Chapter 20 - "Make It Cool to Care" and Chapter 21 - "Clarify Your Core"

 

On page 118, the author describes "The Great Teacher" he identifies as "Mrs. Heart."  How did Mrs. Heart motivate Darin to become interested in poetry?  What were Mrs. Heart's attitudes toward state standardized tests, and new initiatives that were inevitably rolled out over the years?  In your own words, what was Mrs. Heart's philosophy of education?  Do you agree with this philosophy?  Take a moment to describe your own philosophy of education after reading this book.

Chapter 19 - What About These Darn Standardized Tests?

 

At the end of the chapter, the author shares a key question he posed to teachers at a school wishing to raise its reading scores: "Are you so interested in improving your students' reading abilities that you are willing to change what you do in your classroom - or do you wan to raise their test scores so that you don't have to change what you do in your classroom?"  Write about your reaction to this question.  By posing this question, what is the author hinting at in terms of what is important to teachers about standardized tests?  Are most teachers willing to change what they do in their classrooms?  If so, why?  If not, why not?  What - ultimately - should determine whether teachers change their classroom practices?

Chapter 19 - Put Yourself In Their Position!

 

Whitaker notes that "in one way or another, every classroom is heterogeneous."  Think about the students you teach (or have taught) in the course of a school day.  How many are male?  Female?  How many live with both their mother and father?  How many are identified as having a learning, behavior, or physical disability?  how many are students for whom English is not their primary language?  Are some living in poverty?  Are any experiencing traumatic situations in their personal lives?  How many different religions, races, and cultures are represented by the students you teach?  In what ways are your personal characteristics similar or different from those of the majority of your students?  Do you have ways to learn more about the individual circumstances of each of your students outside of school?  If so, can you better relate to and work with these students once you know them better?  What steps can you take to intentionally put yourself in your students' shoes from time to time?

Chapter 17 - In Every Situation, Ask Who Is Most Comfortable and Who is Least Comfortable

 

On page 103, Whitaker refers to a "Pay for Performance" program in use at a university and the varying reactions to the program based on a survey of all participants.  The author suggests, instead, that the perspective of the entire faculty should not be the decisive factor.  Instead, he advises surveying only the top on-third of the faculty to solicit their level of comfort with the program.  Explain why he suggests this and how it related to the chapter title.  Think of a situation at your own school when you have felt uncomfortable with an action that was taken, in your opinion, as a response to poor performance on the part of mediocre teachers.  How did this make you feel?  What could have been done differently to address the problem?

Chapter 15 "Intentionalneess" and Chapter 16 "Base Every Decision on the Best People"

 

Think of a teacher you know - or who taught you - in whose classroom events always seemed carefully planned.  Was this teacher effective?  Describe a teacher you had or know who always considers her very best students when making decisions regarding teaching and learning.  

Chapter 14: The Ability to Ignore

 

The author notes the advice of a friend who is a police officer:  "You can look for trouble or you can look away."  Similarly, William James famously theorized, "The art of being wise is knowing what to overlook."  Take a moment to write your reactions to these two quotes as they relate to the classroom setting.  What behaviors that often occur in the classroom should teachers regularly overlook?  When should they go with the flow and when should they stop and take a stand?  How do they determine which disturbances are trivial and should be ignored and which should be responded to?  How can they respond without escalating the situation?

Chapter 13 - Don't Need to Repair - Always DO Repair

 

Imagine (or draw on your own experience) a situation in which parents are visibly upset with you about an incident at school involving their son or daughter (a bad grade, a demeaning comment allegedly made about the child, a punishment that they consider unjust, etc.).  Write about this situation and how it would play out if your immediate response was "I am sorry that happened." Write out a script of responses and follow-up replies in such as situation.  Remember, you are not saying that the incident was your fault or accepting blame; rather, you are simply starting off by expressing your sorrow that it happened.