Proof That Writing Rubrics in Oklahoma Are Designed to Fail Your Kids

I’ve been an English teacher for over 20 years. I know how to teach students to write essays. It is in my blood. I can usually take any student from a mediocre writer or a poor writer to a functional writer. I have worked in districts with zero vertical team and a micromanaging vertical team.

Oklahoma Education Rally: Were We Heard?

Yesterday I attended what is becoming an annual event in my state: the Oklahoma Education Rally.  I made several signs, but in the end I didn’t take them, choosing to go with my friend Michael Dean (featured on this week’s podcast) as he talked to our representatives, and then live tweet the entire experience.  I didn’t

Teaching: Why It Is Not What It Used To Be

Today’s letter on the A to Z Blogging Challenge is “T”, and if there is something that has been on my mind lately it is teaching.  A few weeks ago, a retiring teacher Gerald Conti posted to Facebook about the teaching profession as it stands today.  The letter went viral.  In it, Conti cited the

Writing in the Classroom: A Common Core Must

For too long students in public schools in the U.S. have been shackled by the mandates of NCLB, which has recently been proven to be an absolute failure.  Students have been taught to do well on a test because teacher evaluations are based on test scores, which is absolutely absurd.  What job on earth other