Ask Your Students...

"Smile."

"Let your students make some of the choices."

"Give your students time for free play."

"Ask your students what they like to do."

"Talk to your students about your dog and your wife."

"Always be fair when your students do something you don't like."

"Tell jokes."

"Make the class fun."

This was some of the advice that a group of second-grade students at a suburban elementary school outside of Houston had to share last year, when a student from a local college was visiting to do his required fieldwork.

On the surface, this advice might seem less than transformational.

But when you take a deeper look, there is a lot of wisdom in the words of this band of enthusiastic students and we can see certain educational and social justice themes begin to emerge.

First, there is a strong need for students to feel connected to their teachers -- to know their teachers and to feel their teachers know them.

Students work best when they feel understood -- a feeling that teachers can nurture by asking students questions about their interests and lives outside of school.

At the same time, students also have a strong curiosity about teachers' lives outside of school -- what their families are like, how they spend their time, and what activities they enjoy. When students know who their teachers are -- not just in the classroom but at home -- they feel more safe within the classroom, and the behavior of teachers also begins to feel more predictable. This predictabilty, often, allows them to feel safe.

This group of students seemed express a strong desire to have their own voice -- to be able to enjoy free time, when they could choose to complete their own activities or stations within the classroom. This isn't surprising, since being shuttled from one activity to another often leaves students feeling like they don't have time to leisurely explore -- and to think more deeply about what they are learning and doing.

There also seems to be a strong desire for more fun within the school setting. So often, particularly in our current high-pressure environment many schools are focused on boosting test scores and teachers are anxious about how and when they are going to cover an expansive curriculum. With these pressures, it is easy to lose sight of fun. But students long for it -- and when we give them opportunities to have fun, they reward us by working hard and extending their respect.

We can learn a lot by listening to our students -- and by doing what we can to honor their desires.

No Parenting Classes Needed Here

Maria ** quietly changed her 6-week-old daughter’s diaper on a plastic table in the corner of the gym.

As her little girl squirmed, Maria smiled, stroked her cheek, and whispered lovingly to her in Spanish.

A cluster of women stood nearby, watching and smiling.

“Look at Maria!” one of the women exclaimed in what could only be described as surprise. “She knows how to change that diaper so well. And I think she really loves her baby.”

The women – well-meaning volunteers who had agreed to volunteer a few hours at a program for homeless families – started to speculate on the source of Maria’s diapering skills – as well as how she had come to care for her baby with such tenderness.

One woman, decked out in a white ski jacket, designer jeans and Uggs, thought she had the answer: “I think they give the women that are in these homeless programs parenting classes. That must be why she is like this. Isn’t it so beautiful?”

I stood just outside their circle watching, shuffling my feet, hesitant to correct them when I knew that their intentions were good.

But I happened to know that Maria had not, indeed, been required to attend parenting classes because the staff who ran the homeless program recognized, in their wisdom, that Maria did not need parenting classes.

Instead, what Maria needed was a warm, safe place where she could care for her baby and, with the help of professionals and an elaborate network of potential employers, develop a plan for getting back on her feet after leaving her abusive husband.

But really, Maria could have been teaching the rest of us about parenting there in that gym.

Because she has proven herself to be endlessly patient and loving – even as she has had to walk her baby in the middle of the night, up and down the halls of a darkened gym, school or church providing temporary housing for her and other homeless families.

She looks at her young daughter, who is just learning to smile at the people around her, and she sees hope – and that hope has inspired her, arguably for the first time in her adult life, to become a stronger, more resilient person.

She is learning, day by day, that she can succeed. She is learning English. And computers. And household budgeting. And within about 45 days, she is expected to have a job and a place that she and her daughter can call their own.

And in doing that, Maria will continue to be a model parent – one who loves, values and tenderly cares for her daughter, no matter how difficult the days get.

We should all be so skilled in our parenting.

** Name and some distinguishing details of this story have been changed to protect the identity of those involved.

Teen Moms: Looking Beyond the Surface

The 16-year-old makes her way through the shopping center parking lot, pushing her squirming son in his brightly-colored Elmo stroller.

Shoppers hustling by can’t help but smile at the brown-eyed boy – who is bundled up in a puffy red coat that makes him look a bit like a miniature, armless snowman.

But the smiles the girl and her son receive often fade once the boy makes his relationship to her clear, calling out, “Mommy! Mommy!” as he smiles broadly and points at her.

The 16-year-old – a small-framed, dark-haired girl who looks like she is even younger – sighs and looks at me, a heavy sadness in her eyes.

