Pictured left: Cell phone photo from a Queens, NY Rubber Room

While this blog is dedicated to inspiring teacher stories, I'd be remiss if I didn't post this story about K-12 teachers who believe they are being unjustly treated:

BROOKLYN (CN) -Some 2000 schoolteachers say New York City is discriminating against them by confining them on trumped-up charges in infamous "rubber rooms" until they retire. Rubber rooms are study hall-like places where teachers are paid full wages to do nothing -- sometime for years. Continue reading - http://www.courthousenews.com/2009/12/01/Class_of_Teachers_Sues_NYC_For_a_Pass_Out_of_Rubber_Rooms.htm

I stumbled across the rubber room issue when selecting the title of my book.
In my book Intro:
Rub·ber Room (noun)
A confining mind-set where thoughts and possibilities bounce aimlessly

In my book Epilogue:
Rub·ber Room (noun)
An isolated place where schools send unruly teachers awaiting disciplinary proceedings

After the fact, I dug deeper into the NYC Rubber Room problem, and discovered some reasons (justly and possibly unjustly) that teachers get sent there. One of the biggest issues is how long teachers must wait until given a due process hearing to get reinstated (they are suspended with pay until a resolution). Though my book has nothing to do with the NYC Rubber Room issue, a couple of months ago I wrote this letter to provide moments of levity for Rubber Room occupants awaiting a hearing:

September 28, 2009

Michael Mulgrew
President, United Federation of Teachers
52 BroadwayNew York, NY 10004

Re: The Rubber Room New Yorker article – Your Letter to the Editor

Dear Mr. Mulgrew:

I am a Queens, New York native (PS 184, JHS 194, Bayside HS) and a Legal Studies professor at Georgia State University, who read your Letter to the Editor in The New Yorker with great interest. One of the most telling quotes in Mr. Brill’s piece concerned the city official’s statement: “Our standard is tighter than ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’.”

I had never heard the term “Rubber Room” used in the school system context, until I started researching the title of my enclosed book, Unlocking Your Rubber Room (2009). The reason I am writing is because I am interested in supplying each borough’s “Rubber Room” with a copy of my book (at no cost). www.YourRubberRoom.com

Unlocking Your Rubber Room is a humorous look at law and life (Sections I & II), with my bent perspective on the justice system (Section III). I believe that the book would help Rubber Room occupants maintain or regain perspective as they await their hearings. If anything, the book’s title and content would offer some needed levity.

Please let me know if you have any thoughts on how to accomplish the above task. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Perry Binder

Mr. Mulgrew's Letter to the Editor of The New Yorker
Brill captures the Kafkaesque quality of Rubber Rooms, in which teachers linger while the Department of Education ponders accusations against them. Read more:
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/letters/2009/09/28/090928mama_mail2

Postscript: To date, I have not heard back from Mr. Mulgrew, but a couple of people are attempting to assist me and get free copies of my book into the five NYC Rubber Rooms.

Photo from B&N Signing / Upcoming Radio Interviews

In a stark contrast to my NYC rubber room story above...

Thank you to Sharon and Shoppers - a great day at B&N!

On the life of an author: "When the bookstore gave me Reindeer ears, I knew I was in trouble."

In this photo, the Lawyer-turned-Teacher is flanked by two readers - a lawyer and a teacher.

Upcoming: Thursday, December 17, 4:00pm-5:00pm EST - A Closer Look Radio with Pam Atherton (Clovis, NM)http://www.achieveradio.com/closer-look

Thursday, January 21, 2010, 3:00pm-4:00pm EST - Dare to Be Remarkable with Kandee G (Miami, FL) - 880AM http://www.880thebiz.com/

TBA - Tell Me Your Story (Santa Barbara, CA) - 1290AM

After 60 years of teaching, substitute is still at the head of the class

Substitute teacher Martin Carole has seen just about everything a room full of students has to offer.

By Joshua Garner The Gazette

Continue reading:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/02/AR2009120202117.html?wprss=rss_education

The 10 Best Teachers in Movie History

I found this list from filmcritic.com - http://www.filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/reviews/The-10-Best-Teachers-in-Movie-History

Clearly missing from the list is Alex Jurel (Nick Nolte) in Teachers (1984), dealing with the ultra cool Eddie Pilikian (Ralph Macchio) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088242/ . Also, how can you leave off Professor Terguson (Sam Kinison) in Back to School (1986) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090685/ The list was compiled in 2006, so we need to add Erin Gruwell (Hillary Swank) in Freedom Writers (2007) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0463998/ Hey, what about Dewey Finn (Jack Black) in The School of Rock (2003) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0332379/

If we can sneak in some principals, I'd vote for Crazy Joe Clark (Morgan Freeman) in Lean on Me (1989) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097722/ and The Principal (1987) with Rick Latimer (Jim Belushi) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093780/

