This past weekend, I was called "earnest" by Robert Pondiscio at the Core Knowledge blog, an adjective that rather delights me. I had no idea I might still qualify as earnest. Unfortunately, I'm not feeling very earnest today, due to recent events at my' [...] 
by special guest blogger Michael Fiorillo
false 18 pt 18 pt false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; [...]
I wish I had something new and exciting to blog about today, but with four of the five days since my last blog being taken up by the Thanksgiving break, there's not much new to report. Then again, with news like this, who really needs [...] 
I can't say I'm too jazzed about the mayor's call to use test scores to make tenure decisions. As you know if you read my blog, I'm all for making teacher evaluation fairer, more circumspect, and more rigorous. But using test scores to make' [...] 
When I was in school and in college, I was a super-hyper-high achiever. There was an almost unstated expectation in my family that I would do well all the time at everything. This, of course, led to some heartbreak when I plateaued in math at [...] 
So after my last post, I thought we might need to lighten the mood a bit, yes? 
You may remember my post about Lena, the girl who claimed to not like anything in an interview with a classmate. I haven't posted about Lena in a while because I've been concerned about revealing too much about her, but since I choose to keep [...] 
Gee willikers. Sarah Palin has banned all cell phones and recording devices from her book tour. [...] 
“How old are you?”
Why don't you give up that stressful teaching gig and get a job arbitrating teacher dismissals? If they catch you, just say you had droopy eyes. And so what if you ruled in the DoE's favor in almost each and every case? [...] 
Oh yeah, because of stuff like this. To be fair, they do issue refunds when you find dead frogs in your salad. [...] 
If you've been following my blog, you know that the Specialized High School Admissions Test has been a pet peeve of mine from the blog's earliest days. It bothers me that lazy, half-interested kids who happen to be good at taking tests get invited to [...] 
I know that many of my colleagues and readers have had (or currently have) the problem of parents who are, shall we say, too involved in the education of their children, and by this mean involved to the actual detriment of their children. I have not [...] 
Maybe you're in the wrong line of work. CNN states that high school teachers have one of the most stressful and poorly paid jobs anywhere. That's certainly not encouraging. It makes you think you aren't half as smart as you thought you were.
Mayor-for-life Michael Bloomberg sees privatization as the key to all our woes. After all, look how well it works in the health insurance field. Look what it's done for our national economy. It's kind of like watching the national GOP. In boom times, they [...] 
There's always drama in the air when you're hanging around with a few dozen teenagers. In my beginning ESL class I have a young man with a fairly wicked sense of humor, but alas, insufficient vocabulary to express it. The class is in a semicircle. I like [...] 
Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes is the touching, sad, beautiful story of a young Japanese girl who was dying of leukemia caused by the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. She begins making paper cranes to pass her time in the hospital and hopes to [...] 
Serena is just about everything you could want in a student: she's bright, hardworking, pleasant, respectful, helpful. She comes from a wonderful family that supports her in every way. Most importantly, she's not one to complain gratuitously. So when she told me recently that she had [...] 
It was a crazy day for Miss Eyre, and she just couldn't have lunch with the kiddies. There was too much going on, and she needed some peace and quiet and time to grade a handful of papers. But, as it happened, she also needed to swipe' [...] 
Don't let those zombies get you down. Get one of these 275-meal emergency kits from Costco and board up those windows.' [...] 
Lena is a very quiet girl. And when I say quiet, I mean too quiet. Like something isn't right.
Download the Ramones Greatest Hits