“See? See that look they just gave me? I get that all the time – that look of judgment. They are accusing me when they look at me. And it’s so, so, well, it just makes me so angry. It hurts to see them look at me that way, day after day after day!”

People who see this young mother only know what is presented outwardly – that she obviously got pregnant very young, and now has a beautiful, inquisitive little boy.

This young lady has no delusions about parenthood – and says she didn’t before she had her son, either. She made a choice that resulted in an unintended pregnancy. And when that happened, with the help of her wonderful, unwaveringly supportive family, she thought things through and decided that she felt she needed to have the baby.

She scoffs at the girls she knows at school who think that being a teen mom is glamorous – a myth she, along with some experts, fear is being propagated by reality TV shows that have turned some young moms into instant celebrities.

“Being a parent is hard. I know that. I knew that then and I know it now. But I knew I had to have my son. And I’m so glad I did. He makes me want to work hard and be a better person.”

The people who see this young mother do not see her best qualities. They do not know that she has a detailed plan for her life – including her career, the schooling she needs to get there, where she wants to live, and the kinds of experiences she wants her son to have as he grows.

They do not know that she is bright – a person who has a memory that is so good it is unnerving. They don’t see that she is incredibly kind – the kind of person who can tear up talking about a friend who has lost a long-time family pet. Or a girl who is perplexed by the world around her – one that is often filled with drug and alcohol abuse, cruel, back-biting girls and people who make up lies about you on social network sites.

And yet, she perseveres. And throughout it all, she carries herself with dignity.

If only the rest of us could see it.

What Does the NCLB Reauthorization Really Mean?

Congress is back in session and both Congressional leaders and the President are eager to prove to voters that they can move forward and are not at a stalemate created by rigidly partisan politics.

That means education watchers can expect to see a renewed focus on public education policy – one of few areas where Democrats and Republicans often find themselves agreeing.

This renewed focus is good news for educational and social justice advocates who would like to see changes made to No Child Left Behind, a bipartisan effort originally initiated by President George W. Bush.

One of the changes many public policy experts expect to see is a new definition of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).

The sense, by many with an interest in educational and social justice, is that the benchmark needs to measure growth – improvements made for each student – instead of focusing on a single, specific, overall benchmark for an entire grade level.

Making this change could arguably be good news for a number of groups because it would end the “bubble student” phenomenon, where teachers and administrators pay the most attention to students who are only slightly below grade level, because they know this group is most statistically significant.

Under the current AYP definition, very low-performing students can make dramatic gains during the course of a school year, but this improvement is not acknowledged under the current system unless the student does not hit or exceed the benchmark.

At the same time, a change in the system would also be good news for high-achieving students.

Under the current NCLB law, it is tempting for teachers to ignore the needs of students already performing well above grade level, because they know these students will exceed requirements for the tests, and that the tests in no way measure anything beyond basic grade level expectations.

This means that our nation’s highest achieving students often see their needs ignored. In some cases, we know this creates an increase in the phenomenon of “at-risk gifted children” – students who are so unchallenged at school that they become bored and begin behaving inappropriately in order to get attention and to be engaged.

Many educational and social justice advocates, of course, would like to see No Child Left Behind scrapped entirely, marking an end to high-stakes testing across the board. This seems unlikely. But having a more accurate, meaningful assessment that measures the growth of all children would certainly be a step in the right direction.

One Organization. A Lot of Positive Change.

When it comes to advocating for educational and social justice, there are some organizations that get it so incredibly right you can’t help but be empowered and encouraged just by knowing they are out there working to bring about change.

One of these organizations, we believe, is Parents for Public Schools, a Mississippi-based organization that, as columnist William Raspberry writes, “is protesting that American communities cannot afford two separate school systems, one for the ‘haves’ and one for the ‘have-nots.’"

Parents for Public Schools shares our view that public education is a vital part of American life -- “an essential element of a democracy.”

Schools are important, the national organization’s leaders say, not just because of the written public school curriculum, but the unwritten one as well.

It is through that unwritten curriculum – the day-to-day interactions that come when students from varying backgrounds share the same classrooms, playgrounds, band halls and sports fields – that students learn how to function in a diverse world.

The organization, which was founded in 1989, insists that parents need to go beyond bake sales and field trip chaperoning, and to be actively engaged in systemic, “constructive involvement.”

This means that parents should have the opportunity to ask difficult questions, and to be involved in the governance of schools, serving as a bridge between public schools and the greater community.

And finally, the organization challenges parents to go beyond being focused on their own children, and instead to focus their attention on the needs of all of the school’s students.

The organization’s history is an inspiring one. The first chapter was formed in 1989 by 20 parents who were eager to recruit families to public schools in Jackson, Mississippi.

