Closing a Blog experience

As NTI blog experience comes to a close, another educational chapter in my life will come to a close. Blogging was great. We have been given new technologies and concepts to bring about change in the classroom.Talk about great benefits, this has been an awesome experience. Words cannot describe what I have experienced over the last several months. We have been taught so much. Now, I will have to take some time to reflect about this entire experience. Again I say thank you NTI teammates and instructors.
I wish the best for each and everyone of you. May God continue to bless your lives abundantly. Blogging out.

EOCT/Certification for CTAE?

We are gearing up for End of the course testing with all core subjects in about two weeks. All classes will be on block scheduling beginning on April 23 thru May 04. Will CTAE programs ever be mandated to use EOCT or some other type of testing measurement towards certification? I think some type of skill testing should be required before students can proceed to intermediate and advance level courses. End of the course testing or some type of multiple phase certification testing will help CTAE programs our assist students to move closer towards industry certification in their respective areas. What a minute. Are we supposed to be getting our students certified? Or, are we preparing our students for career exploration and Tech Prep.
While attending one of our articulation meetings last week, we were informed that Tech Prep funding faced reductions. These reductions will affect many CTAE programs across the State. I also believe these reductions stem from the inability of programs to provide concrete evidence of assisting students’ transition to the workforce. The true benefit for our programs might be providing an industry certification with an EOCT at the completion on the program. An EOCT and certification test could help prepare the committed student with an opportunity enter straight into the workforce with all the proper credentials
EOCT with CTAE courses will provide administrators and state coordinators valuable feedback to better plan for various programs.
It was jus a thought.

Articulation Programs

Do Articulation programs have a good success rate?

We had our annual articulation meeting this past week with Clayton State. This is my third year working with the Information Technology group. The meeting went well, but was somewhat disheartening as we attempted to discuss the success rate of past students. Our discussion revealed some alarming results. We have had zero students to take advantage of the articulation agreement in the last three years. This was our primary concern as we furthered the discussion.
Next year we will attempt help our seniors gain a greater understanding of how to better prepare for the college technology programs at Griffin Tech and Clayton state. We plan to work closer with Clayton State to promote the articulation agreements. The articulation concept can be successful, but only if both institutions work closer to enlighten students how to take full advantage of what is being offered. We look forward to making difference. Has anyone else had success with their articulation agreements?

How effective is a conference call?

Scheduled any advisory committee meetings lately? They never seem to have the right timing. Getting everyone together can be a real challenge at times. Tonight, we had our scheduled meetings from 6 P.M to 7 P.M. Attendance and participation were low as compared to our last meeting. Looking back over the last several years, we have never really had consistency in total team participation.
Our group arrived at the conclusion that we need to remain proactive in building stronger communication channels within our advisory teams. If we can’t get them to meetings, then we can at least have dialog with the team wherever they are located. Technology allows this process to take place any time and anywhere.
One of the proactive steps we implemented during this meeting was initiating a conference call with one of our major corporations in New York. This appeared to be a fairly successful process, so we plan to be innovative, set-up and test conference calls periodically with all our advisory team members before our next semi- annual meetings.
We have innovation at our finger tips, so why not use it. It appears to work well in the private sector and in major organizations. The conference call has become a way of life. Every6ne is on the run and use conference calling in one form or another. We also realized that a number of our committee members drive across the city during peak traffic for a one hour lunch/dinner then return to work or home. Could we improve everyone’s time management through effective planning? We think the answer is yes. So we plan to put it to the test .before school ends. We have about 10 committee / teachers on the advisory team. We may test 5 to 7. We will let you know how it turns out.

Block Scheduling can be Intimidating

We have been on Block Scheduling for the last several weeks while students prepared to take the GHGT. At first, planning for two hour instruction was a little intimidating but it all worked out.
This week we tested,(GHGT) so many of my classes were greatly reduced in numbers. It gave me the opportunity to spend time and provide quality instruction to some of my students that I would not have been able to give as much attention in our regular class time. Most of the students remained focused throughout the period with minimal distractions. We did some hands on activities and really explored the key points of the lesson. The students really appeared engaged and stated they learned alot from the lesson covered.I know it is a dream to think smaller classes and longer periods classes can produce successful instruction, especially in vocation classes. It just makes sense.Sorry, I got carried away, it was just a thought. I know someone out there knows that smaller classes might just yield quality results but they don't pay for themselves according to formulas used to calculate and allocate dollars from the government.Larger classes with major distractions tend to have higher failure rates and yield questionable results. Which would you rather? I thought we were discusssing block scheduling. Oh well, back to the grind.

Hats Off to NTI

I take my hat off to NTI. Only a short time ago. I struggled haplessly as new instructor with numerous challenges to sort. I thought I was pretty organized but after NTI training I realized I still had a ways to go. I must say, this year has been rough with tests, observations and ect, but I can't even imagine if I were not enrolled in training what might be going on in my little world. Last summer's planning really helped me to change some things in the classroom this year.
I am proud to say my classes appear to be running alot smoother and my classroom management has gotten better. My discipline referral rate dropped significantly. That is not to say I haven't had any issues, but the students have settled down for the most part. I can only give praise and thanks to Dr. Band Jessie H for helping me to see light at the end of the tunnel. I know we still have a ways to go, but I can see light. So I guess I will keep trying to be the best teacher I can be. Thanks to all my NTI support. I would like to thank each and everyone of you for a rewarding experience. Thanks again! Now lets get through the next several weeks. Back to the grind.

