Today is short and sweet. (Though I will say more in the coming days, I am sure.) But essentially, I am on this mom’s bandwagon.

And when she says she thinks other parents should opt out as well, all I can say is that It’s a conversation I have been having a lot lately with other thoughtful educators and parents.

She held her kids out of standardized testing and feels her kids were better off for her having done so. While it’s a complicated issue – and one that is really hard to sum up in one word – I am gonna try to do it in minimalist fashion.

NICE!

Hi, my name is Whit Little and I have hacked Alan’s blog today to talk to you about this most important of seasons.

The season of data.

See, as we all know it’s coming up on testing time and in my role as the DDVP (Data-Driven Vice Principal) I want to make sure that you are properly placing all of your energy into the singularly most important area of a child’s education: their standardized test scores.

• Are your students prepared for the tests?
• Have you pre-tested the test material in order to make sure that your students are test ready?
• Have you generated data which can give an indication as to the data that will ultimately be generated from your students’ test data?
• Have you had the requisite amount of conversations about the importance of these tests to your students? (i.e. Twice a day on M,T,F and and three times per day on Tu, Th as per Ed Code Section 6ZL9TH.90L87M-B)
• Has your faculty engaged in enough meetings about the importance about upcoming tests?
• Have you done your “How to properly administer this test” workshop? (And don’t give me any of that, “But I’ve done this for years, why must I attend the same ol’ meeting yet again?” nonsense. It shows a lack of respect for the tests and of the importance of the data that these tests will generate.)

This time of year is no joke and we hope you understand the gravity of these tests. Please report all suspicious peers who display a cavalier attitude about the importance of these tests – or the data – to me, Whit Little. (You can just leave a comment below.)

And if you think it’s unethical for me to hack into Alan’s blog in order to relay the importance of the upcoming tests, might I remind you that the powers being granted to me, the DDVP, are currently growing in scale and scope to an unprecedented level.

Rightfully so, too. It’s a new era and this is but one of many changes to come in the near future so get over yourselves.

And yes, there will be a test.

I just made this point in a response to one of my blog posts last week.

More people in the 20th century read Shakespeare than any ever did in the 17th or 18th or even 19th centuries combined. And why? Because of technology.

And the thing is, for me, this illuminates the value of writing. Why? Because writing forces me to think and the thought above is a thought I’d never held before. It came to me through deeply ruminating about the impact of technology on today’s kids and classrooms.

So why do I blog like a fiend, posting probably 3,000 words a week online? Because writing sharpens my thinking and while not all of my thinking is remarkable or original (trust me, I am all too aware that I often score points in the “spectacularly unimpressive” category by people who take their time to read me), it does feed my brain in a way which I do find to be of benefit.

And to poo-poo the impact of all the online writing going on with today’s students is to, imho, disregard the thinking that they are doing in this day and age.

Me, I watched about 20 zillion hours of The Flintstones, The Brady Bunch and so on when I was a kid. Goodness knows how much better off I’d have been having had the ability to interact with my favorite media the way kids do. Instead, my brain was being trained to become passive mush – while being told to shop for sugary cereals and the such.

Sure, we can idealize how much better it was before all these video games and cell phones and blah, blah came to be but the idea that I can make a reference to the voodoo doll in the hokey Brady cave, Bam-Bam and the Fonz and have virtually everyone from my generation understand the reference because of OVER-EXPOSURE to this mindless dribble (okay, The Flintstones was cool, the Fonz in this day and age would get taken out back and pummeled and the Brady family… heck, even back then we knew that this was just weird) just further cements the point that things were not better when we were kids. At best, they were even. But in truth, today’s kids have access to scope, depth, and dynamism in a way which was never afforded to us… and to think that this will not result in a BURST of elevated thinking once they hit their 40′s (my age range) strikes me as cynical and arrogantly dismissive of genuine belief that the next generation can stand on the shoulders of our generation and take humanity to a higher and “better” level.