Those parents came together and brought about positive changes in Jackson schools. Soon, parents in other areas who heard about the effort began starting their own chapters. And today, the organization has a network of 16 chapters in 11 states, all dedicated to redefining parent involvement and improving public schools for all children.

How does that change happen?

Parents for Public Schools strategically structures its work around three areas – organizing for action, leadership development, and advocacy.

Their parent workshops inform and empower parents to become leaders within their communities and beyond. And their grassroots advocacy efforts consistently help to bring attention to issues that are essential to public education – and, in turn, to the future of our democracy.

Want to know more about this organization, which is transforming schools and communities in Mississippi, Texas, Michigan, California and beyond? Click here to check out the great work they're doing.

A Different Classroom Model

New York Times writer Sharon Otterman has posted a fascinating story on the efforts of The New Academy, a new public school in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.

The academy challenges the traditional teaching model by grouping four teachers in large, open classrooms of about 60 students. Academy leaders focus student independence over teacher-led lessons. And scientific inquiry practices are encouraged, instead of relying on rote memorization. Self-expression also is favored over strict structure and discipline.

The school is modeled after an elite private boarding school attended by some of the nation’s most affluent families.

But the demographics at New Academy are quite different. The New Academy’s students are from high-poverty backgrounds. And many have already spent a year or more attending public schools where they did not master basic concepts like letter and number identification.

To add to the challenge, about 20 percent of the academy’s students have been found to have emotional, physical or learning disabilities.

The school has had some difficulties, and some of the school’s most troubled students have been shifted to more traditional classrooms.

But leaders say they believe that many aspects of the school can and do work.

One of the most innovative elements is the hiring of a master teacher – paid about $120,000 – per class. The remaining teachers, for the most part, have been far less experienced early childhood teachers.

The theory, then, is that the master teacher can model strong teaching skills to the less experienced teachers. Because the classroom is open, the teachers all see each other at work and can offer suggestions and other supports.

In some cases, leaders say it is working. But next year leaders say they will probably hire some more experienced teachers, because the less experienced teachers seem to be struggling.

What do you think? Can a school like this be successful? What about the school appeals to you? What doesn’t? Is this a school where you would work? Send your own child or grandchild? What can we learn?

A Simple Look at Change

If you want to change some things in your life, you have to change some things in your life. This is because if you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always gotten. - Unknown

Sometimes - especially in the realm of education - I think that we tend to overcomplicate things.

Which is ironic, in some ways, because most educators are working with children. And children, more often than not, tend to keep things fairly straightforward.

Quite simply, we often get out what we put in.

If, as educators, we care deeply for the children we serve, it's fairly likely that they'll care for us in return. If we show up every day and give the best part of us, at some point our students will start to respond in kind.

And if we want change - if we want to create a more just system where children have greater access to opportunities - then we might need to change our daily interactions with others. We might have to speak up a bit more at a staff meeting or two, or be willing to go head-to-head with another educator who is contributing to the inequitable ways of the status quo. We might have to self-examine our own practices and recognize our own potential for growth. And then DO something differently.

Conversely, if we're happy with the way things are and the way they are going, then we need to keep on doing what we know is working. We need to love our students - sometimes more than others. We need to inspire them to greatness. And we need to remind them that change is possible if we are willing to, well, change.

What Motivates You to Engage in Good Works?

As educational and social justice advocates, do we work to do the good that we do because we are innately concerned and altruistic citizens – or are we simply motivated by the sense of fulfillment that we get when we engage in good works?

This is a question that Debra Levi Holtz explored in an intriguing article in the San Francisco Chronicle.

The article points to research that seems to show that many of us do, indeed, engage in good works because we care about others. And some of us, also, appreciate the fact that such acts can bring us a sense of satisfaction that makes us happier ourselves. Some of us have less altruistic motives – like income tax reliefs or making ourselves look good.

Either way, we know that the work of donors and volunteers matters in many educational and social justice endeavors.

Why do we give, overall?

Apparently many of us give because we are “re-payers” – people who donate to organizations or causes that have helped us or a loved one somewhere along the way. In some cases, personal experiences have made us acutely aware that we, too, could be in a situation of dire need.

Other people are casual givers, who give to a number of well known charities or through workplace giving programs.

Why do you, as an advocate for educational and social justice, choose to give of your time, your money and your expertise? What motivates you? Do you think that motivation matters? Why or why not?

One Successful Way to Help Improve High School Graduation Rates

Improving high school graduation rates, particularly in low-income and high-minority communities, continues to be a challenge.

