New year, new me? I really hope so.
Last year this time, I posted a top ten list for positives and negatives of 2015. I planned to do a shorter version of that this year because math betrayed me and what was planned on being at top 10 ended up being functionally a top 20. Did that happen? No. So too went my resolution for 2016: be better.
Sounds simple enough, right? Wrong.
The problem with my resolution, as has at times been a problem in my classroom, is that it was too vague, not mesurable, and without goals and benchmarks. In trying to teach and guide myself, I failed. I'm not sitting here telling everyone I'm a terrible human. I'm saying that I did things all year to varying levels of success and am not sure if I reached me goal or not. In my mind, if I'm not sure, then it didn't happen.
My goal for 2017 will be in a blog tomorrow, so stay tuned for that.
Now for the refelction on the year.
The good thing about the sharp decline in blog production this year is that it is much easier to catch up on 2016 than it was on 2015. There are far fewer hidden gems that slipped by you if you are a once a day or even a once a week reader. Thank you for continuing to support. If I were doing a countdown this year broken down into positives and negatives, it would be a much shorter list. As eventful as 2016 seemed, it was much more relaxed than 2015.
On the negative side, there are a few things that stood out to me. The facilities issues across the district, while not new, certainly came to light in 2016. The SOC community came out in numbers to protest the condition of the school. People outside of the SOC community came out in numbers to protest the condition of the school. People involved = good. This led to advocates from other schools coming out in support of their communities as well. Zumwalt's mold problems have come to light as well. Students and teachers are finally going to be able to learn in a less mold filled environment. The final thing that makes my negative list is four of our board members voting to not let voters vote. That's a mouthful of a sentence, but that should indicate how crazy I think that decision was. Yeah, yeah, I know "the wording was confusing," but that's why you have a campaign and actually talk to your consitutents to inform them on what's happening. Call me old fashioned.
Rounding things out on the positive side, I have been overwhelmed and encouraged by the amount of community interest and involvement in education this year. Sure, I love election season and talking with trustees, but the D2 race in particular created some fantastic conversations and brought a lot of voters out to get involved. I like that. I have a better handle on my classroom and my ability to create and sustain routines is improving. That's a small personal victory, but for those of you that know me in real life, that's a huge step for me. Graduate school is going well and I'm enjoying learning more about what goes into making a successful school. Are there people that know those things intuitively and don't need some fancy grad program to learn that stuff? Absolutely, but I love mixing the world's knowledge together to make things better for my kids. That's what books and the internet are for. Lastly, the board voted to move ahead with the District of Innovation process. I'm excited to see where that goes.
Best of luck in 2017. Expect us to get back to flooding the internets with our teacher thoughts like we did in 2015. In the meantime, take a trip through the past and read a few things you may have missed.
Follow us on Facebook; Twitter; iTunes; Soundcloud; Stitcher
Related Articles:
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2016 - A Dallas Teacher Reflection
Dallas ISD District of Innovation Moves Forward
Dallas ISD Board of Trustees Fails to Put TRE on November Ballot
Full Debrief of Election Day (May 7) Dallas ISD Elections 2016
Kindergarten Suspensions in Dallas ISD Need to Go
Dallas ISD Board of Trustees Votes Blackburn out and MIcciche in as board president
The fight for kids between Dallas ISD and charter schools is just getting started
Sounds simple enough, right? Wrong.
The problem with my resolution, as has at times been a problem in my classroom, is that it was too vague, not mesurable, and without goals and benchmarks. In trying to teach and guide myself, I failed. I'm not sitting here telling everyone I'm a terrible human. I'm saying that I did things all year to varying levels of success and am not sure if I reached me goal or not. In my mind, if I'm not sure, then it didn't happen.
My goal for 2017 will be in a blog tomorrow, so stay tuned for that.
Now for the refelction on the year.
The good thing about the sharp decline in blog production this year is that it is much easier to catch up on 2016 than it was on 2015. There are far fewer hidden gems that slipped by you if you are a once a day or even a once a week reader. Thank you for continuing to support. If I were doing a countdown this year broken down into positives and negatives, it would be a much shorter list. As eventful as 2016 seemed, it was much more relaxed than 2015.
On the negative side, there are a few things that stood out to me. The facilities issues across the district, while not new, certainly came to light in 2016. The SOC community came out in numbers to protest the condition of the school. People outside of the SOC community came out in numbers to protest the condition of the school. People involved = good. This led to advocates from other schools coming out in support of their communities as well. Zumwalt's mold problems have come to light as well. Students and teachers are finally going to be able to learn in a less mold filled environment. The final thing that makes my negative list is four of our board members voting to not let voters vote. That's a mouthful of a sentence, but that should indicate how crazy I think that decision was. Yeah, yeah, I know "the wording was confusing," but that's why you have a campaign and actually talk to your consitutents to inform them on what's happening. Call me old fashioned.
Rounding things out on the positive side, I have been overwhelmed and encouraged by the amount of community interest and involvement in education this year. Sure, I love election season and talking with trustees, but the D2 race in particular created some fantastic conversations and brought a lot of voters out to get involved. I like that. I have a better handle on my classroom and my ability to create and sustain routines is improving. That's a small personal victory, but for those of you that know me in real life, that's a huge step for me. Graduate school is going well and I'm enjoying learning more about what goes into making a successful school. Are there people that know those things intuitively and don't need some fancy grad program to learn that stuff? Absolutely, but I love mixing the world's knowledge together to make things better for my kids. That's what books and the internet are for. Lastly, the board voted to move ahead with the District of Innovation process. I'm excited to see where that goes.
Best of luck in 2017. Expect us to get back to flooding the internets with our teacher thoughts like we did in 2015. In the meantime, take a trip through the past and read a few things you may have missed.
Follow us on Facebook; Twitter; iTunes; Soundcloud; Stitcher
Related Articles:
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2016 - A Dallas Teacher Reflection
Dallas ISD District of Innovation Moves Forward
Dallas ISD Board of Trustees Fails to Put TRE on November Ballot
Full Debrief of Election Day (May 7) Dallas ISD Elections 2016
Kindergarten Suspensions in Dallas ISD Need to Go
Dallas ISD Board of Trustees Votes Blackburn out and MIcciche in as board president
The fight for kids between Dallas ISD and charter schools is just getting started
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