I just read this article in the Houston Chronicle, and it’s got me in a tizzy again.  Just reading that a teacher’s union representative would say this drives me crazy:

Gayle Fallon, president of the Houston Federation of Teachers, said she would advise members to avoid connecting with students on social-networking sites, though the Houston Independent School District doesn’t have a specific policy about it.

“Ninety percent of the time it would be OK,” Fallon said. “But what do you do with that one whose parent goes nuts: ‘What do you mean you’re my kid’s friend?’”

I’ll tell you exactly what I would say to that “nutty” parent.  First, I would point out that we teachers are human beings and members of the community in which our students live.  I am just as likely to bump into a student at WalMart as I am to see them online.  What makes the latter more dangerous (to the student and to my career) than the former?  Lots of child molesters troll for victims in public places, so what makes them safer than public social networking sites?  If you watch your kids at the supermarket, why don’t you monitor them online?

Second, I would remind the parent that making a connection with a student has been shown to be one of the most important factors in academic success for that student.  If a child feels that the teacher cares about him, he learns more.  It’s that simple.

Third, I would ask the parent why there is an assumption that contact online is inappropriate.  What educated adult in this era of digital records would believe that he or she could write something improper to a student on a social networking site and not get caught?  Call me naive, but shouldn’t you assume that a teacher has the best intentions until you see otherwise?  Why do you thank me profusely for phoning your child to see if she is okay after being out sick for several days, but assume that an electronic copy of the same message is laced with sexual innuendo?

Fourth, How am I supposed to find a good babysitter in a pinch from amongst the plethora of qualified former students without Facebook?

As a science teacher and information junkie, I am a big fan of Malcolm Gladwell’s writing, including the 2006 book Blink and last month’s release Outliers.  Both books are great reads for educators, and can impact the way we see our students and their abilities.

I am sure that I am neither the first or the last edublogger to take on Gladwell’s recent piece in the New Yorker entitled “Most Likely to Succeed“.  The author’s reputation and the subject matter all but guarantee that most teachers, administrators, ed school folks, and policy wonks will dissect it, spinning its message for their own use.  I want only to make a couple of points linked specifically to my experiences as a middle school science teacher.

First, it should be clear to anyone who reads this article that its educational conclusions are based on a very limited set of research studies, and as such do not portray everything that we know about how the quality of the teacher affects the outcome of the class.   That said, however, I know from reading research papers, numerous trade articles, and personal experience that the “quality” of the classroom teacher does have a significant effect on the atmosphere and learning that take place in that class. This may even apply to university professors and tutors for online degrees. An excellent teacher no doubt benefits the students. The opposite is also true.  (I’ve seen what happens when a parade of less effective temporary teachers comes through.)

Second, I take offense with the analogy made between college quarterbacks and professional educators.  While it is true that some teachers and quarterbacks come out of school with native ability and potential, the skills described by the Gladwell in his article can be (and should be) taught to novice and experienced teachers alike.  We can learn to do a better job.  In this way, I think that it is more fair to compare out vocation to others with professional certification like doctors who are not judged absolutely by their performance in their first year after college.  Rather their first few years consist of a strict training program in which they are evaluated critically and shown how to improve.  Of course, those who choose not to make themselves better do not belong in the profession.

Third, the most important factor to consider in the growing debate over merit pay, which is sure to be a central issue for the new Secretary of Education, is how we measure success in the classroom.  It is a simple, undeniable fact that multiple-choice Science test scores do not provide a meaningful or reliable measure of either student learning or teacher skill.  We simply must find a more efficient and accurate way to determine what students have learned and how well they have been taught.  Then, and only then, can we have an unbiased, objective way to reward those who do it well.

I spent this morning painfully wading through a quarterly meeting for those in my district who support technology in schools.  The main reason that it is usually so frustrating is that we spend most of our time being told about technologies/tools/websites/ideas that I already know about.  In some cases, I’ve been using them for years.  It’s eight hours of my life that I will never get back.

Today, however, was different.  I sat through a demonstration from the good people at Learn NC, an online portal supported by the University of North Carolina.  It is a site that I have visited many times before, but I learned about a related blog that blew my mind.  It’s called Instructify, and it’s a treasure trove of useful tools for teachers.  I learned a few new things myself, but I am most excited about sharing this as a GREAT example of why the average teacher in my school should be reading blogs.

It’s about to get really interesting…