But some improvements are being seen, particularly in schools and districts that have been smart about who they involve in their efforts to improve.

The Houston Independent School District has generated some positive press for their strategic use of high school graduation coaches like Craig Zeno, who are responsible for helping students to develop and stick to plans to earn enough credits to graduate.

Zeno is successful in part because of his passion and perseverance. Even when students seem to be sabotaging their own success, he doesn’t give up on them, continuing to encourage – and even hound – them until they do what it takes to graduate.

It likely helps, too, that Zeno understands the realities of growing up in hardscrabble neighborhoods, where many young people end up dead, in jail or on drugs. He has overcome negative influences, a tumultuous home life, and extreme poverty. And yet there he is, constantly smiling, encouraging and advocating for his students.

Craig Zeno reminds us that improvement can come – when we honestly and unselfishly share ourselves and our stories with the youth that need us most.

A Post-Race Society?

When Obama was elected America’s first African-American President, many people hopefully suggested that we were moving into a post-race society.

This new societal frontier, according to NPR commentator Daniel Schorr, would be “an era where civil rights veterans of the past century are assigned to history and Americans begin to make race-free judgments on who should lead them.”

And many educational and social justice advocates certainly hoped that this was – or soon would be -- true.

Yet, in many ways, 2010 was not a year that we moved beyond race, but one where we seemed to endure one race-related political firestorm after another.

From Harry Reid to Haley Barbour, a number of politicians on both sides of the political aisle have made headlines this year for their less than enlightened comments about race and race relations in America.

Clearly, we as a country – and as individuals – have not figured out how to have an honest, intelligent conversation about race, its implications and why it matters.

In many ways, 2010 was the year we got it wrong. But this year, we will all have new opportunities for discourse – whether those conversations happen in the public arena or in our own homes, schools and communities.

How can we do more to get it right, so that at the end of 2011, we can look back and feel good about where we have been – both as a society and as individuals? What role should educational and social justice advocates play? What do we do to move forward?

Can We Have an Honest Discussion about Class Size?

What we want for our own children should be, ideally, what we want for all of America’s children.

But this isn’t always the case – a reality that is particularly obvious right now, as many states, including California and Texas, are considering increasing class sizes to save money.

Any time discussions about raising class size surface, the argument is basically the same: Research on the benefits of class size are mixed. Other factors, particularly the quality of teaching, are more important than class size, according to a number of studies. Good teachers can serve 40 students just as effectively as 20.

But deep down, I suspect that virtually all of us, when we stop and think about it honestly, know that it matters whether a teacher is responsible for educating 20 students or 30 or 40. Obviously, it is easier for a teacher with 20 students to do a better job of understanding and meeting the unique needs of all students.

And, as a recent article in the Houston Press points out, many of those policymakers and pundits saying that class size doesn’t matter likely have their own children enrolled in private schools that advertise widely about class ratios as low as 12:1 or even 8 or 9:1.

If class size really doesn’t matter, why do our most elite private schools typically hold to low class sizes – not just in the lower grades, but beyond?

It is possible that in some states, the cost of keeping class sizes low really is something we can no longer afford, and sizes may need to be temporarily increased to make ends meet. But if the decision is made, we should at least have the integrity and honesty to say that yes, the decision is one that will inevitably be bad for public education – and for our children.

What ALL Children Deserve

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.

- Johann Wolfgan von Goethe

We don't - as a society - talk about boldness much with our children - our future - these days.

Ask any group of elementary-aged students in this country today about what they learn in school, and they can probably tell you a bit about accountability, and standardized testing, and following the rules (although maybe not in those exact terms). And if the children happen to attend one of the more underserved, impoverished schools in this country, they are probably even less likely than more privledged children to talk about the ways in which their schooling fosters ideals of boldness, and dreams, and power, and genius.

It's not that students at poorer schools don't believe they deserve to be taught these things, or even that the teachers, parents, and administrators don't believe it. Rather, it's that we have created an educational and societal system with some unspoken rules - rules about preserving what creativity and empowerment we do infuse in our schools to those with the most privledge, the higher test scores, the larger graduation rates.

There are exceptions to these rules all around us, of course. Some of the greatest teachers, students, and programs I've ever seen are in schools that have been designated high-poverty and low-performing. But, more often than not, wealthy children in wealthy schools are more likely to see the ideals expoused by Goethe infused into their educations.

And this kind of disparity, this kind of injustice, is what we're here to write about. And struggle with. And debate. And, hopefully, get to the other side of. Because this is the thing. ALL children deserve the opportunities that we give to SOME children. Period. That's educational justice. That's what we believe.