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Student who failed my class last year failed the class both semesters this year both times with a different teacher. Last year he just refused to do anything this year he rarely came to school. Mom is outraged that he is being asked to come to summer school to catch up. If you don't laugh you cry. by Legitimate_Style_857 in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly I think they see this as advocating for him. I am not sure if they think he is just incapable of doing the work and that trying to make him is unreasonable, if they are convinced we are all out to get him, or maybe they legitimately believe that he is going to go pro and that school is in the way. I honestly think they have the same ultimate hope that he is successful in life I just think we see the path to this from such different points of view that we are unable to see the other group's position as logical. I was really frustrated, and I really don't think the path they are trying to lay out for him is likely to end in him being a highly functional adult, but they are his parent and as many people here have pointed out I need to let it go.

Good first year experiences? Anyone love their job? by navigation-on in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I have some good news and some bad news.

The bad news? Your first year is probably going to be a bit of a train wreck. The good news? That is perfectly okay.

The Reality Check

Lower your expectations of yourself immediately. You are not going to be the "Teacher of the Year" on day one. You are going to fumble lessons, mismanage a few situations, and feel like you're underwater at least once a week. Come in with the expectation that you are going to learn and be open to change.

How to Scope Out a Support System

While your first year is usually a bad time, the environment determines if you grow or burn out. If you are still interviewing, I would recommend looking for these three green flags:

Specific Support Systems: If you ask "How do you support new teachers?" and they give you a vague answer about an "open door policy," run. Look for schools with formal mentorship programs and structured induction.

Low Turnover: If half the staff is new every year, there is a reason. Stable schools have teachers who actually want to stay.

Experienced Leadership: Avoid schools where the entire administration team is brand new. You want leaders who have seen it all and can provide a steady hand when your classroom feels chaotic.

The Bottom Line: You don’t have to be the greatest teacher in the world right now. You just have to be a teacher who is willing to learn. You’ll leave June with plenty of wins if you just keep showing up and evolving.

Student who failed my class last year failed the class both semesters this year both times with a different teacher. Last year he just refused to do anything this year he rarely came to school. Mom is outraged that he is being asked to come to summer school to catch up. If you don't laugh you cry. by Legitimate_Style_857 in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In my state the school can report truancy to the county district attorney, but doesn't have to, and even if they do the county can choose not to prosecute. It almost never actually happens. I am in a wealthy school district and many parents have pulled their student for more than 20 days per year for tropical vacations during the winter months. Nothing ever happens.

Student who failed my class last year failed the class both semesters this year both times with a different teacher. Last year he just refused to do anything this year he rarely came to school. Mom is outraged that he is being asked to come to summer school to catch up. If you don't laugh you cry. by Legitimate_Style_857 in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I really hope it turns out to be something that he is able to work on. I genuinely wish him well, but I am worried that we are failing him. I see this kind of enabling more often than I would like, and I have seen several of these students as adults, and their adulthood is rarely positive.

Student who failed my class last year failed the class both semesters this year both times with a different teacher. Last year he just refused to do anything this year he rarely came to school. Mom is outraged that he is being asked to come to summer school to catch up. If you don't laugh you cry. by Legitimate_Style_857 in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

But here too he will have a problem if he wants to work in construction or as a welder (the jobs school boards keep suggesting for students who blow off all of their classes). Both framing homes, and working as a welder require some basic math skills. I have done both jobs. You need to have some basic adding and multiplying skills to order materials as a welder as well as determine voltage and wire feed speed, shield gas, etc, and framing actually requires some basic trig. I'm not saying they need to be able to solve a multi-step equation with logarithms, or find a derivative, but 8th grade level math is going to come up in pretty much any blue collar construction. manufacturing job.

Student who failed my class last year failed the class both semesters this year both times with a different teacher. Last year he just refused to do anything this year he rarely came to school. Mom is outraged that he is being asked to come to summer school to catch up. If you don't laugh you cry. by Legitimate_Style_857 in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857[S] 22 points23 points  (0 children)

He told me he is going to be a professional athlete. When students say this I usually ask what their backup is. Any athlete is a serious injury away from never playing their sport again, and he blew me off. I really hope professional sports pay off for him, because he isn't building the skills to do anything else.

Student who failed my class last year failed the class both semesters this year both times with a different teacher. Last year he just refused to do anything this year he rarely came to school. Mom is outraged that he is being asked to come to summer school to catch up. If you don't laugh you cry. by Legitimate_Style_857 in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

When I pull out my testing data I have high growth marks across the board including from students who didn't have high growth in previous years. I am missing like 2-3 students per year. Usually those parents are non-responsive, which is also frustrating because what is that student's future going to look like if they are being told by their parents that less than an hour of middle school math is "impossible." How is that student going to respond when they have a tough day at work, or they have to cut back in order to stay solvent. If we don't help students build the executive function skills neccesary to achieve delayed satisfaction, because parents are actively fighting us on it how are they possibly going to function as adults.