Henry

High Alert

Daylight savings time and warm weather introduce new flowers, birds chirping and high school fights. The climate at schools will surely change as temperatures rises . It is as if there is something in the air. Students are starting to become restless with each day. We have been pretty calm over the last several weeks, but not without incident. We have had a few fights here and there, but I remain on high alert. It seems to never fail, warm weather brings out the worst in some students. Personally, I will put up my surveillance and keep me eyes open to all activity. This is not the time to let down your guard. Students must be closely supervised at all times. We as teachers sometimes get alittle too relaxed as June approaches. I just pray and hope we can keep our students focused and encouraged to be responsible. Reinforcing character education should play an important part of our planning this Spring. So man your stations and stay alert.

Henry

Timing is everything

Stop and smell the coffee.
Below is the message we received before going on Winter break

All teachers need to attend the GPS Career Pathway training being offered via the "CTAE Resource Network"
“It is CRITICAL that teachers register for these classes as only 25 participants are allowed to register for each class. Although there are multiple locations and sessions being offered, teachers should enroll in the class that requires the least amount of travel time.”

Now we have to sign up for more training classes. We have barely reached the completion of the NTI program and now in the middle of semester we have to change the pathways of our courses. I do understand that training is essential and change is eminent. But the timing just never seems to be right. Things are getting a bit hectic right about now. Someone may need to throw me a life line. My scheduled activities continues to grow at an accelerated pace and everything is a priority. Yesterday, I was informed the Information Technology teachers of the county are scheduled for computer lab training Wednesday, followed by an articulation work meeting next Thursday. By the way, I smell more coffe brewing.

Jack of all trades or Master of some.

Last year when several vocation teachers at my school were selected to go to CDL training I didn’t have a clue how it would impact my routine as a teacher but I went anyway. Turns out I became the designated emergency school bus driver for all school activities. My driving schedule has been flexible, but sometimes impromptu with little notice given. I see it as just another job in the world wide world of teaching. Why complain, I’m already a teacher, parent, mentor, club advisor, baby-sitter, security officer,lunch monitor, technical support specialist just to name a few. But I must say, I have had some positive experiences driving for our teachers and students during various competitions and activities. My latest experience was driving for the Voca club for their regional competition where they took home four first places spots and qualified for the State finals. Watching our students compete in extracurricular activities has given me a broader perspective of how some students function outside the classroom. Driving bus for the school has also given me the opportunity to build relationships with peers and students that I would not probably have experienced otherwise during a regular school day. It has been refreshing to see students making great strives despite the negative rap sometimes portrayed by the media. My new job (driver) continues to allow me to grow and have a great teaching experience on and off the bus.

No rest for the weary

Talk about change. Earlier this week while I was taking attendance I notice something different in grade book, the Information Technology course names were changed. Now don’t misunderstand me, everyone knew change was on its way, but right in the middle of the first grading period. Talk about timing.
We were also told our curriculum was changing in a different direction. Programming was added to offer students a different option in computer technology. We were also told we will be adopting a new text book. Information technology labs are also slated for major upgrades in the next several weeks. My question is when will this addional training take place. I guess we should anticipate some additional training this summer after NTI.No rest for the weary. Programming will come with its on agenda and we will need to be ready. Change is eminent. Thanks for letting me vent for a minute.

Teacher Evalutions -Whew!

Talk about irony, when I saw teacher evaluations as a possible blog topic late Sunday evening, I said to myself, this might be an interesting topic. The next day I had an unannounced evaluation from one of my administrators. Talk about dejaveau, it was my third evaluation for the 2006-07 school year. Fortunately, everything went well with the evaluation. Whew! I try my best to be prepared daily (Multiple lesson plans for multiple courses), but sometimes my planning falls short. Usually, that is the day somebody comes in to observe. If it does not go well, the perception can be disheartening. One negative experience can change a new teacher’s promising career, depending on the evaluator.
Teacher evaluations can sometimes be intimidating, especially for new teachers. I have been teaching for three years and have had roughly ten to fifteen evaluations, excluding peer reviews and NTI observations. Some were formal while others informal. For me, evaluations are similar to taking standardized tests. Both definitely raise my anxiety level. There are many variables that influence instruction and all should be considered during evaluations. Even with classroom management procedures in place, behavioral issues continue raise concerns for teachers.
Mr. AB made some interesting points discussing the song and dance evaluation routine. I say plan everyday as though you are going to be evaluated even if you are not. It will only make you a better teacher.

Henryl

Plan! Plan! Plan!

When it comes to time management as a teacher, I seem to always be trying to catch up, no matter how hard I attempt to plan. It appears that I always need to add one more thing to my “To do List”. My latest dilemma has been adding new students to my introductory technology classes in the middle of the semester. The CTE teachers in our county were told some numbers were low and adjustments needed to be made. To date I have added twenty new students since the beginning of the year. This amounts to a 22% increase of new students added my classes in the last three weeks and could go on for another several weeks until program objectives are met.
I have also had to create new logons and formulate plans to get the new students acclimated as quickly as possible in order to maintain the designated classroom flow we began with at the start of the semester. Starting with new students in the middle of the semester means teaching a different type of multi-level classes in the introductory phase of the program as well as teaching other multi-level advance classes, which requires more planning. By the way,we are also expected maintain the school's website. While, I am thrilled to get new students in my program, time and classroom management challenges continue to surface daily. This places my students and me in an at-risk situation. We are still expected to achieve and maintain quality results. I realize planning never stops, but now I have to really plan for the unexpected. Plan! Plan! Plan!

A New Blog Participant

I plan to paticipate in the class blog this semester. Even though blogging has been around for the last fifteen years I have never felt compelled to explore this new type of technology.
Learning to blog should be both fun and educational.
The NTI Blog should really enhance the lines of communication in our class. It will give students a better means of communicating with our instructors and peers. Blogging will definitely give all students greater flexibility in completing the NTI coursework. I look forward to learning a new skill. Lets get ready to blog!

Henry