Genius Freak

As I was planning out a unit in reading non-fiction text for my juniors in AP English Language and Composition, I decided it was time to go to the Transcendentalists.  Not everyone's favorites, I know, but close to my heart (the inspiration for the title of this blog), and the source of some of the most well-known lines in all of American literature. One of those lines, from the "Conclusion" of Thoreau's  Walden, famously reminds us that he   "went to the woods because [he] wished to live deliberately." As I read it this time around, I was also reminded that the "teach deliberately" mantra I have been repeating to myself this year echoes that passage I have read so many times. Continuing my preparations, I came across this line from the "Sounds" chapter of Walden , and knew it was the thought-foundation on which I would build a project for my students: "Follow your genius closely enough, and it will not fail to show you a fresh...

If nothing else were to come out of all the current hubbub in teaching - new evaluation model, new standards, new student assessments - one positive outcome is the fact that I am motivated to look at my practices more reflectively and intentionally now, maybe more-so than I have at any time in my career. The motivation doesn't come from being afraid that I won't score well on the Marzano scale.  I'm not opposed to the Marzano scale.  In fact, I like that it offers more possibilities than my just being satisfactory or unsatisfactory.  And I am willing to trust that whoever observes me will do his/her best to make an accurate assessment of my work in the classroom by looking at the evidence of what is going on in there. I understand that the Marzano model is based on meta-research - researching the research - on what effective teachers do.  I think that research is important for me to know as a professional in the field of education.  If it can help me be a be...