Every year on MLK day, I always wonder if we, as a nation, have achieved the Dream of Dr. King?

And year after year, the answer still remains in this fuzzy grey area for me. In some ways we have.

– Obama is president. That certain speaks volumes. On the other hand, one African American rising to to the top does not a nation make.
– Restaurants, water fountains, restrooms, sports, schools and so on are no longer overtly segregated. On the other hand, I think it’s a stretch to say that racial segregation in the United States is dead.
– The content of a person’s character is a much more significant barometer of how we judge people today (IMHO). On the other hand, if people can sing, dance, run, throw, jump, or score, we seem to cut them a heck of a lot of “content of character” slack that would (once again, IMHO) baffle Dr. King.

Will America ever really be post-racial? I mean whenever I ask students these kinds of questions – especially minority students – many of them seem to think that things are almost as equally bad as they once were. I don’t agree on that front (things were clearly WAY worse for minorities in America 150 years ago) but that does not mean that things are not bad today as well.

Hmm… will America ever be post-racial?

We’ve all heard about the 5 W’s of writing. The Who, What, Where, When and Why. (Also, there’s the H: the How).

But when I apply the 5 W’s to school, it seems pretty clear to me that there is one W which ought to come before all others.

The Why. As in Why the heck am I being asked to learn this?

In so, so, so many classrooms across our country, the students simply do not have an understanding as to WHY they are being asked to learn the things that are perpetually rolling across their school desks. Algebra, photosynthesis, the people that signed the Declaration of Independence… we “assign” these things under the banner of “you need to know this” and yet, I am not really too sure we are explicating WHY they need to know this.

If you doubt me, do a survey. Ask your kids about the reason they are learning the things they are learning in another teacher’s class. Ask them about WHY they are dissecting a frog in biology? Ask them about WHY they are learning about the great stock market crash of 1929.

And then see the fuzziness. Witness the vague-ness. See the lack of precision in their comprehension of the WHY.

And then (if you have the guts) ask them WHY they think they are learning whatever it is you are teaching them this week in your own class. Try not to give away any clues or hints or answers. Instead, just ask, “Can somebody please tell me – really tell me – why we are learning the parts of speech? Or how to properly use a comma? Or why we are even bothering to read HUCK FINN or this Shakespearian Sonnet?”

So, so, often, I have found that most of my kids really do not clearly know unless I overtly make the point of clearly explaining the reasoning behind me teaching whatever it is I am teaching. (And the lower-performing the student, the less aware of the WHY of learning – that’s another correlation I’ve seen time and time again.)

If a kid doesn’t know WHY they are studying the things they are studying they are, well… adrift. People are driven to pursue things out of meaning. Meaningfulness motivates and inspires our actions. Therefore, if a student doesn’t even know why they are being asked to learn Please Find for X in 3rd period, how well can we expect them to perform at the job of finding for X?

I mean when I think back to my own days as a student in a math class, not once do I ever recall my math teacher explaining WHY it was important that I learned to do things like factor equations.

“Because it is.”
“Because I told you so.”
“Don’t be a smart alek.”

Here’a real story that happened to me when I was a kid in school:
“Uhm, why do I even need to learn this? I know I’m never gonna be a mathematician”
“Mr. Sitomer, would you like to go to the office? Stop clowning around and do your work?”
“But why I need this?”
“That’s it… you are outta here.”

And yep, I got bounced. (Disclaimer: I got sent to the office a lot when I was a kid in school. I think that’s why I’ve always had an affinity for at-risk kids. I sorta see a bit of myself in them.)

It wasn’t until after I had earned a Masters degree that I came across the reasoning for teaching algebra to kids who don’t have any aspirations to be mathematicians.

In short, it’s because Algebra develops the cognitive ability of a kid to think for X. And in life, there are a lot of variables, a lot of X’s, one will eventually have to deal with. It’s like a a boot camp for critical thinking and high level choice weighing. “If this is this and that is that, how do you get X out of a situation?”

