reflection

What A 55 Looks Like On This Side [Fail Is A Strong Word]

November 12, 2012 Mr. Vilson

Sifting through the multitude of ungraded papers, I looked for some sign that they actually learned something. I hate entering in 55s in my Excel sheet. A teacher can say whatever they want to the kids, and threaten them about not doing well, but most of us prefer that all of our kids do well [...]

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10³ (My 1,000th Post and Running)

November 6, 2012 Jose

Last night starts off with you telling the world that you have no idea what you’re going to write for your 1,000th post. Do you bunt it and just write “This is my 1000th post?” Do you try to hit a homerun with a colossal montage of highlights and achievements since the first time you [...]

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Teaching Another 180

September 6, 2012 Mr. Vilson

Last night: Honestly, I’m nervous again. I know the routines, too. Sleep tight. Groom well. Come in with a tie. Introduce myself and the class I’m teaching. Announce names. Give out contact cards. Discuss the syllabus. Hope you don’t have a lot of time left over at the end. Leave without too much fanfare. Yet, [...]

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A Whole Month Left (A Freewrite)

May 27, 2012 Jose

“You’re going to miss us!” “Yes, I’m going to miss bothering the heck out of you!” I mean, why do students think we’re actually going to spend our off time thinking about them? Except when we do. Like now. There’s only a month left before we usher them on to their next stations in life [...]

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On Getting Better At Your Craft

November 29, 2011 Mr. Vilson

This year, I decided I was going to focus more intently on developing lesson plans day-to-day. To be honest, I lost a bit of that, thinking that developing plans by units would be substantive enough to get through to my students and through my curriculum. I was approaching “getting better” by concentrating on getting better [...]

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Above and Beyond

November 13, 2011 Jose

Often, people make me question what the words “above and beyond” mean in an age when we’re obsessed with overworking and overstating. When Carmen told me that she will not go above and beyond in her activism, I started to think about what that meant based on what I knew about her. When someone approaches [...]

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I Got Nuttin’ But Love For Ya

November 8, 2011 Mr. Vilson

I wear a mask when I go to work. It’s the Mr. Vilson mask, and it provides me the distance from people that my age (and respect) otherwise wouldn’t give me. I wear it when I get off the A train on the Dyckman – 200 St. stop. I wear it as I race up [...]

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The Honeymooners

September 12, 2011 Mr. Vilson

Everyone calls this period the “honeymoon” on purpose. We lay the ground rules for the first few periods we encounter each other, get to know each other a bit, and make connections based on things we might have already observed. From there, we play nice, engaging in a light display of tug-and-pull, a diluted version [...]

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If You Don’t Give Me Heaven, I Raise Hell

September 6, 2011 Jose

Did we cross the threshold of teacher complacency yet? Today, Pernille Ripp asked “How many of us blog about our philosophies and classroom changes but are too afraid to tell our face to face colleagues?” to her followers. I responded, “I used to. This year, I’ve decided against it.” Some, including Mary Beth Hertz, were [...]

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The 2011 Mr. Vilson Manifesto [Dark Knight Feeling]

September 5, 2011 Jose

I’m not a hero. You can start off with the greatest intentions, develop great relationships, and create wonderful initiatives for your team. By our own meritocratic illusions, we believe that the more someone does these things in their spaces, they’re entitled to a certain amount of greatness. Yet, our reality establishes limits on that type [...]

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