Where I've been, where I'm going...

It has been some time since I blogged. I am finding my new position a great professional challenge (in other words, it’s something new and very different). I’ve always enjoyed organizing things, so, really, this is right up my alley. I’m learning new things and recently gave input on a grant the district is applying for. That was an interesting process; I learned a lot about grant language, buzz words and creating a budget.

Unfortunately, it hasn’t left me much time for blogging or even trying out new strategies in the classroom. This is also the first year in my entire career that I am not teaching history or geography.

I was not expecting to miss teaching history quite as much as I do. Even my students ask me if I miss it. My journalism classes are great this year (newspaper and yearbook), but I do pine for my social science classes.

Last week, while at our first Lecture/Workshop we discussed how to take the ideas from the morning and apply them in the classroom. I found myself wishing that I had a class to work with so that I could try the ideas that the group came up with. I realized, however, that I could take many of the ideas and apply them to journalism and media studies.

Our morning lecture was devoted to Dr. Clarence Walker’s talk about his book “Mongrel Nation: The America Begotten by Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings,” where Walker posits that the U.S. has always been multi-cultural and it’s high time we admit that. He spoke eloquently about Hemings’ 38 year relationship with Jefferson and the 1998 media hoopla caused by DNA analysis of Hemings’ descendents that prove at least three of her children were fathered by Jefferson.

During the afternoon, 8^th and 11^th grade teachers discussed the meaning of the Jefferson/Hemings relationship, how to teach about Jefferson and how to teach about slavery (among MANY other related issues…such a great conversation). In the midst of all of this, we discussed James Callender’s attack on Jefferson using the media. That was when it hit me.

I could teach a great deal about U.S. history through Journalism. Why couldn’t we take media accounts of the Jefferson/Hemings relationship through history and look at the different ways the topic is discussed. How does a changing political climate effect the language used to describe a hot-button relationship in our history? My next task is to find newspaper articles that discuss the relationship, then I can write up the lesson!

Teacher Freelancing for Fun and Profit

Yesterday's New York Times post "Selling Lessons Online Raises Cash and Questions" is provoking quite the discussion on Twitter this morning. Some, like Paul Bogush (@paulbogush) point out "If I worked for Bayer and created a drug on their salary, could I then take it and sell it to other companies?" Others, such as Matt Montagne (@mjmontagne) say "I don't see what the big deal is w/ the article in the NYTimes about teachers selling lesson ideas for $$$. I think it's great."

I lean toward the "what's the big deal" side of the argument.

I have been paid by organizations other than my school district to create lesson plans or present at conferences on their behalf. I have written articles for professional publications and have been paid for that too. I am currently in an agreement to work with a group of teachers in my district to create lesson plans for a private organization. When we are finished we will be paid and the lesson plans will be available for free to anyone who wants them.

This last case actually led me to do some research on this topic. The organization that I am working with is adamant that the lesson plans be free for anyone who wishes to use them (even though the primary intent is for the teachers in my own district to use them). I actually found a school board policy addressing this very issue. As a result, none of the work that we do is done during duty hours, on a school campus, or using school equipment or resources. We do not use school telephones or school email to communicate about our work for this project. The board policy is not overly restrictive, but we don't want the copyright to come into question later.

Maybe a few years ago I would have felt differently about freelancing. At one point I did work in a district position where my agreement stated that anything created while in that position (as a paid mentor teacher) would be the property of the district. I was fine with that. I don't know if I'd agree to it as readily now.

I don't know many people outside of education who regularly give up their evenings and weekends to create lesson plans, do research for lesson plans or correct papers. I regularly work the equivalent of three extra days per week on school-related tasks (and I know teachers who spend many, many more hours on a weekly basis). I don't get paid for those days and I don't think that time is implied in my work agreement with my district.

If I can get even marginal compensation for my extra time, why shouldn't I be able to do that? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Lesson Improvement Idea: Colonial Legacies in the Modern World

The great thing about technology tools is that there's always a way to snazz up (is that even a word?) your lessons. The other day I was playing with GoogleMaps and discovered that it's more than just directions. I know, I know...this is not news. I did a quick little map (below) from a lesson that I did last spring with my students. The idea behind the lesson was to map evidence of colonial legacies (this example shows evidence in the banana trade). This was pretty easy to do and the view can be ported over to GoogleEarth seamlessly. I'm thinking that it might be better to have students use GoogleMaps or GoogleEarth to make their maps, rather than the decidedly low tech laminated desk maps that have been used in the past.

Last night I ran across reference to a spreadsheet template that allows users to create FANCY flags/comments in GoogleEarth, so that's the next thing to try!




View Larger Map