If someone would have just taken 2 minutes to explain that to me, I might not have been sent to the office so often.

Alas, I am scared not even my teachers really knew, though. (At least not clearly.) And the thing is, I was a good math student. But I became easily bored when there was no meaning in the work for me. And yet, there was meaning in the school work. I just didn’t know it and no one took the time to explain it to me.

How many kids today are experiencing the same phenomenon?

The WHY… students today need to know.

The more I think about it, the more I believe there is a fallacy embedded inside that which is being connoted when we refer to today’s kids as digital natives.

The term presumes that these kids are born with the skills they need to aptly navigate the digital world simply because, well… they were born into a digital age.

But when a kid, for example, doesn’t discern that there is a credibility gap between news which is being reported by Perez Hilton and the BBC I think the assumption that kids today know how to well-navigate the score of tech tools at their disposal flies out the window.

If anything, teachers are more important than ever… not less. After all, we teach about little things such as “veracity in journalism”.

I’d say there is an analogy to be drawn to fire here. Fire can cook your food, warm your house and so on. But used improperly/carelessly/recklessly fire will also burn down your home.

Technology is, as we are seeing, becoming somewhat like that. I mean the explosion of cyber-bullying is a fitting example. Sure, social networking is many, many positive things – yet clearly, it has its dangers as well. And just because a kid is a “digital native” it does not mean that they automatically know how to navigate these dangers. Perhaps, they might even be more at risk as a result of the hubris they demonstrate when not thinking things through (such as the pictures they post of themselves or of one another online, through sexting, and so on) when they leap into the word of using these new tools.

The false connotations inside the term “digital natives” might need a bit more scrutiny. Being able to merely pull the trigger of a gun does not by default mean that one can be said to know how to operate a weapon.

Legendary coach John Wooden passed away last night and the truth is, I have been struggling with multiple attempts at today’s blog post in an effort to put some of my thoughts about the man into perspective.

Alas, I am just discombobulated about it. Sure, he was a basketball coach who reached unprecedented heights, but it was his Pyramid of Success which really helped to inform my own philosophy and outlook on life.

And so, for today, I will leave it at that. With an eye towards doing a blog series about the Pyramid. Truly, he was a man which brought a lot of good light into this world.

Great news today!! I was just notified that my most biggest writing project ever, was named a Finalist for the 2010 Association of Educational Publishers Distinguished Achievement Awards in the category of Reading and Language Arts.

I really only started writing educational curriculum for one reason: I hated the fact that I was a perpetual complainer about all the junk that was out there being peddled to my school and my students.

And living in a world where I saw my school – and so many others – get, pardon my French, “fleeced” by educational publishers that weren’t providing what I felt needed to be provided in order to 1) effectively reach our modern students and 2) smartly empower today’s teachers with the tools they really needed to be effective professionals was driving me bonkers.

And the prices that these folks were charging? Jeez, it made my head spin. (Thus the French term above). I always felt it could be done better.

But then I had to face the facts. If I really thought it could be done better, I would have to prove it. It’s easy to talk and complain. It’s harder to actually do something about it.

And so I decided to take a run at educational publishing myself.

When publishers found out that I was going to put together a curriculum of best practices from my own classroom that pretty much used all the strategies, methodologies, insights and tools I had developed over the years and years I’d spent as a classroom educator (and as avid student of schooling itself) it landed me a bunch of meetings. Everyone was interested in working with me on this endeavor.

My literary agent, however, thought I was a bit nuts.

“Why take a detour off of a great – and growing – career as a YA novelist to go write material for teachers? The work is going to be three times as hard and the money a lot less?”

Now my agent is great. Best professional partner I have in many, many respects. However, when he heard my reasoning (i.e. I wanted to “give back”, I thought I could make a real difference, people asked me all the time for materials as to how I do what I do to reap the results I get with my kids) he said, “Ya know what, you won me over. I can see you feel passionate and think this is going to be something meaningful and special. Let’s do it! Let’s see if we can’t change, or at least try to change a world that has become fossilized.”

