Michael Pritchard spoke from the heart, with humor and sincerity, working up a sweat without hardly taking a break for an hour and a half! He addressed the need for compassion, respect, leadership and to search for the missing "soul" in our country and education. I was fortunate to have lunch with him, following his keynote at the conference last weekend. It was tempting to feel intimidated by someone who seems so highly recognized and well connected (the list of celebrities he calls friends goes on forever!), but we had a great conversation. The main point he made with me was to write. He said we (presuming the older generation) know so little about the youth in today's millennium - I need to write about my experiences. Hence, I am returning to making entries in this blog (after a 5 month absence).
"The best leaders get you to believe in yourself."
We had Michael Geisen - the 2008 National Teacher of the Year - speak at the last monthly seminar. Here he is, with a perfect expression to be posing with the most idiotic leader our country ever had:
I got the impression he won the award due to his passion for creativity, simplicity and making education relevant to real life problems. He spent a good deal of time comparing left and right brain mentalities - how students are strictly tested on specific retention of facts (left brain), which in turn has practically forced any creativity or use of imagination out of our schools today. He didn't mention Bush's brilliant act: "No Child Left Untested", but everything he spoke about pretty much went against it. His final quote was from Einstein: "Imagination is more important than knowledge". This really forced me to reconsider the importance of preparing students for the onslaught of tests this Spring. So, for the past few weeks, I have spent more time doing fun activities and teaching what the kids prefer to study - rather than cramming irrelevant data into their overwhelmed left-brain, starving right-brain heads.
In the previous seminar, I was ecstatic about getting to hear Erin Gruwell, the author of Freedom Writers (made into a movie in 2007). She was treated like a celebrity (understandably) for essentially surviving in the lion's den - turning a class of confrontational and under privileged students who most had given up hope on - into a group of inspired, successful and aspiring leaders. It seemed very personal to me since I felt like I lived through the same thing - "trial by fire" in my first year of teaching. It was an emotional presentation, which helped me understand the best reasons for being a teacher and made me want to stick with the profession more than ever. Afterwards, I got Erin to autograph her Teacher's Guide for me and felt a real connection.As a new teacher in California, I am required to participate in a program called BTSA (Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment). Many people complain about having to be in it, but I can't imagine why. I think it's the most supportive and worthwhile collaboration I have which I credit heavily for my survival thus far. I had an excellent mentor last year (Mr. Langley) and again this year (Mr. Airola). Aside from their confidential coaching, BTSA sponsors us to attend a variety of workshops and conferences (aforementioned) that could easily cost hundreds of dollars. Again, some people moan about having to give up their evenings or weekends, but I continue to experience top-notch presenters and leave full of inspiration and teaching strategies, eager to test them in my class the following day.
Here's to fostering creative minds to be future leaders and continuing the inspiration!