The 10 Best Teachers in Movie History - filmcritic.com
10. Terry Corrigan (Class of 1984)
9. Mr. Chips (Goodbye, Mr. Chips)
8. Miss Shields (A Christmas Story)
7. Dave Jennings (Animal House) - Dean Wormer was more interesting
6. Glenn Holland (Mr. Holland's Opus) - tear jerker movie
5. Mr. Hand (Fast Times at Ridgemont High) - that's my pizza, dude!
4. Mark Thackeray (To Sir, With Love)
3. John Keating (Dead Poets Society) -all star performance
2. Jaime Escalante (Stand and Deliver) -all star performance
1. Georges Lopez (To Be and To Have)

Book Discussion/Signing for Teachers, Dec. 5

Saturday December 05, 2009

11:00 AM- 1:00 PM

Barnes & Noble@ The Avenue Forsyth

410 Peachtree Pkwy; Cumming, GA 30041, 770-781-0867

This event will feature a discussion with Forsyth County public school teachers at 11:00am, followed by a signing for all thereafter. From Barnes & Noble ...

Holiday Stress getting you down? Come join us as we welcome Author Perry Binder to our store. Perry is the Author of Unlocking your Rubber Room. In his book you will discover off-the-wall lessons to help you lighten and transform your life.

His book makes the perfect holiday gift!

Margaret Pepperdene, 89: Teacher and scholar

In my continuing effort to celebrate the brightest teaching stars, please read about Professor Margaret Pepperdene:

Dr. Margaret Jane Pepperdene had retired from Agnes Scott College after a 31-year career. The Paideia School called. They wanted her to teach junior and senior English. ...

Dr. Pepperdene taught at Agnes Scott from 1954 to 1985. She was Agnes' first Ellen Douglass Leyburn professor of English. For years, the Navy veteran, who served from 1943-1946, directed the college's Writers' Festival.
After retiring from Agnes Scott, she taught 22 years at the Paideia School. She retired in 2008, at the age of 88. ...

An only child, she had no family. Her mother died when she was a toddler; her father died when she was in grad school. A cousin and aunt have also passed away. So her family, Mr. Bianchi said, are the students she taught more than 50 years.

Continue reading:

http://www.ajc.com/news/margaret-pepperdene-89-teacher-210771.html

Lessons from the Field: Interview with Perry Binder

This interview was in http://certificationmap.com/lessons-from-the-field-interview-with-perry-binder/

Posted on November 23rd, 2009

This post is part of the Teachers Certification Map’s “lessons from the field”, a series of posts featuring passionate, inspiring educators from across the country discussing some of the lessons that they have learned over the years that would help young teachers as they embark on their careers.

Perry Binder teaches business law for undergrads and MBA students at Georgia State University in Atlanta, and is the author of Unlocking Your Rubber Room: 44 Off-the-Wall Lessons to Lighten and Transform Everyday Life. He has been teaching for two decades.

What inspired you to teach?

I was practicing law full-time and was looking for something fun to do part-time. When I taught my first class, I said “I gotta somehow do this full-time!”

What classroom methods are most helpful in pushing students towards their goals?
I. Attempts at humor through “exaggerated example,” detailed in an Op-Ed I wrote, Making a case for Classroom Humor, in the Atlanta Journal Constitution:
“Exaggerate to illustrate. Paint an implausible mental picture to reinforce a topic. When we study “self-defense,” a limping crazy man wields a lumberman’s ax and approaches a student track star limbering up for a run. If the crazy man is 200 feet away, does the student have a duty to retreat, or can she pick up and use a submachine gun conveniently left on a park bench?”

II. I try to get students aware of the world around them them. For example, in my legal studies class, we study the following case:

“In a small town in West Virginia, an elementary school called Marsh Fork exists. It is downriver from a massive coal mining operation, and toxins in the air and water are making the students extremely sick. 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.”
http://www.penniesofpromise.org/

My class project includes:
Visit the web site http://www.penniesofpromise.org/ – this web site gives news on the efforts to move Marsh Fork Elementary School in West Virginia out of harm’s way. Contact any of the following people: someone from Pennies of Promise or any other West Virginia organization with knowledge of the issues involved, a West Virginia journalist, a West Virginia legislator, a staff member in the West Virginia governor’s office, etc. Conduct a telephone or e-mail interview with this person. What did you learn from this interview about Marsh Fork, the legal system, and the coal industry.

The above project is suited for college or high school aged students. It would also be a good project for 4th or 5th graders to somehow reach out to the students at Marsh Fork Elementary.

III. 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.” For every class, I try to live up to my own expectations through an acronym mentioned in my book:

Perry’s L. I. G. H. T. B. U. L. B. Moment for Teacher
L. isten to all learners
I. nspire them with real world discussions
G. ive hope to everyone
H. eap compliments on students for quality work
T. each to your strengths
B. e available at all times
U. nderstand that students lack your life experience or knowledge
L. earn from your learners
B. e willing to walk in anyone’s shoes

What is the one thing you wish you’d known when you started in the classroom?
How to write fair and objective exams.

What skills could more developed if you were to enroll in a teacher training program?
Writing better learning objectives and outcomes.

What would you like to improve about your teaching?
With 200 students this semester, trying to figure out a way to remember everyone’s name!