Student talking about our Socratic Seminar today: “I thought it went well. I learned a lot, but I was so nervous. I had more to say but felt myself holding back. Our class is so diverse, which is a good thing, but it makes it hard to be open to sharing everything.”

There is a lot more scrutiny on schools now. This pressure led to districts, boards, and principals overemphasizing test scores, while there is also no incentive for students to try on them. Meanwhile, Ss have more demands on their time than ever and don’t value their education like they used to.

Thanks, Josh. The work you’re doing is so important. I appreciate you.

Love this one. Especially once you get to Part 2

Late to the party on this one. Enjoying it though.

I do think, though, that it is harder now to convince Ss that there is value in investing their time and energy into a challenging academic task. There is more demand on their time than ever before. As Ts, this is why we have to lead with the “why” behind what we do. “Because I said so” won’t work.

We can all take more responsibility to better prepare and challenge our students, but this just sounds like he wants to pass off the ownership to the teachers who are beneath him. I personally know the people who write the exam questions. I help score them each year. The rigor is there.

I agree with all three. Especially questions about CB motivations. But it is because of your 3rd point that I disagree with this professor’s ideas about HS teachers not being aware what the most current academic practices are. It sounds, to me, like he is the one set in his ways.

I am impressed everyday by what my students can do. Their quality of academic thought is just as good as it has always been for HS Seniors. What I see in this article is a professor who doesn’t like what he sees in the mirror.

As an AP teacher myself, I’m curious about what you see from your students and their scores? Do you believe that kids who score a 4 or a 5 are capable of spending time and complex thought on lengthy and complex texts? Particularly when you consider how they compare to the average college freshman.

Yes! Such a great story.

For me, today, it was Invisible Man.

As soon as students are tracked or pulled into special classrooms because of a test or a teacher recommendation we start losing them. All of a sudden there are classes of kids who believe they aren’t capable of the same level of work as the “smart kids.”

Thank you so much!