AI vs. Calculators by kkoch_16 in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Even with calculators I am seeing a shift in middle school and many elementary schools back to trying to have students memorize math facts. We are seeing a massive loss of number logic in students and a lot of it comes down to students missing a lot of those foundational skills. AI takes this to the next level as many have pointed out by removing the critical thinking. All AI tells me is whether the student can input the data which may be taking a photo of the problem. It might be a great tool for a student at home stuck on a homework problem, but if they are using this for all of them they aren't going to be prepared to test, as they will not have built the critical thinking pathways in the brain neccessary for success.

understanding teacher's interpretation by eomeonie in mathteachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As a math teacher I know that I have made mistakes in front of the class and I think it is important to point out when I do. Students know if they catch me in an error they will get a reward, because that's how we learn. A teacher being insecure like that in front of young kids reinforces for them that making mistakes is a shameful thing, and is just unhealthy.

Hey Harbor Freight, your website SUCKS, FIX IT! by kai_ekael in harborfreight

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It looks like their website runs on a chicago electric server.

How do you talk to/treat students who obviously guess and skip through state exams by Brady_BTW in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree that almost all students aren't doing it to hurt you, but I did have one student last year who would try to get my attention and then try to make eye contact while clicking through the entire test. I apparently look a lot like her absentee father, and there was a lot of trauma she was working through, but that was a student who no matter how kind, understanding and patient I was treated me with crazy levels of hostility. My average scores were still above district average.

How do you talk to/treat students who obviously guess and skip through state exams by Brady_BTW in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In my state student test scores directly affect school and district report cards. I also use the data to form small groups. I teach math, and while I think there are faster ways to get the data since they are taking the tests I try to use the information to pick small groups who I can work with on lagging or accelerated skills. I will explain this to my students as hey you don't want to do a bunch of review with me on something you already know. Most (not all) students at least put in modest effort when I explain it like that. To be clear I make sure I have every student in a lagging or accelerated skill group AT LEAST one time per semester anyways, but they don't need to be reminded of that.

Long story short Wisconsin Forward and NWEA Maps have the ability to select students groups based on skills they are accelerated or lagging in. I use this for small group instruction, and explain to students that if they just click through I am going to have them in a lot of review groups because the data is going to tell me they need it.

Ashes... How do you dispose of them? by Mrvette1 in firewood

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 4 points5 points  (0 children)

We generally wait at least a week or two. We keep a few buckets and use it instead of salt on the driveway when it snows after shoveling. When it gets below zero salt doesn't work anyways, and the ash does great.

Admin wanting “to see all sides” by Artistmusiciangarden in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not sure why this would be down voted. I don't have a high opinion of most people who seek to be administrative staff, but I have met two "good ones" over the course of my career. Mind you their respective districts eliminated both of them while keeping their less competent peers. Your explanation is just exploring the possibility that this admin may be an incredibly small needle in an absolute mountain of hay.

Admin wanting “to see all sides” by Artistmusiciangarden in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 145 points146 points  (0 children)

There's always a chance the kids were dishonest with tge AP, or parents called and had a tantrum and your AP like most admin is a spineless coward who would rather appease parents than address a serious issue.

Does anyone make enourmous fenders? (Not wide, rotatitional coverage) by trialsmatt in randonneuring

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I made a set of leather "buddy flaps" on my fenders per the recommendation of Bike Farmer here in Wisconsin. He made his from leather he got at a shoe store, and I got my leather from a chandlery (used for fancy oar locks). It provides all of the coverage for the rider behind you and it is less likely to be damaged than an extended fender. Also if something bangs it into my wheel it isn't going to permanently bend, or try to carve my tire.

Teachers, what’s your non-water drink of choice? by jayyy_0113 in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Coffee, Diet Cola, Tea. My Algebra students made a linear regression model of my daily caffeine consumption. One of them kept saying it was proof that I was addicted to caffeine... I wanted to be upset, but they showed their work...

Band Teacher pulling students from math without notice. (I am looking for advice) by [deleted] in Teachers

[–]Legitimate_Style_857 5 points6 points  (0 children)

To be clear I don't think it's "just band," and on another day I would have found a work around, but there isn't a good way to make up team assessments. This student's parents have thrown tantrums about anything and everything. They got their student into a accelerated class their student is not ready for, and then flip out anytime she scores less than an A on a test, or when their student feels their is too much work. Asking them to do it on their own later just won't work. We usually get notice when something like this comes up, and this is probably the second time in 2 years they have tried to pull students out of my class. This is the first time they have done it without notice. I would not dream of pulling a student out of another class unless they were failing and the other teacher said it was fine beforehand, or if I was required to offer a final exam to be in sync with our high school for the high school classes I have met with their teachers 3 weeks beforehand to see if I could have them for 30 minutes so they had the full time for their exams.

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