And so, of all the publishers available to me, I struck a deal with a young and hungry group over at Haights Cross and Recorded Books. What they lacked in tremendous size, they made up for in desire, smarts and talent. They let me captain the ship, they worked hard to provide all the resources I’d need to produce something smashing, and they put the pedal to the metal from the boardroom on down. Essentially, they gave me their full support. (And who doesn’t want/need that?)

What I was able to publish with them is, what I feel, the best teaching I have ever done. The BookJam is my response to my own complaining.

And though it’s still less than a year old – and there are more phases planned in the project (I just finished the Poetry Jam and The Classics Jam meaning 7 BookJams are already out while 4 more BookJams are being written by me this summer for release in the next 6-8 months) well… how cool is it that the Association of American Publishers just gave me a little love for my efforts.

So what’s the lesson? (I am always looking for lessons.) As teachers, we are not as disempowered as we think we are to bring about change. I rolled up my shirts sleeves and got to work.

Our schools are starving for more of us to take the lead. Science teachers, math teachers, history, PE, art, music, Special Ed and on and on and on.

We can do better.

Or kids deserve better.

The status quo is not working.

Being named a finalist for such a prestigious award, what’s it really mean? It means I now have the credibility to encourage other educators to quit looking to politicians and administrators with political agendas for the classroom answers you need.

Take the reins and have at it folks… you have no idea where it will lead.

I didn’t.

The Tax Man Cometh today… so I decided to do a free webinar providing some tool and insights on using Poetry in the classroom.

My theme: Is Poetry Dead?

My answer: Heck no!

In case you haven’t been paying attention, the past few years have seen an absolutely amazing renaissance in poetry… particularly when it come to teens and their interest in reading, writing and performing (via spoken word) poetry.

Truly, it energizes a classroom in such an electric manner that to try and even describe it is simply not possible. You just gotta live it to see it.

And the truth is, it’s SO EASY to replicate in your own classroom.

Later today, I am going to talk about this, provide some free tools and teaching tips and thoughts on how to tackle the teaching of poetry and so on because hey, Uncle Sam might be reaching into your pocket today but since it’s National Poetry Month I figured why not try to put something of solid value — and of no cost — in your teacher’s bag as well.

To check it out, simply go here.

In closing today, I’ll end with a little poetry about taxes… as authored by The Beatles.

If you drive a car, I’ll tax the street,
If you try to sit, I’ll tax your seat,
If you get too cold, I’ll tax the heat,
If you take a walk, I’ll tax your feet.

‘Cause I’m the taxman,
Yeah, I’m the taxman.

I am at CATE today, at the The California Association of Teachers of English Annual conference. I love this event. Why?

1) Awesome authors.
-Nikki Grimes
-T.A. Barron
-Michelle Serros
-Joy Harjo
-Sonia Nazario
-Junot Diaz

2) Tons of folks sharing best practices
-Writing workshops
-Reading workshops
-New Media workshops
-Assessment workshops
-Workshops on how to do a Workshop, they have it all!

3) The Exhibit Hall
-Call me a dork but cruising the Exhibit Hall is one of my favorite things to do at conferences. From the t-shirts I buy (how many people here own an ERACISM t-shirt… that guy’s gotta be a millionaire by now) to checking out the latest and greatest that publishers have to offer — and seeing how badly some of the stuff stinks. I mean some materials that people today are peddling just look so old and tired and “been there, done that” don’t they, to the books I inevitably purchase (I always leave carrying more stuff out than I brought with me in), I just LOVE the Exhibit Hall!

4) The friends, old and new
-CATE is really such a warm place. It’s the people that make this conference rock! Getting to see folks I haven’t seen in a year (since last year’s CATE conference usually) is always fun. But the truth is, I just love chillin’ with English teachers. They make the wittiest of references, too. Gotta stay sharp to run with this crowd.

Much love to CATE.

And a great many thanks to all the hard-working people who toil so fabulously to put it on year after year.