This is a report from our "winter" NWEA assessments.  It shows which students achieved high scores on the tests, as well as how well they did or did not improve since the battery of tests they took at the beginning of this school year.  Three students moved away, and two moved in, but our two newest do not have previous scores to justify their placement on this particular chart.

The green plusses indicate math scores, while the purple squares represent reading, and the gray pentagons are language scores.  Red rhombii show results for Science.  Ideally, we want as many students in the green quadrant, showing that they have achieved high scores and increased by a significant amount.  Those students in the pink zone are the ones with the most concern.  The ones in yellow have decent scores, but did not make much progress in the last year, and the orange section is for students who improved, but still did not score high enough.

Everything here is based on the 50th percentile, meaning the yellow and green quadrants are for individuals who scored higher than the half of the students who took the test nationwide, and the green and orange quadrants display students who improved more than half of the students who were tested.

​Here are some observations:
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• High achievement:  Math - 8 students; Reading - 9 students; Language - 8 students; Science - 7 students
• High improvement:  Math - 8 students; Reading - 5 students;  Language - 5 students; 11 students
• Low achievement:  Math - 6 students; Reading - 5 students; Language - 6 students; Science 8 students
• Low improvement:  Math - 6 students; Reading - 9 students; Language - 9 students; 4 students
• Close to the high achievement line (Raising scores could move them to the right side of the chart.):  Math - 3 students; Reading - 2 students; Language - 3 students; Science - 5 students
• Close to the high improvement line (Significant improvement could move them to the top half of the chart.):  Math - 1 student; Reading - 2 students
• Close to high achievement and high improvement lines (A higher score and decent improvement could move them from the pink to the green.):  Reading - 1 student; Language - 1 student

I love this look for our classroom.  Now that our studies take us full-fledged into the Revolutionary War, I can pull out the bunting, General George Washington's blue flag with its six-pointed stars, and the 13-star flag (popularly recognized as the Betsy Ross flag).  These now accompany a reproduction of the Declaration of Independence, a portrait of General Washington and the cannon we looked at in recent weeks.  Somehow, it all works with the subtle addition of the Christmas ornaments in our lighted branches (at least for the few days we have until our holiday break).

"Best ideas; worst realities."  That's how our host explained the perplexing relationship between Thomas Jefferson and slavery.  It is indeed a contradiction in this great man's life - that he wished to end slavery, and tried in the Declaration of Independence, but that he owned over 600 slaves in his lifetime.

It is an inner struggle that embarrassed Jefferson to the point that he masked the enslaved population at Monticello, building walls and secret passages so guests would have minimal interaction or visual connection with any person owned by Jefferson.

Our virtual connection with the folks at Monticello offered us an opportunity to see some of the rooms in the mansion and ask questions that came to mind.  We will continue to learn more about Jefferson in the coming week.

Our most bulletin board came as a result of the season coming at the same time that we talked about the Battle of Bunker Hill in Boston.  The soldiers there were told not to shoot until they "see the whites of [the enemy's] eyes", due to the scarcity of ammunition and black powder.  On a brighter note, Hoggatteers have the upcoming holiday season in their eyes, so we turned the project into one with a little more positivity.

When the world seems dark, fill it with hope.

Now for some questions:

• In this video, what does darkness represent?
• What kinds of things could cause an entire town to be "dark"?
• What is "the spark"?
• What effect can one person have on the world?
• Who has been a spark for you?
• Have you ever been a spark for someone?  How?

Do you think people think about you when they refer to your profession?  I mean, if someone cites a "failing educational system", do you really think he is talking about your state, your district, your school, or you?  If that's the case, you may have something to learn about how people think.  Eleanor Roosevelt might have said it best:

Why can't people be critical of your profession without picking on you?  Can we not admit if something in our corner of the world is not going as well as we would like?  I have a teacher friend who was entirely offended when the president mentioned, in his inaugural speech, being disappointed in the state of American education.  There was no reasoning with this friend at the time.  This particular acquaintance took great personal offense at the president's comments and wanted me to join in taking offense.  By this person's reasoning, the president of the United States of America was disrespecting me.  Apparently, he was talking about my inability to move the needle on my students' test scores and employability.  The president must have been blaming me for the nation's struggle to compete on the world stage due to my ineptness in teaching.

That, of course, is nonsense.  I can be just as critical of a system without singling out every compensated member of said system.  Are there bad teachers?  Absolutely!  And I can say that without meaning that every teacher is bad.  In fact, I can even criticize it at a narrower level without meaning that every specific teacher with a name is failing.  

I also understand that when a person stands up in a state conference, a government house, or a school board meeting, that person can say some blunt things without referring to me.  At the last school board meeting in Joplin, there was some concern that parents were not supporting teachers at home.  With high school students meeting at school, in person, every other day, and expected to have virtual instruction and complete work on the off days, it seems that some have not performed well in the times away from the physical setting of a schoolhouse.  Some parents appear to be concerned that this is because teachers are not doing the virtual portion of their jobs.

I have seen the response from teachers who took offense at the parents' concern.  While such concern may be stated with lack of discretion, I think we need to look deeper to see if there is really a point to the parents' expressions.  We need not take such concern personally when it speaks to an overall system.  No teachers were "called out" for their laziness or inability to keep up with the job, so how about we have a conversation about it?  I think the school board handled disagreements on this issue with respect to conflicting opinions, speaking candidly with each other about possible solutions.  The problem, of course, is that we are trodding through uncharted terrain in a virtual atmosphere during social distancing and city mask mandates.  The problem is the fluid manner in which the Centers for Disease Control change their suggestions.  The problem is that no one knows the effects of the alternatives.  Many are frustrated, and many have thrown discretion out the window.

That does not mean that these parents were attacking me or any other teacher.  I know that I am doing my part in advancing the education of my students.  I know that I am making materials available online for my students who have been quarantined.  A person may not like me, or may not agree with my methods or materials, but their attacks on education or on our local system are not attacks on me.  I just don't see it that way.  Still, I must consider that within their words, there may be a legitimate issue that we can address - either as a district or as a teacher.  If some teachers have difficulty keeping up with the technology or the requirements, how can I make sure that I do not have the same issues?  And if some teachers are doing a whiz-bang job with all of this, how might they reach out and assist the others?

See how that works?  I can delineate the real issues embedded in a person's comments without turning their worries into personal attacks.  The same may be said of many of the political statements made in the recent election cycle.  The same is true of our society, which seems to spiral out of control trying to pin labels of racist, misogynist, xenophobe, homophobe, and other horrible accusations against people when they fail to express themselves with respect.  Even when they make such comments, is it possible they are not referring to every individual in a group?  Could it be that they only see a part of the picture?  Or could it be that they misunderstand a situation?  I'd like to give people the benefit of the doubt, as hard as that can be, before taking personal offense.

The whole world is not thinking about me as much as I may think.

Sometimes, when we go to the movies or as we watch a show on TV, we are transported into the plot.  Directors understand that their selection of background music can change and enhance a scene.

Now it is time to turn it around.  This time, the music comes first.  Do not watch the video; instead, let the music lead your imagination.  As it plays, allow it to transport you into a scene that has yet to be written.  Then, write the scene.  Use all the visual imagery you can muster in your writing.  At the end, you will share your writing.  Will it stand on its own, without the music in the background?